Introductions and seminar culture (June 4-10, 2012)

Task Discussion

• 
  Carlos Miranda Levy   June 13, 2012, 7:16 a.m.

   

   

  What is your name?

  • Carlos Miranda Levy

   

  Where do you reside?

   

  • Mostly Dominican Republic these days, commuting to Haiti, Japan, Singapore and Silicon Valley both virtually and in presence regularly.

   

  Which education systems have you experienced as an educator, student or parent?

  • Student:

    • Private basic, high school and University education in Dominican Republic (Latin America/Caribbean).

    • On-line courses by Harvard, Organization of American States, Diplo Foundation and others.

    • Public Policy and Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) Strategy workshops and courses by international, government and private organizations throughout Latin America.

  • Educator:

    • Coordinator of on-line course for teachers on use of ICT in education.

    • Workshops and conferences on ICT, innovation and creativity in education for university faculty member (educators and administrative staff) throughout Latin America and the Caribbean.

    • Workshops and conferences on developing business ideas, efficient disaster response, social entrepreneurship and ICT for development for educators, students and policy makers in USA, Japan, Singapore and throughout Latin America and Caribbean.

  • Others:

    • Fellow at Stanford University with frequent interaction with students and researchers.

    • Social Entrepreneur in Residence at National University of Singapore, collaborating with innovation and entrepreneurship programs and competitions.

   

  What do you hope to learn and contribute to this seminar?

  • Different approaches, good practices and interesting ideas on dealing with the challenges of education with a significant impact.
  • To identify as diverse and different ideas and points of views from my own experience and perspectives and find value and identify things to learn from those.

   

  If you could take a 1-year sabbatical to learn anything, what would you do?

  • Better skills at communicating with others with an emotional approach.

  • Develop modular, short, focused, re-usable, redistributable, self-contained, open content and learning units that can be used, adapted, shared by anyone to develop, in single lessons, specific skills that can be valuable to disaster survivors and individuals at disadvantage, students and the population in general. As in... how to fix..., how to build..., how to deal with..., how to present..., how to manage..., how to create..., why do..., what can we do with...

   

   

  If you could have tea with any person in history, who would you invite and why?

  • Anyone from 2075 and learn from them as much as someone from 1960 would learn from us today. :-)
• 
  Anna   June 18, 2012, 3:14 a.m.
  In Reply To:   Carlos Miranda Levy   June 13, 2012, 7:16 a.m.

  Thanks Carlos. 

  Welcome! Feel free to contact me if you have questions about Open Education Resources. I have done a lot of work in this area over the past 6 years.

   

  Curious to hear your thoughts on educational borrowing and lending (even if you don't have time to watch the videos). We welcome you to join in the discussion! 

  See task:

  Cross-country education borrowing and lending (June 11-17, 2012)

• 
  aworldlessblue   June 10, 2012, 11:40 a.m.

   

  • What is your name? Stella

  • Where do you reside? Manila, Philippines

  • Which education systems have you experienced as an educator, student or parent? (e.g., Tokyo public schools, a private boarding school in Geneva, home schooling in Ohio, IBM corporate training in New York) As a student: Kindergarten through high school at a private (Chinese) school in Manila, university at a Jesuit institution in Manila, and 3 months as an exchange student in a Jesuit university in California. As a tutor, I've interacted with public school kids (5th grade and high schoolers) in Manila.

  • What do you hope to learn and contribute to this seminar? Since I don't really have a lot of experience as an educator, I mostly want to learn the basics. I'm also interested in the concept of open education, so I'm hoping to learn as much from the discussions themselves as well as the experience of participating in my first P2PU course—although honestly, I'd be glad to just soak up anything and everything this seminar has to offer :)

  • If you could take a 1-year sabbatical to learn anything, what would you do? Just travel and experience different cultures, see how people across the globe do things differently.

  • If you could have tea with any person in history, who would you invite and why? I'm not sure if this counts, but my favorite professor from uni. He taught Liberation Theology, and he is just the most inspiring person/educator I've ever had the honor to meet.

• 
  Anna   June 18, 2012, 3:16 a.m.
  In Reply To:   aworldlessblue   June 10, 2012, 11:40 a.m.

  Welcome Stella!

