“Perfect match” – NRW-USA 2023/2024

The United States of America and North Rhine-Westphalia share a history of about 340 years. We are proud that today our friendship is characterized by strong cooperation in diplomacy, education and business. The State Government of North Rhine-Westphalia used this opportunity to recognise, strengthen and celebrate the close relationship with NRW-USA for 2023/2024. The program was officially launched on June 22, 2023.

join us! – Participation opportunities for schools

One of the main goals of the NRW-USA program for 2023/2024 is to highlight teachers and especially students committed to exchange with the United States. That is why we call on all schools to actively participate in this campaign The project Location To report on personal exchange experiences and projects. There is also the possibility to link to existing sites and post photos.

Many exciting events are planned as another highlight of the NRW-USA 2023/2024 year. Schools are also waiting for interesting offers, which are currently being offered by the Ministry of Education AmerikaHaus NRW volt And the US Consulate General Dusseldorf It is planned. Other US-linked institutions also want to participate. You can find an overview of the event in the digital version calendar On the program website.

There are already many students and teachers committed to transatlantic cooperation in very different ways. We would like to present a small selection of them here:

Discover Diversity: USA Exchange as part of the GAPP School Partnership

Not since 1683, but for 30 wonderful years Heinrich Heine High School In Oberhausen you can look back on exchanges with schools in Vancouver in the state of Washington in the USA. The successful school partnership depends on the commitment of one of the school’s former teachers, who spent a year teaching in the early 1990s as part of a teacher exchange at Clark College in Vancouver, Washington. The personal contacts created there paved the way for the first student exchange.

For several years, Das Heine has been holding regular exchange meetings with Columbia River High School. Participants are supported by German-American Partnership Program (GAPP)exchange program in the United States of America Pedagogical Exchange Service (PAD) Secretariat of the Conference of Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs. The versatile program provides real insights into the interesting experiences students have had with their teachers Jutta Klimpel and Christian Hoskis as part of this year’s exchange GAP Blog Of the participants.

In order to learn more about this sustainable partnership and to thank the school for its significant commitment, School Secretary Dorothy Feller and Consul General from the US Consulate General in Düsseldorf, Pauline A. Kao personally visited Das Heine in August. There, the students talked with their guests in a lively way about their exchange experiences. Dorothy Feller then admired: “In conversations with the students, it was clear how enriching the exchange experiences had been for them. Overall, you could tell how much the school wanted to breathe life into its relationship with American schools. Yes, I would say: Excellent match!

Diversity and Inclusion: Fulbright Teacher Exchange Program

doctor. Ruth Malaka, Head of Department at ZfsL Leverkusen (HRSGe) and teacher at Lechlingen High School, to report. The teacher traveled as part of Diversity and inclusion in the classroom – Fulbright Commission Exchange Program to Columbus, Ohio, in order to participate in professional exchange on the topics of inclusion, diversity, and equal opportunity. In addition to visits to schools and universities, the program also included professional workshops (eg on the topic of language support for immigrants) in the USA. For Dr. Ruth Malaka opened exciting new horizons at Ohio State: “In exchanges with colleagues, it became clear that we could learn from each other in many ways. I was particularly impressed by the strengths-based view American teachers had of their students. This gave me exciting new motivations Interested in developing my teaching skills and my work in training teachers in middle schools.

Going Green: A transatlantic blended learning project for greater sustainability

Class 9A recently demonstrated that successful encounters with the topic USA can also take place in the home classroom Brother of Chol Onna High School With the win becomes green–He showed impressive results in competition. as part of US Embassy in Berlin As part of the structured school project, students created innovative action plans for a more sustainable lifestyle in bilingual lessons and documented them using a variety of digital media. For Ulrike Filbeck, who accompanied the project as a teacher, the commitment was definitely worth it: “The students not only developed their foreign language skills and expanded their specialized knowledge on the topic of sustainability, but also gained significantly project skills. As a teacher, I also learned a lot. For example For example, I was able to use an alternative testing format as part of the project work.

Let’s make the year of NRW-USA together! – Form NRW-USA together!

Would you also like to enrich the year of NRW-USA with your participation? Share your story with us! We are looking for your input www.NRW-USA.nrw!

Author: Barbara Richter, Ministry of Schools and Education of North Rhine-Westphalia