DAY THREE (WEDNESDAY) 18TH - 2 - 09

At the beginning of the workshop in day three, Trond Smistad gave an introductory part of the day and asked the group to brain storm on what we/they have learnt on yesterday’s participation. During the discussion there was a diagram on what is done, learn and smart to do.

What was done yesterday according to the workshop members was:• Brain storming,
• System thinking
• Planning before action

What they have learnt was:• The rules to chose the topic
• The influence of the environment
• Time frame and goals responsibility
• How to face challenges.

However, what is smart to do was: all group should have the same topic to brain storm around, knowledge about the topic is required for the participants. The question that the group were asked to discuss was, how to facilitate learning for the new generation?

When writing documentation, there is a need to find information to support your improvement. The question that we need to understand more on this where to get the information to support your documentation:
• Internet
• Library
• Other human beings
• Museums
• Training centers
• The community around us
• Models and practitioners

All these are the sources that we can get information to support our writings or research. Beside that, there is another question that we need to consider and it is how to identify useful information to back-up the findings you have?
• Define what we are looking for
• Since we have define what we are looking for, which suitable method is enabling us to get hold of information

DAY TWO OF THE WORKSHOP

One of the group giving the report of the group




Day Two of the Workshop:
17th – Feb. – 2009
Time: 9:00 am

The seminar started at 9:00 am with an introductory part both of yesterday and the second day. The discussion was initiated among the learning group before the individual sharing. The groups were asked to identify three points from yesterday’s discussion after which will be share in the group.

They gave their report on what they have learned from yesterday’s session and the three points are:

Group 1
• Documentation
• Group discussion
• Communication model

In group 2 they outline their points as:

•Relationship between trainers
• How to open the blogs and communicate with others
• Participatory learning

In group 3 was the following:
• Self assessment
• Personal logs
• Methods of learning in group
• How to activate the students to learn.

In group 4
•They have learn how to develop interest in learning and the rest are already mention

The dialogue we had in the session was really helpful and has enriched each of us. The purpose of our documentation is actually to share knowledge, receive feedback and reflect upon the respond from us. The sharing of knowledge enables people to learn more through my work because we are like building a system of education together.

The Challenges
What do I want to develop in my practice?
The concept behind this seminar is building a pedagogical method for knowledge development of the teacher’s education.

Brain Storm
There was an open question about the meaning of brain storm. Many came with different understanding. It has to do with specific subject and open discussion. Another concept is one person talk at a time, discussion within the subject. The one who controls always have a lot of challenges.
However, this brain storming, there was a question of how can I improve my teaching methods? The groups were asked to go for discussion and come up with some of those challenges.

GROUP DISCUSSION REPORT

One of the groups during their group discussion



Group One

• Professional presentation to students
• Presentation speed – language
• Participatory learning, involving the students in the class
• Teaching aids such as books, pens and other tools
• The teacher has to be creative and happy as professional
• Extra-curriculum activities such as educational trip.



Group Two
• Use of participatory method; the trainer asking the trainees question and the vise versa.
• Group discussion is important for their learning process.
• Giving the students assignment and the teacher has to follow it.
• Motivating the students such as usage of language and encouraging them and not putting them down.
• Study tour such as field work, visiting institution around the area to share ideas and experience.


Group Three

• Asking the students questions and revise with them some topics
• Group discussion for better learning
• Loyalty to the students
• The way we communicate to the students has to be clear and distinct
• Learning by doing i.e. we need to practice what we have learn in the class
• The class/students capacity and the way we relate to them

Group Four

• Introducing oneself to the students for a better relationship with them.
• Using the correct method for the future carrier of each student.
• Use simple language for better understanding
• Revise with the students the previous topic before introducing the new topic
• Self evaluation both for students and as an instructor.

The afternoon activity is to ask the question, why documenting my own practice? At the end of it we have a learning group dialogue and lastly individual log. Until on Friday, we may end the program by having learning group, individual log and the next day morning we begin by sharing our logs, what we have learn and what is next to do.

Comment on the presentations of the group by Johan Houge-Thiis

In the pedagogical pedagogy we have the three triangle i.e. teacher, students and matter/material. We have one actor/teacher who is the acting knowledge, presenting his knowledge method or model. The students is the recipient, absorb the message from the teacher. The central aim of all this is learning process. As teachers/instructor, we need not to get stick to our ideas and method of teaching because the students may have many questions beside what you have thematically prepare for them to answer. We need to create a dialogue between i.e. instructors and students. It is a model way of presenting ourselves to students because to teach is to learn and that is the concept behind the methodology.

To create one’s own future is all about ownership. We can share it with others or group but still it remain to be yours because you own it. However, for students to develop their own understanding is for them to ask questions and not instructor or teacher to tell them what they are supposed to do or ask. When we do that, the students develop their own self esteem and confidence.

