Mrs. Napolitano's excellent adventure in China

BY ATHEN HOLLIS
After a 10-day trip to China, Bonny Eagle High School Principal Mrs. Lori Napolitano has learned that Chinese education is more
similar to America’s education than it is different, and she hopes other teachers can get this experience in future years.
Mrs. Napolitano traveled to China with Mr. Benjamin Harris, the Bonny Eagle Middle School principal, and Mr. Douglas Parker, the Steep Falls Elemenary School principal, as part of the Chinese Bridge Delegation, a group sponsored by the national College Board.
The three principals spent two days in Beijing and then moved on to the Tianjin Province for the rest of their adventure. The whole trip is part of a program called the American Principal Delegation, whose goal is to inspire American educational leaders to visit schools, to learn about China’s educational systems, and build lasting connections.
Educators from all around the country attended the annual trip. Mrs. Napolitano is looking forward to sending other educators from Bonny Eagle to experience foreign education systems and to develop professionally.
While she was there, Mrs. Napolitano got to visit the Great Wall and many other tourist attractions. While in Beijing, her group also went to Hanban headquarters, a government organization whose mission is to spread culture around the world and put more Chinese language programs into schools.
Mrs. Napolitano had the opportunity to sign partnership agreements with many Chinese schools which, Mrs. Napolitano explained, would connect Bonny Eagle to sister schools programs and teacher exchanges in the future.
According to Mrs. Napolitano, the trip was a learning experience and gave her ideas for how to improve Bonny Eagle. She wants to work on promoting more of the positive aspects of BEHS to the community and celebrating and building respect among students and community members for the work that teachers do.
The biggest takeaway for Mrs. Napolitano was that, “We really are on the same page about what kids need.”
This is why the highlight of her trip was visiting the schools in the Tianjin Province.
It was there that Mrs. Napolitano had the opportunity to observe classes, meet with students, and tour the campuses. After this she could say that “their schools and education are more like ours than they are different.”
After a 10-day trip to China, Bonny Eagle High School Principal Mrs. Lori Napolitano has learned that Chinese education is more
similar to America’s education than it is different, and she hopes other teachers can get this experience in future years.
Mrs. Napolitano traveled to China with Mr. Benjamin Harris, the Bonny Eagle Middle School principal, and Mr. Douglas Parker, the Steep Falls Elemenary School principal, as part of the Chinese Bridge Delegation, a group sponsored by the national College Board.
The three principals spent two days in Beijing and then moved on to the Tianjin Province for the rest of their adventure. The whole trip is part of a program called the American Principal Delegation, whose goal is to inspire American educational leaders to visit schools, to learn about China’s educational systems, and build lasting connections.
Educators from all around the country attended the annual trip. Mrs. Napolitano is looking forward to sending other educators from Bonny Eagle to experience foreign education systems and to develop professionally.
While she was there, Mrs. Napolitano got to visit the Great Wall and many other tourist attractions. While in Beijing, her group also went to Hanban headquarters, a government organization whose mission is to spread culture around the world and put more Chinese language programs into schools.
Mrs. Napolitano had the opportunity to sign partnership agreements with many Chinese schools which, Mrs. Napolitano explained, would connect Bonny Eagle to sister schools programs and teacher exchanges in the future.
According to Mrs. Napolitano, the trip was a learning experience and gave her ideas for how to improve Bonny Eagle. She wants to work on promoting more of the positive aspects of BEHS to the community and celebrating and building respect among students and community members for the work that teachers do.
The biggest takeaway for Mrs. Napolitano was that, “We really are on the same page about what kids need.”
This is why the highlight of her trip was visiting the schools in the Tianjin Province.
It was there that Mrs. Napolitano had the opportunity to observe classes, meet with students, and tour the campuses. After this she could say that “their schools and education are more like ours than they are different.”