Gettingitdoneapproachweb

TWB Approach to Global Education Challenges Solid Research It is critically important to identify the specific challenges that teachers face in order to leverage change. These challenges include a lack of resources to support their endeavors, as well as external forces opposing their work-- such as political instability, poverty, and inoperable health infrastructures for the communities they serve. We see a fundamental difference between knowing a country context and its unique challenges and only knowing about them. Our reliance on local teacher members, university and international agency research, and our own in- country studies ensures that we know both the people and the challenges they face. For example, in Pakistan, one of our partners (PODA - Potohar Organization for Development Assistance) counts the number of children going to school each week and month and reports these figures to local authorities, then checks the official records against the data collected in the village. In other words, our research takes place simultaneously at 30,000 feet and on the ground. With such a dependable core, the evaluative criteria, data-collection, review, analysis, and change strategies may be customized to meet local conditions. We pay particular attention to contextspecific sector assessments: what currently exists within a given school and, in increasingly concentric circles, the community around it so that we can understand the available resources (or lack thereof) that support or hinder educational development. Such assessments include: EDUCATION SYSTEM

•Student-teacher ratios •Health related issues •Attendance rates (by gender) •Graduation rates (by gender) •Formal evaluation metrics for student performance •Oversight of formal and non- formal support

EXISTING RESOURCES

•Facilities in and around the school •Annual education budget and expenditures •Teacher capacity/limitations •Government capacity/limitations •Local/international businesses

www.TeachersWithoutBorders.org 321 Third Avenue, S., #304 Seattle, WA 98104 phone: (206) 230-8126 fax: (866) 760-1052 email: [email protected]

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•NGO capacity/limitations

www.TeachersWithoutBorders.org 321 Third Avenue, S., #304 Seattle, WA 98104 phone: (206) 230-8126 fax: (866) 760-1052 email: [email protected]

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SCHOOL INFRASTRUCTURE

•Formal learning structures •Non- formal learning structures •Access to ICT SOCIAL AND CULTURAL RESOURCES/NETWORKS

•Indigenous social networks (decision-making capacity) •Radio •Post •Television •Broadband •Phone •Satellite systems CULTURAL CONTEXTS

•Educational orientation •Gender lens •Historical context •Religious context •Political affiliations

Local Partnerships: Implementation Where it Matters Most We have never made the assumption that we go it alone. We heartily agree with the United Nations, in its recent report on development indicators, that this is the era of the NGO. The organizations that interact with teachers and communities are the cornerstone of successful programs, and so we choose our partners carefully. At TWB, we recognize the critical importance of forming high performance and high integrity partnerships. We depend upon them. Our partners are both local and international, for-profit and non-profit, from diverse sectors, with an array of visions and missions. TWB has succeeded in forming partnerships that are more productive and effective than competing for scarce funding resources. At TWB, we trade our expertise for expertise we do not have, should the match be mutual. We invest our time and diplomacy to create durable networks. Whether our partners are large and international or small and local, we our focus is on ensuring reliability of: •Local leadership: We target innovators, mentors, and community leaders www.TeachersWithoutBorders.org 321 Third Avenue, S., #304 Seattle, WA 98104 phone: (206) 230-8126 fax: (866) 760-1052 email: [email protected]

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•Local resources: We mobilize existing resources within local communities •Local capacity: We translate leadership and resources into multiplier effects Partnerships Have To Work Both Ways There are several ways in which we evaluate whether or not a partnership is going to work. We ask ourselves about whether such a partnership allows us to reach more people, strengthen our mission, increase our resources for use in the field, or facilitate the delivery of services. Corporate Social Responsibility partners can help create a win-win all around by making a commitment to human welfare and education Channel and Distribution partners allow us to reach more educators and rely on trusted networks Complementary partners allow us to join forces, in particular regions, in order to provide coordinated services and share resources. We spend a great deal of time in this area, for a partnership gone awry or one resting on a flimsy foundation can be destructive. As is the case with most successful partnerships, two features must take place: •Clarity: Nuts and bolts conversations that specify the scope of the partnership and project(s), mutual benefits, timelines, individual roles and accountability •Trust: Relationships matter, and - combined with clarity - are a winning combination of hard work and commitment. Inquiries from the Field There are huge needs out there. We're often flooded with requests to work at the local level. We have developed a nimble process by which we can identify, engage, support, and evaluate those partners who are making a difference. 1) Institutional Mapping: We create an inventory of existing organizations working in the enterprise by gathering information from key sources that illustrate the clientele, services and geographic areas of operation. We have created an Excel data- base with criteria we list and apply equally. The maps are used to identify potential partners through the Partner selection tool. 2) Partner Selection: We create a short list of 3-5 potential partners. This list evaluates core components, such as institutional capacity, vision, human resources, program viability. We will look for the strategic plan, samples of individual work plans, budgets, by-laws, organizational setup, policies, accounts and professional development. These are considered heavily in the fourth element: Partnership Definition, Action Plan, and Evaluation. We have also developed a course for our projects with Community www.TeachersWithoutBorders.org 321 Third Avenue, S., #304 Seattle, WA 98104 phone: (206) 230-8126 fax: (866) 760-1052 email: [email protected]

