Higher education as a catalyst for change in crisis regions
Enabling higher education for young people in poverty-stricken areas, social hotspots and crisis regions on site – this has been the aim of the Catholic University of Eichstätt-Ingolstadt (KU) since 2019 in collaboration with the Jesuit educational organization "Jesuit Worldwide Learning – Higher Education at the Margins" (JWL). One of the partnership’s offers is the "Learning Facilitator Program", which now has around 500 graduates in ten different countries such as Iraq, Afghanistan, Kenya and Sri Lanka. A detailed survey of graduates for a scientific study by JWL now shows the value of such offers not only for the students themselves, but also within their communities.
The 24-week “Learning Facilitator” course provides students with the skills to become teachers who can create student-centered lessons both inside and outside of school contexts. It is specifically designed for regions of the world where access to a teaching degree is the exception. The learning material is taught both online and on-site in learning centers. As the JWL survey shows, students of the program act as education multipliers in their environment. "The feedback from graduates confirms our objective: The offer proves to be a catalyst for change and turns teachers into leaders who also have an impact beyond the classroom", emphasizes KU President Prof. Dr. Gabriele Gien.
The Learning Facilitator program also enables teachers to contribute to well-being, growth and a culture of learning that fosters community engagement and shared responsibility. Prof. Dr. Rowena Roppelt, who coordinates the collaboration with JWL at the KU's School of Transformation and Sustainability together other members of staff, adds: "Our graduates are, as they themselves describe, able to resolve conflicts and promote cooperation. They feel empowered and are strong role models who challenge norms." In the current winter semester, 58 students have enrolled in the Learning Facilitator program in Afghanistan alone, 51 of them young women. "And this despite all the adversity caused by the Taliban's education policy, which excludes all girls from the age of 12 from higher education. The Learning Facilitator Program is a response to the enormous need to provide young women with access to vocational training and to enable them to teach their younger sisters and brothers in their villages", says Roppelt.
Around 50 graduates in Afghanistan, Guyana, India, Iraq, Kenya and Malawi were interviewed for the recently completed study on the effectiveness of this educational program. Participants describe profound changes compared to the teaching practice they have experienced themselves. "We should create a learner-friendly environment and be more flexible because every student has their own way of learning", said one graduate. Another participant, who completed the course in the Kenyan refugee camp Kakuma, describes how he now organizes his teaching practice in a strictly non-violent manner: "I used to tend to be very aggressive [...]. Now, however, I enjoy an excellent relationship with my students, as my teaching techniques have changed and improved significantly from then to now."
As the survey also shows, graduates often advocate for female students' access to education and also serve as role models. In Afghanistan, one graduate highlighted her role in her community by inspiring parents to send their daughters to school. By demonstrating the benefits of girls' education, she helped to change attitudes in favor of promoting a gender-equitable learning environment.
Respondents also emphasized the impact that providing education has on strengthening the community. A graduate from Kenya says: "This course has made me set new goals to support the community. In my village, most children don't study or don't go to school. When I started this course, [...] my local supervisor asked me to teach the people in their village. [...] So this course has really brought about a lot of change in me." The Learning Facilitator program also opens up perspectives for the students themselves that previously seemed unattainable for them: "My parents couldn't afford sending me to college. Now, I am in a position to achieve my parents' goal. They want to thank this project and the founder of this course for doing what they couldn't do for me."
The Learning Facilitator program is offered in a blended learning format. The course content is accessible via a web-based training platform or via the JWL Global ELearning app, which can also be used to download the content for offline use. Throughout the entire course, students are required to submit weekly assignments that combine experience, reflection and action. This includes sharing experiences in a global community of learners, connecting students from different collaborative learning centers in a virtual global classroom.
Throughout the program, participants complete a final project and internship in which they apply educational principles and practices in their teaching to meet a specific need in their community. Learning Facilitator students are in regular contact with KU online facilitators who are responsible for academic support through feedback and grading of each student. Students also benefit from on-site support, as a learning facilitator is also responsible for leading discussions in an on-site learning center twice a week. Through these face-to-face sessions, students are encouraged to discuss relevant topics with their fellow students and recognize the relevance of the course content in their local context.
More information on the Learning Facilitator program can be found on the website of the KU School of Transformation and Sustainability at www.ku.de/en/sts/study-offer. The detailed study is available at www.jwl.org/news-media.
Wissenschaftlicher Ansprechpartner:
Prof. Dr. Rowena Roppelt (rowena.roppelt@ku.de)
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