MONTEGO BAY, St James — Claudia Uter, a teacher with over 20 years in the classroom in Trelawny, has been on the Participate Learning programme since 2018. Participate Learning is a professional development opportunity offering Jamaican teachers the advantage to gain professional teaching competencies in the United States, acquire a multicultural experience, strengthen soft skills, and develop a network of professional contacts.

“My inspiration to join Participate Learning was to have a first-hand experience of another classroom outside of Jamaica,” Uter, who is now teaching at Prince Edward County Public School in Farmville, Virginia, said.

“I wanted to join Participate to learn new skills, strategies and ideas that I can take back to Jamaica and implement into my daily classroom instruction to better help students to achieve.”

Uter was teaching at Warsop Primary and Infant School when she was introduced to Participate Learning and quickly recognised the benefits she would gain if she was willing to take the leap to leave the comfort zone of the familiar Jamaican classroom and venture to test her professional skills in a new country.

During her time with Participate Learning, Claudia has gained her master’s degree and is the appointed reading team leader at her school. Having completed four years teaching in the US, Uter is coming to the end of her time in the US, and is now looking forward to using the knowledge she has gained to have a positive impact when she returns to teach in Jamaica.

“When I return to teach in Jamaica, I hope to be a reading and literacy specialist. I intend to use the strategies and skills gained in literacy to reach the disadvantaged students so they can improve in the developmental reading stages,” explained Uter.

Participate Learning implements global education in K-12 schools in the USA to fulfil its mission of uniting the world through global learning. The programme empowers educators from around the world to strengthen student outcomes and promote cultural understanding to realise its vision to develop global citizenship among students in American schools.

Fully embracing her role as a cultural educator, Uter has introduced Jamaican culture to her students. “I took the Jamaican culture to my classroom – food, clothing, music, drama, poems, dance and the way of life of Jamaica people,” Uter said.

Participate Learning is open to certified teachers with more than two years of full-time teaching experience. Travel authorisation and employment at a school are all arranged for teachers selected for the programme. Arrangements can also be made for the teacher’s family if they decide to have their family accompany them overseas.

The Participate Learning programme is now accepting applications from teachers interested in the professional development opportunity to teach in the United States.