Ask Maheswari Kalpana K. about her most significant takeaway from the Study of the United States Institutes (SUSI) for Secondary School Educators program, which she recently attended, and, she says, “The exposure.”
“I got to connect with educators from countries such as France, Poland, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Niger and Uzbekistan. I can continue to be in touch with them on best practices,” says the headmistress of Chennai (Corporation) High School, Kottur.
She was one of the 19 participants at the program organised by the United States Department of State, Bureau of Education and Cultural Affairs and hosted by the California State University, Chico, she said.
Ms. Kalpana said the programme gave them an overview of the schooling system in the United States through a series of school visits, meetings with officials, educators, and youth groups.
“It was an intensive programme, held between June 4 and July 10. It offered insights into areas of access and equity, evaluation and assessment patterns, professional development of teachers and use of technology is in schools there, among other aspects,” she said. They toured Chico, Sacramento, Chicago, San Francisco and Washington D.C. as part of the programme, she said.
“We also met officials from the US Department of Education in Washington D.C. in the last leg of the programme,” she said.