  Let me know if you have specific questions about open education. I've done a lot of work in this area via my work with Freereading.net, Curriki.org and P2PU.org.

   

  Curious to hear your thoughts on educational borrowing and lending (even if you don't have time to watch the videos). We welcome you to join in the discussion! 

  See task:

  Cross-country education borrowing and lending (June 11-17, 2012)

• 
  Emie Lomba   June 6, 2012, 7:10 p.m.

  Hi everyone, 

  My name is Emie Lomba. I am from Gabon but I lived in New York since I was 5.

  I attended a small private French school in New York City and received my high school diploma in 2008. I have a little bit of experience with the American school system first as an educator, (I was a tutor and a classroom peer counselor) and second as a student (I just received my college degree from a public institution in New York).

  I feel like I got into this field a little late in the game so I want to learn the basics. I hope to contribute my perspective as a student and a tutor as well as my experience working in multicultural and multilingual environments.

  If I could take a one-year sabbatical to learn anything, I would perfect my Mandarin and go to cooking school. 

  If I could have tea with one person in history it would be Confucius, because I like the wisdom that he shares and the simplicity of it. 

• 
  Anna   June 7, 2012, 4:42 a.m.
  In Reply To:   Emie Lomba   June 6, 2012, 7:10 p.m.

  Thanks Emie.

  I look forward to hearing your perspectives on international education. My experience with NYC schools is university and working with public schools. So I am curious to hear what it was like in your private school. I assume all/most instruction was in French. Did you follow the French curriculum and take exams from France?

  Talk more soon! Perhaps on our Sunday call!

  Anna

• 
  jennifer123   June 6, 2012, 12:26 p.m.

   

  • What is your name? Jennifer 

  • Where do you reside?  currently in New York City

  • Which education systems have you experienced as an educator, student or parent? (e.g., Tokyo public schools, a private boarding school in Geneva, home schooling in Ohio, IBM corporate training in New York)  Direct contact and work with education programs, schools and informal learning networks in varied regions in Africa, Asia, Balkans, Europe as education and development professional and researcher. Europe and the States as a student 

  • What do you hope to learn and contribute to this seminar? To share methods on implementing innovative learning methods for hard to reach or overlooked populations, to discuss and examine evaluation processes.  

  • If you could take a 1-year sabbatical to learn anything, what would you do?  Travel, do study tours of vastly different education opportunities throughout the world, and learn to be a more effective contributor to programs for communities and youth.  

  • If you could have tea with any person in history, who would you invite and why?  I'd like to share teatime with all my friends and family throughout the world at one time that would be a fun party.  Teatime with Graca Machel would be cool too or Jack White.  

• 
  Aleksei Malakhov   June 6, 2012, 12:55 p.m.
  In Reply To:   jennifer123   June 6, 2012, 12:26 p.m.

  Jack White would shurely like a coffee with Nikola Tesla to show him his Tesla Coil :) (see Coffee and Cigarttes directed by Jim Jarmush). Then Van, Matt and me would join in. That would be some tea party :)

• 
  Anna   June 7, 2012, 4:45 a.m.
  In Reply To:   jennifer123   June 6, 2012, 12:26 p.m.

  Thanks Jennifer.

  What kind of education work did you do in the places you list?

  Reaching overlooked and remote populations is of interest to me too. My company just wrapped up a 1 year pilot providing hands on "teaching with video" workshops via Tandberg screens to teachers in remote areas of Abu Dhabi. There is so much potential for distance education via screens, but effectiveness depends on a strong methodology (not just lecture) and strong facilitators on both ends of the camera to ensure and inspire learning.

  Looking forward to speaking on Sunday. You should have access to the RSVP survey now.

  Anna

• 
  Julie Green   June 6, 2012, 2:37 a.m.

  Hi there!!

   

  What is your name?  

  My name is Julie Green

   

  Where do you reside?  

  I am living and working as a volunteer in the Philippines

   

  Which education systems have you experienced as an educator, student or parent?

  Growing up, I experienced the UK, Swedish and Australian education systems (we moved a lot because of my Dad's work!) and I have to say that the two years I spent in Sweden (aged 9-10) were by far the most brilliant education-wise; so much emphasis on holistic learning and 'play'!

