Aswell as being Area Manager for ECI I have been a Trip Leader on many occasions. It is always such a satisfying job being a Trip Leader as you see the great transformation that takes place in the students both linguistically and in their own maturity and awareness of the world around them.

The Challenge of Speaking a Foreign Language for the Students

On arrival to the program country the students are always so nervous and worried about going to stay with their host family and having to speak in English. It’s really very understandable as it’s such a strange thing to hear ones own voice speaking in a foreign language all of a sudden. The students feel very embarrased and very shy to speak for the first few days. These few days are normally spent getting used to listening to English being spoken. Then bit by bit an amazing transformation takes place as the students begin to pluck up the courage to start putting sentences together in English. By the end of the first week the students feel like they can enter into a basic conversation with their host family as they’re feeling more comfortable hearing their own voice in English. It is really a very amazing process as by the end of the trip the student has progressed in leaps and bounds in his English and really feels more fluent. From my experience I feel like the host family experience really is the best way for the student to improve his English as he is truly immersed in an English speaking environment and has no other choice but to communicate with his family and speak the foreign language!

Students Become More Mature & Aware of the World Around Them!

At the beginning of the students stay as a Trip Leader you really do notice how the students have to accustom themselves to not having their parents to look after their belongings and direct them. For the first few days they depend a lot on the Trip Leader and Chaperones but as time moves on I have noticed a distinct change in the maturity of the students. Little by little they start becoming more responsible for themselves and their decisions and by the end of the trip they have transformed into more independent teens.

Being in a foreign country is most definetely an amazing opportunity for the students to realise that there is more to the world than their own community and culture back home, that a whole other world exists out there! During the trip you can see the students eyes wide open as they are surprised to see the cultural differences in this new foreign land. However slowly but surely as the students embark on their excursions and adventures with their host families they become more accepting and understanding of this new culture. They are fascinated by the differences with their own culture and embrace these differences rather than judging them. By the end of the programme it is very heart warming to see that students really do become more open-minded and accepting of cultural differences of the world around them!

Most Definetely A Rewarding Experience!

Being a Trip Leader has most definetely been a very rewarding experience for me as I had first hand experience of witnessing the students truly immerse themselves in a new language and culture!

While our trips are abroad, the ECI chaperones update a running trip blog with images and information about the experience the students are having. Our parents love being able to stay connected with new updates about their child’s travel.

For students and parents considering a 2011 trip, I recommend you take a moment to visit some of last year’s trip blogs online. Follow the links below to learn more. We hope all our students had an amazing, educational summer traveling with us!

European students traveling to the United States

ECI July – http://ecijuly2010.wordpress.com/
ECI July 2 – http://ecisfajuly2010.wordpress.com/
ECI August – http://eciaugust2010.wordpress.com/

Well, it was the question facing us here at ECI this month as we entered the pre-launch phase for the latest version of our website, now in its ninth year, and moving into its fourth style incarnation. Although the majority of the time our attention is of course focused squarely upon putting together Summer Study Abroad programs for our US teens, our website is very important to us – it’s our storefront; it’s our parent and student information hub; once you sign up it becomes a two way portal, a vital source of pre-trip details. It represents who we are; it informs and reassures; it lets you see into our world, and hopefully encourages you to want to share our educational travel vision and join us.

Remember when there were no websites?

It’s fair to say that ECI and the Internet revolution started out in pre-school together. When ECI was but a twinkle in our eyes, the Internet was still in the embryonic stage.

It’s odd to now think back to those pre-Inbox days, but amazingly, there was a time when ECI’s transatlantic communications were only possible by phone. There was even a time when the sole email address in my address book was that of my co-director and friend, Phyllis O’Neill.

And then came our website…

After a few years of spreading the ECI message through printed flyers and word of mouth, the need to create a website became ever clearer to us. Determined to get on board the Internet Express, by this time hurtling at great speed across every area of our lives, Phyllis and I spent a few days holed up in a cottage in the English countryside crafting site ‘pages’ to turn over to our web design, friend of a friend, amateur, whose only qualification in this sector was the ability, through enthusiastic persistence, to penetrate the scary world of computer code, and translate our ECI data into an online brochure for consumption by the whole world, no less.

