CWU Student Does Teaching Experience Abroad

February 10, 2004

ELLENSBURG, Wash.-- Typically, aspiring teachers at Central Washington University do their student teaching at school districts within the state. Brandy Peters, from North Bend, was an exception. Not only did she do her student teaching out of state, she did it out of the country.

Through a contract between CWU and the Department of Defense (DoD), Peters was placed in a fourth grade classroom at Patrick Henry Elementary School, at the Patrick Henry Village military housing base, in Heidelberg, Germany. It is one of the DoD "dependent schools," charged with teaching children from America's military families.

"It was amazing to meet these people who are fighting for our country," Peters says. "It really taught me a lot about our country and how thankful I need to be. I also had the opportunity to discuss perspectives of the United States with European citizens."

The so-called DODDS system actually ranks as the 11th largest U.S. school system, with a population of about 140,000 students studying at 273 schools located in 23 countries.

The daughter of military parents, Peters was herself born in Fulda, Germany.

"I've had a goal of getting back to Germany," she adds. "So, when I learned that I could do my student teaching abroad, I thought 'That would be phenomenal!' It really wasn't something I had thought about until then."

That was in February 2003. But, it wasn't until three months later that Peters knew for sure that she would be going overseas.

"You have to apply through the Department of Defense and they find you a position somewhere," Peters adds. "It's not based on countries. On the application, you are allowed to select the top three bases where you would like to go. They then write back and tell you where you will be placed."

Student teaching her 26 pupils wasn't that different from what she would have taught in Washington, according to Peters, with the exception of the "host nation" class, in her case, involving Germany.

"German citizens taught the students about the culture, language and history of the country they're living in," she says. "I had the opportunity to sit and observer a few host nation classes. It was extraordinary."

Her classes included some students who had both parents serving in Iraq.

"You'd really have to watch what you would say when you were teaching lessons," Peters recalls. "That was something that was very different for me. We also had some students who were born in Germany, who had one parent in the military and the other was a German citizen. Some had been going to German schools for their education, so this was their first experience in an American school."

Away from class, Peters took advantage of travel opportunities. She saw her German birthplace and visited 12 other countries throughout Western Europe, including Poland, where she visited the Nazi concentration camp at Auschwitz.

"It was one of the most horrifying things I've ever seen," she admits.

"I've read about it and we've learned about it for years. But, I was really seeing history. It's part of my ancestral history; my mom's mother is from Israel and was Jewish, so this helped me to understand and allowed me to feel and experience it for the first time in my life."

Peters also recalls hiking the Swiss Alps, standing on the London Bridge and visiting the Eiffel Tower. She rates her time overseas as a "10-plus," adding, "It was one of the best experiences in my life. If I could teach through the Department of Defense I would be jumping at it right now." Instead, Peters is planning to get into sales, at least in the short term, in order to pay off her student loans. Then, she wants to pursue a master's degree.

"I really like politics," she notes, "and a future goal of mine is to get into politics and be part of education reform. Right now, I want to explain to others the opportunities that are available and how passing up an experience like I had would be a mistake. Honestly, this is one of the best choices I've ever made. I'm so thankful for every single experience I had. And, I will definitely stay in touch with some of my students."