After many cups of coffee, we all sat down in the conference room of the
Paloma Hotel to examine our last two weeks of our in-country fellowship
here in Ghana.
We discussed what the What? So What? Now What? and In Conclusion? we gathered from our short, but intensive time here.
Keeping in mind the idea of the cultural iceberg (appearance above the surface v. awareness below the surface) as the following ideas are discussed:
VALUE OF EDUCATION IN GHANA (some notes)
-Ghanians hold a special and almost a sacred place for education.
-Home Economics and traditional craft skills highly valued and impressive level of expertise in students.
-Concern with computer skills
-Social Studies here means exploration of morality and ethics
-Unaware of deforestation of the rainforest and those factors that contribute to foreign powers coming in and taking what they want and leaving an environmental mess behind for the people of the country.
-Emphasis on the rote, not on critical thinking (at least in the classrooms we've observed, but very dependent on the teacher's relationships with the students)
-The teachers relationship with students in just as paramount here as it is in the United States
-The U.S. could use more hands-on exams to assess student knowledge
STRUCTURE OF EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM (some notes)
-Unity and tolerance due to students being sent all over country to boarding schools
-While boarding schools can lead to bonding among students, it also makes it difficult to study and keep individual tribal cultures alive because of the "melting pot" effect.
-Materials out-of-date or not enough
-Teacher pay is very low, motivation often follows leading to teachers oftentimes not in class with students and students teaching themselves
-Many Ghanian teachers do not guard instructional time like U.S. teachers obsess over.
YOUTH CONCERNS AND ISSUES (some notes)
-Teen pregnancy
-Female genital mutilation
-"How do I get out of Ghana?"
-Social networking
-Freedom to share thoughts and opinions in class
-Caning (as punishment in school)
-Teacher-student romantic relationships
-Reckless nature of Americans
-Electricity
PUBLIC V. PRIVATE PERSONA
Students in Ghana definitely have the social filter down pat. They may not be able to express their ideas freely in the classroom or even at home with their families, but when you pull them aside and you really ask them, "So, what do you REALLY think about makeup?" They will giggle with a sly smile and then say what you knew they were thinking all along: to each their own.
LINGERING EMOTIONS AND THEIR
Pride in Sisterhood--Talking to one of the Wesley Girls after a heated, but stifled, debate about makeup in society. The essay clearly laced with religious propaganda. She said she didn't wear makeup but didn't see any problem with people who did. Then she giggled realizing that we both saw that conversation as being quite silly.
Wonder--In sitting at Mable's Table with a view of the ocean having a discussion with Hayley and Amber. In a country of so much natural beauty (the coastline, the rain forests, the richness of cultural tradition) why is there so much poverty? And why does it seem like it will remain for generations to come? Why is it the more I learn and the more I see and the conversations that multiply quickly lead me to question more what this country truly wants for itself and what is it the world wants for this country. I am still left to wonder this.
Humility--Being introduced to our host's classroom and immediately having girls take our their cameras and taking pictures of us v. us always taking pictures of them and the new surroundings.
Grateful--For this experience to visit and learn about a culture that never crossed my mind before. To have my mind open to new ideas about what life and living means to the different people around the world. To have the ability to explore these concepts is incredible and I want to make sure I never take it for granted.
LESSONS LEARNED
The experience (or two) that I will use to describe my time in Ghana varies depending on the group I am sharing my experience with. It ranges from my personal anecdotes with students and teachers to the economic, religious, and societal variables.
I OBSERVED that Ghanaian and I would like to take back to my classroom:
DURING MY EXCHANGE..., so now I want to...
I LEARNED that Ghanians are trying to find their place in the world through what appears to be modeling a lot of the ways in which the western world operates. I hope that Ghana is not going to come out of their leftover colonial past and jump into new Americanism. I hope that Ghana finds a way to progress through what is good for their country, not what is good for the west and for the rich to get richer. In the educational sense the country has decided to put the local language back into school curriculum and I see that as a great step into preserving the culture and not having it squashed by the English-speaking world. Even though English is the official language of the country.
Experiencing...inspired a global perspective because...
Before my time in Ghana I thought...but now...
ESSENTIAL QUESTION
What outcomes did you observe or find?
"The Danger of a Single Narrative" has become a popular phrase in global education and in our desire to understand people from different parts of the world. The truth lies in the personal connections that you make with the individual who is sharing their story with you. What I noticed in Ghana was that trust is inherent in the honesty you will receive from both young and old. Additionally, pulling a person out of a larger group will more often allow you to get an honest depiction how that person truly views the issues at hand. Not to disregard the opinions of the whole, as that is also necessary to develop an idea in contrast to what people will share with you in private.
What do you still wonder?
I wonder what stories have been shared with me under the context of where I am coming from. Meaning, are there certain views or opinions that were shared more or less readily because I am an American? What were those views? Why? How much of sharing narratives comes from the U.S. culture of freedom of speech, religion, and thought-- how much of it is a natural human condition of wanting to know the daily going ons of others? How can language effect the tone of the conversation and passion in which the thought is delivered (ie. more feeling heard in native language than in English). Another thought not touched on in this trip: what proverbs and popular figurative language is intertwined into narrative.
Thesis Statement
The way in which an individual structures their personal narrative can have a great impact on how our global society perceives that culture as a whole. This single storyteller holds the power to mold a cultures' consciousness by the words and anecdotes he or she shares with cultural outsiders.