Fast forward ten years

Our internet amateur is almost certainly now a creative talent at Google, Pixar or the like; our website is streamlined and beautiful, and here we are facing the latest website must-have – an online blog. We are being advised that it is vital and expected for all companies who have an online presence, that’s everyone then, to connect with our audience – you, our valued students and parents, in this direct 21st century, social networking manner. So, although it feels like we’re the last company in the world to open our virtual doors to our public, we here at ECI HQ are very excited at the prospect.

But what to blog?

We realise we’re not writing editorials for the New York Times here – so we’ll follow the adage, clichéd but true, ‘write what you know’. We’ll aim to keep our posts short and snappy, relevant and informative for you, the parents, and you, the students and any other Study Abroad Internet tourists, trekking across the virtual landscape of summer program pages, who just happen upon our ECI site/sight. Please stop and take a closer look. Come on in – the water is lovely!

Will you continue past the opening few lines or are we squandering your reading time?

We sincerely hope not. We have a whole back catalogue of ECI tales and experience we would love to share with you, countless ECI magic moments frozen in time: innumerable teenage smiles; lifelong friendships forming before our eyes; host family tears at saying goodbye to their students, now one of the family; laughter in a salsa class and awestruck silence in Notre Dame; studied concentration getting to grips with the language; snatched conversations of excited students having the time of their lives, loving their new and foreign surroundings.

But in and between layer upon layer of ECI memory sediment lie nuggets of hopefully valuable information that you the students and parents will find interesting and helpful. Our posts will aim to answer the questions you haven’t yet thought to ask. By sharing our experiences of every aspect of our trips over the past 13 years, we hope to reassure and excite in equal measure, to give you a taste of what to expect, and to prepare you for your adventure.

So, the answer to ‘to blog or not to blog’ has to be yes.

As we go forward into 2011 and our 13th season, I hope you will find mine and Phyllis’ posts informative and useful. But wait, we have a whole team of ECI bloggers, our own fantastic staff members, each with their own unique insight and take on all things ECI. We’ll have Tracy guide you through a day in Paris, William will transport you back to Germany to share his student immersion experience. Let’s bring in Sonya to advise you on Spanish culture and customs.

But before I sign off I must just tell you quickly about the day the Tour de France…But I’ve taken up too much of your time already – that will have to keep for another post.

Welcome! Watch this space. We’ll keep you posted!

You hardly notice your surroundings when you’re 16. Your friends. The social stuff. That’s what matters. This is how you define yourself. Seeing the world only through your eyes.

But travel gives you new ways of seeing. Clear. Fresh. In a way not possible at home.

It can happen unexpectedly. A stone façade in the golden light of late afternoon. A wooden railing worn soft and smooth by countless human hands. The bright colors and varied textures of an open air market. The recognition that many lead fulfilling lives with few possessions.

The threshold to adulthood is empathy. Seeing yourself in others. The growing awareness that it is not all about you. That you are not at the center of the universe.  That we are all part of an interconnected web and that what you do matters and affects others. That your way is not the only way and maybe not even the best way.

You can learn this in your own backyard. Many do. But travel increases the opportunity for this awareness. And what you then do with this awareness is up to you.

While our trips are abroad, the ECI chaperones update a running trip blog with images and information about the experience the students are having. Our parents love being able to stay connected with new updates about their child’s travel.

For students and parents considering a 2011 trip, I recommend you take a moment to visit some of last year’s trip blogs online. Follow the links below to learn more. We hope all our students had an amazing, educational summer traveling with us!

