The shortage of trained teachers, the poor conditions of schools and equity issues are the main reason of the low quality of education. However, in most cases the needs of educators are not aligned with the training offer in place (OECD, 2018). The lack of programs that help educators strengthen their personal and professional well-being was the reason why we created La Vuelta Al Mundo.
Teachers follow a journey or a trip ‘Around the World’ to discover new ways to improve their well-being, transform their pedagogical practices and better manage their communications. Teachers start the process receiving a set of materials which contains 3 modules or levels:
1. Connecting with yourself and others: Mindfulness
2. Building effective relations: Communication and leadership,
3. Imagination: Creativity.
The dynamic of the process is to overcome some challenges and life experiences in order to advance from one level to the next. Each of the modules is experienced during 4 days, where expert teacher-trainers lead activities and guide educators through the journey. In the end, educators who attend the program replicate the activities with colleagues to scale the impact and to guarantee its sustainability.
We aim at training teachers who are able to impact their colleagues, students, families and the educational community. Our project has been implemented in Medellín and Tumaco, impacting 2,452 early childhood educators directly and 25,852 children under age 5 indirectly.
In the next 3 years, we have a plan to continue carrying out this strategy in other regions, with the aim of benefiting 14.400 educators and 200.000 children. Moreover, we look forward to expanding the model to more schools by broadening the scope of the program to offer training to teachers in elementary and basic education levels.
Around the World’ is an innovative strategy that goes beyond what other teacher development programs offer, which are trainings focused on subject contents that
leave aside the personal and emotional dimensions of educators. If you want to implement this strategy in your school(s), contact us at United Way Colombia and we will be happy to explore partnerships to move on!