   

  As an educator, I have experience of the educational system in the UK, Australia, the Philippines, Taiwan and some exposure to education in Kenya, Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo (through stints as a volunteer teacher and development work).

   

  What do you hope to learn and contribute to this seminar?

  I hope to learn more about global education, about best practice and also to meet passionate fellow educators!  I believe whole-heartedly in holistic education; a move away from the tradition of having lessons dedicated to specific subjects - I hope to learn more about successful systems from around the world and also contribute to the discussion with my experiences and thoughts.

   

  If you could take a 1-year sabbatical to learn anything, what would you do?

  Exactly what I am doing right now actually!!! I am on a one-year volunteer assignment in the Philippines with Australian Volunteers in International Development (AVID) working with parents from marginalized, low socio-economic communities to empower them to actively support their children's education.  I have learnt, and continue to learn so much from this experience and would love to do this sort of thing again for a year!

   

  If you could have tea with any person in history, who would you invite and why?

  Tough question!!  It would have to be Gandhi - to meet the person that inspired thousands of people to fight for their human rights and equality through non-violent methods and for his deep sense of humanity.  He would be an amazing person to talk to and to learn from!
• 
  Anna   June 7, 2012, 4:47 a.m.
  In Reply To:   Julie Green   June 6, 2012, 2:37 a.m.

  Your sabbatical sounds amazing! I look forward to hearing more.

  I am interested in your 2 years in Sweden. Can you talk a bit more about the types of play you did and how the teachers/curriculum were structured to inspire such fab years?!

  Welcome to this seminar!

  Anna

• 
  Matthew Rachansky   June 4, 2012, 1:48 p.m.

  • What is your name? Matthew Rachansky

  • Where do you reside? U.S.

  • Which education systems have you experienced as an educator, student or parent? (e.g., Tokyo public schools, a private boarding school in Geneva, home schooling in Ohio, IBM corporate training in New York) I have extensive knowledge as a parent, student, and child of a parent (my mother was a teacher, retired now) in the New York City school system. I'm currently a City University of New York (CUNY) student.

  • What do you hope to learn and contribute to this seminar? Sociocultural differences lend themselves to everything, and education is one of the most apparent in this regard. While there are certainly those who discuss this, I'd like to see the differences (and similarities) for myself, through discussion and so on.

  • If you could take a 1-year sabbatical to learn anything, what would you do? If I could just "take time off", probably travel. Go to Mexico, India, Egypt and Japan. Spend a few months immersing myself in the respective cultures there.

  • If you could have tea with any person in history, who would you invite and why? Oh, this is tough. I'd say Nikola Tesla (like others have), Van Gogh in his last year, Albert Einstein post-relativity theory, Faraday, Mark Twain, Soren Kierkgaard or Morris West.
    The reasons are variant, from why the person (in regard to Tesla and Einstein) was motivated to disover and experiment to those like Faraday with an unconventional education. Mr. Kierkgaard's philosophy is fascinating and I'd love to pick his brain about life. If I could have tea with any 2 people, it would be hands down, Albert Hoffman and Alexander Shulgin, whose contributions to culture are vast.

  • So many people, so little time.
     

• 
  Linda   June 5, 2012, 11:05 p.m.
  In Reply To:   Matthew Rachansky   June 4, 2012, 1:48 p.m.

  Hi Matthew,

   

  If you ever go to Egypt I am happy to host u.  I also love Kierkgaard's philosophy.  Cheers!

• 
  Anna   June 6, 2012, 1:39 a.m.
  In Reply To:   Matthew Rachansky   June 4, 2012, 1:48 p.m.

  Thanks Matthew.

  Agreed - so many peole, so little time!

  I used to teach in Japan (at a for-profit language institute) and I have visited Mexico and India. I would really like to go back to India (Kerala especially) to study what they are doing in schools to promote such high literacy rates.

  When I lived in NYC I was a edtech product developer at Wireless Generation. I spent a lot of time in public schools/charter schools. What do you think about the charter movement in NYC, especially schools with strong central themes like "Quest to Learn?" In Dubai we don't have such themed schools. My sense in NYC is that schools with themes like "law and order," "arts and letters," etc really motivated many kids that would otherwise not be into a "generic education". I would be curious how "exportable" those schools are - especially the more experimental ones.

