Successful Year in China 2007

Another milestone has been met for the GET program. The 2007 China Teacher Exchange took our program to another level by integrating teachers not only from Wisconsin and China but also South Africa and Puerto Rico. GET�s multi-national exchange united 31 educators for 3 weeks to explore diverse ecosystems in China. The staging took place in Beijing where the foreign teachers learned about the history of China�s environmental movement. They met with leaders in the field of environmental education and visited local sites.

After a few days orientating themselves to China, the foreign teachers were united with teachers from Xinjiang and Yunnan in Urumqi. This gave all the teachers involved a unique opportunity to learn about the dry, mountainous areas of Xinjiang Autonomous Region. They traveled from 300 feet below sea level to 11,000 feet in the mountains to experience the landscape firsthand. While visiting each site, teachers shared and learned about various environmental issues Xinjiang faces. Water issues were a strong discussion focus for this desert region. Teachers visited and actually stood face-to-face with Xinjiang�s No. 1 Glacier, the most extensively studied glacier in China and, like the fate of hundreds of glaciers throughout the world, one that is melting at a rate of probable extinction within 30 years. They also learned about the 2,000 year old irrigation system used in Turpan, Karez. The Karez is an underground irrigation system that is considered one of the greatest engineering achievements of ancient China.

Following a week exploration and study in Xinjiang, the group of teachers traveled to Yunnan together to experience the tropical ecosystems in China. Participants visited the Shilin Stone Forest, a karst region which is part of a half a million square kilometer UNESCO World Heritage Site that represents one of the most spectacular examples of humid tropical to sub-tropical karst in the world. The teachers also visited Kunming�s top Green School to learn about the programs they engage students in to learn about natural resource management and environmental issues. To round out the travel study program, participants visited Yunnan�s biodiversity hot spot in the Xishuangbanna region of southern Yunnan. During a 4-day study, teachers stayed at the Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Gardens while they learned about some of the 11,500 botanic species and experienced the rich ethnic diversity in this unique province. Sprinkled throughout the exchange were sessions teachers were given to share ideas, learn about the school systems in the USA, China, and South Africa, and gain experience with practical teaching methods.

Upon departure, teachers walk away with more ideas and tools to enrich their classroom lessons. Each teacher must create a plan for the coming year to integrate newly acquired information into their curriculum.

The follow-up and future of this program is to reunite the teachers on North American soil in Wisconsin July 2008. This will provide the necessary follow-up to assess the integrated activities and expand on the enriching program.