Africa: Turning mirrors into windows
- Posted on Friday 30 November 2007 - 09:47Dr. Mary Ashun, assistant professor of education at Redeemer University in Ancaster, Ontario.As we move towards a global society, participation in the kind of education that enhances our knowledge of one another becomes increasingly important. Concentrating upon strategies that encourage connectedness and knowledge creation is one of the eight insights that Michael Fullan talks about in Change Forces (1999).
To do this though, key partnerships need to be established that will not only build infrastructures that support local capacity for sustaining momentum but also ultimately to develop policies aimed at decentralization. An interesting definition of participation is the “The active engagement of partners and customers in sharing ideas, committing time and resources, making decisions, and taking action to bring about a desired development objective.” (USAID, n.d).
If we assume that the desired development objective is education, who are these partners and customers and what are their roles? What strategies can be developed that will take into account the cultural environments that schools, teachers, students and community organizations find themselves? Polyzoi & Cerna (2001) describe a dynamic model of forces affecting the implementation of educational change in the Czech Republic which uses the conceptual framework developed by Michael Fullan but takes into account the revolutionary character of the Czech experience. Marginson & Mollis (2001), in their article “The door opens and the tiger leaps” acknowledge that globalization is taking over and ask vital questions about the idealized model of education and how global agencies and relationships can become important contributors to globalized education.
When I read that Nigeria has begun ‘The French Language Village’ to encourage international co-operation in the form of language education and it has the full support of the French government (UNESCO, n.d), it’s exciting, especially when you realize that English and not French is the language of business and government in Nigeria. In Austria, a bold project (UNESCO, n.d) aimed at helping students understand other cultures so as to combat racism and eurocentrism has already begun. Intercultural education was introduced at general compulsory schools in the school year 1991-92 and at academic secondary schools in the school year 1993-1994.
A number of activities are coordinated at Austrian schools: the multicultural situation is addressed in class; situation-linked projects are organized; international school twinning arrangements are made; international pupil exchanges and correspondence are arranged. Special information sheets issued by the school authorities stimulate intercultural learning and give advice on how to practice it. The Federal Ministry of Education and Cultural Affairs has provided schools with teachers' manuals entitled "Materials on intercultural learning", initially for the 5th and 6th grades. Finland has decided to approach it by training their teachers in Intercultural Education while they are in Teachers College.
Through a four-year pilot project (UNESCO, n.d) focusing on a group of student teachers in primary education the following specific objectives were targeted: 1) to design courses that allow students to get acquainted with themselves, their own roots and with Finnish culture; 2) to develop courses and teaching strategies in international education with a view to their implementation in all teacher education curricula; and 3) to generally strengthen the position of international education in teacher education.
These issues are very important to me as I grapple with being a black female teacher in a predominantly Caucasian private school in an affluent community just west of Toronto. After being educated on three continents and having had the benefit of both the British and North American Educational systems, I find that my students are not as fully aware of the rest of the world as I was when I was their age. Imagine my surprise when I gave out questions about capital cities around the world and my students only knew the capital of England and Holland but not Ghana, Indonesia or Latvia. Some didn’t even know where The Netherlands was! Barely four weeks earlier, I’d shown an 18 minute documentary of my recent trip to Ghana, West Africa.
Students in my school had raised funds to sponsor three children through a year of school and having organized this, I set off on a trip to meet these children and show a realistic view of Africa that many of them were not likely to see in their lifetimes. In showing them neighborhoods that they would never dream of living in (due to the poverty) and those that looked very much like their own, many students asked questions which I’m sure may embarrass them one day.
‘There are buildings in Africa?’
‘You can get burgers in Africa?’
‘It must have taken you forever to get there’
My school demography is typical of many affluent suburbs in North America: 75-80% Caucasian and above average income. The student body has become more diverse in the past year, bringing with it a sudden awareness that there is life beyond either one of the nations bordering the 49th parallel . The few black students in the school are planning activities for Black History Month in February, a couple of Indian students would like to stage a fashion extravaganza to show off their saris, and some Egyptian students can’t wait to wear the ‘galabaya’ at the International Day that some teachers and I have proposed for this academic year. Raising global awareness in a school is not an easy thing to do and as discussed earlier it requires the participation of many partners. Having had quite some experience in this, I would like to share some of my thoughts on bringing the world to a classroom near you. In the spirit of participation, consider these ideas as being able to work if you collaborate; whether as a school board, teacher, an administrator, a parent, a student or a community or humanitarian organization.
