Monthly Archives: May 2010

MIIS Ranks #4 for Top Peace Corps Graduate School Programs in 2010 Participants Combine International Service with Graduate School

With 16 participants currently in service, the Monterey Institute of International Studies ranks fourth for the number of students participating in a Peace Corps Master’s International Program, the Peace Corps announced today.
Sixty‐one graduate schools now offer Peace Corps Master’s International programs. This year’s top five schools* for participation rates are:
1. Michigan Technological University (Houghton, MI) – 37

2. Tulane University (New Orleans, LA) ‐21

3. University of Washington (Seattle, WA) ‐18

4. Monterey Institute of International Studies (Monterey, CA) ‐16

5. SIT Graduate Institute, Brattleboro, VT ‐14

2010 05 25 MIIS ranking

Participants in a PCMI program typically finish one year of graduate study in the U.S. before beginning a 27‐month Peace Corps assignment overseas, where they earn additional academic credit for their service. Upon their return, Masters International participants complete any remaining academic degree requirements at their school.
MIIS offers four Peace Corps Master’s International programs: MA International Environmental Policy, MPA International Management, TESOL, and MBA International Business Administration.

“The Master’s International programs provide Peace Corps volunteers unique opportunities to apply the grassroots, hands‐on experience they developed abroad toward a graduate degree,” said Peace Corps Director Aaron S. Williams.

“These programs give returned Peace Corps volunteers the tools they need to succeed in their careers and be leaders in their communities.”

As Peace Corps approaches its 50th anniversary, its service legacy continues to promote peace and friendship around the world with 7,671 volunteers serving in 77 host countries. Historically, nearly 200,000 Americans have served with the Peace Corps to promote a better understanding between Americans and the people of 139 host countries. Peace Corps volunteers must be U.S. citizens and at least 18 years of age. Peace Corps service is a 27‐month commitment.

*Note: Based on the number of Masters International participants serving as Peace Corps volunteers overseas as of September 30, 2009.

MIIS GSTILE Students Prepare for Peace Corps Assignments

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The Monterey Institute of International Studies ranks fourth for the number of students participating in a Peace Corps Master’s International Program in 2010. The following GSTILE students are among those preparing to continue this tradition of service:

Joseph Clark
TESOL
Peace Corps Armenia: Secondary English Education
Enters Service: May 27, 2010
I was very attracted to the Peace Corps, specifically to the Master’s International Program where I was able to combine a graduate degree with Peace Corps Service. With a year spent studying how to teach English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) I feel much more prepared for my Peace Corps assignment and able to serve as a volunteer.

Rebecca Clayton

TESOL

Peace Corps South Africa: Schools and Community Resource Project

Enters Service: July 12, 2010

In serving as a Peace Corps Volunteer, my love of adventure meets my calling as a teacher. As an ambassador for the US, I hope to strengthen South Africa’s education system and learn from its people.

Brittni Driver Brittni Driver PCMI
TESOL
Peace Corps Malawi: Teacher Development Facilitator
Enters Service July 1, 2010
I am passionate about serving in the Peace Corps not only because I want to broaden my own understanding of other cultures, but also because I want to inspire other Americans to go beyond themselves through service. By combining the Peace Corps with a Master’s Degree in the Peace Corps Master’s International program I have gained the skills, knowledge, and confidence to be the best volunteer I can be.

Monica Schneiderman
TESOL
Peace Corps Nicaragua: Language Teacher and Trainer
Enters Service: August 31st, 2010
Motivation: The Peace Corps Master’s International program is an excellent opportunity for me to serve others around the world using the skills I have and in the career I wish to pursue post graduation. I believe PCMI will be both personally and professionally rewarding and therefore I couldn’t have asked for a more perfect match!

Sky Lantz‐Wagner
TESOL
Peace Corps China: Teacher Trainer
Enters Service: June 29, 2010
MOTIVATION: The desire to serve my country, promote peace and understanding, and have a new adventure.

Faculty Publications: Professor Leo van Lier

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Too often, the needs of English language learners are met with simplified curriculum and lowered expectations. What would happen if instead classrooms were organized to honor the promise of these students by increasing rather than decreasing the intellectual challenge of instruction, by increasing the support such challenge requires, and by increasing students’ active engagement with their own learning?

Scaff-Cover2

This book is the result of a decade-long effort in school districts to implement challenging instruction that is designed for classrooms that include English learners and that raises the bar and increases engagement for all learners.

Classroom vignettes, transcripts of student interactions, and detailed examples of intellectually engaging middle school and high school lessons provide a concrete picture of the instructional approach developed by coauthor Aída Walqui, founder and director of WestEd s Quality Teaching for English Learners (QTEL) initiative.

Underlying the QTEL approach and giving it coherence and power are three strands of instructional theory – cognitive psychology, sociolinguistics, and sociocultural learning theory. Coauthor Leo van Lier, internationally recognized author, linguist, and sociocultural theorist, lays out through clear and frequently wry examples just what these theories have to offer the classroom teacher, in particular the teacher of English learners.

GChat and Facebook Chinese and Technology Acquisition: Perspectives from a Teacher and a Student, or Who is the Learner?!

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GChat and Facebook Chinese and Technology Acquisition:
Perspectives from a Teacher and a Student, or Who is the Learner?!

This paper, to be published in the Proceedings of The Sixth International Conference of Technology of Chinese Language Teaching (TCLT6), June, 2010, is a collaborative work between Chinese Studies Professor Jinhuei Enya Dai and recent MIIS alumni Valkyrie Anderson. It documents an ethnographic study of conversation between a teacher and a student. The focus was on learning the Art of Sunzi (Prof Dai’s Fall class) and technology using functions of gmail chat and status change, and Facebook status updates. Prof. Leo van Lier’s concept of “ecology” (2004) was examined in this learning module, and participation and acquisition were exemplified throughout the gmail text-chatting history. Transactions and acquisition of knowledge range from Human Trafficking issues and Sunzi’s Six Terrain in Chinese to the use of PrintScreen on a Mac and with the Prezi presentation tool. Real life roles of teacher and student morph in the virtual world.