Posts
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.
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Monday, February 7, 2011
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!
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!
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
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.
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.
Monday, January 17, 2011
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.
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.
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
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.
Sunday, August 1, 2010
Some Pictures
3 days out of every week I live in Chanleas Dai with some amazing Cambodian teachers and Pepy employees. Below are the first of many pictures to come of Chanleas Dai.
This shows about 1/5 of the entire village:
Here is one of my new gecko friends (There are at least 4 in the house):
This is the lotus pond right next to our house and the school:
And here is the house I live in!
Developing an Evaluation System
What an amazing two weeks. Sorry for the long delay in posting, but it has been a whirlwind. My big project for the past two weeks has been developing an evaluation system for the schools and teachers that we work with. My goal was to create a system that led to specific and helpful critical comments as well as allowing us to set concrete criteria for incentives and dismissal from the program.
The old system involved a list of behaviors (planning, clear instructions, etc.) with the option of getting a happy face, medium face, or sad face along with some written comments. This was problematic for several reasons. Primarily, one of our observers is, perhaps, the nicest man on earth and would avoid giving sad faces at all costs.
Also, it was incredibly general and subjective (no set criteria for what makes planning a “happy face”) and it didn’t give us a concrete way to compare teachers with one another, or even themselves from past lessons. My goal, then, was to create a system that not only addressed these problems, but included long range comparisons of lessons as well as evaluation for inclusion in the program directly in the forms.
The new format is basically divided into three sections: classroom observation , monthly performance discussions, and year-long school evaluation.
Classroom observation is based on clear, observable behaviors. How do we know if instructions are clear? If students can follow them the first time. How do we know if the lesson is well-planned? If transitions flow smoothly, materials for each activity are at the ready, and the teacher doesn’t make mistakes in how they present the language (spelling, pronunciation, etc.). How do we know if the lesson was effective? If the teacher calls on a variety of students and they can all answer confidently and correctly.
At the end of each observation, the teacher is given a score based on whether they exhibited more positive behaviors or negative behaviors. The score is concrete and, if we can achieve consistency in evaluations, empirical.
Monthly performance discussions involve calculating the teacher’s average score, classroom attendance (absenteeism among teachers is a huge problem in the developing world), and attendance in trainings and workshops. At this time they are either lauded (which may grow into an incentive program) or advised on the necessity for improvement. If teachers aren’t applying the methods from our workshops, or even bothering to attend, or not teaching their classes at all, the benefits of this program will be given to someone else.
Finally, this data is added into a spreadsheet for the school which can be used to keep track of progress for both individual teachers and the program at that school as a whole.
The old system involved a list of behaviors (planning, clear instructions, etc.) with the option of getting a happy face, medium face, or sad face along with some written comments. This was problematic for several reasons. Primarily, one of our observers is, perhaps, the nicest man on earth and would avoid giving sad faces at all costs.
Also, it was incredibly general and subjective (no set criteria for what makes planning a “happy face”) and it didn’t give us a concrete way to compare teachers with one another, or even themselves from past lessons. My goal, then, was to create a system that not only addressed these problems, but included long range comparisons of lessons as well as evaluation for inclusion in the program directly in the forms.
The new format is basically divided into three sections: classroom observation , monthly performance discussions, and year-long school evaluation.
Classroom observation is based on clear, observable behaviors. How do we know if instructions are clear? If students can follow them the first time. How do we know if the lesson is well-planned? If transitions flow smoothly, materials for each activity are at the ready, and the teacher doesn’t make mistakes in how they present the language (spelling, pronunciation, etc.). How do we know if the lesson was effective? If the teacher calls on a variety of students and they can all answer confidently and correctly.
At the end of each observation, the teacher is given a score based on whether they exhibited more positive behaviors or negative behaviors. The score is concrete and, if we can achieve consistency in evaluations, empirical.
Monthly performance discussions involve calculating the teacher’s average score, classroom attendance (absenteeism among teachers is a huge problem in the developing world), and attendance in trainings and workshops. At this time they are either lauded (which may grow into an incentive program) or advised on the necessity for improvement. If teachers aren’t applying the methods from our workshops, or even bothering to attend, or not teaching their classes at all, the benefits of this program will be given to someone else.
Finally, this data is added into a spreadsheet for the school which can be used to keep track of progress for both individual teachers and the program at that school as a whole.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)