| Brazil | Egypt | Senegal |

Public policies for basic education (K-12) in Brazil in the last 10 to 15 years include a greater emphasis in ensuring that all children attend school and, more recently, that schools provide good quality education for all.

Currently, the federal government promotes “Education for All and for Each One”. This idea, borrowed from UNESCO´s Education for All campaign, includes the notion that policies should acknowledge the differences inherent to the Brazilian population. In this sense public basic education in Brazil now seems to make a greater effort to include these differences. As examples, special attempts are being made to include young adults who did not have the opportunity to study at the appropriate age, afro-Brazilian students, students who live in the countryside, women, disabled, underprivileged children, and indigenous populations.

Purpose

The main purpose of the program is to provide U.S educators with a first-hand opportunity to view what is being done in terms of public policies with regard to Afro-Brazilian and Brazilian indigenous populations and on how formal education is being administered. The participants will be able to interpret different aspects of Brazilian society and how it relates to these two groups to American students and citizens through study and travel. The project is designed to overcome stereotypical images, provide greater coverage to Brazil, introduce Brazilian and South American dimensions into courses, and promote greater understanding between Brazil and the United States through educational and cultural interchange. The main objectives of the seminar are to:

1. Study and understand the historical, social, cultural, political, and educational aspects of Afro-Brazilian and indigenous populations;
2. Observe the interaction between native and non-native ways as well as particularities of Afro-Brazilian groups in dealing with formal education; and
3. Engage in a series of dialogues with scholars, government officials and people from different walks of life.

Scope

The program will be a 30-day series of lectures, conferences and field trips in four of the five regions of Brazil where these two groups are most numerous and which will give a better understanding of the topic. Due to the theme chosen for this Summer Seminar, eight states will be visited: São Paulo Federal District Bahia; Pará, Amazonas Mato Grosso Mato Grosso do Sul, and and Rio de Janeiro.

In each of these regions there will be an academic phase that will be followed by travel to visit selected sites. There will be an opportunity to meet other educators and tour major cities (such as São Paulo, Brasília, Manaus, Salvador and Rio de Janeiro and their hinterlands), and visit rural areas, schools and museums.

Program Objective:

The 33-day seminar in Egypt is designed to assist participants acquire the proper knowledge and tools to better teach on Egypt in a U.S. classroom setting. The seminar will not only help participants know, and incorporate into their curricula more, about the historical, socioeconomic, cultural and political factors shaping Egypt, but will also provide hands-on experience in a country that offers a perspective on the Middle East region, and the Arab and Islamic worlds.

Pre-Departure Orientation in the United States:

The Bi-national Fulbright Commission in Egypt (BFCE) will partner with a U.S. institution to organize a two-day to three-day pre-departure orientation session for seminar participants. The lectures and discussions will deal with cultural backgrounds, religious practices, social norms, and developmental, economic and political issues. In addition, the participants will be debriefed on the academic and cultural aspects of the upcoming in-country programs.

Egypt Program:

In line with the seminar theme, the academic phase will deal with: Egyptian historical and cultural backgrounds; religious and social values; education, economy, civil society, and development and reform issues; and internal and foreign policies. Special emphasis will be put on how Egypt struggles to advance by making education its number one national project. Participants will have the chance to explore to what extent the country with its public, private and non-governmental sectors, is committed to the national commitment it has taken upon itself.

Egyptian scholars, professionals, and intellectuals will conduct lectures, dialogues and discussions. Academic lectures will be supplemented by cultural activities, social gatherings with Egyptians, site visits to educational institutions, community development projects, political institutions, and cultural field trips to areas outside of Cairo in the Upper Egypt and Delta regions.

To support the participants’ individual projects, the Commission will arrange for working group sessions with Egyptian consultants and intellectuals. The working group topics will be based on an analysis of the data sent by participants during the pre-departure phase. Participants will be asked to sign up for scheduled working group meetings.

To ensure and facilitate timely access to information about Egypt, the seminar, and the Commission in Egypt, a summer seminar link will be created and built into the body of the Commission’s Web site. This link will take the participants to a mini Web site where they will find updates/information on travel, program terms and conditions, pre-departure material/links online evaluation forms, and seminar schedules. In addition, it will incorporate a multimedia program for the cultural tours, field visits, and academic activities of the participants that will be active upon the commencement of the program in Egypt.

Administrating Agency:

The Binational Fulbright Commission in Egypt (BFCE), http://www.fulbright-egypt.org/, will administer the seminar on behalf of the U.S. Department of Education.

Program Content:

This four-week seminar will explore the history and culture of Senegal, a country known for its vibrant cultural traditions. The intensive experience offered by this program will give participants a solid practical knowledge of Senegalese culture, including a familiarity with the country’s history, religion, politics, educational systems, and art forms such as music, dance, film and literature.

Senegal has a diverse cultural and political history and today represents a successful post-colonial democracy in Francophone West Africa. Participants will be exposed to differences in secular, Islamic, and non-formalized education in Senegal and will have the opportunity to learn about the educational history and culture of this country from the perspective of Senegalese educators who themselves are of diverse ethnic and cultural origins. Although French is the official language of Senegal, participants will be exposed to Wolof--the most widely spoken--and other languages of the country. Additionally, the seminar will delve into the vibrant art, music, dance, film and literature that is central to this West African country, learning directly from experts and practitioners in these fields. Some of these art forms (such as oral history and drumming) are learned not through a formalized education system but rather through oral tradition, which continues to be an important mode of transmitting knowledge from one generation to the next, a tradition which will be explored as well.

Participants will deepen their knowledge of Senegalese history and culture through a series of interactive lectures, field trips, readings and discussions. During the course of the four weeks, participants will be based in the capital city Dakar, hosted by the West African Research Center. They will also travel to key sites in Senegal including Gorée Island; the holy cities of Touba and Tivaouane; Saint Louis, the former capital of French West Africa; and Kaolack in the Saloum region. Travel will include visits to Quranic schools, secular schools, universities, and non-governmental organizations focused on improving children’s educational opportunities. There will also be interactive workshops in drumming and dance, with participants learning through oral tradition. The first-hand experience gained from this program will be immediately applicable in the classroom and in building curricula, especially to those teaching subjects in Social Studies, Arts and Music, and Language Arts. Having completed the program, participants will be able to share with their students and colleagues a deeper understanding of this West African country and its relevance to world events.

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