Southfield

Birney students headed Down Under

By Jennie Miller
C & G Staff Writer

SOUTHFIELD — Bessie Burden likes to keep it real in the classroom.

The social studies teacher at Birney K-8 School uses knowledge gleaned from her own experiences traveling the world to help bring education to life for her students.

“I’ve visited six continents,” she said. “I’ve been to Brazil and Argentina, 15 countries in Africa, I’ve been to South Africa twice, I lived in Germany for a year and got to tour Europe. I went to France, Switzerland, Belgium and England. I’ve been to China and (most recently) Australia.”

Traveling is the best education, she said, and she’s hoping her passion for it will rub off on her students.

“Many times, because I travel all the time, I bring that into the classroom, so I’m bringing firsthand information to the students,” she said. “I — for lack of a better term — keep it real because I’m dealing with things that are actually happening that I’ve witnessed. What I’ve shared with my students, I’m trying to plant the seed for them to want to travel to get to know more about the world. We live in a very multicultural country and you want to be able to relate to other cultures and respect those other cultures.”

Her efforts seem to be working, as Burden is set to take 14 middle and high school students to New Zealand and Australia this summer.

The trip is scheduled from June 18 to June 29, with three days planned in Auckland, New Zealand, three days in Sydney, Australia, and three days in Cairns, Australia.

“They’ll have an opportunity to look at the Great Barrier Reef and ride on a glass bottom boat,” Burden said, adding that they may check out a show at the Sydney Opera House, tour a geothermal area and visit with aborigines.

“I’m looking forward to visiting the aborigines, to see their culture and how many of them are living as their ancestors have lived,” Burden said. “For the students, I’m looking to broaden their perspective to other ways of life. I have requested that we visit one or two schools, because I want them to look at similarities and differences in education. I hope they have a greater appreciation for the fact that we’re all humans, but we have different ways of life, and because of the different ways it doesn’t mean that one is better than the other. (I hope) that they’ll embrace some of the changes that they’re going to witness.”

This is Burden’s second time traveling with students overseas. Three years ago the Southfield resident and 22 of her students toured China. The trip was such a success that she couldn’t wait to plan the next one, and several of the students who went with her the first time, who have moved on to high school, are planning to go with her again.

Annie Wells, a paraprofessional in Southfield Public Schools for the past 18 years, will once again be joining Burden and the students after chaperoning the China trip. She has traveled quite a bit on her own, but says it’s an especially memorable experience accompanying the students.

“When we went to China, the kids loved being there and exploring new adventures,” Wells said, adding that she enjoyed watching them taking it all in. “They behaved well, they enjoyed themselves, and we had a great time. Some of them have never been anywhere, and they’re fascinated by it. I really enjoy watching them experience it.”

Traveling is something that has enriched her life, Wells said, and she’s proud to see these students able to witness these adventures at such a young age.

“I like having a chance to meet new people and to see how other people live and how different our (lives are) from theirs,” she said. “(It’s great) to have a chance to see the different cultures, to have the experience of going different places, doing new things, meeting new people, seeing the differences between cultures and how we can get together and become one.”

The trip is $3,500 per person, and Burden said the students have been participating in fundraising avenues to help defray the cost. The Rib Rack in Lathrup Village has agreed to hold an event from 5-9 p.m. on Feb. 29. Twenty percent of everything purchased during that time will go toward the trip.

For more information about the trip, call (248) 746-8800.
 

You can reach C & G Staff Writer Jennie Miller at jmiller@candgnews.com or at (586)279-1108.