The Haiti Empowerment Project

Projects

Collaborating Partners

There are two Haitian partner universities for the Haiti Empowerment Project: CREFI (Center for Research in Education, Formation and Instruction) is an extension unit of the University of Notre Dame Haiti and Universite Caraibe (UC), a teacher education college in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Faculty and BA graduates from the partner universities attend and assist in the seminar courses. They then are able to revise and replicate the course in other areas of Haiti. This project provides faculty with an opportunity to work side by side with colleagues who are fighting the restraints of oppressive education.

Lab Schools

We continue to work in our "lab schools" in Haiti.  These are two primary schools that we have developed a close working relationship with to provide grounding for the faculty who we bring down from the US and to "try out" some of the ideas we use in the field.  The teachers at this school assist with the reflection and revision process for ideas on using different methods of instruction in Haitian schools.

As we continue to work in our "lab schools" in Haiti, the innovations of instruction effect the teaching and learning in the schools.  We also bring awareness to these schools with outside community partners, faith-based mission groups and others who wish to contribute to the schools with resources and short-term human capacity. 

Haitian Case Study Modules

The last aspect of our work is to create video cases to use in our instruction in Haiti.  Using the video case methods we use in the states as a model, we are working with several high-functioning schools in Haiti to record Haitian teachers and use vignettes of them teaching as a model to share with others teachers in the country.  By creating these video vignettes, our participating faculty and students are engaged in work that requires study and investigation into effective teaching methods and the practice of case studies in teacher education.

The video case project is designed to benefit the teacher education and in-service training abilities for Haitian educators.   Using the video case methods we use in the states as a model, we are working with several high-functioning schools in Haiti to record Haitian teachers and use vignettes of them teaching as a model to share with others teachers in the country.  It will be of great value to provide Haiti educators with vignettes of their Haitian colleagues in Haitian classrooms using alternative methods that have been proven to work in Haitian schools. This will be much more motivating and provide a much more credible means of sharing inventive and innovative methods of instruction for Haitian teachers.