Open, Equal, and Free...

After much discussion the organization I hope start has had a name change. There are some great resources out there to learn about marketing and branding, and in the long run OSEDI just didn't cut it. It is used in several Spanish sites, was taken on many social media sites, and was impossible to spell when spoken aloud.

The new name is Open Equal Free, which relates not only to how education should be, but the open source aspect of our mission. There's not a lot on the site yet, but openequalfree.org is up and running.

WHY?!

I am currently attending a large conference on education in Cambodia. In the span of my career I have attended several conferences, workshops, trainings, and professional development activities.

I am consistently amazed by the proportion of these activities that are not taught well. I work in a field that specializes in the presentation of information, and yet, the vast majority of experts in my field seem totally incapable of presenting information to their peers.

Would any of them, any of us, advise teachers to stand in front of a group and read slides? Or even simply to present without interruption for more than 10 or 15 minutes at a time? How can we claim to be immersed in the science of information presentation, and then not use what we know when presenting information?

People should sweat bullets before they present before teachers. We should expect, demonstrate, and encourage the absolute highest level of information sharing in our conferences and professional development sessions.

Right?

Fast Forward

Well, I suppose now is as good a time as any to start spreading the word. We should start filing for incorporation in the next few weeks and apply for 501(c)3 status directly after that.

www.osedi.org

The idea feels pretty intuitive for me. Rather than forming a for-profit consulting firm, I'm starting a nonprofit consulting firm and making the materials I produce open source so that anyone can use them. It probably won't make me rich, but I hope it will allow me to have greater impact on education in the developing word.

Starting Up

There have been some interesting developments of late. I decided late last year that if I applied myself properly, I can do what I do for PEPY for several NGO's at once. By becoming a more independent consultant, I could increase the impact my work will have on educational development.
So, I think that's just what I'll do. I'm going to start a nonprofit that provides consulting and educational materials to people working in the developing world. I've been talking to lawyers, getting incorporation documents, and really, actually, doing it. It's pretty exciting. I had to give up one name, Eduvelopment.org, because another company is asserting Trademark rights. I think it's possible I could win the battle, but probably not worth it so we'll just take a different tack.

Keep watching here for updates!

Rethinking Permaculture

To farm, or not to farm?

A family can earn a significant amount of money by sending their young teens to Thailand to work. Because of that, attrition from primary to secondary school is over 50%. Of course, this impacts education development dramatically. I have a small amount of experience in permaculture, mostly as a hobby, and have been asked to come up with a proposal for my current employer.

I just got back from one of my thinking walks where I saw fish ponds, chicken coops, pig pens, small plots of cash crops, essentially all of the techniques agricultural NGO's boast that they bring to rural communities. Well, the techniques are here, the wealth definitely is not.

Maybe it's time to switch the cart and horse. Maybe the question isn't "how can we teach these poor farmers how to do it right?" but instead "Why aren't they doing it already?" I mean, isn't it naive of us to think that a bunch of farmers don't know how to farm? That all they need is a training and a pat on the back before they're on the road to development?

So, I'm shifting gears. Not "What do they need?" but "What barriers do they need removed?"

Perhaps this will finally save the world.

Where are all the teachers?

Today I met with a gentleman who will be working with another education NGO in southern Cambodia. He has some background in language education, but no real experience teaching young learners.

Again, I wonder, where are all the teachers? Why aren't excellent, trained teachers coming to the developing world, rolling up their sleeves, and helping out? Many school districts have programs that allow teachers to take a year (or sometimes more) off without jeopardizing their tenure or benefits, so why aren't more coming over?

Perhaps it's a simple matter of advertising, maybe teachers don't know just how much impact they could have working in the developing world. Maybe NGO's, like many politicians, think teaching is just something that happens if you give a somewhat intelligent person a textbook and put them in front of a room full of kids.

I just find it hard to believe that in a profession where people are here for their passion and not their paychecks that so few of them are willing to come to the developing world.

2011

What an amazing year 2010 was. I moved to Cambodia and began a new job, which looks like it’s shaping up to be a whole new career. I have really enjoyed working with PEPY and it looks like I’ll be doing so for quite a while, albeit with different hats on.

There are so many organizations in the world working to improve education in developing nations, and so few resources at their disposal. Internet searches simply do not turn up curricula, school designs, organizational structures, teaching methodologies, etc. for the developing world. It’s difficult for an organization working with government schools to reconcile the simple fact that an inexpensive and simple lesson in a country like America is cost prohibitive and complicated in a country like Cambodia.

I hope to do as much as I can to change that unfortunate truth in 2011 and beyond.