September 15, 2004
Contact: Dave Stephen
Phone 604-864-4611
Fax: 604-859-6653
dave.stephen@ucfv.ca

UCFV childcare students invited to study in Europe

Students with an interest in early childhood education are being invited to learn how other cultures approach the field through an international exchange project.

The University College of the Fraser Valley has been selected as one of three Canadian post-secondary institutions to participate in a Canadian/European Union Mobility Initiative to encourage Trans-Atlantic educational exchange opportunities. 

The Education for Global Competencies project will provide 27 Canadian students with the opportunity to travel overseas for a term abroad in the fall of 2005. Nine of these students will be from the University College of the Fraser Valley. Participants will take courses and practicum internships with campus-connected childcare centres at the University of East London in England, Stockholm Institute for Education in Sweden, or the Technological Educational Institute of Thessaloniki in Greece. 

This project, funded by Human Resources Development Canada (HRDC), brings ECE students and faculty from UCFV, Concordia University in Montreal, and Capilano College together with three ECE faculties in Europe to provide students with international exchange opportunities. 

Students will spend a semester abroad, receive ECE credits, develop new skills, and gain international perspective and valuable work experience. 

"Different cultures have their own approaches to professional child care," says Linda Matwichuk, a UCFV professor helping to coordinate the exchange. "Through this program students will have a chance to see the field of ECE from a different perspective and to consider new issues, approaches, and points of view regarding the care and education of children." 

Full-time ECE students are eligible for the exchange, as well as recent graduates and possibly students in related diplomas/degrees, such as child and youth care, social work, child psychology, and teacher education. Applicants must have completed at least one year of study by Fall of 2005, have a GPA of 2.5, and be Canadian citizens or landed immigrants, and under 31 years of age. Some travel subsidy may be available. 

For more information, come to an information session on Monday, October 4, at 7 pm in Room A310 at the UCFV Abbotsford campus, or contact Linda Matwichuck at 604-504-7441, local 4557. 

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