Welcome to Study Abroad 2008

Pre-internship Teaching in Malaysia

What is this program about?

Malaysia is a country that provides an exceptional opportunity to learn about diversity in race, religion, ethnicity, language, culture, and physical environment.

This program will provide school observations and classroom teaching experience in selected rural and semi-urban Malaysian elementary and secondary schools in and around Tanjung Malim, a small city about seventy miles north of the capital, Kuala Lumpur. It is a collaboration between the College of Education, Michigan State University, USA and Sultan Idris Teacher Education University, Tanjong Malim, Malaysia.

Each MSU student will be paired with a collaborating Malaysian teacher in the same academic field and level as the student. After a period of classroom observation, the student will develop lessons and co-teach with the cooperating teacher, and finally teach classes independently under the supervision of the cooperating teacher. Each student will be able to participate in a wide variety of school and community activities during the placement at a school. The students will live with a Malaysian teacher’s family to obtain a first-hand understanding of the communities in which they live and teach. Regular meetings with the instructors will serve to interpret and expand on the practical knowledge learned in the classroom, and relate it to previous knowledge of the U.S. educational system.

Other highlights include:

Lectures and discussions by Malaysian educators, headed by MSU alumni
A chance to interact with Malaysian teacher education students and faculty at Sultan Idris Teacher Education University
Travel to sites of historical, cultural and ecological importance, including a visit to Penang island, known as the "Pearl of the Orient;” a visit to Malacca, where there still remain various evidence of the early Portuguese explorers/colonials who were the first of the Europeans to arrive in 1511; tea plantations, indigenous people's village/settlement, etc in Cameron Highlands; and also a visit to Kuala Lumpur, the capital city of the country as well as the neighbouring Putra Jaya, the country's newest city and federal government administrative district planned and built specifically for that purpose.

College sponsor: College of Education
Semester offered: Summer: 6 weeks (early July to mid August)
Courses offered*: TE 816, 894
Credits: Six (6)
Requirements: 2.5 GPA; completion of a B.A. or B.S. degree in MSU’s teacher preparation program; scheduled to begin the MSU internship program in September 2008
Program fee: Please contact the Office for Study Abroad
Deadline: March 1, 2008
Contact: Anne Schneller at annes@msu.edu OR kurnia yahya at kurnia@msu.edu

More information about study abroad programs can be found at http://studyabroad.msu.edu

Program fees are not uniform and do not cover the same expenses for all programs. Carefully check the program’s Web page for what is included in your program fee. If that is still unclear, contact the Office of Study Abroad to provide you with a full explanation.