Speaking frankly on education and youth development in sub-Saharan Africa
Two stories I recently learnt about strengthened my belief that while there is a need to change how we teach and learn, simply doing so would not necessarily improve educational outcomes for youth. There are deeper-seated problems that are equally bedeviling our educational system and which also need to be addressed. The first story involved …
Continue reading Still on donkey years’ pedagogy
In my last post, I wrote about the need for innovation in our approach to teaching and learning including supporting students to develop critical thinking skills. One of the things I alluded to in that post was the relevance of new technologies in teaching and learning. Upon further reflection, I realised that I may be falling into the …
Several months ago, I spoke to a group of young entrepreneurs based in Port Harcourt, in Nigeria’s Niger Delta region. The summary of my message was that they need to 'think beyond the box'. I deliberately used the word ‘beyond’ because I believe that the box - the status quo, as a reference point could potentially constitute a barrier to …
Continue reading On Donkey years’ pedagogy and innovation in higher education teaching
For a long time, I have wondered what characteristics of the women’s movement makes it unique and its agenda resonate more widely than that of the youth. I’m not suggesting that the youth movement does not have wide appeal, but unlike the women’s movement, global recognition of youth is usually premised on risk and vulnerability. …
Continue reading Building a truly global movement: What can the youth learn from women?
Interesting article on the conceptualization of youth. Originally posted on Africa photo stories blog and reproduced below with the kind permission of the author, Helen Gebregiorgis. --- At the age of 20, I travelled to Africa for the first time and with my mother and four siblings, I went to our home of origin, Eritrea. …