U.S. students traveling abroad

Spain:

Salamanca 1B – http://ecisalamanca1b2010.wordpress.com
Salamanca 2 – http://ecisalamanca22010.wordpress.com
Salamanca 3 – http://ecisalamanca32010.wordpress.com
Granada/Nerja Combo – http://ecigranadanerja2010.wordpress.com
Nerja – http://ecinerja2010.wordpress.com
San Sebastian A – http://ecisansebastiana2010.wordpress.com
San Sebastian B – http://ecisansebastianb2010.wordpress.com

France:

Aix A – http://eciaixa2010.wordpress.com
Aix B – http://eciaixb2010.wordpress.com
Lyon – http://ecilyon2010.wordpress.com

Costa Rica:

Natural Wonders – http://naturalwonders2010.wordpress.com

European students traveling to the United States

ECI July – http://ecijuly2010.wordpress.com/
ECI July 2 – http://ecisfajuly2010.wordpress.com/
ECI August – http://eciaugust2010.wordpress.com/

Prizes given for your best videos!

When the students of the Wasagasse Gymnasium arrived for their study abroad experience in California, we challenged them to produce a video that showed the trip from their perspective.

We received a wide range of submissions, from silly to serious, and picked our favorite three as winners. We are always looking for great new photos and video clips that our students have captured while traveling with ECI.

We offer prizes for winning entries, and love to showcase the talent of our students. Email William your favorite photos and clips to, and you might see your images featured on our website! (Attachments up to 20mb allowed)

Some great work already produced

We were especially impressed by the work of Florian Linke, who combined great filming and careful editing to produce excellent representations of San Francisco. His submissions were awarded first and second place in the competition. Alice Neugebauer was awarded the third place prize for her fun video, filmed in a popular candy shop on the famous Pier 39.

The winning entries!

1. Florian Linke – Visiting the Cable Car Museum

2. Florian Linke – Riding the San Francisco Cable Cars

3. Alice Neugebauer – Singing ‘Lollipop’ at The Candy Baron on Pier 39

Thank you to all the students who participated!

To take or not to take

For high school students today, the cell phone no longer functions as merely a tool for making phone calls. As the technology continues to improve at accelerating speeds, students become more used to relying on their phones to text their friends, store information, listen to music, and surf the Internet. With a study abroad trip on the horizon, many of our students ask, “Do you recommend I bring my cell phone to Europe with me?” While one solution won’t work for everyone, we have recommendations based on our travel experience.

The primary recommendation – calling cards

ECI primarily recommends using calling cards to most students, and their local leader will have them available to sell if they are interested. The biggest advantage of the calling card is avoiding the risk of having a phone break or get stolen while traveling. You also avoid any compatibility issues or the need for a charger that works in Europe. With calling cards you dial the number on the back of the card, enter your code, and then the number you want to dial. The value on the card is used as you make calls, and you can refill the card with more minutes or purchase a new one when necessary. You’ll never be surprised by a sky-high phone bill if you’re using calling cards.

But I must have my phone!

Some students insist on bringing their personal cell phone with them to Europe. If you do intend to bring yours, make sure to check with your service provider about what steps need to be taken for your phone to work in Europe. Some modern phones are ready to make global calls, so in these cases you’ll simply need to make sure you understand the additional fees that go with calls from Europe so you aren’t surprised by your bill at the end of the month. Other phones will require that you purchase a new SIM card upon arrival in Europe to activate the phone. Your chaperone can help you with this, but it may take a few days to find a store that carries the card you need depending on where you are traveling. You’re welcome to bring your phone with you, but most students find they’re perfectly content to leave theirs at home.

Another option – a cheap phone for the summer

A third option is to purchase an inexpensive pre-paid phone upon arrival in Europe. These are very popular for young people there, but you’ll again need to be careful to have the billing rules for calls from Europe to the U.S. explained to you. They are primarily intended for local calling, so if you are making international calls you may use up your minutes much faster than you had expected.

Make sure to smell the roses!

Whatever you decide, remember that part of the experience of studying abroad is about being ready to adjust to a new situation. Students who are used to instant updates about their e-mail and facebook might miss their phone at first, but many find it’s a nice break and focus on connecting with the other students on the trip than their friends back home. You definitely will want to call home to let your parents know how everything is going, but sometimes calling all the time makes it harder to adjust to the new place and can increase a student’s homesickness. There are many options to stay in touch, but above all you’ll want to connect with the people and places you’re visiting. So, yes, you’ll be just fine if you leave your fancy cell phone behind.

Photo by Gonzalo Baeza Hernández