Event: Gemma Burford (Diversity Series)

In my class Diverse and Exceptional Learner, we had Gemma Burford as a guest speaker. Gemma spoke about the educational procedures that she and her husband were trying to create in Tanzania. The major component of her lecture dealt with implementing "western" school styles into a country that did not have uniform standards. Also, the country had a number of students from the rural areas, who got most of their education from home.

The most interesting component of her lecture was their efforts to bring about change in a very traditional society. One example that Gemma gave was, in the school the students begin by learning how to write their own national language over the rural dialect which they normally spoke. By the time the students learn the basics of the national language, the school system then changes to English.

Gemma has been working hard to try to implement standards not only for the curriculum for the country, but also trying to create standards for teachers. I think that as a future educator, it is very interesting to hear the initial stages of an education program. There are many components to a successful education program, this lecture discussed the many variables in an education system, and what it takes to be successful.