Daily Pioneer News

PLATTEVILLE - Winterim is usually a time for University of Wisconsin-Platteville students to relax with family and friends, go on a vacation or take a class. For education students, the Winterim semester provides an opportune time to fulfill their required student teaching experience such as the one in Jamaica. Students still have an opportunity to sign up to go to Jamaica for the 2009 Winterim session.

While some Americans spend part of the winter in lavish Jamaican resorts, the early childhood education students face the realities most native Jamaicans endure every day. While they don't exactly live like native Jamaicans, they do witness the native ways of life and the hardships endured by some of Jamaica's orphans at Hanbury Home, one of the many places for Jamaican children who have been abandoned or have unfit parents.

"Working with these children prepares our students to work with a variety of children, including those with emotional and developmental challenges," said Greg Imbur, the instructor for the course.

According to Imbur, Hanbury Home gets its funding from the Salvation Army and cares for 80 orphaned children, 25 of which are 3 to 6 years old. Very few of these children will be adopted, so they typically stay at Hanbury Home until the age of 18. The children wear uniforms during the day, sleep in bunkbeds and are cared for by house mothers (one per every 20 children). They attend school at Hanbury Home, where a typical day consists of devotion, circle time, skill training, indoor/outdoor activities, story time, rest and lullaby and then creative activities.

Lacking sufficient adult attention, many of the children are emotionally starved, said Imbur, and he and the students spend much of their time holding and hugging the children while trying to teach them basic skills like reading and writing.

Tiffany Bohnert, of Monroe, decided to attain her early childhood student teaching experience in Jamaica last year and said, "I was able to experience how it feels to be a parental figure and how it can be very draining. I do not say this out of complaint but out of the total realization that teaching takes a lot of energy. I believe at least half of our energy at Hanbury Home was spent in hugging and holding them, things they don't get very often. They were very needy and full of want. It grew to be exhausting for me to accommodate each child's needs. It drained my emotions as well because I couldn't give them everything they wanted. It was heart wrenching. I learned that as a teacher I must take care of myself physically and mentally in order to keep myself energetic for my students."

Kelly Richard, of Kieler, was another student on the trip last Winterim.

"I loved the fact that within two minutes of arriving at the orphanage, we were surrounded by children asking our names and other questions. It felt so good to see the children smiling and laughing as they played with all of the games and supplies we brought them," she said.

Jered Dickman, of Freeport, Ill., gained his early childhood student teaching experience in Jamaica, along with the others, and said, "Most of the children I worked with were between the ages of 3 and 6 but developmentally were years behind where they should be. I even worked with some kids in the 8- to 12-year-old range, and they were unable to recognize letters, or even spell their own names. I learned how to be flexible and responsive to adjustments in my instruction to meet their varying educational needs."

A.J. Vedvig, of Edgerton, another student on the trip last Winterim, said, "The most important lesson I learned was that the orphans at Hanbury Home as well as around the world are very special and deserving of our attention and efforts. This experience is rich in culture and worthy of our continued participation. Our presence at the orphanage will make a difference in so many lives, including ourselves. It has aided in my own maturation."

On the trip, the instructor and students bring shoes and books for the children, collecting them in advance from the local Southwest Wisconsin community.

"The impact of the trip goes both ways. We provide resources like books, school supplies and clothes. The students go to get an early childhood teaching experience, but they get so much more. They get a cultural experience," stated Imbur.

After spending time at Hanbury Home, the students and Imbur do a side trip. Last Winterim, the group went to Treasure Beach, where they rented a villa for the weekend and swam, went boating and toured local areas.

Imbur takes students every odd numbered year. Anyone interested in going or learning more about the trip or in giving children's shoes or durable books (board or cloth) may contact Imbur at (608) 342-1656 or imburg@uwplatt.edu.

Contact: Greg Imbur, professor, UWP School of Education, (608) 342-1656, imburg@uwplatt.edu Prepared by: April M. Schmidt with Krystle Kurdi, UWP Public Relations, (608) 342-1194, kurdik@uwplatt.edu