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Special Report on the visit of 4 teachers from
Tileagd to Broadwater
School & Chadsgrove School
in England during February 2009 |
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Following the
Educational Challenges of 2007 & 2008,
four of the Tileagd Community
School teachers were
invited to visit 2 schools in United Kingdom
during the first week of February '09.
Although the
activities planned were somewhat hampered by the worse snow to hit
Britain in 30 years, the experience was still an unforgettable
opportunity which all four Romanian staff greatly valued.
Mrs Janet Sharp,
head of Broadwater C.of E. Primary School in Worthing, invited and
hosted Tileagd’s head, Clara Ungureanu and teacher Anca Bote. During
the same week, Mrs Sheena Ball of Chadsgrove School in Bromsgove
invited and hosted Special Needs teacher Claudia Sturz and Physical
Education teacher Lily Bideran.
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Memories From
Clara and Anca:
Our “expedition”
to Broadwater School started with the presentation and tour of the
school by our kind host. From the first impact we realised the major
differences between our schools: arrangement of classrooms, their
functionality, organisation and the equipping of each room. We also
met most of the staff who worked at the school and we were given a
warm reception.
All our
activities during our visit took place after detailed planning which
had been made available to us from our arrival at the school.
One great moment
and extremely important for us was the
 School Assembly which started
with the song "This is the day that the Lord has made" sung by all the
children in English and in Romanian language. We were warmly
welcomed and those present had the opportunity to learn many things
about Tileagd Community School. About the children who attend, about
the staff, about the school and the extra-curricular activities,
Assembly, games and much more from the presentation we made with
literature and a Photo CD.
In the 4 days
that we spent in school, we attended several activities in different
classes and year groups and so we learned how they teach, how children
learn, what learning and teaching methods were used and last but not
least, their efficiency. We assisted at a
planning session for the second grade and found that to be very
interesting and totally different from our way of planning activities
in Romania.
Children from
Broadwater School showed a particular interest for Romania and for
Tileagd Community School, as illustrated by the avalanche of questions
they asked during the time reserved for discussion at several classes. We learned about
the assessment of activity for each student and measures to be taken
after these evaluations. The daily lunch
provided an opportunity to have interesting and constructive
discussion with teachers from the school staff.
Our wonderful
hosts, Mr and Mrs Sharp organized very well our free time, so we
visited places and important monuments from the architectural and
historical point of view and we learned a lot about British culture.
The climax was visiting London and a very special moment was the
classical music
concert at Christ's Hospital.
We watched with
great interest everything about Broadwater School and returned
with many ideas that we can share and discuss with the teachers
back in Romania and we can adjust or develop according to the
curriculum and opportunities in our own school.
This
experience was a unique and unforgettable one. The education process
is very
 different
in the UK from ours in Romania, putting emphasis on imagination and
creativity of the child, thus leaving them to develop these qualities.
We had a lot to learn, and we received
many ideas that can be used in class back home. The last beautiful
moment spent at school was the last day in which representatives of
boys and girls from Broadwater School offered, as a sign of friendship
and connection between our schools, a decorative plate which was a
lovely gift.
Our sincere thanks to those who have
given us the opportunity to take part in this exchange.
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Memories From Claudia & Lily:
Since we heard the great news of the
opportunity to go to England to visit a school called Chadsgrove
School and Specialist Sports College, we waited with excitement
and enthusiasm for the departure day. It was our first experience
travelling by aeroplane and visiting new places, but especially the
wonderful children from that school.
Our wonderful hosts were Jim and Sheena
Ball, Sheena being a part of the team working in the school.
From the first day we had the honour to
meet the School Head, Mr Richard Aust OBE and all the teachers
who work for the education of the children. This school was really a
great school because all the kids who came here were children with
disabilities, and this was the place where they could learn, could
play, could find new friends and could also be a regular child.
 The number of children was divided
according to age. Between 2-5 years were in kindergarten, and those
between 7-15 years were attending grade school. The building contained
many classes for children from kindergarten and many classrooms of
various subjects where they have children who learnt reading,
mathematics, English, drama, science, a gymnasium where they could
relax through various games, the biggest attraction being the
stepping-stone.
There was a dark room for blind
children, a room with musical instruments, and then in one room was a
pool in which children have a hydrotherapy program to ease the
mobility of joints and perform exercises that increase muscle
strength. All this had a beneficial effect on the children and offered
a lot of confidence building. The work for the school staff was
demanding but brought great satisfaction when you could see the
progress of the children.
We were very happy when the children
first received us with so much warmth to assist them with the sports
class. We learned
from
them the spirit of competition and team
work. We learned rugby, first stages of the game with a professional.
We also
 took
part at the theatre where children played scenes from the play Romeo
and Juliet and then interpreted the different characters. We were
deeply impressed by their costumes, their imagination and their
seriousness. One of the moments that impressed us very much was a
drama where a blind girl who barely spoke sang very nicely. We soon
learnt, regardless of disability, that if someone really wants to do
something, they can do as well or even better than the others.
We really met some wonderful children
with beautiful hearts.
Our visit in England was an
unforgettable experience despite the fact that low temperatures
and snow prevented us from spending much more time together with the
children because schools were closed for some days.
Even if the time at Chadsgrove School
was short, we were deeply impressed and marked. Despite the fact
that so many have physical and
mental disabilities, we could see
clearly the dedication of the staff that work so much and give their
love and expertise to help these children.
The time came too soon to leave
Chadsgrove, but after sadness comes joy, and our joy was the fact that
we succeeded and visited beautiful places in the region, we saw the
city of Birmingham and on the last day we made a tour of London. For
sure we won’t forget this experience too soon.
Thank you to everyone who made it
possible.
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