It is my belief that whereas the 20th century has been a century of war and
big screen, and the 2nd graders were all eagerly asking questions about everything their friends had done and seen,” she
says.
Davison also teaches 4th graders who are learning English
as a second language. When they have international contact
with students who are learning English, they are motivated to
practice their language skills. Davison connected with an
English class in Turkey through a site called Around the World
grate technology in their classrooms. The focus of digital tools
in language classes must always be on facilitating language
acquisition, not on simply using high-tech skills, she warns.
As Davison puts it,
We’re not “Skyping.” We’re communicating with our friends in
Turkey. . . . We want technology to enhance language learning, as
in the 5 Cs; that’s the whole point. When you are talking about
[giving students experiences with] “communities” and “
collaborations,” 21st century tools like blogging and wikis are absolutely
perfect.
France and Oklahoma: Education Allies
If one teacher can bring the world into her language classroom
using a few technological tools, what might a larger, statewide
effort accomplish? Since 2007, 24 schools in Oklahoma
(mostly secondary, but also a few middle and elementary
schools) have partnered with schools in France to make
connections using new technologies. This partnership came
into being through an alliance between the Oklahoma State
Such moments of human contact
make geography, culture, and
language real for students.
in 80 Schools ( www.aroundtheworldin80schools.com) and
created a wiki to communicate with these learners. A wiki is a
Web page that groups can edit together online. Wiki content
may include text or images. On their collaborative wiki,
Davison’s language learners and their Turkish counterparts
shared photos and swapped information about history, favorite
games and hobbies, and cultural traditions such as food and
holidays.
After she connected her English class with this Turkish
group, Davison’s students began to care about someone else
across the world. When there was an earthquake in Italy,
Davison’s students all wanted to know, Is that near Turkey?
Davison teaches classes to help other language teachers inte-
Department of Education and the Académie d’Amiens, one of
30 regional education districts in France. The partnership
presents a good model for other states looking to pursue international connections and has produced exciting transnational
projects.
© SUSIE FITZHUGH
Consider the Oklahoma Soldiers’ Project. Students at West-moore High School in Oklahoma City and students from Lycée
Jean Racine in Montdidier, France, are researching battles of
World Wars I and II in which Oklahoma soldiers fought and
died on French soil. Groups of learners from both countries
(including teachers and parents) each adopt an Oklahoman
soldier buried in France. Each soldier’s group of learners
researches that soldier’s personal story, visits the soldier’s grave,
honors his life with some personal gesture of veneration, and
photographs the soldier’s grave to include with all the documentation gathered on that person.
Students deepen their understanding of the war by reading
literary passages and novels related to World War I, such as Un
Long Dimanche de Fiançailles (A Very Long Engagement) by
Sebastien Japrisot. Advanced students from the United States
read the works by French authors in French. Learners
exchange e-mails and share on their wiki information they
learn about each soldier and each battle. Eventually, the collab-