• 
  Aleksei Malakhov   June 4, 2012, 9:46 a.m.

  • What is your name? Aleksei Malakhov, Alex for short is OK

  • Where do you reside? I'm from Minsk, Belarus but now I'm a permanent resident of Toronto, Canada

  • Which education systems have you experienced as an educator, student or parent? Student: I went through the Soviet-type shool and university in my home city and then did my MA in Teachers College, Columbia University; Educator: private and public schools in Belarus, non-state university in Belarus and later Lithuania, international language school in Belarus and Saudi Arabia; Parent: my children go to Canadian public school.

  • What do you hope to learn and contribute to this seminar? How education systems are similar and different around the globe, how they are affected by international policy borrowing and lending, what it takes to create an effective education system.

  • If you could take a 1-year sabbatical to learn anything, what would you do? Actually, I'm at the end of a kind of a sabbatical year right now and I've been spending it trying to settle down in a new place. I truly can't wait to be back to work.

  • If you could have tea with any person in history, who would you invite and why? Difficult to say. Like Van, I think Nikola Tesla to be an amazing person but he's not the only one by far.

• 
  Van   June 4, 2012, 5:52 p.m.
  In Reply To:   Aleksei Malakhov   June 4, 2012, 9:46 a.m.

  In regards to Soviet-style education... When I was attending the University of Washington, I made friends with a Russian student by the name of Anatoly. We were discussing the social/political atmosphere of the campus, our respective experiences and observations, and what he said stuck with me. Anatoliy and I were discussing open dialogue and debate, and he mentioned a parallel between Soviet and American education in obedience to authority. To clarify, the idea that institutional schooling installs a firewall within students minds. For example, one student will challenge the professor's analysis, maybe even accuse the professor of employing emotive language, and fellow students will tune out the inquiry, address it as controversial, and side with the professor's rebuttle, regardless the validity. Anatoliy said Russian schooling was no different from American schooling; what he found most amazing was that the largest student group is the International Socialist Organization, the main cross-section of foot-traffic is called the Red Square, and all of his professors were socialist in politics and authoritarian in their rhetoric. Anatoliy told me he thought America education would be different but what he discovered was that they are quite similar in their social/political indoctrinations. Your thoughts?

• 
  Aleksei Malakhov   June 5, 2012, 10:54 a.m.
  In Reply To:   Van   June 4, 2012, 5:52 p.m.

  It's only to show that practices are different from one place to the next even in the same country, and time is also the factor.

  I didn't experience Soviet higher ed at its worst - I came to university when the Union was collapsing  - attitudes were different but the new management of my university was doing its best to make it a cool place to be - promoting academic liberty, inviting interesting lecturers, artists and musicians, putting a strong emphasis on national identity and Belarusization - those were the days. Unfortunately, almost two decades of dictatorship that followed have returned the educational system to Soviet and probably even worse.

  As for my experience in Teachers College CU, it was very different from what we had in Belarus - I'll go into detail while discussing this week's questions.

• 
  Linda   June 5, 2012, 11:07 p.m.
  In Reply To:   Aleksei Malakhov   June 4, 2012, 9:46 a.m.

  Hi Alex, just reading your intro is like a world tour!  What a busy life - what is the one advice you would give someone trying to settle some where new??  Thanks & cheers!

  Linda

• 
  Anna   June 6, 2012, 1:44 a.m.
  In Reply To:   Aleksei Malakhov   June 4, 2012, 9:46 a.m.

  Thanks Aleksei.

  What years were you at TC? I was there 2005-2006 studying Comparative and International Education/Economics. What were some of the main similarities and differences between university in Belarus and the States (TC)?

  Also, where were you in Saudi? I would love to go at some point. Bon Education (the edtech PD and consulting company I co-founded in Dubai) does a lot of work in the UAE, Oman, Bahrain and Qatar. No Saudi projects yet, but they are certainly investing a lot in ed!

  Glad you are joining this seminar.

  You mentioned you are glad to get back to work. What type of work are you getting ready to kick off? 

  Anna

• 
  Aleksei Malakhov   June 6, 2012, 1:04 p.m.
  In Reply To:   Linda   June 5, 2012, 11:07 p.m.

