It’s amazing how a few seconds of video can communicate more than a couple of written blog posts. I love how the background sounds give you the full effect of being there – the goats bleating, children crying, etc…
Archive for the ‘High School Specific’ Category
Choosing a Teen Summer Program (Part I)
Parents call me all the time asking about GLA, but often it emerges that they don’t even know how to think about choosing a summer program. They’re bombarded by a ton of catalogs and often just select whichever organization has the prettiest catalog. Obviously, this is not the best way to figure out where to send your teenage son or daughter.
Our calls usually turn into sessions where I help parents construct a mental framework to think about all the summer program options available. Here are some of the key questions to ask:
1. Honestly (really, honestly) how emotionally mature and globally minded is your child? This can help you answer whether they are even ready for an international program. If you’re not sure if they’re ready, then maybe start with a 1 week program in Latin America. If they have already traveled extensively with school or family, then let them go further out.
2. What is the objective of doing the summer program? Is it purely for fun? Is it to foster personal development? Is it to earn some needed community service hours? Is it to explore a personal passion about a certain part of the world? Its amazing how many families haven’t asked themselves what they hope to get out of the program. Start with the general goal and then work backwards.
3. What kind of peer group do you want your child to be surrounded by? Is it an all-American group? Do all the students come from the same part of the USA? Is the student body diverse? If so, in which way?
Global Leadership Adventures prides itself on trying to recruit an international student body. Although the majority of students still come from the USA and UK, we have students from throughout Africa, Asia, Latin America. For some families, this is not what they want. For others, getting their son or daughter to be part of an international student body is a unique benefit.
I realize now that there are a lot more things to consider when choosing a teen summer program. I will continue this thread in a separate post.
Living with the Masai
I just got back from the inaugural journey of our teen service trips to Tanzania, Africa. It was an amazing experience. Here are some highlights:
The Camp: after driving for over 4 hours on dirt roads through what seemed like the middle of nowhere, we arrived at a patch of land that
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would be our campsite for the next few days. It turned out to be more comfortable than I expected. The tents were high quality, clean and the staff created private “bathroom” and “shower” tents.
Community Service: Our community service project was working at the local school, which was about 20 minutes away through the bush. Since school was on break, we were joined by members of the community to help paint 4 classrooms. The classrooms were in pretty bad shape, so it took us 4 days to get them looking like new. Most students thought that the best part of the service project was playing with the little kids who came by the school “to see the white people”.
Cultural Immersion: For me, the most interesting aspect was learning more about Masai culture. Although they are often photographed by travelers, most people do not stop and try to really learn about their rich cultural heritage. We had an amazing local Masai Program Director who helped us reflect on what we were observing and helped us understand things that did not make sense at first glance.
The girls on the program bonded with the women who taught them how to do beadwork. The Masai beadwork is so intricate and beautiful. I would have liked to learn it, but according to Masai tradition, only woman do beadwork. So, I joined the boys who were learning how to throw spears. None of us could properly throw a Masai spear – we ended up being entertainment for the local Masai warriors.
Overall, it was an amazing experience and I’m excited to be able to continue working with the school board in the village where we worked.
More photos can be found here.
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Living with the Masai
I’ll be offline for the next 10 days. Not because of workload or technology issues. But because I’ll be living with the Masai people in Northern Tanzania.
Global Leadership Adventures has a new program that is only on our web site (not in the course catalog) – Masai Bush Camp.
I’m leading a group of students and faculty from the prestigous Pembroke Hill School in Kansas City on a customized version of this program. In addition to the standard program we’ll also go on safari in the Serengeti to see the wildebeest migration.
However, the Masai Bush Camp program is primarily focused on community service and learning about the Masai culture first hand. We’ll volunteer to fix up the local school and possibly also a water well for cattle. In the afternoons we’ll meet with village elders, learn about their social structure, and even how to throw a spear, herd cattle and make beads.
I’ll post photos and post-program updates upon return. In the meanwhile, read more about the Masai here.
A Spark in the Teenage Years
“How do you know if your programs are successful?” A question often directed to me.
Previously, I’ve written about the unexpected outcomes of study abroad programs. Along the same lines, I would say that I would consider our programs a success if our alumni become “activated”. Whether our programs spark a student to learn a new language, pursue a new course of study, start a non-profit, fall in love with a country, or take up a cause. If we can facilitate a spark, an activating event, I think we’ve done well.
A spark in the teenage years can be especially powerful because high school students are still open to the possibilities that life holds before them. Whereas, my work with college students often found that they already knew (or thought they knew) what they were going to do in life and were simply looking for a way to reinforce what they already wanted to do.
One of the reasons I enjoy working with high school students is that they have not necessarily decided on which college to apply to, what to major in, or even thought about their own self-identity.
