Pakistani Educational Leadership Project at Plymouth State University

Pakistani teachers training institute 2006

Paradigm shift …

I am Farzana … Working with Idara Taleem-o-Aagahi since the last five years as a teacher trainer in the field of Health and environmental educational awareness among teachers, students and communities.

I was also working as a program manager or administrator at the teacher resource center of ITA (Idara Taleem-o-Aagahi) it was a great opportunity for me to be a part of the dynamic group going to be at PSU for their professional training.

We a group of twenty reached at Boston airport on 25^th of June 2006 and then to the beautiful valley of Plymouth where stands the beautiful campus of the Plymouth State University. We were welcomed by the cool weather and a drizzling rain. Program Director Blake Allen and Police Chief Clark received us at the Boston air port very warmly. From the next day we started our classes, had a tour of the library and all of the campus.

When we started having classes regularly I found the amazing methodology and teaching techniques working very well…Although I was aware of the terms of interactive teaching, participatory approach, and class room without walls … etc but there I saw the actual implementation and essence of these terms. The way of teaching was amazing in all the classes. The idea of environmental education integrated in the existing curriculum was very helpful for me … I have got a lot of guidance from professor Mary Ann McGarry the teacher for environmental education … We also have a visit to Sqwam Lake and had some experiments there to assess the purity of water in the lake. Along with this I also got the chance to participate in a 4 day exclusive training workshop on planning in management and human resources by Dr. Leo Corriveau. This training session was very valuable and thought provoking for me as it changed the whole paradigm of my thinking. And I came to know how to do planning and management in all fields of life and how important it is.

Besides all this we also had cheerful and unforgettable moments when we went to the visit of Niagara Falls… the scene was really amazing and in my opinion on of the most beautiful scenes of the world, and the visit to United Nations assembly was also very inspirational. We also had great times at Ben and Jerry’s, teddy bear factory, zero point, and empire state building.

Well this was the story how and what I have learnt there at PSU….. Now I would like to share the implementation and dissemination of the information and knowledge I have gained from there. After coming back I was totally a changed person I make up a network by creating links with different organizations working in my relative field.I worked with Parks and horticulture authority of Lahore and work with their collaboration to restore the historic garden of Mochi Gate Lahore which was going to be ruined and was being ignored by city district govt. An awareness walk for better environment for the community was also held with the help of the students. Health days are being celebrated in the schools on regular basis. Integration of environmental education through health lessons is also on its way. 70 heads and vice heads are also been trained in 4 workshops comprising of the knowledge I got at PSU. I also participated in the development of a teachers’ manual for the book JLOK (just like other kids) on inclusive education and its dissemination in all four provinces of Pakistan. I have also linked up with WWF and conducted training workshop for teachers on environmental education.In short I will say that the visit to USA was very helpful for me and it builds my skills and capacity to a great extent. Me, my organization, students and communities m involved with are being benefited by my experiences of PSU.

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