Afghan and American youth went to summer school together at the Friends Select School in Philadelphia

In July 2007, five GCE students from Afghanistan met three of their Bangladeshi counterparts in the Philadelphia and
Washington, DC, where they spent three weeks learning about youth leadership and civic empowerment and getting acquainted with the culture and history of the United States. The program introduced students to the principles and values of participatory democracy and provided them with basic tools that they could use for civic action in their home countries. Students spent the first few days of their visit to the US in Philadelphia, where they learned about the birth of American democracy and civil society and went to summer courses with American students at the Friends Select School. Then, the students transferred to Washington, DC, where they participated in a series of workshops and meetings with various organizations and spent a day advocating on Capitol Hill. Throughout the duration of the program, they had time to consider follow-up activities and ways in which they would apply the knowledge and skills gained while in the United States. By the end of their visit, the youth drafted action-oriented post-exchange plans. The group of exchange students was accompanied by Nangarhar University professor Mr. Abdul Rashid, who trains teachers at the Teacher Training College in Jalalabad. He spent his time in the US shadowing high school teachers and university professors and learning about the US education system, teacher standards, active-learning methodologies, and using ICT in the classroom. Along
with the exchange students, Mr. Rashid had the opportunity to talk about the GCE program to Congress staff on Capitol Hill, Voice of America and Department of State representatives.

They trained us about a lot of important things, such as citizen rights and responsibilities, public speaking, volunteering, youth leadership, advocacy, project design, etc. For me the important issues were volunteer leadership and making projects. When I return home, I will create a project on keeping our community clean. ~ Mariam, exchange participant

The group of exchange students was accompanied by Nangarhar University professor Mr. Abdul Rashid, who trains teachers at the Teacher Training College in Jalalabad. He spent his time in the US shadowing high school teachers and university professors and learning about the US education system, teacher standards, active-learning methodologies, and using ICT in the classroom. Along with the exchange students, Mr. Rashid had the opportunity to talk about the GCE program to Congress staff on Capitol Hill, Voice of America and Department of State representatives.