I'm thinking of doing a Fulbright....

I've heard that phrase uttered by so many educators, and they usually follow it up with, "but... I'm not sure I'd be selected." Here's the deal, folks: you won't get it if you don't apply for it! And the experience is incredibly worth it. So, if you're thinking about a Fulbright Teacher Exchange, go for it! Take your partner! Take your family! Take your kids! Speaking as someone who grew up going to school in another culture (Micronesia), I can testify personally to the power of an international experience at a young age. My brothers and I learned much more than reading and arithmetic from our education on Saipan: intercultural skills are not developed by staying home, and I am eternally grateful to my parents for involving us in the adventure.

So here are some opportunities for you:

A. The Fulbright Classroom Teacher Exchange, in which you swap jobs with another teacher. The exchange is one full school year. Both teachers get paid their home country salary and depending on the country, also receive an additional stipend. People who are looking for a way to build their language skills, challenge themselves as a teacher, and grow as an individual should definitely apply. And you're right to think carefully about the experience: it's not easy, but the rewards are huge. More information is at: http://exchanges.state.gov/globalexchanges/fulbright-teacher-exchange-program.html

B. The Fulbright Distinguished Educator Award. Designed to support educators in pursuing projects of professional interest, this program is a three to six month long placement in another country. Selected educators take university classes and work on a project of their design. Here are two examples of teachers selected: http://www.bostonpublicschools.org/node/3480

C. Fulbright not your cup of tea? Check out these other Department of State programs, designed to engage US citizen with our global community. http://exchanges.state.gov/index.html

P.S.

The Cycle Continues. I stumbled into the hotel lobby at 3 a.m., exhausted yet oddly alert. I love to travel, even if it is across the country on what has become a grueling 11 (or longer!) hour trip with a long layover in Texas due to thunderstorms. But I am back in D.C., my adolescent home-away-from-home, and the site of where I began my Fulbright adventure last year. How much is the same, and how much has changed. The Fulbright should come with a warning label, another Fulbrighter joked once. "Warning: May change your life completely." It sounds glamorous and exciting, but sometimes it's just plain hard.

But that morning, at 3 a.m., I only felt excitement, eager to help prepare the new teacher group for their Mexico-US exchange year. Over the next day and a half, I attended sessions with the group, and told them as much as I could without overwhelming them. Looking back on the year, so much of what you need to know you need to be there to understand, and it is difficult to transmit the experience through words. I brought some visuals, which were helpful - posters Mexican colleagues had their students do for presentations, so the US teachers could see what their Mexican students were used to. Official documents I had had to turn in and get copied and signed in triplicate. My schedules, both the "official" version and the real version. Yes, that's actually how they were referred to by the administrator who gave them to me!

Best of all, my time with the 09-10 Fulbright group was capped with a trip back to Mexico, and on the flight from Chicago to Mexico City the program director and I sat together and talked the entire time like the good friends we have become. There were small reminders of how far I've come in my language skills- the airline attendant didn't know if I was a Mexican or US citizen. "US," I said. "Resident or citizen?" she asked for double clarification. It was a surreal moment. In Cuernavaca, I attended the quinceañera birthday party I had been invited to and spent a few days visiting friends and eating tacos al pastor, fresh mangos, and lots of tortillas.

A year abroad will change anyone. It'll make you re-evaluate what you want, what is important to you, and where you see yourself headed. Mexico no longer feels so far away, nor so exotically different. Working in another country makes you an active participant in a way being a student does not. Caution, the Fulbrght application should read. May make borders less permanent.

Mexico by the numbers 2008-2009 Fulbright year

Total students taught: 293

Classrooms second semester: 8

Days and hours school was cancelled: 22 days, 17.5 hours

Towns/cities visited: 52

Museums visited: 21 (approx.)

States visited: 14, plus D.F.

Longest continuous bus ride: 15 hours

Ruins visited: 11

Churches visited: too many to count!

Visits with other Fulbrighters: 10

Out-of-country visitors: 8

Cooking classes taken: 5

Suitcases/backpacks taken (between 2 people): 5, plus 1 box

On return: 5, plus 1 box and 1 puppy

Trips back to the States: 2

Scorpions found in house: 2

Formal presentations given: 2

Crops of tomatoes: 2

Houses we lived in:2

Professional soccer games attended:1

Cell phones lost: 1

Cars driven: 0

Tamales

No, we are not done with school yet!  The official date, prolonged because of the flu cancellation, is now July 10th, although I leave July 6th.  The last few weeks are becoming packed  with despedidas, last visitors to Mexico, our senior's graduation, and of course, a course in tamal-making!  Two weekends ago my colleague Lulu and her husband (who we all just call "Médico") invited several of us from work over for an afternoon of tamales.  Lulu was our maestra, since none of us had made all the varieties she had us prepare: tamales oaxaqueños, tamales de masa cocida (cooked corn), tamales de frijol, tamales de mole rojo, and tamales de mole verde.  In total, we made over 300 tamales.  You can never have too many tamales!      The last time I made tamales, I swore never to do it again, but I realized, as we cooked, stirred, folded and steamed the tamales, that the real way to make tamales is in a group.

They are incredibly simple but require a lot of time to make the fillings, prepare the masa, and assemble. But with a crew of friends, some good jokes, and maybe a few beers, the process is much more enjoyable than one person in her kitchen filling and folding dozens of corn husks!  

     A few notes on the differences between tamales:  tamales oaxaqueños use banana leaves, which we cooked before using, and the masa has a lot more lard added to it than regular tamales.  

     Tamales de masa cocida are made of a coarsely ground corn mixture that is precooked, unlike the masa harina mixture that you can buy and just add water to. 

     Tamales de frijol are made like a jelly roll - the masa is patted out into a huge circle, and then the cooked and mashed beans are spread on top.  You roll the whole thing up, and then lop off chunks to put into your corn husk.  

     Next on the list of cooking with friends: Thai food tonight with a friend who used to live in Portland, and next week pozole with her mom.

Día del maestro/día del estudiante

    Now that the H1Ni epidemic scare is over, we can get back to what life is really about: celebrating teachers! 

The Day of the Teacher (May 15th this year) is a national holiday here in Mexico, and events range from massive protests in the streets by or against the teacher's union, and get-togethers with fellow teachers.  I met up with some friends for breakfast on Friday, and on the following Monday the school had "breakfast" of chicken, rice, and cake for the staff during the recess time.   There is no difference here between classroom teacher and those who work outside the classroom- everyone belongs to the same union, and everyone celebrates on Teacher Day. 

What surprised me the most were my students, who exhibited a kindness and thoughtfulness that we don't often see in US students.   One student brought a cake for me to class on Monday, and had even remembered to bring plates and spoons for everyone.   On it she had written "Feliz día, maestra" and so everyone ate cake while they took a quiz (Feliz día maestra does not get you out of English class requirements!).   Then, at the end of class, two girls came up with presents for me.  I'm thinking this is a holiday we should export.    

This week on Friday we celebrate student day, which we should also export -most of the seniors are taking the day to do a fun activity with their advisor and their professional team.