The St. Boniface Haiti Foundation successfully launched its first teacher training seminars this summer in an effort to directly improve the quality of primary school education in Fond des Blancs, Haiti.  Primary school teachers from around the catchment area attended the week-long training sessions which were held at St. Francis School. 

The teacher training provided the teachers with the basic knowledge, skills, and tools necessary to help them become more effective in their classrooms.  Instruction focused on introducing participants to the philosophy of education and education as a profession, designing lesson plans for subjects like Math, French, Creole and Geography, and on maintaining appropriate classroom conduct.  Presentations of lesson plans, both in groups and individually, were also an important part of the seminar.

The members of COSEDEF, Fond des Blancs' local children's rights committee, worked with SBHF to organize the sessions and contributed significant effort to the weeklong event, as did the Directors of each primary school that participated.

Overall, the teachers who participated in the seminar reported high satisfaction with the seminar's materials and its instructors. Most importantly, many of the teachers who participated voiced excitement about returning to work in the Fall with a new appreciation for teaching as a vocation.  One 4th grade teacher who attended the training said "Teachers in Haiti normally get very little respect for their work and it has discouraged me a lot in the past. This seminar has made me proud to be a teacher again, and I now feel I am ready for many more years of teaching in Fond des Blancs."

These seminars were just the start of efforts to improve the quality of education.  The hope is that the teachers who were able to attend the training will share with their fellow teachers what they have learned.  We expect to continue our teacher training seminars so that all primary and secondary school teachers receive the basic training classes by next year.  Ideally, if funding allows, we would like to initiate an on-going teacher training program that is continuous and provides the support and help that the teachers need throughout the year.