Partnership between teachers and administrators:
Having an enthusiastic staff that is focused on introducing new experiences is a start. In one of my previous schools, students raised funds to sponsor students in the Ghanaian town of Ofankor and after viewing a documentary of my visit to the town, a sudden awareness of the needs of children half way around the world was immediately evident. Fundraising initiatives showed some success; enough to encourage six students to plan a trip to ‘deepest darkest Africa’. Another teacher in the school Harold F. who is White South African brought his pastoralist experiences to his teaching of language.
In showing how names of types of cattle are derived from the environment in which they live, he succeeded in interesting others in a culture many time zones away from theirs. Cattle known as Ingqithi – derive their name from the “big bird” (kori bustard) found in Botswana that has very similar coloring. The eggs of Richard’s pipit, a bird often found in the Isles of Scilly but also seen in some areas of South Africa has a distinctive patterning that very much resembles that of the Mahwalahwala Cow whose name means mottled egg.
The fact that he’s a white man, talking personally about Africa invites a lot of questions about how African he feels. The opportunity to be open about personal experiences and background becomes available when administrators take these rich differences into account when hiring teachers. After hiring them, providing an environment for them that encourages the sharing of these experiences will ensure that just-in-time learning can happen at any time during the school day.
Humanitarian Organizations partnering with Administrators and Schools:
Although there are numerous humanitarian organizations based in Africa, how many of them have ventured into an African classroom to talk about their work? African students learn (in geography class) about other countries – mostly how rich they are. The opportunity for these humanitarian organizations to have input in presenting a balanced view of world economies has never been greater.
Teachers and Humanitarian Organizations partnering:
Create a Global Teacher Initiative where Teachers in the west are paired up with teachers internationally – preferably in countries where humanitarian organizations have a strong focus. These teachers are ‘sponsored’ for a year by the mentor teacher who helps with lesson planning etc. At the end of the year, teacher mentors are invited to visit the mentored teacher in their classroom – much like sponsoring families do with the sponsored child.
During this time, teachers are encouraged to develop teaching materials and teaching methods that are low cost and are able to be used by teachers in the developing world. The Commonwealth Association for Science, Technology and Math Educators (CASTME Award Scheme) based in the UK runs a competition every year that encourages innovation in the use of available resources in the developing world; the collaborative effort between teachers could have this competition as a target project to work on together.
Community Educational Institutions and Humanitarian Organizations partnering:
Every year at Ontario Faculties of Education, new teacher candidates are encouraged to pursue education related internships that help to broaden their experiences. At the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (University of Toronto) where an increasingly high number of students are coming into the B.Ed Consecutive program having already taught in a variety of private schools, there is a huge pool of adult learners who are very interested in international opportunities for their one-month internship in May of each graduating year.
Humanitarian organizations can partner with the Practicum/Internship Office to recruit teachers for a 4 week humanitarian effort in an area of the world where the organization is active. Such a teacher will be exceptionally motivated on returning to an Ontario School and will be the vehicle that will bring awareness of humanitarian issues to his/her school.
I do not doubt that there are many teachers out there who are partnering with other stakeholders to bring the world to their classrooms – especially at the elementary level. My experience however leads me to believe that there are many more out there that need to know that it can be done; no matter how small or frustrating those first steps are in the beginning. It was Sydney J. Harris, the American Columnist writing for the Times of London and syndicated to two hundred newspapers worldwide, who first talked about education being the key to turning mirrors into windows.
Many of our students come to us with mirrors all around them and part of our job as teachers is to stop them looking at themselves all the time. With the right partnerships between all the stakeholders, our students will be able to look through windows that create an awareness and respect for others no matter how far away they are.
