Preparing students to be world citizens means providing opportunities
for international experiences, but it also includes demonstrating
the value of contributing to the local community.
The UGA-Clarke
County Schools Partnership, a five-year plan aimed at
improving student learning, brings together teachers, principals,
district administrators, community service agency leaders,
parents and UGA faculty and students in collaboration with
two pilot schools, Chase Street and Gaines Elementary Schools.
Earlier this year, UGA students who participated in a study
abroad trip to Cuba visited Gaines Elementary School and hosted
mini-assemblies, where the young students danced, viewed pictures
and slides, and created art based on what they'd learned about
Cuba.
Gaines School is one of two Clarke County elementary schools
involved in the innovative partnership with the UGA College
of Education that’s designed to improve student achievement
that was begun in February 2001. Chase Street Elementary is
also a partnership school. The partnership has also brought
art education students into elementary classrooms to teach
weekly, providing valuable development time for teachers,
arts experiences for the elementary students and teaching
experience for UGA students.
Professor of art Joseph Norman's work was the focus of one
unit of instruction taught at Gaines Elementary. Norman deals
with the varied and often controversial issues associated
with human relationships in his paintings, drawings and lithographs.
His drawing titled "Target Practice: Take This. Take
That!" features a sleek hammer looming above a nail-filled
piece of wood.
"When we get into an argument we tend to target the same
issues and like driving nails in our hearts, we hammer away
with painful words. Even apologizing cannot remove the scars
left in our hearts (or the holes left in the wood),"
Norman said.
UGA art education students and Gaines Elementary students
used this drawing to think about, discuss and create art about
"The Power of Words." Norman later visited the students
to discuss their work.
Competing in a Global Economy
The University of Georgia is at the forefront of the globalization
movement in higher education with a wealth of opportunities
for international experiences. Our students are flocking to
study abroad programs, thriving on the challenges inherent
in confronting a new cultural environment. More and more,
students on campus are also making choices that reflect an
understanding of the importance of global awareness —
from living in a residence hall-based language community to
starting a radio program in another language to minoring in
a foreign language. These experiences, whether at home or
abroad, influence how our students perceive the world and
their place in it. We’re producing graduates prepared
to be world citizens — well informed, culturally sensitive
and technologically sophisticated. They’re ready to
take on the challenges of our global society, and they’ll
be equally at home whether in the Peach State or the Republic
of Georgia.
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