FAIRFAX, Va. – It might be difficult for an elementary school student to accept the idea, but yes, teachers also spend time in the classroom learning.
In the case of some educators headed for the Colonial Williamsburg Teacher Institute each summer, they make the visit thanks to a grant from Apple Federal Credit Union. The credit union has offered the grants for three years.
This year Betty McCormick from Redbud Elementary School in Winchester, Va., was selected. The idea of the institute, created by The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, is to improve history education by introducing educators to new teaching approaches. Teachers meet with historians and with interpreters who portray historical figures at Colonial Williamsburg. They share teaching strategies, and when they return home, they conduct in-service training sessions for other educators. Teachers are selected on the basis of an application and an essay they submit. "It's a wonderful experience," says Cynthia McAree, Apple FCU vp/marketing. "We get a lot of positive feedback and thank yous from the teachers."
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Apple FCU also helps students themselves get a first-hand look at history. A $5,000 grant from the credit union funds the Colonial Williamsburg Electronic Field trip for 16 schools in the Apple FCU field of membership.
Through television and the Internet, students in fourth through eighth grades build their knowledge of the Revolutionary era.
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