“YOU ARE PART OF THIS WORLD, BE PART OF ITS FUTURE” ARTICLE ON PRACTICE PHASE OF GLOBAL EDUCATION After the Global Education training in Sierra Leone, the Ghana Team was quite excited to start the Practice Phase. Finally, after some ups and downs and some hectic moments, the practice phase train took off on Saturday, the 26th of July, 2014 and continued on Monday, the 28th of July, 2014. On the first day, the participants started arriving before 11am, though the scheduled time was 11am. After waiting for a little while, we started the session with about 15 participants in attendance. As the workshop progressed, there were a little over 20 participants in attendance. The session started with an introduction of the project and some exercises on group dynamics in order for people to feel more relaxed around each other. Discussions were underway in earnest, by the time they had settled down, concerning the Global Education topic and they were introduced to the WWH (What, Who, How) of Global Education. They observed quite a number of Global Issues (What) and identified that we as Individuals, Associations, Institutions, Government (Who), are the ones responsible for how these issues turn out and have to take Action (How) to bring about the change that we need. The Global Interdependency topic was approached with an energizer (Blind Counting) to show the participants during the course of the topic that they rely on each other one way or the other even though they have different attitudes and are from different places. The target of the exercise required was not reached by the participants so the exercise had to end. This triggered a discussion which was in response to the question: “Why do you think as a group you didn’t reach your target?” A lot of reasons were given; one of which was that there was no communicative group work and team work. One of the participants outlined the fact that they failed to feel the energy coming from each member of the team in order to know who was counting and at what time. The workshop continued with an exercise which sought to show participants that they were more connected to the other parts of the world than they thought. Participants went into groups and looked at their own shoes and at the neck tags of a neighbour’s piece of clothing and determined where the clothing was made and also other items in their possession. After a few minutes, participants located these countries on a world map using their sticky notes. There were interesting discussions after the outcome of the exercise. They identified that products from some continents were patronized more than in other continents. The question of whether or not there is indeed an imbalance in International Trade when comparing the items found in various countries, and whether or not the world is indeed Interdependent, arose. Discussions showed that Interdependence cannot be a 100% phenomenon and that it varies from various contexts. Participants had a round of discussions concerning which areas the world was interdependent and discussions revealed that participants were quite knowledgeable about the way countries can be Interdependent. The next session continued right after on a specific topic related to the Environment; Pollution (Plastic waste). The discussion started with an energizer; ‘Hey You’, which later on in the workshop was referred to as a focal learning point that we as individuals are all involved in the process of preserving and keeping our environment safe for future generations, hence it is very unnecessary to point fingers and play the ‘blame-game’. Some questions were asked to both test the understanding participants had about plastic waste, its usage and effects and also to make them see the extent to which they go to avoid inappropriate disposal of plastic items. A film was shown to participants to broaden their knowledge on what improper disposal of plastic can do to the environment. After the short film, contributions made by participants pointed out the fact that they were ready to effect change in their environment and had realized the hazardous effect that inappropriate disposal of plastic has on the environment. After the fruitful discussion, participants were asked to go into ‘country groups’ to discuss the film and its effect on them and afterwards, select a sanitation officer to deliver the outcome of discussions with an action plan to eradicate or curb the issue at hand. The groups brought very interesting action plans and contributions showed the excitement of participants concerning putting the right structures in place to save the environment. The facilitator led the participants through a debriefing of the topic and concluded by showing them how plastic waste can be managed through the use of the 3R’s – Reduce, Re-use, and Recycle - Outlining all the three aspects and engaging participants to consider the use of these three strategies to manage plastic waste. Participants appreciated the lessons and most of them present had a positive attitude regarding the lesson. During the evaluation, we realized that only about two (2) people were indifferent and the remainder of participants present were influenced to live positive lifestyles after the entire workshop. On the second day of the workshop, some of the participants from the first day came, but a number of them were absent; which we attributed to the rainy weather. However, about 5 new participants joined. In order for them to feel comfortable, there were some exercises that were done. Participants were divided into two (2) groups and were told to find a partner to discuss a question that was given by the facilitator. Each question required that a different partner be chosen. One of the questions that came up was: “What would you like to do to change your world?” which was a very good question to give an idea of what was to occur at the workshop. When participants had settled down, one of the facilitators gave an overview of what the workshop was about and a little information about the project and the stakeholders involved. The participants who came the first day were asked what they took home with them as lessons and they all contributed beautifully, which gave us the assurance that the message had hit home. There was about two rounds of asking questions about what Global Issues everyone present knew about. This was a great exercise since the new ones also contributed knowledgeably. The facilitator then took participants through some definitions of Global Education which were posted on the wall for all to see. The ‘Hey You’ energizer was played in order to remind participants that everyone has a part to play when it comes to protecting our globe and that there is no need to play the ‘blame-game’. Participants were taken through a checklist to make them analyze their performance with regards to the 3Rs (Reduce, Re-use, Recycle). It did not take long for them to realize that they had a lot of work to do. However, quite a number present were already on their way to living positively except for the aspect of recycling which is quite difficult in our part of the globe. A proposed definition of Sustainable Living was given after this, which helped participants understand it further. Participants went through some tips on consumption which could help them to reduce the way they disposed of items. They were advised to ask very important questions before they went shopping – ‘Do I need this?’ ‘Will I use this?’ and ‘What’s going to happen to it when I’ve finished with it?’ This was a very good way to bring the participants’ attention to the fact that buying on impulse can have negative effects on our environment. To loosen the nerves to for the next topic, the facilitator takes participants through an activity: “Where do you stand?” Participants were given statements and were to stand either for or against them. Participants were quite convincing and fluid in their arguments. The next session on Child Labour was approached with an exercise on Power and Oppression statues. Volunteers are asked to take a stance which shows power over each other and the others are asked to show who has more power than the other. This also was an approach to show that the children being forced into labour are under a lot of oppression and don’t have the power to fight back. Before a short film on Child Labour was shown, participants were asked to write down and say what they knew about Child Labour in order to know how much additional information they will have after watching the short film. After the film, participants were quite surprised that Child Labour was happening in places very close to Ghana. They were very sad that children had to go through these hazardous conditions because of poverty, neglect, and selfishness of parents. After the film, participants were asked to give any new lessons they had learnt during the film. A before and after chart was made by the facilitator as they gave their answers. This activity showed how attentive they were during the film and how the issue had raise a certain level of awareness. After this exercise, some issues were raised concerning what we as Africans or Ghanaians can refer to as child labour since some children help their parents to sell some goods either in the family shop or on the streets after school. The discussion came to a conclusion that it is not child labour unless it is detrimental to the child’s social, physical, psychological, developmental, and emotional well-being. A definition of child labour was put up and participants were also asked to suggest their own definitions of child labour. The dangers of child labour were also identified and possible solutions given. Afterwards, participants were sent into groups to present a convincing 2-minute campaign against child labour. It was very interesting and exciting to see the ideas that they had. For our evaluation, participants were told at the end of the workshop to give a percentage on how they felt the workshop helped them or affected them. Most people gave percentages ranging from 70-100% and one person gave 50%. All in all, it was a wonderful first-time experience and we are hopeful that we will do even better for our subsequent workshops.
Posted on: Wed, 17 Dec 2014 17:21:23 +0000
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