We discussed what the What? So What? Now What? and In Conclusion? we gathered from our short, but intensive time here.
Keeping in mind the idea of the cultural iceberg (appearance above the surface v. awareness below the surface) as the following ideas are discussed:
VALUE OF EDUCATION IN GHANA (some notes)
-Ghanians hold a special and almost a sacred place for education.
-Home Economics and traditional craft skills highly valued and impressive level of expertise in students.
-Concern with computer skills
-Social Studies here means exploration of morality and ethics
-Unaware of deforestation of the rainforest and those factors that contribute to foreign powers coming in and taking what they want and leaving an environmental mess behind for the people of the country.
-Emphasis on the rote, not on critical thinking (at least in the classrooms we've observed, but very dependent on the teacher's relationships with the students)
-The teachers relationship with students in just as paramount here as it is in the United States
-The U.S. could use more hands-on exams to assess student knowledge
STRUCTURE OF EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM (some notes)
-Unity and tolerance due to students being sent all over country to boarding schools
-While boarding schools can lead to bonding among students, it also makes it difficult to study and keep individual tribal cultures alive because of the "melting pot" effect.
-Materials out-of-date or not enough
-Teacher pay is very low, motivation often follows leading to teachers oftentimes not in class with students and students teaching themselves
-Many Ghanian teachers do not guard instructional time like U.S. teachers obsess over.
YOUTH CONCERNS AND ISSUES (some notes)
-Teen pregnancy
-Female genital mutilation
-"How do I get out of Ghana?"
-Social networking
-Freedom to share thoughts and opinions in class
-Caning (as punishment in school)
-Teacher-student romantic relationships
-Reckless nature of Americans
-Electricity
PUBLIC V. PRIVATE PERSONA
Students in Ghana definitely have the social filter down pat. They may not be able to express their ideas freely in the classroom or even at home with their families, but when you pull them aside and you really ask them, "So, what do you REALLY think about makeup?" They will giggle with a sly smile and then say what you knew they were thinking all along: to each their own.
LINGERING EMOTIONS AND THEIR
Pride in Sisterhood--Talking to one of the Wesley Girls after a heated, but stifled, debate about makeup in society. The essay clearly laced with religious propaganda. She said she didn't wear makeup but didn't see any problem with people who did. Then she giggled realizing that we both saw that conversation as being quite silly.
Wonder--In sitting at Mable's Table with a view of the ocean having a discussion with Hayley and Amber. In a country of so much natural beauty (the coastline, the rain forests, the richness of cultural tradition) why is there so much poverty? And why does it seem like it will remain for generations to come? Why is it the more I learn and the more I see and the conversations that multiply quickly lead me to question more what this country truly wants for itself and what is it the world wants for this country. I am still left to wonder this.
Humility--Being introduced to our host's classroom and immediately having girls take our their cameras and taking pictures of us v. us always taking pictures of them and the new surroundings.
Grateful--For this experience to visit and learn about a culture that never crossed my mind before. To have my mind open to new ideas about what life and living means to the different people around the world. To have the ability to explore these concepts is incredible and I want to make sure I never take it for granted.
LESSONS LEARNED
The experience (or two) that I will use to describe my time in Ghana varies depending on the group I am sharing my experience with. It ranges from my personal anecdotes with students and teachers to the economic, religious, and societal variables.
I OBSERVED that Ghanaian and I would like to take back to my classroom:
DURING MY EXCHANGE..., so now I want to...
I LEARNED that Ghanians are trying to find their place in the world through what appears to be modeling a lot of the ways in which the western world operates. I hope that Ghana is not going to come out of their leftover colonial past and jump into new Americanism. I hope that Ghana finds a way to progress through what is good for their country, not what is good for the west and for the rich to get richer. In the educational sense the country has decided to put the local language back into school curriculum and I see that as a great step into preserving the culture and not having it squashed by the English-speaking world. Even though English is the official language of the country.
Experiencing...inspired a global perspective because...
Before my time in Ghana I thought...but now...
ESSENTIAL QUESTION
What outcomes did you observe or find?
"The Danger of a Single Narrative" has become a popular phrase in global education and in our desire to understand people from different parts of the world. The truth lies in the personal connections that you make with the individual who is sharing their story with you. What I noticed in Ghana was that trust is inherent in the honesty you will receive from both young and old. Additionally, pulling a person out of a larger group will more often allow you to get an honest depiction how that person truly views the issues at hand. Not to disregard the opinions of the whole, as that is also necessary to develop an idea in contrast to what people will share with you in private.
What do you still wonder?
I wonder what stories have been shared with me under the context of where I am coming from. Meaning, are there certain views or opinions that were shared more or less readily because I am an American? What were those views? Why? How much of sharing narratives comes from the U.S. culture of freedom of speech, religion, and thought-- how much of it is a natural human condition of wanting to know the daily going ons of others? How can language effect the tone of the conversation and passion in which the thought is delivered (ie. more feeling heard in native language than in English). Another thought not touched on in this trip: what proverbs and popular figurative language is intertwined into narrative.
Thesis Statement
The way in which an individual structures their personal narrative can have a great impact on how our global society perceives that culture as a whole. This single storyteller holds the power to mold a cultures' consciousness by the words and anecdotes he or she shares with cultural outsiders.
