Twenty-four French teachers were welcomed at the Paul Martin University Center Library on Jan. 7. The teachers took part part in the Franco-American Teachers-In-Training Institute sponsored by the University of Akron. Each teacher will be assigned to an area school in their teaching field.
While they are proficient to teach in English, this experience will help them to further develop their English language skills so they may return to France to teach their subject in English as part of the European section. In addition it will give them an opportunity to share their French culture with their students while gaining a better understanding of American culture.
The students will be assigned to 11 area schools. The schools included four at Green, three at Springfield, three at Coventry, two at Manchester, one at Cuyahoga Falls, two at Nordonia, one at Firestone, one at Ellet, four at Kent, two at Hoban, and one at Stow-Munroe Falls. While they were here, they stayed with a host family in the area. In addition to teaching, they visited Cleveland, Columbus, Washington, and Chicago.
The students are shown here at their reception with the traditional gift, a small stuffed mascot of “ZIPPY,” theUniversity of Akron’s mascot. This is the third year for the program.
