Thursday, June 25, 2009

Seven British teachers visited Montgomery County schools last month as part of the British Council's Teachers International Professional Development program.

The program places British teachers in schools around the world, where they work with local educators to exchange information and experiences on best practices related to a particular educational theme or issue.

During the last week in May, the British teachers from Staffordshire were placed at Highland View Elementary, Rolling Terrace Elementary, Eastern Middle and Blair High schools. The theme addressed during their visit was "Teaching and Learning -- Removing Barriers to Learning."

At Eastern Middle, the visitors participated in a demonstration of the computerized interactive whiteboards that have been installed in many Montgomery classrooms over the last two years. It is a technology that some in the group had also seen at home; the boards are made by the British company Promethean.

In total, 43 teachers from England (in four different groups) visited Montgomery schools during the 2008-09 academic year. Their visits focused on topics that included boys' underachievement, gifted and talented programs, and numeracy. The visiting groups of 10 to 15 teachers choose a theme that is relevant to their schools.

The international professional development program is managed by the British Council, which is the United Kingdom's international nonprofit organization for cultural relations and educational opportunities.

-- TOM LANSWORTH