Breaking the Barrier Quarterly

The old adage "March roars in like a lion" is particularly relevant this year. Cindy Beams ushered in the month at Kenya's Shomple Community Trust where the buffalo roam and the lions actually do roar! It's here that Cindy uncovered another opportunity to indulge her love of language learning - in this case picking up several survival words and phrases in Swahili and Maasai. She is now at work creating an informal "OASIS" for these two African languages to help Groton School students better communicate with their Kenyan partners and Maasai host families during an August trip to Shompole with World Leadership School.

Deciding at the last minute to add Rwanda to her African itinerary, Cindy was both surprised and delighted to find herself in Francophone territory. "My ability to speak directly, rather than through a translator, with many Rwandans made all the difference." Such is the barrier-breaking power of language learning!

Rwanda is a fascinating place, probably best know to the general public for two things - its "gorillas in the mist" and the horrific genocide of 1994. Innovative leadership is turning Rwanda into a shining example of positive economic and social development in East Africa. The government of Rwanda has forged creative partnerships with varied businesses and international organizations, among them US-based International Education Exchange, as it builds a new and dynamic chapter in its post-genocide history. IEE is working with Rwanda's Ministry of Education to train teachers as English soon becomes the lingua franca of every Rwandan school. In discussing this ambitious teaching campaign with international experts, Cindy was again reminded how up-to-date John Conner's methods truly are!! John's anathema, the old "Chalk and Talk" - the teacher-as-expert model historically practiced throughout African schools - is being swiftly replaced by a "Student Centered" approach. Excitement is in the springtime air - both in Rwandan classrooms and throughout the "Student Centered" pages of STEP SIX of The Ideal Lesson Plan: Student "Show and Tell."

Scroll to the bottom of the newsletter to visit links for the interesting and worthwhile organizations cited above. Here's to a plethora of new possibilities as "March goes out like a lamb."

The fact that I'm an unabashed John Conner fan probably comes as no surprise. Every time I hear an accolade about his work, it warms my heart. The comments John routinely receives after presenting his workshop, THE IDEAL LESSON PLAN: TEN STEPS TO TOTAL FLUENCY, have a springtime energy that's hard to contain.

"This is the best presentation I have attended during my 30-year career."

"Your presentation is remarkable - it's immediately useful and completely honest."

If you'll be at he Northeast Conference, make sure to catch John as he takes the stage. Friday, April 17th, Session 45, 10:15 - 11:30, O'Neill Room, 4th Floor.