March 12, 2009
FIUTS brings the world to K-12 students through its Pen Pal Program
Forty-eight fifth- and sixth-grade students from White Center Heights Elementary visited the UW campus on Wednesday, March 11, to meet international students from around the world through the Foundation for International Understanding Through Students (FIUTS) Pen Pal Program.
The Pen Pal Program connects UW internationals with local K-12 students for an eight-week period of e-mail exchanges which culminates in a face-to-face meeting at a FIUTS Wednesday Lunch. The program provides an opportunity for K-12 students to learn more about the world by meeting someone from another country and practicing their reading and writing skills. They can also get a glimpse into higher education by visiting a college campus.
“The students are so excited to meet their pen pals in person at the UW, which also gives them a bigger picture of college life and perhaps a goal to strive for,” says White Center Heights teacher SeAnn Sivly. “It is so rewarding for these kids to have a connection to college life and someone else that they can talk to on a weekly basis.”
Sivly’s fifth-grade student Amadea Dyrhsen praised the program too, saying, “I like it because you get to learn about other people’s culture and what they do in their countries.”
White Center Heights teacher Karen Lai says there are many benefits to having international pen pals from the UW. “My students are eager to learn about their pen pal’s country and culture and they are inspired to set goals for themselves to do well in school because one day they would like to attend the University of Washington.”
“You get a head start of what it’s like being a college student,” says Anthony Tram, one of Lai’s students. “You know that anything could happen if you try, because my pen pal, Hande, is a student there, but she’s from another country.”
UW international students also find the program rewarding.
“I learn a great deal from my pen pal,” says UW education graduate student Sharon Chang, from Taiwan. “She reminds me of myself back in fifth-grade and the fact that I was once a kid, too. Together, we have built this friendship across national as well as age boundaries.”
UW graduate student Paul Britz, from Germany, says, “I wanted to participate in the Pen Pal Program, because I think that education is essential for a child’s development and chances in life. Many children do not have the opportunity or an incentive to choose higher education. A lot of kids are intimidated by ‘smart university people,’ but knowing somebody personally will create a link and positive association with higher education. I hope that I am able to create this sort of link for my little pen pal.”
This quarter, the 11- and 12-year-old students have been matched with 48 UW students from 14 different countries, including the UK, Thailand, Taiwan, Turkey, Korea, Germany, the Netherlands, India, Japan, Libya, Burma, Australia, Vietnam and Singapore. The White Center Heights students are also very ethnically diverse, including backgrounds of Latino, Hispanic, Somalian, Vietnamese and Cambodian, which gives UW students insight into the cultural diversity of Seattle.
To learn more, call 206-616-7025 or e-mail alicia@fiuts.org.