  Thanks, Linda. As for advice, you see, I haven't really settled down anywhere yet :( I found New York a really welcoming place and I was sorry to leave it. Well, on the practical side, have as much cash on your account as you can earn before you go settling down anywhere - it may come in really handy. Always have medical insurance. Research all the legal issues related to your visa/residence status. Maintain a network of friends and colleagues. Don't be discouraged by those who like to nurse their negative stories - and never give up. That's what I'm trying to do now :)

• 
  Aleksei Malakhov   June 6, 2012, 1:15 p.m.
  In Reply To:   Anna   June 6, 2012, 1:44 a.m.

  Hi Anna

  I was at TC three semesters 2004-2005 and I also did Comparative Ed and Economics. Let me guess - surely the names of Gita Steiner-Khamsi and Henry Levin mean something to you?

  I'll write about the differences in high ed experiences in my assignment - I'm now forming some ideas.

  I was an ESL instructor in a college in Dhahran and SABIC training center in Jubail. I think Saudi is not the best option for ladies. Since education is segregated, they might have a position for a female specialist in a womans' college but even walking out into a street unaccompanied by a male relative may be a bad experience. Saudi is different from the Emirates - suffice it to say that you can't have a driver's license if you're a woman.

  I would be glad to be back to work - it means I'm not quite there now. I've been trying to find a job in Toronto for a year now but a CU diploma doesn't seem to impress them much. I'd be glad to do something in education - eLearning, instructional design or admin. No luck so far but I'll keep on trying.

• 
  Anna   June 7, 2012, 4:49 a.m.
  In Reply To:   Aleksei Malakhov   June 6, 2012, 1:15 p.m.

  Hah! Yes I know both well. In fact I saw Gita recently at the Gulf Comparative Education Symposium in Ras al Khaimah. I took two courses with Prof. Levin at TC.

  Good luck with the job search and talk soon!

• 
  Craig Perrier   June 3, 2012, 7:17 p.m.

   

  • What is your name? Craig Perrier

  • Where do you reside? Arlington, VA

  • Which education systems have you experienced as an educator, student or parent? (e.g., Tokyo public schools, a private boarding school in Geneva, home schooling in Ohio, IBM corporate training in New York) I went to public and catholic schools in MA.  I later worked for American International Schools, online schools, MA public schools, and most recently Dept. of Defense schools. I have some familiarity with charter schools.  I have also taught the IB and AP history programs.

  • What do you hope to learn and contribute to this seminar?  I want to experience a P2PU group/session and potentially share it with colleagues. I also, plan to contribute and exchange ideas around globnal education and continue to build my network.  Lastly, I may use the experience as a blog topic:

  •   cperrier.edublogs.org

  • If you could take a 1-year sabbatical to learn anything, what would you do? I would learn how to play a few instruments.

  • If you could have tea with any person in history, who would you invite and why? I would invite Albert Camus to pick his brain.

• 
  Van   June 5, 2012, 9:10 p.m.
  In Reply To:   Craig Perrier   June 3, 2012, 7:17 p.m.

  Welcome Craig. What kind of work do you do for Department of Defense schools? Got any links or references to their operations?

• 
  Linda   June 5, 2012, 11:10 p.m.
  In Reply To:   Craig Perrier   June 3, 2012, 7:17 p.m.

  Hi Craig and welcome from down under.  I just saw "Saturn" move between us and the Sun. WOW!!  I am interested to know how and why u started to blog.  Thanks & cheers! Linda

• 
  Anna   June 6, 2012, 1:54 a.m.
  In Reply To:   Craig Perrier   June 3, 2012, 7:17 p.m.

  Welcome!

  I took a look at your blog. Nice to see another fan of OER!

  I totally agree with you that demystifying online technologies is critical for helping many teachers see the value of online/OER course ware. Do you ever use www.Curriki.org? I used to work with them and found many of the resources highly valuable. Part of my role was to collect comprehensive course units from around the world to curate on Curriki. Many of the teachers found that creating, sharing and remixing content was very effective PD in and of itself. Having to "make" something and share it with teachers around the world was a huge motivator to learn the online technologies and to take their lesson planning to the next level (creativity-wise).

