Project Harmony Technology Education Curriculum Project with Armenia

In the spring of 2004, Project Harmony approached the Center to host four Armenian scholars and assist them in developing a technology curriculum for the nation’s K-12 schools.  This $15,000 project was realized with mentoring with EFSS faculty, support from the Hudson Local and AuroraCitySchools, and the Research Center for Educational Technology.    Four Armenian scholars,  Gayaneh Terzyan,  Philological Department, Yerevan State University;  Dr. Melanya Astvatsatryan, Chair of Pedagogy and Language, Yerevan Brusov State Linguistic University; Hayk Sharkhatunyan, Head of Computer Unit, Center for Educational Reforms, Ministry of Education and Science; and Artashes Torosyan, Principal of School in Yerevan, and Teacher Trainer in the Reading and Writing for Critical Thinking Program were in residence for four weeks in April through a Project Harmony funded technology education project.  Mary Tipton and Cynthia Kovalik served as mentors. 

In summer of 2005, Dave and Eve Dalton went to Armenia and conducted a series of educational teachnology workshops for teachers and school administrators.  This was a continuation of this project.  Additionally, The INtegratation of Information and Communication Technologies in Secondar Schools was published, and approved by the Armenian National Institute of Education of the Ministry of Educaiton and Science.  CIIE Director Dr. Linda Robertson authored the preface of the work.

US State Department's Turkish Women's Leadership in Democracy Training

Multi-purpose Community Centers (CATOMs) were started throughout southwestern Turkey in 1995.  As of May 2001, CATOM services have reached around 45,000 persons.  It is with this success, that this project was funded and designed to provide women’s leadership and democracy building training to the elected leaders of these community-based organizations. 

This train-the-trainers model has two major focuses—one to develop leadership in the successful CATOMs as a further demonstration of sustainable social development for capacity building internationally, namely in Iraq, and the second aim is to use the training to improve leadership and networking for the local Turkish CATOMs and women’s NGOs.  Building on successful, established collaborations between Kent State University, Bahcesehir University and The Southeastern Anatolia Regional development Administration (GAP), as well as the established agreement with Harran University, a model of training-the-trainers makes use of pedagogically sound adult training techniques for undereducated adults—oral traditions of story-telling for meaning and experiential learning.  Learning experiences in Turkey and the United States provide a rich mosaic of activities for building consensus in groups, to move ideas to action, for conflict resolution necessary in leadership of volunteer organizations and democratic processes.  

A five step program provides training for both identified and emerging Turkish women leaders in America, leadership training in Turkey, and an international training for Iraqi women.  Independent evaluation and a post grant activity are planned.  The post grant activity includes preparing training manuals and multimedia CDs of the women leaders telling their stories of action and success, and distributing it to all CATOMs and Iraqi participants in the series of trainings. January 2005 participants, in residence in the CIIE for 10 days, were Nimet Koyuncuoglu, Kilis Women’s Community Center; Gul SAN, Sanliurfa Kultur Dernegi, Arzu Korkmaz, Women’s Community Center in Siirt; Nezahat Barutcuoglu, (Mentally and Physıcally Disabled People`s Organızatıon) Diyarbakir; Nasıde Buluttekın, Flyıng Broom Organızatıon, Diyarbakir; Tulay Avan, Turkiye Kalkinma Vakfi in Diyarbakir; Gulseren Buyukyıldız and Seylan Mungan, both from Mardin Women’s Community Centers; Dr. Suheyla Kirca Schroeder, Bahcesehır University; Dilek Ozer, Harran University; Aygul Faziologlu and Gulsah Dalgic, both from the Southeastern Anatolia Regional Development Administration of the Republic of Turkey.  These women also trained 50 women in two 3 day workshops in Sanliurfa and Mardin, Turkey, in March 2005.    

May 2005 participants for the 10-day American experience included Hacer Demirtas, Adiyaman’s Women’s Community Center, Dilek Dogan, Elementary School Teacher Organization in Sanliurfa, Gulferah Gunes, Sani Konukoglu Meslek Vocational School; Enver Cerit, Southeastern Anatolia Regional Development Headquarters in Sanliurfa, Hasan Sik, Siirt’s Women’s Community Center; Elif MACAR, Women’s Community Center in Mardin; Hilal Burc, Special Education NGO in Mardin;  Songul Goksu, Tourism Non-Govermental Organization in Diyarbakir; Nuran Erener, Non-governmental Organization in  Sirnak; Ilhan Bicer, GAP Administration, Ankara; and Esra Kisachik  psychologist in Mardin. These participants are to return to Turkey and train at least ten others within their organization.  The result is that over 150 women will receive leadership training under this model.

Project directors are Dr. Linda Robertson and Rachel Anderson, Director of Adult Services on the KSU campus.  Aysun Dogutas served as a graduate assistant funded through this project.  Ray Hart, Deb Shelstek, and Reyhan Burcu Kaniskan, all from the Bureau of Research Evaluation and Training, are conducting the outside evaluation. 

American Council on Education Civic Education Project with Kyrgystan Educators

CIIE was awarded a grant from the American Councils for International Education as a host site for Partners in Education for the fall 2004.  This grant for $27,000 will bring six to eight social studies educators from Kyrgystan to the CIIE for internships in civics education, free market-economy, and social studied curriculum writing.  In addition to the six weeks stay here in the United States (Kent and Washington DC), faculty members from Kent State University will go to Kyrgystan in August 2004 to learn about the needs of the social studies educators there and will assist in the training of trainers in Kyrgystan in the spring of 2005. Participating in the training for these social studies educators are Dr. Norman Sykes, of the Columbus Program, Dr. Dennis Hart of the Stark Campus Political Science Department, and the faculty and community of the Hudson City Schools as well as CGSE's TLCS faculty and the KSU Public Policy Institute.  

In March of 2005, Dr. Vernon Sykes and Dr. William Wilen went to Krygystan to conduct teacher training workshops in civic education.  However, their stay was interrupted by the Rose Revolution--a lesson in democracy building for both a political science professor and social studies teacher educator!

Korea:

Under the personal initiative of CIIE Advisory Council member, Dr. Eunsook Hyun, Dr. Soon Ohk Hong  of Kyungsung University in Pusan, South Korea, visited the campus in February 2004.  While here CIIE coordinated a schedule for Dr. Hong to visit other program areas and colleges.  As a result of this personal initiative, 14 Korean graduate students attended a summer workshop sponsored by the Early Childhood program area of TLCS department.  This initiative has promise of a continuing relationship and further collaborations for CGSE and KSU.

Guam:

Through the personal networking of Dr. Harold Johnson, CGSE’s EFFS Department, received a request from Guam’s Department of Education  asking assistance  in recruiting deaf educators, special educators, speech pathologists, nurses and pediatric audiologists.  The CGSE's EFFS coordinated a day of interviews; a Brown Bag Seminar where the team of administrators from the Department of Guam presented information regarding the school systems, culture and living conditions of Guam; and hosted a luncheon for these international educators.  This collaboration resulted in one of our deaf educator student teachers to be assigned to a school in Guam. 

China

Dr. Vilma Seeberg is implementing a new program for women scholars from China.  In partnership with South China Normal Unviersity, the Department of Educational Foundations and Special Services is offering a Professional International Educator Cooperative Degree Program--a Master's of Education.  This program is planned to span five years of five cohorts of master's level students and will start in 2006.

Taiwan

The Taiwanese Echo program began August 2002 and has served 14 Ph.D. students.  For the 2004-05 academic year, two new students were enrolled.  Most of these students have completed their course work, and now are working on their dissertations both here in the United States and at home in Taiwan.