Weblog of Wesley Fryer

TxDLA
2005
8 March
2005

goal of Global Nomads: foster
dialog and understanding among the world’s
youth
- primarily using videoconferencing
to help students learn, face to face, about each
others
- also do broadcasts from places all
over the world
- in Iraq prior to the war,
Rwanda for 10 year anniversary of the genocide, in Sudan recently in refugee
camp

environment, AIDS, lots of
topics: goal is to create a bond and friendship between students in different
places
- try to help students stay in
touch, work collaboratively on
projects

href="http://www.gng.org" target="NewWindow">www.gng.org

Helen Keller: “The highest outcome
of education is tolerance.”

setup
links between teenagers in Iraq and in Middle
East

What is the cost for a classroom
to be involved?
- varies: from Rwanda, cost
was $150 for a classroom/school, live broadcast on mountain
guerrillas
- other connections are around
$100 each

Has historically viewed
themselves as K-12 organizations, have been receiving more requests from
colleges, would like to develop more programs for the university
level
- in past, did live broadcasts from a
Sudanese rescue camp

Next big project
is with “Semester At Sea”
- enables
university kids to travel around the world, to 10 different locations, and
literally spend a semester at sea
- Global
Nomads is traveling with them, overarching subject is
HIV-AIDS
- project will last about 100
days
- schools will have option of dialing
in throughout the project, or just for particular
countries

School
participation
- have ambassador schools,
those students are interactive, visiting
with
- others are view-only audience, can
send in questions before or after the program, but can’t interact during the
actual broadcast
- will have 4-5
interactive schools, and up to 40-50 view-only
schools

GNG provide background
materials and lesson plans to schools prior to videoconference
connections

difference in cost for
ambassador versus view-only schools is about $25, if a school has been view-only
for last 2 conferences, they try to make sure they are an ambassador school for
the third connection

One teacher here
had students participate in an interactive videoconference with students in
Bagdad, Iraq
- those students

david@gng.org was presenter today
over videoconference

Also have a
program where students in US discuss important issues of the day, next issue is
about Islam and the West
- will discuss
student perceptions, and how we can avoid conflict between 2
cultures

Have a brand new
documentary, “Rwanda Alive: Those Who
Listen”
- 30 min long, based on story of
Rwandan refugee who was a survivor of the
genocide

Thanks to Vicki Allen with
SBC for this connection