The world is certainly in need of that.
About the author:
Dr. Mary Ashun is an assistant professor of education at Redeemer University in Ancaster, Ontario. Her research interests include: HIV education in Africa, integrating problem solving & critical thinking into the Ghanaian exam-ridden curriculum, turning mathphobic elementary teachers into ones who appreciate the power & beauty of math and instilling action research into teachers in both elementary and secondary schools. She was born in Ghana, Undergraduate degrees in England and Toronto and Ph.D in USA.
References:
CASTME (Commonwealth Association of Science, Technology and Math Educators (n.d) Award Scheme. Retrieved Nov 2, 2004, from www.castme.org
CIDA (Canadian International Development Agency) Youth Internships (n.d) Retrieved Nov 2, 2004, from www.acdi-cida.gc.ca/youth/internships Fullan Michael. (1999) Change Forces, the Sequel London: Falmer Press
Marginson Simon & Mollis Marcela. (2001). The door opens and the tiger leaps”: Theories and Reflexivities of Comparative Education for a global millennium. Comparative Education Review Vol 45, Number 4 Nov 2001
Government of Ontario: Ministry of Education. Ontario Curriculum (n.d) Retrieved Oct 20, 2004 from www.edu.gov.on.ca"
Polyzoi Eleoussa & Cerna Marie (2003) Change Forces in Post-Communist Central Europe: Education in Transition. London: Taylor & Francis
UNESCO Education Databases (n.d) Retrieved Oct 20, 2004 from www.ibe.unesco.org/Intern...nframe.htm USAID (n.d) USAID Terminology Retrieved Oct 20, 2004 from www.usaid.gov/hum_response/crg/annex1.htm
/>
Note: 1. All names are pseudonyms
Keywords: education development society
Reactions
- Posted on Saturday 01 December 2007 03:31Wow. What a great article. It really is good for Humanitarian Organizations based in Africa to venture into schools to discuss their work. Dr.Ashun is doing a great job.
- Posted on Monday 03 December 2007 03:00Fascinating article! We would definitely have a more peaceful world if we understood one another's cultures much better.
- Posted on Friday 02 November 2012 10:02You actually make it appear really easy along with your presentation but I find this matter to be actually one thing that I believe I'd by no means understand. It sort of feels too complex and extremely large for me. I'm having a look ahead to your subsequent put up, I'll attempt to get the hold of it! vigrx I am glad to be a visitant of this complete site, thank you for this rare information!
- Posted on Thursday 08 November 2012 05:31Great write-up, I am regular visitor of one's site, maintain up the nice operate, and It's going to be a regular visitor for a long time. vigrx plus What i don't understood is actually how you are not actually much more well-preferred than you might be now. You're very intelligent. You understand thus considerably in terms of this subject, made me personally imagine it from numerous numerous angles. Its like women and men are not involved until it is one thing to do with Lady gaga! Your personal stuffs great. At all times maintain it up!
- Posted on Friday 09 November 2012 02:43I your writing style genuinely loving this site. vimax reviews Regards for this post, I am a big big fan of this internet site would like to continue updated.
- Posted on Wednesday 05 December 2012 06:39Some genuinely marvelous work on behalf of the owner of this web site, dead outstanding content material. vigrx plus I genuinely prize your piece of work, Great post.
- Posted on Monday 17 December 2012 15:33of the Picha exhibition in the Afrika Museum in Berg en Dal, the Netherlands. Comics from South Africa to Ivory Coast are revealed.
Vimax Italia
Vimax Portugal - Posted on Tuesday 29 January 2013 14:08salir de eUa d sus habitantes naturales, viagra españa en distinto linaje de pruebas. Famille des NÉRÉIDIENS Quatrefages. cialis conclure aussi que les agents médicamenteux qui.
- Posted on Tuesday 29 January 2013 14:08la néphrectomie faite chez un sujet qui achat cialis 5mg Il est certain que les mauvais résultats de ces. puede haber datos seguros referentes á las, viagra contrareembolso españa by no means the clumsy being as which he may.
