UpDate - Vol. 12, No. 39, Page 3
August 19, 1993
African educators impressed with USIA-sponsored tour

     Seeing America up close and personal enriched a full schedule of
classroom activities this summer for participants in the Summer Institute
for English-as-a-Foreign Language (SIEFL) program, conducted at the
University of Delaware.
     For six weeks during July and August, 23 educators from 11 French- and
Portuguese-speaking African nations learned new teaching techniques,
improved their English skills and visited some of the East Coast's
major-and lesser-known but equally interesting-tourist attractions.
     The program was conducted under a United States Information Agency
(USIA) grant. The University's English Language Institute (ELI) was one of
only two organizations selected to receive federal support this year.
     Wayne Thorp, a Red Clay School District elementary teacher, serves as
ELI's summer orientation coordinator and was responsible for the
administrative components of the first-ever SIEFL program on the Newark
campus. From meeting the foreign visitors at the Philadelphia airport in
July through their final critique week at USIA in Washington, D.C., Thorp
was on hand to ensure that the operation ran smoothly.
     Also involved in the program, Thorp said, were ELI staff members Chris
Wolfe and Mike Horgan. They answered dozens of questions, arranged host
family sponsors, accompanied the students on cultural outings and made sure
everyone was in the right place at the proper time.
     The participants, Thorp explained, were secondary or college-level
English teachers or educational administrators in their respective
countries. For 20 of them, it was their first visit to the States.
     Their objective was to improve their individual English-speaking
abilities and to learn the latest educational methods that will be of help
in their classrooms, he added.
     These educational goals were accomplished through seminars and
classroom sessions emphasizing practical teacher and supervisory problems,
country-specific challenges and opportunities, development of relevant
curricular material, observation of English-as-a Foreign Language classes,
practice teaching and leadership and teacher training development.
     These classes were taught primarily by ELI staff, with some assistance
by University faculty from other departments. In addition, small tutoring
classes were offered for those students who were less proficient and
desired assistance with improving their English.
     Thorp stressed that the cultural component was an integral part of the
program. Instructions from USIA specified certain trips and excursions to
be conducted during the Delaware residency. These included travel to
Rehoboth Beach's seashore resort, to the United Nations and Empire State
Building in New York City and to Philadelphia's historic district.
     In addition, Thorp and his associates added such diverse attractions
as a concert and tour of Longwood Gardens, a day of shopping at the
Christiana Mall, a Wilmington Blue Rocks baseball game and an evening of
the American Wild West at New Jersey's Cowtown Rodeo.
     The students lived at Pencader Residence Hall Complex and spent a
weekend with host families, most from Wilmington.
     Thorp, as well as several students, had high praise for Arnetta McRae,
a trademark counsel at DuPont and a member of People to People
International.
     When she heard of the upcoming visit and the group's need for host
family assistance, she personally made arrangements and received
commitments from area members and friends of the volunteer organization.
     As a result of the home visits, many of the African-American hosts
said they intended to maintain communication with the foreign students and
talked with them at length to learn more about their African heritage. Both
the generosity of McRae and the interest by local citizens, Thorp said,
were satisfying and unexpected results of the program.
     In his annual summer role at ELI, Thorp has worked with visitors from
all over the world. In the past, most have come from Europe, Asia and
Central America.
     This year, he was particularly impressed with the African visitors'
knowledge of the United States.
     He also praised their performance when several of them participated in
a question-and-answer session-focusing on education in their respective
countries-held in Wilmington's City Council chambers.
     Two representatives of the visiting African student body were eager to
share their impressions of America and its citizens.
     Gilbert Bosson Athegni, a senior teacher adviser and regional
coordinator of the high school teaching program in Cote d'Ivoire, was on
his second visit to the United States.
     For junior high school English teacher Maria Niang Faye from Senegal,
it was her first trip to this country.
     Asked for their initial reactions, they both agreed that the
cleanliness of America was impressive. They were surprised with the amount
of area covered by trees and landscaping, since their prior impression of
the U.S. consisted of tall buildings and turnpikes.
     The assistance and concern they received from their host families,
even weeks after the initial visit, also made a positive impression. The
students referred to that experience as one of the major highlights of
their stay.
     What disappointed them, however, was the lack of knowledge Americans
had about Africa. But, added Athegni, it was not just in the States: He had
the same experience when he traveled in Europe.
     "They don't know the names of the countries or where they are
located," Faye agreed. The inability to receive news about their homeland
also is frustrating, she said, since events in Africa are not covered in
American newspapers or on radio or television broadcasts.
     Both students gave rave reviews to the balance of cultural and
educational experiences.
     Even though she may not have the technical or financial resources in
her country to use all of the techniques and tools she has learned about,
Faye explained, the fact that she knows they exist and that she can apply
some of the principles is satisfying and important. She said she is eager
to share her knowledge with other English teaching educators in Senegal.
     "For me," Athegni said, "I learned a lot. I've gotten other ideas that
will allow me to handle subjects in a different way. I've learned some new
techniques. This was useful, very helpful."
                                        -Ed Okonowicz