  What instruments do you want to learn?

  Although in Dubai now, I grew up in Fairfax County. Going back for a two weeks in July to see family and soak up the green!

  I am really curious to learn more about your experiences at the DOD schools. I look forward to reading your reflections.

• 
  Linda   June 3, 2012, 7:44 a.m.

  I am also into Sarah Jessica Parker and I have twins!

• 
  Anna   June 3, 2012, 4:46 a.m.

   

  • What is your name? Anna

  • Where do you reside? United Arab Emirates (Dubai)

  • Which education systems have you experienced as an educator, student or parent? USA (pre-K-12/University/K-2 edtech product developer), UK (University), Japan (Teacher), UAE (ICT Professional Development Specialist/CEO, Bon Education)

  • What do you hope to learn and contribute to this seminar? I hope to learn about experimental education programs in other countries that emphasize developing "the whole person" as well as "sustainabiliy". As course creator and facilitator, I hope to help provide a forum where passionate educatinists can learn from and share ideas with one another.

  • If you could take a 1-year sabbatical to learn anything, what would you do? I would spend a year studying yoga, yoga philosophy and Thai massage throughout India and SE Asia.

  • If you could have tea with any person in history, who would you invite and why? I would have tea with Sarah Jessica Parker. I really admire her acting work and creative businesses and time she devotes to her family. As a small business owner (Bon Education), children's book series creator (see "The Adventures of BB and Sam") and soon to be mom, she is an inspiration! 

  • Course culture - I hope this seminar will be a place where everyone feels free to "own their educational experience" and tailor it to fit their needs. For example, if people want to do a project together or schedule extra calls, I welcome anyone to do so! Most importantly I hope everyone will enjoy the content and watch/read what they can. As it is the end of the school year, I know if can be hard to get through everything. So, if you haven't watched all of the videos, still feel free to join our weekly conversations!

• 
  Linda   June 3, 2012, 7:57 a.m.
  In Reply To:   Anna   June 3, 2012, 4:46 a.m.

  Linda Sharaf currenty in Sydney Australia and hoping to return to UAE later this year.

  I am a product of the Egyptian education system in primary school then we were in Malta for ofur years hence a European system in later primary and early secondary to finish off in Oz.  I have completed my Masters but taught in vocational education and K-12 education in Australia and Abu Dhabi.

  I hope to meet and be able to disccuss relevant issues with peers and others who think differently to me when it comes to application in classrooms and relevance to the everchanging workplaces.  I would love to learn more on ROI in organisations where training takes place and 'shared leadership' as well as literaccies for work in global economies!

  I would spend one year in South Lebanon or in South Egypt where I can work on developing new belly dancing /kick boxing craze that would sweep the world and bring east and west together!!

  I would love to have met ANY of the prophets and ask them about the 'raw' truth!

  I would love for anyone to suggest topics for a Phd because I am ready to commit and would like to do some study / research that is comparing groups in UAE and say Australia in vocational, secondary or higher ed.  Any ideas would be VERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRY welcome and so appreciated.

  Thanks & cheers!

• 
  Van   June 4, 2012, 6:25 p.m.
  In Reply To:   Linda   June 3, 2012, 7:57 a.m.

  American public schools are compulsory from age 5-18 while Egyptian public schools are only compulsory from age 6-15. Do you think the Egyptian compulsory model is advantageous or disadvantageous in producing educated citizens competent of sustaining independent livlihoods? What's the general feeling of the compulsory school system and its effectiveness in Egypt? When discussing this topic in reference to American compulsory education, often the argument comes up that compulsory education in combination with labor laws, extends a child's stage of adolesence, making them dependent as opposed to independent. Taking into consideration that the primary goal of American compulsory education is to prepare students for a university education, often students are in the institution from age 5 to 24; students who attain PhDs are in til they're 26-28 and seek employment within the institution once they've completed their degree-yet they're tasked as professional educators with preparing students for the workforce. I can only speak to the American perception...

• 
  Linda   June 5, 2012, 11 p.m.
  In Reply To:   Van   June 4, 2012, 6:25 p.m.

