Back in 2019, Kimberly Skwira, an art teacher at FHN, went on a journey that made a huge impact on her inside and outside the classroom. After receiving one email about an international teaching trip, she knew that it was a great opportunity. Due to this, she ended up going on a journey to teach art in China, a place in the world she has never visited.

“I mean, I learned so much about myself just as a person,” Skwira said. “It was really, really good for my soul. It was probably the best experience I’ve ever had in my life.”

After accepting the email from the Teach in China program, she began her trip in the summer of 2019 with a flight to Shanghai to meet with other teachers in the program. After meeting up, they split into
their groups and headed to their destinations within China, which is when Skwira traveled to Nanjing.

“I went over there not knowing anybody,” Skwira said. “[I] went over with a group called “We Teach in China” and it was teachers from all over the United States.”

Once she arrived in Nanjing, she began teaching at a school to first and second year art teachers to show them how to let their students express themselves through their artwork. According to Skwira, teachers there were not allowed to do this. Instead, they do what Skwira calls “cookie cutter” teaching, and are restricted to certain materials.

“If you compare it to an elementary school, it’s what I call “cookie cutter,” Skwira said. “Where the teacher has the example and everybody’s has to look exactly like that. They also told me they’re not allowed to use watercolor in the classroom because it’s too messy.”

Despite being excited for this trip, Skwira knew that there would be challenges, such as the language barrier. To communicate with the other teachers, she worked with translators that talked back and forth between Skwira and the other teachers.

“There’s also a little bit of fear, you know, when you go on an excursion,” Skwira said. “Like you don’t know anybody, you don’t know the language, they can’t even understand you and vice versa.”

Although Skwira went on this journey by herself, she was not the only one affected by this trip. Other teachers and friends of hers had their own opinions on it too. Denise Maples, another art teacher at FHN, believes that a trip like Skwira’s could help teachers relate more to international students at FHN.

“I think you would see things in a completely different way, and you would definitely be able to relate to your students that come from a different country a lot better,” Maples said.

During Skwira’s trip, she taught in Nanjing for a total of two weeks but got to stay there for an entire month. During her time there, she was able to experience entirely different cultures and different teaching environments while educating other teachers about art. According to Skwira, she thoroughly enjoyed it and despite some of the challenges she faced, was prepared to go back the following year to do it all again.

“I can’t wait to go back,” Skwira said. “I had every intention on going back the following summer but then COVID hit, and so I don’t know if it will ever be an option again but yeah, I can’t wait.”