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Teaching & Learning Centers – a barometer for determining good intentions.

3) Program Design and Planning Methods: We pay special attention to how partner organizations design programs. In doing so, we look at existing projects and measure them against the plan. 4) Partnership Definition, Action Plan, and Evaluation: This takes the longest time, but when done thoroughly, lasts the longest. We focus on what they can do to enhance the overall goal of the project and what they expect from Teachers Without Borders. We look for ways in which partner organizations can be self-reflective about progress and open to an independent, third- party evaluation. It is our intention to work with organizations that have proven their ability to deliver on promises. Furthermore, we do not implant ourselves in regions and find partners, rather we are approached by community organizations seeking our assistance.

Implementation Blend: High-Tech, High-Touch, High-Teach When it comes to effective educational practice, one size rarely fits all; in short, formulas often fail. With good data in hand, we operate with a compass, rather than a map. It shows. Here's what we have learned: At TWB in the field, an operational and innovative implementation blend of high-tech, high-touch, high- teach has resulted in more effective and long- lasting changes to an educational setting than any one approach in isolation. We have also learned that such a blend allows us to access local leadership. This blended approach resonates with communities because, in the end, they learn how to solve problems more effectively. A brief definition follows: High-teach: TWB has conceived (with the help of our membership), built, and recently launched a FREE elearning platform (TWB Tools) that enables its members to connect, collaborate, and create curriculum that will enhance their roles as educators. As a result, a local leader is able to access a community of educators and develop those materials that can be shared, even off line. The high-tech. portion breaks new ground in openeducational resources and is offered to our partners. In short, the high-tech. accelerates the high- touch, high- teach components of our blend. The TWB Toolset is described at length in this document. High-touch: Face-to-face communication has significant strengths. At TWB we depend upon the power of humans to meet and see each other, whether they live in the same community or meet new friends from abroad. TWB Community Teaching and Learning Centers (CTLCs) provide those opportunities, helping to provide opportunities to solve problems at the local level. CTLCs have offered after-school training, emergency relief, HIV/AIDS and Health awareness courses, girls empowerment clubs, cultural www.TeachersWithoutBorders.org 321 Third Avenue, S., #304 Seattle, WA 98104 phone: (206) 230-8126 fax: (866) 760-1052 email: [email protected]

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exchange experiences. Supported by the high-tech. element, CTLCs are launching points for both learning AND earning. High-Teach: We understand, too, that our focus on enhancing teacher excellence, worldwide, involves that teachers know their subject and enlist the skills necessary to communicate and teach these subjects, despite enormous obstacles. Excellent teachers know the children, the way they learn, and the influences on their lives. Teachers Without Borders ensures that, when we help gather educators together (on site and on line), we are prepared to help them where they are serve as a resource and support for each other. TWB runs professional development conferences all over the world. Keeping the dignity of the profession front and center, we are particularly proud of our ability to bring together teachers from regions of conflict. It is an act of respect to engage educators in Rwanda, for example, in seminars on effective pedagogy and curriculum development—these are often sub- standard in impoverished and war- torn regions.

www.TeachersWithoutBorders.org 321 Third Avenue, S., #304 Seattle, WA 98104 phone: (206) 230-8126 fax: (866) 760-1052 email: [email protected]

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