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      Trainees use tools for teaching

             
             Schoolteachers attending the training course.
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      CHIRIQUI PROVINCE, Panama, 9 April 2004 (BWNS) -- The sweet smell of cedar 
      sawdust fills the air, and the rhythmic back-and-forth of a lone hacksaw 
      harmonizes with an insistent tap-tap-tapping of oversized tropical 
      raindrops announcing an imminent downpour. 
      Suddenly, all clouds burst, and the entire sky becomes a waterfall, its 
      deafening beat thundering off the corrugated tin roof of the Ngabe-Bugle 
      Cultural Center in Soloy. 
      Victorino Rodriguez is hard at work, along with 15 other indigenous 
      schoolteachers. Oblivious to the rain outside, the teachers continue 
      preparing instructional materials to take back to their schools. One is on 
      government salary; the rest are volunteers, serving full-time as teachers 
      for the native children who live in the remote mountain communities of 
      Chiriqui. 
      The teachers are attending an intensive two-week training, where they will 
      earn three credits towards the 14 required to become government-certified 
      and receive a salary. 
      Roberto Palacio has been serving as a volunteer for eleven years. 
      "This was the best training we have ever had," said Mr. Palacio of Alto 
      Naranjo. 
      "We were given an opportunity to design our own educational materials and 
      to bring these back to our own communities to teach the children. For us, 
      teaching is a labor of love." 
             
            Teacher trainee Lineth Montezuma making fabric squares.
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      His wife, Maria Teresa Bejerano, also a teacher, is participating in the 
      workshop as well. 
      The training is sponsored by FUNDESCU (a Baha'i-inspired non-governmental 
      organization in Panama) with assistance from the Mona Foundation (a 
      Baha'i-inspired non-profit organization based in the United States). 
      It includes classes in curriculum development, lesson planning, teaching 
      strategies for active learning, methods of teaching elementary math, and 
      the production of hands-on materials. 
      Most of the teachers are members of the Baha'i Faith, who are learning to 
      set instructional goals that meet Ministry of Education requirements, and 
      that are in harmony with Baha'i teachings as well as local cultural 
      values. 
      They have generated a list of topics which they feel are of high 
      importance such as moral values, practical skills for useful work, 
      preservation of traditional culture. 
      After setting goals, the teachers practice writing educational objectives 
      using an integrated thematic approach. They work in teams to design 
      interesting lessons based on those objectives, and they demonstrate a 
      variety of teaching strategies, including the use of art, music and drama. 

      In the math workshop each afternoon, participants use the hacksaw, the 
      drill, and other tools to craft practical, inexpensive materials that will 
      help their students learn to sort, classify, count, understand the decimal 
      system, and perform basic math operations. These items must be produced 
      using hand tools, since there is no electricity in the area. 
             
             Teacher trainees (from left to right) Lineth Montezuma, Victorino 
            Rodriguez, and Deidamia Bejerano. 
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      It is an impressive sight: young Ngabe women in their colorful 
      floor-length naguas (the traditional dress), cutting wood and measuring 
      right angles with a T-square, a pencil tucked behind one ear. 
      The trainees are making the short numerical rods used in the Montessori 
      system of education. 
      "The Montessori methodology learned in the seminar has been of great 
      assistance to me in teaching the children in my school -- we should 
      continue with this method to facilitate their learning," said trainee 
      Julio Moreno of Cerro Bolo. 
      After two intensive weeks, the training course comes to an end, and a 
      photo session is scheduled for the last afternoon. 
      "This training has been in tune with the reality faced by the teachers, 
      the children and the communities," said trainee Ismael Atencio of Quebrada 
      Molejon School. 
      "The trainers showed us how to develop a coherent and integrated 
      curriculum model that truly meets our needs. The seminar was dynamic, 
      interactive and collaborative. It was also systematic and practical." 
             
            Teacher trainee Tahireh Sanchez displaying her handiwork.
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      "For me, this two-week training was extraordinary," said trainee Alexis 
      Bejerano, of Bocas del Toro. 
      "I learned about curriculum development, and many different methods of 
      teaching and learning," Mr. Bejerano says. 
      That night, a small closing ceremony begins with prayers and singing in 
      three languages (Spanish, English and Ngabere). There are eloquent 
      speeches, an exchange of gifts, laughter and a few tears. 
      Their official certificates are being signed by the Ministry of Education, 
      and won't be delivered for several days. But the teachers are undaunted. 
      They are already making plans for the next course. 
      [Report and photos by Randie Gottlieb.] 
      (For part one of this story see 
      http://www.bahaiworldnews.org/story.cfm?storyid=186) 
      BWC-RG-040409-1-PANAMA-290-F 



             
             
             
            Related Photos 
                  Schoolteachers attending the training course.
                  > LARGER PHOTO
                  Teacher trainee Lineth Montezuma making fabric squares.
                  > LARGER PHOTO
                  Teacher trainees (from left to right) Lineth Montezuma, 
                  Victorino Rodriguez, and Deidamia Bejerano.
                  > LARGER PHOTO
                  Teacher trainee Tahireh Sanchez displaying her handiwork.
                  > LARGER PHOTO
                  Teacher trainee Lineth Montezuma making items to assist in 
                  teaching mathematics.
                  > LARGER PHOTO


       
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