What American Know-How Has To Learn

WHAT AMERICAN KNOW-HOW HAS TO LEARN

How can Haitians and Americans work together to respond constructively to address the problems that face Haiti? Amid Haiti's great poverty and political strife, there is much work to be done. The country's problems are immense, complex, and intertwined. There are no easy solutions. But if well-intentioned Americans equipped with relevant know-how want to partner with our Haitian brothers and sisters working to better their country, we must first learn to listen.

For the past several years, the two of us have been involved in a variety of efforts to improve Haiti's educational system. John, an American, moved to Haiti in 1991 to serve as field director for a US-based nonprofit organization that was funding Haitian schools and literacy programs. He soon discovered that the authoritarian approach to education and leadership most popular in Haiti was largely failing to empower students to take responsibility for their learning. As John and his colleagues searched for alternative methods, he encountered Steven, an American university professor who had more than ten years experience in discussion-based education with Touchstones Discussion Project.
Read more

JohnEngle.info
TheExperiment.info
John@TheExperiment.info

SCHOOLS ALIVE!

I just received a report from friend/colleague, Coleen Hedglin. She and colleagues, Jude Apollon, Samson Joseph and Ulrick Denis, have cooked up a very cool initiative called SCHOOLS ALIVE!

They are convening teachers, students and others interested in education in small open space gatherings all around Port-au-Prince on the theme:

“How can we achieve a type of teaching in the classroom which will produce non-violent, self-motivated, and eager learners?”

To read more, go to:

Schools Alive Second Open Space Meeting

JohnEngle.info
TheExperiment.info
John@TheExperiment.info