SOUTH PITTSBURG, Tenn. – Argentinian public school Principals Viviana Soria and Mirian Rinaldi strolled South Pittsburg High School’s hallways last week like longtime Marion County education veterans.
Soria and Rinaldi, both from central Argentina’s Córdoba Province, arrived in the United States on Oct. 17 and are visiting Southeast Tennessee as part of a joint shadowing mission. Marion County school Principals Allen Pratt and David Smith will travel to Argentina next summer.
The exchange program is administered by the American Councils of International Education.
Spanish teacher Tyler Dawkins translated as Soria and Rinaldi said they first were struck by the technology in American schools and by how many teaching resources are available.
“There’s a lot of technology, and students are prepared on a lot of different levels,” Soria said. “And a lot of hours are devoted to sports, and there’s lots of competition between schools.”
Rinaldi, who is principal at a school for first through sixth grades in Córdoba, said, “It makes my heart glad that everywhere in education the people care.”
She said Marion County residents, host families and students have been welcoming and friendly.
The foursome of principals visited the McCallie School and the University of the South last week. Soria and Rinaldi said they were very impressed by the facilities but taken aback by the cost of attending college and private schools.
Argentina’s universities are free to students no matter where they’re from, Soria and Rinaldi said. People from all over the world travel there for a free college education, they said, noting they met an Argentinian-educated professor at Sewanee.
Pratt and Smith said their counterparts seem most interested in how they manage their staffs and schools, reading programs, how discipline is handled and daily class scheduling.
Soria, a teacher for 26 years and a principal for seven, is living with Pratt’s family. Rinaldi, a teacher for 27 years and principal for six, is staying at Smith’s home. They are scheduled to leave Thursday for Washington, D.C., en route home.
The Marion County principals said their guests immediately started taking part in family and after-school activities and shopping.
“This whole thing has been rewarding for our families,” Smith said. “My son, who has had two years of Spanish, his Spanish has flourished since she’s been there because he speaks it pretty much all evening with her.”
Pratt said being a host has been “a great experience.”
“From my 4-year-old to my 16-year-old to my wife, it’s been super. I wouldn’t trade it for anything,” he said.
“I recommend this program to anyone, any educator, that wants to expand and broaden their view of the world,” he said.
Soria and Rinaldi said their American counterparts’ Argentinian experience will show them how students can flourish even in the absence of high-tech resources.