Education students can have the opportunity to spend five weeks this summer teaching elementary school children in France if they submit their application by Feb. 24.

OU and the University of Picardie Jules Verne in Amiens, France, are in the second year of a reciprocal exchange program that provides College of Education students the chance to develop a greater global understanding, said Jennifer Robinson, College of Education academic adviser.

While the exchange program between OU and Jules Verne is only in its second year, Oklahoma and France have worked together since 2006, when Robinson and three other people went to France to negotiate an educational partnership.

Robinson said connecting classrooms to experiences outside of their cultural norms is becoming a larger part of teaching, which is why providing OU’s education students the opportunity to spend time overseas is valuable.

“If the teachers have not had any experiences to make them global citizens, then why should they expect it from their students?” Robinson said.

Elementary and early childhood education senior Felicity Cooper, who was a part of last year’s exchange program, said providing children a global education is the most important thing a teacher can do.

Cooper said her time in France will give her an edge when applying for teaching positions.

“It’s an eye-opener to see how education is approached in other countries,” she said.

As a result of the OU-Jules Verne exchange program’s initial success, Ronald Reagan Middle School in Norman will launch a French immersion program for kindergarten and first-grade students in the fall, said Janet Gorton, Norman Public Schools World Language coordinator.

The initiative will continue with the students as they advance through each grade, Gorton said.

The school system is targeting the program at that age group because it is the best time for children to learn a language because the knowledge gets stored in the same part of the brain as their primary language, Gorton said.

Twenty-six students will participate in the immersion program and will be taught math and science in French, a French language class, and literacy and social studies courses in English.

“The children we are educating are entering a different world where it is easier to communicate with people across the world,” Gorton said.

More information can be found here.