  Van U R RIGHT!  Sadly you are spot on.  I was in Egypt during the revolution for a week and it was unbelievable in Tahrir but MANY many young school aged students were there rebelling!!  When things quitened a little by summer - I was back there with one of my cousins who is in year 10.  Again he does not go to school AT ALL.  He attends numerous tuition classes that are with his peers from school in groups of 40 / 50 students or more.  The teahers in the public system do not teach anything and run classes in halls or their homes.  He then has to attend state mandated testing after religiousy and repeatedly studying the assigned textbooks.  There is NO room for discussion or analysis.  Only rote learning and repeating the teacher or professior's opinion later in uni to get ahead and pass.  What a waste of many young people's enthusiasm / energy and a terrible impression of education in general.  One of my other cousins also did the doctorate in gynacology and worked as a doctor in the university but he has no idea about ANY educational perspectives / methods etc.  I think even when I was in the UAE, the parents were expecting us (as a vocational educator) to be dictatorial to their children who are grown ups!  My gorgeous Emirati students (male and female) were very surprised to be asked to discuss or critique or analyse ad it took close to a year to teach them that.  They initially would ask "what do you want me to say Miss Linda?"  Once they are taught the art of discussing and addressing concerns and asking open questions I found that their social skills came into play and they had comraderie.  Unfortunately, in Australia this did not seem as prevalet to me because students were much more competitive!  What do you reckon??  what do others think?  Cheers!

• 
  Linda   June 5, 2012, 11:12 p.m.
  In Reply To:   Anna   June 3, 2012, 4:46 a.m.

  Just  quick"thank you" for organising this forum and the opportunity to pick other's brains on a miserable winter day in Sydney!  Cheers!

• 
  Anna   June 6, 2012, 2 a.m.
  In Reply To:   Linda   June 3, 2012, 7:57 a.m.

  Belly dancing and kick boxing for peace! Love it! My sister is a belly dance teacher and every time I see her (or the BD super stars or Shakira perform) I am amazed! I also just went to see Madonna at Yas Island - she is an amazing dancer that is incredible at combining all dance genres!

  What was it like going to school in Egypt? Did you go to public or private schools? I work with and meet number of Egyptians in Dubai and I have never asked about schools there. I should!

  As you are looking for topics/funding for your PhD research, you should join the Gulf Comparative Education Society. Also, for the last 3 years my company has collaborated with the Sheikh Saud bin Saqr al Qasimi Foundation in Ras al Khaimah to develop and deliver teacher PD in edtech, teacher mentoring, research, etc. The Foundation funds a number of PhD students that want to conduct parts of their research on RAK. Definitely worth checking out! They are doing awesome work.

  As for topics - what are you thinking? What do you enjoy studying?

• 
  Anna   June 6, 2012, 2:10 a.m.
  In Reply To:   Linda   June 5, 2012, 11:12 p.m.

  Thanks! I forgot it is winter in Sydney. Send some cold to Dubai. It is going up to 41 degrees this week!

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  Van   June 2, 2012, 11:27 p.m.

  My name is Van Nielsen, I currently reside in Washington State, USA. As a student, I survived the American system of compulsory K-12 public education (Prussian template) and recently graduated a bachelor of arts in the Humanities from a state university located very close to where I grew up. I hope to sample some information regarding alternative systems of education, varying from the Prussian template. I can provide insight into American education’s social and political functions from the mid-1800’s to present. If I could take a one year sabbatical to learn anything, I would likely submerse myself in an investigation of the influence non-profits, philanthropies, and non-governmental institutions have in shaping social and political realities in institutional education (USA and international). If I could have tea with any person in history, I’d chose to sit down with Nikola Tesla to pick his brain about his inventions and the difficulties he faced in challenging a monopoly with the notion of free energy.

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  Anna   June 3, 2012, 4:25 a.m.
  In Reply To:   Van   June 2, 2012, 11:27 p.m.

  Rock on! Thanks Van. I appreciate your timely response!

  Even though I grew up in the States, I actually don't know much about the history of US education prior to the 1970s. So, I look forward to learning from you.

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  Linda   June 3, 2012, 8 a.m.
  In Reply To:   Van   June 2, 2012, 11:27 p.m.

  Love your post and how prompt you are!

  I too graduated with BA and never worked with it but it gave me A LOT of knowledge and ability to work in many areas.

  Cheers!