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Vermont Edition
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Vermont Edition

Visiting teacher program lets Vermont students learn Arabic and Mandarin

By Mikaela Lefrak,
Tedra Meyer
Published November 29, 2022 at 12:18 PM EST
Hand writing on a blackboard in a Arabic language learning class course with the text "Arabic" written on it. with Some books and school materials concept.
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Students at Twinfield Union School in Plainfield are learning how to speak Arabic through a program that places foreign language teachers from other countries in rural parts of Vermont.

Live call-in discussion: Students at Twinfield Union School in Plainfield are learning how to speak Arabic, and students at Bellows Free Academy in Fairfax are learning Mandarin. The classes are part of a program that places foreign language teachers from other countries in rural parts of Vermont, as a way to expand foreign language education.

This hour, we’ll learn more about this program and talk to a Mandarin teacher from Taiwan and an Arabic teacher from Morocco—both living in small Vermont towns.

Our guests are:

  • Sydney Estey-Dedell, marketing and project coordinator, SPIRAL International in Burlington
  • Hsian-Lan Cheng, visiting Mandarin Chinese teacher, Bellows Free Academy in Fairfax
  • Abdelkrim Hayab, visiting Arabic teacher, Twinfield Union School in Plainfield

Broadcast live on Wednesday, Nov. 30, 2022, at noon; rebroadcast at 7 p.m.

Have questions, comments or tips? Send us a message or tweet us @vermontedition.

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Vermont Edition EducationForeign WorkersVermont Edition
Mikaela Lefrak
Mikaela Lefrak is the host and senior producer of Vermont Edition. Her stories have aired nationally on Morning Edition, All Things Considered, Weekend Edition, Marketplace, The World and Here & Now. A seasoned local reporter, Mikaela has won two regional Edward R. Murrow awards and a Public Media Journalists Association award for her work.
See stories by Mikaela Lefrak
Tedra Meyer
Tedra joined Vermont Public as a producer for Vermont Edition in January 2022 and now serves as the Managing Editor and Senior Producer. Before moving to Vermont, she was a journalist in New York City for 20 years. She has a master’s degree in journalism from New York University.
See stories by Tedra Meyer