Your Classroom is Invited!
Building bridges between diverse cultures
“Our students come from many communities across Northern and Central New Jersey. We have a mix of students from various socioeconomic backgrounds and cannot afford cultural exchange programs. This is why the Your Big Year Global Citizens Challenge is a life-changing experience for our youth”. - The Craig School, New Jersey.
Since 2020, SYTA and Your Big Year (an International Connector program) have been inspiring classrooms with The Global Citizens Challenge, bridging cultures and bringing the world to students in a safe forum—right from their desks.
About the challenge
The Global Citizens Challenge is an online dynamic program that provides young people with a transformative and collaborative way to meet and work with peers worldwide - A perfect classroom project, homework assignment, or individual student experience.
Why is this important?
Travel is often inaccessible to many young people due to a lack of awareness, school budget cuts, and economic barriers. As a result, many miss out on a cultural exchange experience that offers long-lasting benefits, such as increased confidence, enhanced employability, and greater empathy.
The Global Citizens Challenge (GCC) offers young people a safe space to explore cultural connections and differences, fostering meaningful exchanges within their communities both virtually and through valuable opportunities.
Our results have shown that this program help increase youths’ interest in other cultures and increases their overall motivation to learn
Common Questions:
Who can sign up for classes?
Educators, program leaders, organizations and parents! Must be 15 - 20 years old.
How can classrooms participate?
There are several ways in which educators can utilize this opportunity to enhance their student’s learning in the classroom.
You can integrate it into class projects (For example language teachers, global studies and geography teachers have closely related topics)
Into your class curriculum (example was that one teacher who teaches Spanish had her class practice speaking Spanish within the event and had them focused on meeting peers from Spanish-speaking countries).
Extra curricular or bonus points (your students can participate individually for extra points. Our team would work with you to report back on their participation)
How do you ensure the classroom is prepared?
We work closely with the educator to ensure that their group is prepared. This includes:
Specific orientation during your classroom period
A point of contact will be provided by the YBY Team that will be available throughout the entire Global Citizens Challenge (before, during and after the event).
Application Deadline:
January 15, 2025. However, we suggest you apply earlier if possible so we can coordinate time with your classroom.
Read our FAQ sheet of commonly asked questions. If you have further queries, please don’t hesitate to reach out to our team.