Minglaba! Welcome to the blog of the Global Schools Partnership between Child Development Centre School on the Thai Burma border and Campie Primary School, Musselburgh, Scotland.
Today, we visited our dear friend, Dr Thein Lwin at his Migrant Learning Centre in Chiang Mai.
Dr Thein Lwin is a very radical and powerful educator who has led the way in Critical Thiinking for Burmese teachers and schools. His experience and research have led him to develop Reading and Writing for Critical Thinking and he trains Burmese teachers on both sides of the Thai Burma border in this style of learning.
Dr Thein Lwin has always supported our Global Schools Partnerships. As ever, he is full of considered thought and understanding about the situation for Burmese education. You can see him here inbetween my husband and I. Thank you Thein Lwin, as ever for your gracious hospitality and discussion. Sheila
Part of the Global Schools Funding for this year's project provides resources for the learning theme. We were able to give CDC 5000 Thai Bahts to buy resources for making and displaying children's work at CDC. So I went with Say Hai and Khu Paw to the stationery shop. They were SO SCARED to spend the money. "AArgh! 6 bahts for a piece of display paper. It's so expensive."
"It's OK. You can afford it. You have to spend 5000 Thai Bahts." They went back to CDC, loaded with paper, post its, display paper, scissors, wax crayons, tape and much more.
"We will write letter to say thank you to British Government and Global School Partnerships."
DAY 6 - CDC Final Questions and Feedback. on PhotoPeach
Today was very emotive and moving for us all...these photographs speak for themselves.
We would like to take this opportunity to thank Sheila for providing us with this unique opportunity...it has been one of the most rewarding and fulfilling experiences we have had. We would also like to extend our gratitude to the staff and students of CDC school, they have been enthusiastic, inspirational and supportive throughout our visit. We are honoured to have worked with such a dedicated and positive school community.
A final 'thank you' must also be extended to Eh Thwa and the staff at Mae Tao Clinc, as well as the owners and staff at the 'Casa Mia' restaurant for allowing us to exhibit the Grade 5 students Aung San Su Kyi work.
We hope that you too have enjoyed our blog entries...we would like to thank you all for your comments, they have really motivated us, especially when we are working at midnight listening to Kat's iPhone to keep us awake!
Today we worked with the children to display some of their questions, photographs and drawings to share with the other CDC classes and teachers. The children really enjoyed helping us to create the wall montage and then had great fun exploring it with their friends.
The Grade 1 children worked with a talking partner today...they were thinking deeply about the BIG question, 'Why should we care for others?'. Then they shared their thoughts, feelings and answers in a class 'Thought Shower' session. We also shared the P2 Campie children's answers to this question with the CDC children and many of their answers were the same. The CDC children then worked collaboratively drawing around each other's hands because we talked about how we can show that we care for others with our hands...giving our friends a cuddle, sharing, holding hands...
In Grade 5, the students completed their Aung San Su Kyi BIG questions and we explained to the students that their work is going to be exhibited in the local Burmese Health Clinic called Mae Tao and a popular restaurant called 'Casa Mia'. The students and teachers were very excited and proud of what they have achieved. We explained that we wanted to share their excellent thought provoking questions and beautiful portraits of Aung San Sui Kyi with their own and the wider community of Mae Sot.
It has been one of the most rewarding days so far...as we both feel that the children have been teaching and the teachers that we have been working with are fully engaged with the different teaching and learning approaches that we have used. Many of the children have a good understanding of the different question words and the older children have demonstrated a greater ability to think more deeply about how to phrase their questions using more complex question vocabulary.
Stan Andre ran the Edinburgh Marathon for CDC School. Today we gave the money he raised to Khu Paw for CDC Nursery. She loves the nursery to look good and longs to have resources so children can play and draw freely. She was VERY HAPPY. Thank you Stan. You are THE MAN!
Hurray, this afternoon, I was well enough to get back up to CDC (by tuk tuk not bike), teach for 2 lessons, show Myoe Nyunt how to blog before Geoff brought a tuk tuk to take me home..... where I promptly threw up! Except I had nothing to throw up as all I've eaten yesterday and today is a wee plate of mashed tatties! Anyway, I can hear you all saying too much information.... there is actually more information but I'm being restrained! Back to the story.
As I was working with Grade 6, answering Campie students' questions, a few children at a time were going out then coming in silently or very loudly wailing. Yes, it's injection day at school today.
We are happy to work with Scottish teachers and I got many technique or teaching methods so i believe that this project will be helpful for us. Now i was being with Teacher Sheila learning to how to post on blog.
