Teacher professional development through online learning in Haiti

In two weeks, the Educator and Leadership Institute will launch in Cap-Haitien, Haiti.

We are excited about the impact that the institute will have on the abilities of teachers to engage students in learning.

There is lots of evidence that teachers in Haiti are committed to their work. This World Bank report provides an overview of the context, and some of the challenges, involved:

World Bank: Why school enrollment is not enough

One of the distinctive features of the institute, which specifically addresses the issue of ineffective teaching methods that the World Bank report highlights, is the use of online learning to support what we do in face-to-face sessions.

In 2016-17, with support from D2L Corporation, we are providing an opportunity for institute participants to gain extra pedagogical support through online resources and forums. Teachers will be able to access French-language materials to help them with mathematics or science. They will be able to engage colleagues in Haiti and in Canada in conversations about challenges they are experiencing in the classroom and ideas for addressing those issues. They will be able to regularly reflect on how they can improve their teaching practices.

Concurrent to the launch of the online platform, which will take place the first week of August at the institute, we are also launching a major research project which will examine the effectiveness of both the face-to-face and online supports. This will help us discern the impact of these interventions in supporting improved teaching practices. Eventually, we want to examine how the summer institute and the online learning actually impacts student learning. If the face-to-face and online learning components can be shown to improve student outcomes, the project has the potential to significantly impact how organizations like UNESCO and the World Bank support educational professional development in fragile and challenging contexts.

This is a significant area of research and the scope of the initiative has potential for shaping policy and practice in Haiti and countries with similar challenges. I will be posting updates on both the ways in which the online learning evolves and the corresponding research project.