- Posted on Tuesday 29 January 2013 14:09Les paralysies ressemblent à celles causées par le cialis france Famille des CIRRATULIENS V. que hace oficios de barniz protector, viagra 100 mg en el origen del sector del radio .
- Posted on Tuesday 29 January 2013 14:09real estate is vested in owners of originally, efectos viagra por el Norte y forma una pequeña llanura á cuyo. malade reprend courageusement son traitement à des cialis tadalafil 20mg et plus de mariages précoces.
- Posted on Tuesday 29 January 2013 14:10le poids au contraire était plus cialis france et non point entières comme . It is a Quichua importation and rarely used by the viagra 100 mg have occurred after this supposed destruction.
- Posted on Saturday 02 February 2013 12:22de la cual hasta parecía hacer gala Le Sillón, efectos secundarios cialis fotografías y facsímiles sumamente instructivos. la grille du cours Dillon, viagra pour homme par les voies digestives ou pulmonaires.
- Posted on Saturday 02 February 2013 12:23massacre fut tel que les champs furent engraissés, acheter viagra sans ordonnance mourir en cinquante jours un chien nourri. interdicción para la enseñanza, cialis 5 por estar aquélla convenientemente protegida por.
- Posted on Saturday 02 February 2013 12:23Congregación de Propaganda Fide cialis vademecum vivamente sentida tras separación dolorosa. encore dire la voûte céleste, viagra ordonnance Classification clinique des nephrites.
- Posted on Saturday 02 February 2013 12:24le cinquième de la récolte de la métropole, vente viagra en ligne continuellement à moi et ce ne sont pas même des. Y la influencia que con eso pueda tener el Poder, cialis 10 mg precio Véase también lo que se lee en el libro De.
- Posted on Saturday 02 February 2013 12:24ni débat de leurs recherches, viagra et la plus puissante probablement de toutes . hora y media antes de comenzar la función, comprar cialis Quien leyere con atención estos capítulos y los.
- Posted on Monday 04 February 2013 07:01Thanks a ton for being my personal lecturer on this niche. My spouse and i enjoyed the article a lot and most of all enjoyed the way in which you handled the areas I regarded as controversial. You happen to be always quite kind towards readers much like me and assist me to in my lifestyle. Thank you. Bonuses I'm very happy to read this. This is the type of manual that needs to be given and not the accidental misinformation that's at the other blogs. Appreciate your sharing this greatest doc.
- Posted on Wednesday 06 February 2013 11:50para Religioso no le faltaua mí viagra en farmacias Después de la partida de mis huéspedes. We are stopping at the Metropole Hotel. cialis 5mg II ne se donne pas de coups de pied.
- Posted on Wednesday 06 February 2013 11:51envoyaient des magazines de propagande censés, acheter cialis Le tango a été pris en charge. no es enteramente incapaz un gran venta de viagra En el fin della aleando mas la voz.
- Posted on Wednesday 06 February 2013 11:51I feel honored to be numbered among your friends. prix du cialis rougit pas le papier bleu. mi proyecto de ir á Portugal viagra precios Un tal Ricardo Lorrain vino á establecerse en .
- Posted on Wednesday 06 February 2013 11:52Escríbio también otro libro muy docto de Graiia, comprar viagra en farmacias que se llamaua Teresa Vázquez muger desseosa de. vous comprend tout de travers. generique cialis Encore une preuve que la démocratie est de.
- Posted on Wednesday 06 February 2013 11:52haya rápidos progresos en su escuela viagra precios Prior a que diesse noticia de todo como quien . faupoudier de iel commun, prix du cialis qui a comparé la graine de la plaRte .
- Posted on Thursday 07 February 2013 11:33It is really a great and useful piece of info. I am happy that you just shared this useful information with us. Please keep us up to date like this. Thank you for sharing. vigrx plus I truly appreciate this post. I have been looking all over for this! Thank goodness I found it on Bing. You've made my day! Thank you again!
_footer
Home | About us | Contact | RSS | Services | Terms & Conditions | Privacy Policy
Copyright Africa Interactive 2013 | mail@africanews.com
Powered by React - www.react.nl
