Education Commons^™

Educating The Forgotten: Non-Formal Education In Urban Kampala, Eleanor Huntington

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

During the practicum period, the student researcher interned at MYDEL to gain a better understanding of the challenges and successes of the non-formal education (NFE) sector in urban Kampala, and in particular the Kisenyi neighborhood of Mengo. In the slum areas of Mengo, many children and youth are unable to afford school fees and thus are more susceptible to turn to a street life, which entails the following: extreme poverty, drug and alcohol abuse, a high prevalence of HIV/AIDS, young marriage, early childbirth, rape, or sexual abuse. MYDEL as an organization works to combat this cycle by instructing the children …

Teaching The War: What The Vietnamese Government Wants Students To Learn About The American-Vietnam War, Alex Joseph

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

By studying how the American-Vietnam War is taught in high schools and universities across Vietnam, the official government policies regarding the memory of the War can be uncovered. The Vietnamese Government completely controls the education system; therefore, the government is able to control the information that is taught to future generations regarding the War. What does Vietnam’s Government want its people to remember? And what facts does it want its citizens to forget? Looking at the government-approved “message” that is present in every Vietnamese textbook and history lesson, one is able to find the answers to these questions.

‘Everything Is For Him’: Mothers Of Autistics As Agents Of Social Change At Casa Da Esperança, Alexandra Levin

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This research project explores mothers of children with autism as social actors. I conducted the research at Casa da Esperança, which is school and therapy intstituion, and social organization, for autistics in Fortaleza, Ceará, Brazil. A group of mothers founded Casa da Esperança based on a policy of inclusiveness towards autistics and their families. Casa da Esperança’s structure reflects its collective and communal philosophy, as demonstrated by the family program. Many mothers of autistics participate in this program on a daily basis when they stay at Casa da Esperança while their children are in class. Casa da Esperança is a …

Formal Education For Sustainable Development, Caryn Saslow

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Over the next 50 years, humans will make the choice as to whether or not they would like to mitigate or exacerbate global warming. Seeing as now is a crucial time in which to enact change, why is it that the issues inherent in sustainable development are not currently a compulsory part of primary and secondary school education within the developed Western world? If our children stand to inherit our environmental, social, and economic problems, it is our responsibility to supply them with the tools to survive through such adversity. This paper examines the history of the concept of sustainable …

Fighting The System From Within: Cmpio And Education Reform, Anna Marshall

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The current system of public education in Oaxaca is riddled with problems too numerous to list here. There is an obvious need for reform or for a new system all together. The argument presented in this paper is that the latter is not a feasible option for most in Oaxaca, especially for rural indigenous communities. For reasons explained throughout this study, it is necessary to work within the present confines of the existing education system in order to make significant improvements in the quality of education for these communities. Many activists seek to reject “the system” all together, but this …

Sex Education In Amsterdam: What They Do And Why They Choose To Do It., Coral E. Hackler

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Sex education in the Netherlands has been regarded by many as exemplary. Around the world the phrase “Double Dutch” is known as the term of using both the condom and the pill. The actual effectiveness of sexuality education in the Netherlands has rarely been studied. The teachers themselves must decide what they believe will be the most effective methods of sexuality education. This begs one to question why a teacher chooses the methods they have chosen and what makes them believe that these methods are effective. Because there is no research on how sexuality education is directly influencing students, teachers …

Storybooks: A Teaching Tool For Sustainability, Amanda Medress

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

If today’s children learn to make decisions with the environment in mind, tomorrow’s future will be cleaner, greener, and energy leaner. Storybooks, which are a creative and imaginative learning tool, can influence children to pursue sustainable lifestyles. Early education through literature can help green decisions be the default mode for the next generation.

This project has two components. The first is to produce research on the following question: what kind of storybook instills environmental regard and motivates sustainable behavior? The second is to produce a children’s adaptation of Greeniology, a green living guide by Tanya Ha, which utilizes the findings …

On Est Ensemble: A Participatory Study Of The Jembe Tradition As Preserved By The Griots Of West Africa, Joel Rowe

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

In this study, I examine how a culture’s values are reflected in a specific pedagogical process through participant observation; in essence, I endeavor to examine first-hand the anthropology of pedagogy. The jembe, in truth, is comparable to a window into both the teaching model of a Senegalese master drummer and the cultural values reflected in his pedagogical method. In learning to play the parts of seven jembe rhythms with fluidity and recording their cultural significances, I discover the elements of criticism and sacrifice deeply inlaid in the tradition of this instrument. Relative to the communal setting of the griot family …