World Language Spanish Exchange Program
Spanish Exchange Students Visit Pembroke High School
On Friday, September 13th, a group of 19 Spanish students, accompanied by two teacher chaperones, arrived in Pembroke, Massachusetts for a 15-day cultural exchange program.
Earlier this year, 19 Pembroke High School students were paired by their teachers with exchange partners from IES Galileo Galilei, located in Alcorón, a suburb of Madrid, Spain. The students began connecting with their exchange partners via Whatsapp and social media as they prepared for their exchange partners’ arrival.
While in the US, the Spanish students experience life as a typical American teenager, attending school with their exchange partners, participating in extracurricular activities, and spending the weekend with their host families. Additionally, the students will learn about Massachusetts’ colonial history on a visit to Plymouth and Falmouth and will visit Boston and New York City.
In its third year, this unique partnership between Pembroke High School and IES Galileo Galilei, a Spanish bilingual high school located just outside Madrid, Spain, gives students the opportunity to immerse in a different culture, practice their language skills, and build lasting international friendships.
The travel component is arranged by Forum Language Experience, an educational travel company, which specializes in fostering long-term cultural exchange partnerships between schools in the United States and Europe. “We believe that the best way to understand another culture is by learning the language, and we know that the best way to learn a language is through personal relationships,” explains Julia McWhirter, Director of Communications. “Through school exchange partnerships, we see the amazing growth and transformation that takes place in students. The students develop empathy and understanding in their role as host to their exchange partners. While in Spain, they gain independence, confidence, and resiliency as they navigate through daily life as a high school student in a different culture and language. When they return home, the students have an increased awareness of their own cultural identity and a greater appreciation for the world around them. This transformation and the cultural exchange that occurs in Pembroke has a ripple effect through the entire school community.”
In February 2020, the 19 students from Pembroke High School, accompanied by teacher chaperones, will travel to Spain to stay with their exchange partners for a reciprocal experience. The students will also explore Spanish history and culture with visits to Toledo and Segovia.
For more information, please contact:
Julia McWhirter, Director of Communications at Forum Language Experience
1-888-723-1182 ext. 109
Spanish School Information:
IES Galileo Galilei, Avenida de los Retamas No 2, 28922 Alcorcón, Madrid
Website: iesgalileogalilei.com
Twitter: @IITGalileo
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