Mr. James Pearson, Science Curriculum Coordinator, at Friendship Public Charter School Chamberlain Campus was chosen as one of nine Science teachers in the Washington, D.C. area to participate in the Element Exchange Program. He and the other eight Science teachers will get a chance to meet their Turkish counterparts during a free five-day trip to Istanbul, Turkey over spring break.

The focus of the Element Exchange Program is science and technology curriculum with a multi-cultural twist. To expand science knowledge, as well as cultural awareness, the American teachers will work with Turkish teachers from a private English speaking K – 12 school in Istanbul. A free laptop was given to Mr. Pearson and the other teachers so that they and their students can communicate with the Turkish teachers and students. Using web and teleconferencing tools, the teachers and students will be
able to share ideas with each other from across the world.

The Element Exchange Program is funded through U-Know, a minority owned educational services firm specializing in customizing and managing educational solutions for organizations that serve marginalized youth. They were recently awarded a grant from the D.C. State Education Office to run a teacher quality improvement program for the 2006-2007 school year.

We are very proud of Mr. Pearson and we know that he will enjoy his trip to Istanbul, Turkey.

submitted by Constance Reddix
Friendship-Edison Public Charter School-Chamberlain Campus; Washington, DC