2007 Jordan Civic Engagement Workshop

The Civic Engagement Workshop (CEW) is an intensive week-long cultural, intellectual and professional exchange among a selected group of Jordanian and U.S. high school teachers to enhance their pedagogies and skills for effective civic engagement.

Organized and run by the University of the Middle East Project (UME), the workshop was held at Rawdat Alma'aref Schools and Colleges (RAMS) in Amman, Jordan, starting Wednesday, December 12th, and ending Monday, December 17th.

This workshop was designed to provide the participating high school teachers with an opportunity to inquire into the nature and workings of civic engagement. Guiding the workshop is a belief that teachers, regardless of discipline, become more effective educators when they become more aware of and involved in community civic matters. As leaders in their communities, teachers can create participatory learning spaces through civic engagement projects aimed at creating more inclusive schools and communities.

The CEW offers a sustained and supported forum for participating teachers to explore and experiment with the theories and practices that facilitate their contribution to the creation of more inclusive schools and communities. The CEW ultimately aims to support educational settings which value active participation by young people, to acknowledge the critical impact of diversity on learning and on the wider goals of education, and to encourage deliberative dialogue for collective decisions on courses of action.

CEW participants were high school teachers interested in promoting greater inclusivity and social justice through collaborations between their schools and communities:

• 7 UME Alumni, High School Teachers from Jordan
• 6 High school teachers from the USA

The workshop was highly collaborative, with participants providing mutual support and feedback on each other’s projects before, during, and after the CEW. In addition, UME was pleased to welcome several esteemed guests to the practicum on Wednesday, December 12.

• 10 Award-winning teachers, recipients of the Queen Rania Award for excellence
• 5 Educators from the Jordan Education Initiative

Finally, participating teachers had the opportunity to pay official visits to two UNRWA schools in Amman, courtesy of an alumnus of UME and his school administration. Participants spent several hours touring the facilities and meeting with students, teachers, and administrators.

The CEW was guided by two UME faculty members from the U.S. and the Middle East with extensive teaching and practical experience in civic engagement and in the Middle East. Having previously worked on various UME projects and thus having a comprehensive understanding of UME’s academic mission and principles, they collaborated closely with UME staff in the design of the academic components of the CEW:

• Lena Bahou, Trade & Development, Greece
• Yamila Hussein of Harvard University Graduate School of Education