Bringing The World To Barstow

To live and work in today’s global society, students need an education with an international perspective. Barstow’s Global Education Program helps Barstow students and faculty become more knowledgeable and conscientious global citizens.

To foster cross-cultural awareness, Barstow welcomed 18 international students into the Upper School as visiting international students.  These students live with host families and complete all the years of their Upper School experience at Barstow. Eight students from China have entered the ninth and tenth grades with the intent of graduating from Barstow. There are also students from South Korea, Vietnam and Germany. Learning with international students broadens perspectives and provides opportunities to process information differently. All of the host parents for our international students come from Barstow families that had exchange students in their homes when they were young. They are now sharing the experience with their children and passing on core values of embracing different cultures.  In addition to Barstow's visiting international students, Barstow families come from countries all over the world, bringing their rich cultural heritage to all divisions of the school.

Barstow’s new Global Speakers Series features non-partisan, interdisciplinary presentations on the great challenges facing the world and foster open and informed discussions. The goal of the series is to create a student community that is more knowledgeable and conscientious of global issues. Our speakers focus on issues such as human rights, cultural literacy, economics, environmental concerns, conflict and war, political systems and health.  The inaugural speaker for the Series is Dr. Jamie Metzl '86.

Languages taught at Barstow include Chinese, Japanese, French and Spanish; and this year an International Studies course  is being taught by the Head of School. Because local and global perspectives can be connected beginning with one’s own corner of the world, Barstow also provides ample opportunities for service learning. Making a difference at local levels can influence larger global initiatives through the building of methods and strategies and in turn, enhance citizenship that grows into global responsibilities.

Bringing Barstow to the World

The Global Education Program features an international travel program allowing for both faculty and Upper School students to experience other cultures and educational systems. By traveling outside their home and school, faculty are exposed to a variety of pedagogical philosophies which in turn generates creativity for different methods of education and answer questions about revising curriculum. Each annual trip is a two to three week, full immersion experience during which faculty and students will explore all aspects of school life and the surrounding communities. This fall four Barstow faculty will visit Australia for ten days. Libby Jones (Grade 5 teacher), Caroline Kill (Upper School Biology and Environmental Science Teacher), Jane White (Lower and Middle School Physical Education teacher) and Scott Daniel (Director of Technology and Upper School Physics teacher) will be in Australia from October 12–29. Additional plans for trips to China, England, and Spain are planned. In the future, the program will expand to include South America.

Barstow students and faculty are no strangers to international travel.  Since 2006 Barstow has participated in an exchange program with The Amaki School, a science and technology school in Kurashiki, Japan, Kansas City's sister city. Students and faculty from Amaki visit Barstow annually and Barstow students and faculty visit Amaki every other year.