Connecticut

On March 4, 2009, the Connecticut State Board of Education adopted a position statement on International Education and Exchange Assembly. “It commits policymakers and educators to developing in students the skills commensurate with their responsibilities for global stewardship and international participation” (See:  http://www.sde.ct.gov/sde/LIB/sde/pdf/board/international.pdf)

In February 2009, the Council on Standards for International Educational Travel held its National School Conference on International Youth Exchange in Hartford.  The Connecticut State Department of Education and the Capitol Region Education Council co-sponsored the two-day conference.

The World Affairs Council of Connecticut convened education, business, and legislative leaders including the Speaker of the House and the President of the Senate, at a  Roundtable on Connecticut’s Global Readiness on February 6, 2009. Portions of the meeting were rebroadcast statewide on three separate occasions on CT-N, the State’s Public Affairs Network, reaching some 1.2 million homes with each broadcast.  The Roundtable also caught the attention of the Hartford Courant, the State’s largest paper by circulation, leading to an editorial (“Go Global, Connecticut”; February 21, 2009 http://www.ctwac.org). The article was among the five most e-mailed stories on that day.

The Connecticut Association of Public School Superintendents approved Student Attributes and Benchmarks for International Education in 2008. The Benchmarks include:

• Integrated International Curriculum
• International Education: Sustainability
• World Language Learning
• Active International Engagement and/or Partnerships
• International Professional Development Focus

The Connecticut Afterschool Network is launching a program to support international education programs and related activities.  

Contact information:      John Meyers  jmeyers@ctwac.org