At the end of the day, there were learning group being form and Trond comment as we conclude the first day of the workshop out line that, each of the participants should write his/her logs. The log will only be personal and not for the group because that is where you can improve. As we begin tomorrow at 9 am we should begin with sharing our experiences.

WOMEN SELF HELP DEVELOPMENT ORGANIZATION (WSHDO)

The group women wishing the under-secretary during the exhibition day.

WOMEN SELF HELP DEVELOPMENT ORGANIZATION (WSHDO)
Women self help development organization is a community based organization (CBO) established in 1975 in Yambio and moved to Yei and finally to Juba in 1992. it works with the grass roots women on self help basis. It was established as combined effort of women in Equatoria State. Today, it has members of 500 operational in 34 counties and villeges (rural areas) in Southern Sudan Juba. There are about 314 self help community development groups in existent.

TRAINING AND VISION
They have five units, community development as their way of spreading and the rest are health, nutrition, agriculture, agro-forestry and microfinance, training the women for 5 months.
The vision they have for attainment of their goal is to empowered women in Southern Sudan. The mission statement or the motto of the WSDHDO is their existence to promote the well-being of grass-root women of Southern Sudan for self reliance in every aspect of life.

OBJECTIVES• Mobilization and organization of women at grass-root level for community development.
• Enhancing the capability of the grass-root women to manage their resources within their reach.
• Enhancing self help and self reliance, cooperation among the women.
• Raising the esteem of women as leaders in the society.
• Lobbying on violence against women
• Working for transformation and socialization process in order to re-orient women towards issues of development.

ACTIVITIES
1. Raising awareness on gender balance, equity and child right
2. Adult education to reduce illiteracy of women in Southern Sudan
3. Leadership and skills training for better development of women
4. Environment protection and conservation through agriculture and agro-Forestry activities
5. Raising awareness among women about public health, HIV/AIDs and nutrition both in the family and the community.
6. Training women in basic skills of food processing

SOUTHERN SUDAN OLDER PEOPLE’S ORGANIZATION (SSOPO)

Above are the group of woment presenting their product on the exhibition day



SOUTHERN SUDAN OLDER PEOPLE’S ORGANIZATION (SSOPO)

Southern Sudan Older People’s Organization (SSOPO) is a local NGO, non profit making, charitable organization, established in 1999, to work with and for the aged.

REASONS FOR ESTABLISHMENT OF THE NGO
In traditional society, the elderly (aged) people were revered and respected for their wisdom and experience. Their counseling was sought in times of crises and they are the vehicles through which traditional customs, behavior and values were passed from one generation to the next.
Today, those traditions have been forgotten by the present generations. Furthermore, Southern Sudan older people do not enjoy the privileged position they once assured of, much as they play a role in peace building and reconstruction of the South. The prevailing negative attitude to wards them by many of us (society) has cause them a lot of challenges and suffering. To mention few of those problems and the suffering they are encountering day by day, for instance, poverty, poor housing, lack of adequate food and nutrition and physical disabilities. To make it more challenging, the government has no policy to cater the needs of this people, lack of active older people activist and Sudan conflicts has cause more harm than good.

SSOPO’S WORK
The Southern Sudan older people’s organization, advocate for the effort of the older people’s committee and the rights and needs of older people in Southern Sudan. They continue to lobby the ministry of gender, social welfare and religious affairs; Goss to ensure that national policy on older people is implemented and taken care of.

VISIONSSOPO’s vision is seeing a society that is concerned and catering for the needs of the older people. Therefore, there existent is to improve the quality of lives of older people and the community they live in.

TRAININGThe Southern Sudan older people’s organization has in place five (5) months of basic skills training in Tailoring and Embroidery for women and the youth in the older people’s head households in Juba.
It started in 2007 and has graduated 83 graduates in three (3) batches. Training begins in July to November. The next in take in January will be for one year and only thirteen are needed for the training of 2009. The conditions for application, the person must be a woman or youth caring for the older people or orphan and returnee (IDPs).

OPENING DAY OF EXHIBITION AT MULTI-SERVICE TRAINING CENTER (M.T.C) JUBA – SOUTHERN SUDAN 10-12-08

Mr. Mark Zanganbeyo, the under-secretary, Ministry of labor (GOSS) and Ms. Hellen Achiro, the D/G for Ministry of labor/public service on the opening day of the Exhibition


The ceremony started at 11:30 am at the Multi-training service center compound. Mr. Ben, assistant of the deputy director and in charge of 4 sections among which carpentry, building, plumbing and electrical department was the master of ceremony. He welcome all those invited guest, including the under-secretary of the ministry of labor and the director general of public service, and many other dignitaries, NGOs.

