2015 Teacher Training Delegation
Shelter from the Storm
2015 Delegation, Entry #20: 10/1/15 On the first of October Paul and Susan, the last two members of the 2015 Teacher Training Delegation, left Bor Town and flew to Juba. Their last night in South Sudan was a dark and stormy night at the Justice Africa compound–especially dark in fact. The violent rains caused a power […]
Crossing the Nile
2015 Delegation, Entry #19: 9/30/15 Susan and Paul took a trip with Bishop Philip across the River Nile to Golear today. They visited a camp for displaced persons where 71,000 people live. Even in their dire need they extended warm hospitality. Susan and Paul shared some of the material from the teacher training, as well […]
Partnership in Education
2015 Delegation, Entry #18: 9/29/15 In the heat of the day, the best place to meet is in the shade of a tree. This picture is from before Gail, Katie, and Renata left, but it shows what a meeting under a tree might look like. Today Paul and Susan went to the “Education Cluster” meeting, under […]
To Market, To Market!
2015 Delegation, Entry #17: 9/28/15 One of the funnest (and most common) ways to get around in Bor Town is the “boda boda.” Pictured here is Bishop Philip hitching a ride on one of them. Paul and Susan went on boda boda rides to the market today. Tweet
Torrential Rains
2015 Delegation, Entry #16: 9/27/15 There was a lot of talk about how rainy it would be during the teacher training, but truth be told, the raining didn’t actually happen until it was over. The very next day there was torrential rain. Everything was flooded and muddy and slippery. Paul said he thought it was fitting when […]
Closing Ceremony
2015 Delegation, Entry #15: 9/26/15 The 2015 Teacher Training officially came to a close today. Paul shared a bit about the history and goals of Rebuild South Sudan, and Susan gave some words of encouragement. She reviewed what our goals were in the teacher training, especially our desire to see student-centered methods, and strategies for preparing children to be life-long […]
Girls in School
2015 Delegation, Entry #14: 9/25/15 “As you see now, all these are male teachers, there are only two of us (women)…if you want to rebuild South Sudan, rebuild with new female teachers and by encouraging girl child education.” These were the words of one of the female teachers in the training. Out of the 45 teachers […]
Peace Education & The Book of Forgiving
2015 Delegation, Entry #13: 9/24/15 Michael Kuany’s long-standing vision for conflict transformation and for bringing peace curriculum to education gained some ground during this 2015 Teacher Training. Throughout the training we talked about nonviolent communication and strategies for conflict transformation in the classroom. In addition to the conflict transformation curriculum, Paul also led daily discussions on The Book of […]
Experiencing Science
2015 Delegation, Entry #12: 9/23/15 If a picture is worth a thousand words, an experience must be worth millions. Susan designed several unforgettable experiential science labs for the teachers to take back to their students. My personal favorite illustrated Newton’s third law of motion. She had each teacher construct a simple rubber band powered helicopter. […]
It All Adds Up
2015 Delegation, Entry #11: 9/22/15 Today was math day in the Teacher Training. Teachers received math manipulative supplies that can be used for math games with students of all ages. These dedicated teachers continue to be inquisitive and excited about strategies that will get their kids active in the classroom. Among the math manipulative […]
Learning Dinka
2015 Delegation, Entry #10: 9/21/15 We begin each day with a discussion on the Book of Forgiving, led by Paul. After this we enjoy socializing with the teachers during a short tea break before the next session. One of the joys of this time has been the opportunity to learn some phrases in Dinka. Now each morning […]
Community Connections
2015 Delegation, Entry #9: 9/20/15 Sunday is the Sabbath day here, so we rested from the training, but the adventures continued. We visited the church of Bishop Philip, who has partnered with Rebuild South Sudan for several years as a community leader and advisor. They treated us as honored guests. Paul was even invited to […]
Safety First: Traveling in Bor
2015 Delegation, Entry #8: 9/19/15 After a stimulating session on nonviolent communication and conflict transformation, we wrapped up for the day and headed to the Nile. Now there are a few safety instructions for traveling in Bor: 1. Pile 16-18 people into the back of a pickup truck, 2. Hold on 3. Sing songs in […]
South Sudan in Context
2015 Delegation, Entry #7: 9/18/15 Today’s focus was on methodologies of teaching history and geography. One of the many experiential learning moments was a “mock government” exercise. Gail split the teachers into groups and assigned each teacher a different role, for example representatives of local government, national government, the UN, an NGO, etc. They had to work […]
Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?
2015 Delegation, Entry #6: 9/17/15 “Brown bear, brown bear, what do you see? I see a red bird looking at me.” Susan showcased methods of using big books in teaching with a lively reading of Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? As soon as the teachers caught on to the rhythmic pattern, they enthusiastically joined in and chanted […]
Teacher Training Begins!
2015 Delegation, Entry #5: 9/16/15 After over 25 hours in the air, around 12 hours of layovers, and one day of delay in Juba, the delegation has finally arrived! We joined 48 teachers, Bishop Philip, the Deputy Director of Education for Bor County, and two newspaper reporters. Katie’s welcome speech was punctuated by bursts of […]
Delayed in Juba
2015 Delegation, Entry #4: 9/15/15 One good rule of thumb for travelers is this: be flexible! We had planned to fly to Bor on this day, but were informed that there would be no flight to take us. We were almost ready to hop on a motorcycle, like the family pictured above, and drive the […]
A Warm Welcome
2015 Delegation, Entry #3: 9/14/15 One of our first sights when we landed in Juba were the smiling faces of our teammates Michael Malaak and Awan. They drove us to Justice Africa, an organization working towards civil participation in government. We enjoyed their great hospitality and our common commitment to encourage and empower the people of […]
Sleeping on Planes
2015 Delegation, Entry #2: 9/13/15 We were airborne for most of September 13th. It is unkind to post photos of your friends sleeping online, so you will find no such photos here! Katie spent some of her wakeful time writing a paper for school. Her professors have graciously allowed her to have the time off. […]
Shipping to South Sudan
2015 Delegation, Entry #1: 9/12/15 There is no easy way to ship materials to South Sudan–we ourselves must be the couriers. Here we are redistributing the weight in each suitcase, so as to not be charged additional fees for the bags. This is how the Rebuild South Sudan delegation kicked off our teacher training trip! […]
