EdTechTalk - Belize and Japan

Two discussions that I was able to listen to at edtechtalk.com where discussions that took place with experiences outside of the United States.  I tend to be very interested in the diverse cultures that are present around the world and often gravitate towards more worldly experiences, which I guess is why I was a sociology major my first time around.  

The first discussion that I listened to had to do with the current earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear disaster that is unfolding in Japan.  The discussion was from Teachers Teaching Teachers and was titled A crisis that will be resolved or a crisis out of control?  Stories from Japan.  It focused on the events going on in Japan, the reality of the situation and how teachers can bring the information in their classrooms.  The participants in the discussion included Paul Allison who teaches at East-West School of International Studies in Queens, New York, two of his students, Ben Sherman (founder of the East-West School), and Alan Berman (professor at the University of Tokyo).   

Since the East-West School requires that students learn an Asian language, as well as to study that culture, the discussion focused on the validity of the information that people in the United States are getting about the true dangers in Japan due to the language barrier.  According to Berman (2011) the language barrier makes it difficult for people to access first hand accounts, which means that the media is relying on second and third hand accounts about the situation.  Berman (2011) feels that the nuclear problems in Japan is a non-issue and that the media is creating panic that is not an accurate representation of the realities of Japan.  

How does this impact the classroom?  What ways can teachers utilize the events and information for their classes?  While the participants agreed that different elements of the crisis could be utilized for different types of classes (i.e. tsunami in a geography class) there were four general ideas about how this could be used in the classroom.  First, student can be taught how to be critical of the media to become more informed and increase the validity of their knowledge base.  Next, break the event into different parts and focus on those in specific classes (i.e. tsunami in geography).  The third way that this could be used in the classroom in to begin a dialogue about innovative technologies and natural resources.  Finally, the events could be used to explore the differences between national and foreign issues before being critical of policy.  

The second discussion that I listened to was on Conversations titled Exploring New Culture - Heading to Belize.  This was a very interesting discussion because I would enjoy participating in a trip where teachers are able to experience and work with teachers and classes in another country.  This discussion focused on the experiences that teachers had on a trip to Belize through a program that has been running for 21 years through the University of New Hampshire.  The program began as a way to get experienced teachers out of their comfort zone and provide new experiences.  

The program, which is a 4 credit course, provides teachers with the opportunity to travel to Belize with their cohort to partner up with schools down there.  Participants on the trip are fully immersed in the Belizean culture and work together with teachers.  When the teachers arrive in Belize they take time to become acclimated and explore Belizean schools and villages and decide what school they would like to work at.  Then they are put up by a host village and attend school with the teacher, where they have the opportunity to teach some classes.  At the end of the full immersion program they meet up with the rest of the cohort to debrief on the group experiences.  

There is a great deal of reciprocity between both participants from learning about cultural differences to validating education.  The continued partnership allows for investigation, creation of lesson plans, and the ability to bring resources and supplies to a place that lacks some of the educational necessities.  The participants discussed many of the ways that they have been affected by the experience and how they bring it back to their own classroom.  Since a "picture is worth a thousand words" many teachers find it difficult to get their students to fully understand the differences in education, but they offered up great ideas for teaching their students.  This is also an opportunity for students to learn about a different culture and communicate with students from another country.