The main objective of this function is to inform the citizens and the supporting NGOs that life skill is important for capacity building, man power, development and construction of the country like Sudan, particularly Southern Sudan. The idea is to manifest to the public the training which the students received during the course of the year or two years and their creativity.

The director general for public service, Goss Mrs. Helen Achiro, outline in her speech about the importance of vocational education and acquiring life long skills. Without life skills in a country like Sudan or South Sudan development will be limited because craftsmen are the people actually constructing the country. Although most of the people in Southern Sudan are qualified academically, they lack vocational skills and that is why today the country is running short of such manpower. The advice and the emphasis she gave was to the instructors/NGOs to impart a life long skills to the people of Southern Sudan for construction and development of this nation.The under-secretary of MOL, Goss, Mr. Mark Zangabayo encourages the instructors at the V.T.Cs to learn more skills for themselves as well as imparting the same skills to the students. The undersecretary expresses the concern on the less concern given to vocational education; we need to acquire vocational skills despite the academic qualification. He outlined that in 1982 after the SPLA I, there were no people with skills to construct the country, hence the government thought it wise to open vocational training centers for training people to acquire knowledge and skills for development of Southern Sudan.

It is the same today after CPA in our country we need to construct and develop our country both in buildings, manpower and craftsmen.
He then opened the exhibition of various training that the students receive from many NGOs and other governmental stakeholders.

HOW CAN I IMPROVE MY PRACTICE?

This is the memebrs during the workshop



HOW CAN I IMPROVE MY PRACTICE?

The government has opened so many ways for education both locally and internationally. Learning is not something put in someone’s brain but it is a process. A person may not be good in theory but in practice he is the first and others good in theory but poor in practical, it is a challenge I am giving to each of you. If I/you have to develop a carrier, we need to develop interest and love it. It is my advice to you all that as we start this workshop, please develop an interest and I am sure you will gain a lot from here/seminar. In this seminar, you are going to learn new methods of how you do your teaching. It is a new look to the methodology of how to evaluate yourself as a teacher/instructor and not about the students. If you want to develop, you need to consider three things in mind: to be creative, committed and contented. These are the three Cs that we need most of the time when we need to develop our skills and knowledge. Be part of the people and not an expectator and there you will develop your people capacity and the carrier you are longing for. However, Legge open the workshop at 9:50 am and he encourages each and every participant to be active and consider the three Cs, being committed, creative and contented.

Trond in his statement says, we cannot in any way deliver the message to you the way you expect but we will help you to deliver to yourself the message. We need to be active, creative and committed and it is also quiet encouraging that ladies are well represented in this workshop and we appreciate that.

This program is to facilitate or help to support your learning process and development. The major question that we are going to deal with during the rest of the week is: HOW CAN I IMPROVE MY PRACTICE? This is the overall concept of this seminar.

The participants were asked the occupying question in mind after the opening of the seminar and Otim’s question was how to learn in my field?
Benjamin: how to improve on new areas? Agreement: how to am I going to cope up with this training? Clara: how to learn to keep up with our new generation issues? Fraser: how to get the right material to improve my teaching profession? Joseph: how to make the students to learn? Jaka Justo: to learn new things on capacity building. George: thinking on getting the best ways of learning? Atom: how to get proper way of passing knowledge to the students? Moses: what I do to get the students understand me better as a teacher? Batali: how to maintain my ethics when teaching? How to be creative to make others learn? Khamisa: how to make the students happy when I am giving lessons? Bingo Grace: how to improve the areas of awareness in my field? Nasra: how to activate the community to join the VTC yei? Josephine: How to have the students to be attentive during the lessons? Atimaku: how do I ensure that students retain their knowledge so they are able to apply in their needs? Kenyi: which are the objectives of this workshop?

WORKSHOP AT THE NPA YEI VOCATIONAL TRAINING CENTER

Date: 16th – Feb – 2009
Place: Yei VTC/NPA Compound

The workshop started on Monday 16 Feb. 2009. The participants were from NPA Yei VTC, NPA Mine Action, SPLA Head quarters. There are supposed to be 23 but 15 turn up and few participants came in little bit late. There are about 6 ladies including Aidah and the rest are all men. The workshop was attended by Paterno Legge, who was the invited guest, the workshop animators i.e. Trond and Johan plus Paul, Daniel and Aida


Mr. Otim, the principal of Yei VTC gave a short background of Yei center and there after welcoming every body official to the workshop. The center was established in 1995 with 5 operational workshops and it is gender balance. It is one of the best centers in Yei as many appreciated the present of the school in the region.

Mr. Johan gave a brief background of what the program is all about and the Nucoop position as the pioneer in BA program at Upper Nile University. He gave advice that during this workshop, we are going learn from each other a lot and participate all of us in one way or the other.