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Photograph by Jacqueline Ramseyer
Third-grade teacher Deborah Broeker is leaving for three weeks in Japan as part of the Fulbright Memorial Fund Teacher Program.
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Local teacher earns trip to Japan
Broeker is one of 600 who will learn about Japanese culture firsthand
By GEORGE MOORE
Deborah Broeker is one of 600 teachers selected from a national pool of 2,000 who will travel to Japan this year as part of the Fulbright Memorial Fund Teacher Program.
Broeker, a Saratoga resident, is entering her fifth year teaching third-graders at Dilworth Elementary School in Cupertino.
The FMF program is sponsored by the Japanese government and was established to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the U.S.-born Fulbright program in 1946. Since then, almost 7,000 Japanese recipients of Fulbright scholarships have benefited from the program, which fosters mutual understanding through exchanges of university students, faculty and teachers, according to the Institute of International Education's website. The Japanese government established the Fulbright program in appreciation of the Fulbright Program and to reciprocate by bringing over U.S. educators to learn more about Japan.
"The basic purpose of the FMF program is to increase cultural awareness of Japan and its educational system, so that we can bring that information back and share it with our classes, schools and communities," Broeker said.
One of the prerequisites for eligibility is a lack of experience with the Japanese culture.
"If you had been to Japan for more than two weeks in your entire life, they didn't want you to apply for it," Broeker said. "They want people with a fresh perspective of the culture without any preconceptions."
Broeker applied for the program last December and was selected to be a participant last March.
Leslie Anderson, director of U.S. career development programs at the institute, said as part of the application process there is a two-part essay--the first part asks candidates to explain why they want to take part in the program and why they think they are qualified to do so.
Broeker said the other part of the essay involved giving a detailed follow-up plan of some of the things she was going to do when she returned to the U.S. based on her experience in Japan. Broeker's plan included implementing an international day at Dilworth, making presentations to both the Cupertino Board of Education and city council and writing a comparison of its math programs.
The 600 teachers were divided into three groups--one traveled in June, Broeker's group is scheduled to leave in October and the third in November. The first of three weeks is spent in Tokyo, where teachers attend an orientation on Japanese life and culture and meet with Japanese government officials and educators.
They are then broken into groups of 20 and are sent to different prefectures (states) throughout the country of Japan to visit various elementary, junior high and high schools to observe and meet some of their teachers. In addition, they will visit cultural sites and local industries and experience living with a Japanese family.
Broeker said since Cupertino has such a large Asian American population (43 percent), and Dilworth an even higher percentage, she has an interest in learning more about the Asian culture. The Fulbright program is giving her a firsthand opportunity to do so and enabling her to bring back educational ideals that she can share and instill in her classroom.
For more information on this program and the 2002 competition year, contact IIE at 888.527.2636.
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Cupertino, California Since 1947
