GC Pair to Help Shape Nation's Science Education
Published: April 13, 2021
Shaping the world is more than a lofty ideal for one Greenville College professor and his ready assistant.
For two weeks this June, biology processor Bwarenaba Kautu and graduating senior Christian Semanik will enter the implementation phase of a plan to improve science education in the central Pacific island nation of Kiribati. The potential impact of their work on future generations of islanders is incalculable.
An Idea Worthy of InvestmentJust published, The 2016 Year in Review of the American Association of Anatomists (AAAS) features a story about the project. The AAAS has funded Kautus work through an educational outreach grant.
Kautu aims to improve science education in general and anatomy/physiology education in particular in Kiribatis resource poor schools. In June, he and Semanik will conduct workshops with teachers and students. Sites for their work include a high school in South Tarawa, Kiribatis capital island.
Grand OrchestrationA native of Kiribati and schooled in impoverished facilities on its outer islands, Kautu knows that many students lack even basic supplies like books, pens and notebooks. Classrooms are poorly equipped and teachers have little to work with.
Producing effective teaching materials given these limited resources requires creativity and collaboration on several fronts. Kautu has played the role of orchestrator, bringing together people in the know with people who need to know.
On the curriculum design side, Kautu and Semanik are working with people from the curriculum division of Kiribatis Ministry of Education and experts in curriculum design from Harvard Medical School and Oxford. On the delivery side, they will work with high school instructors in Kiribati schools and members of local communities.
Uniquely Designed For a PurposeLack of resources and educational opportunities continually challenge youngsters growing up in Kiribati. In addition to working with high school teachers and students, Kautu and Semanik will also distribute school supplies to village schools.
They want todays students to know that limited resources do not reflect their worth as persons.
We want the younger people of Kiribati to know that they are valued by God and that each one of them was created for a unique purpose, Kautu explains.
Delivering More Than KnowledgeSemanik, who graduates this May with a major in physical education and certification to teach grades 6-12, looks forward to putting his skills to practice in an enterprise that can help shape the countrys future.
The ideology we embrace is that we need to deliver knowledge, hope and love to all of those we impact, he reflects.
With a carefully devised blueprint in hand and willing help from distant partners and local stakeholders, Kautu and Semanik have reason to believe that improved science education in Kiribati is close to becoming a reality.
Read Anatomy Education and Outreach in the Republic of Kiribati
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