Binational Initiative

 

Binational Migrant Initiative

The Binational Migrant Education Initiative (BMEI) was developed to enable those migrant students from Mexico that arrive in the United States, to have access to the same free, appropriate public school education that is provided to other children. In an effort to promote educational continuity, participants in the BMEI meet annually for the purpose of improving the education of binational students. Departments of Education in the United States and Mexico continuously work to deepen and strengthen their working relationship with one another to enhance their efforts to improve primary, secondary, and postsecondary education in both countries.

Objectives

• Ensure that all binational migrant students have continued access to Education in the U.S. and in Mexico.
• Advocate for and ensure that all binational migrant students have equitable opportunities to learn and meet the high educational standards expected of all students.
• Provide educators with training, which will allow them to better serve the educational needs of binational migrant students.
• Provide support to parents and families of binational migrant students.

Components of the Binational Migrant Initiative

1. Information and Dissemination

The goal of this component is design, develop, and disseminate information to enable educators to meet the educational needs of the binational migrant child, to help them Identify a pedagogical model that specifically addresses the instructional needs of the binational migrant child.

2. Transfer Document: Elementary (1-6) Secondary (7-9)

The major focus of the Binational Initiative is to develop, revise and promote the use of the Transfer Document. The Document provides the student his/her grades so that he/she may enroll in school when he/she returns to Mexico. The students credits are accepted, thus, the student is placed appropriately. Parents need to notify the schools when they are going to leave to Mexico so that the school has ample time to complete the document. The student needs to provide a transfer document when he/she returns to the U.S. The Binational Program can retrieve student’s grades through a request for transcripts form that has been developed by the Binational Program and has been accepted by the U.S. and Mexico’s Binational Initiative. For more information please email arias_j@cde.state.co.us.

This document is to be utilized for those students who are departing the United States and are returning to Mexico to enroll in an elementary school.

• Transfer Document – Elementary School (Primaria) (PDF)
• Transfer Document – Middle School (Secundaria) (PDF)
• Binational Transfer Document Presentation (PPT)

3. Teacher Exchange

The goal of the teacher exchange is to learn about both educational systems so that we can implement educational programs to better meet the needs of the migrant binational child. The Binational Teacher Exchange is designed to provide a cultural and educational exchange to benefit binational migrant students in the U.S. as well as expertise to educators serving binational students. These direct experiences among exchange teachers result in a better understanding of the cultural, educational, and linguistic diversity of Mexico.

4. Culture and Education Resources

Mexico’s Secretary of Public Education and the Secretary of Foreign Relations through the Mexican Cultural Center have provided us with 39 sets of content area texts (1-6 grades) that they use in their national curriculum. These books have been distributed to all the local Migrant Education programs in Colorado so that they may be used with migratory students or during summer school. Colorado schools have also received information on how to solicit these free instructional content area textbooks.

As part of the Free Textbook Distribution Program, Mexico’s Secretary of Public Education and the Secretary of Foreign Relations (through the Mexican Cultural Center) have provided Colorado with resource books for 1-6 grades, that are used for Mexico’s national curriculum, to be a resource for binational students.