The Walid and Helen Kattan Science Education Project concluded on 18 April the Teachers’ Hosting Programme (THP), where a group of educational experts and academics from the UK and USA visited Palestine and worked with Palestinian teachers.
THP aims to provide an opportunity for the exchange of experiences of cumulative education and sciences, focusing on scientific investigation and drama, under the supervision and guidance of the experts.
This first phase of the programme came to an end on 10 April at Dar An-nadwa International Centre in Bethlehem, where science teachers (grades 5 – 10) worked with American scientist James Westgate, a geologist from Lamar University in Texas, and teachers Philip Berry and Katie Tyrell from Beal Secondary School in the UK. Twelve teachers from public, UNRWA and private schools in the Bethlehem area participated in the programme.
THP’s first phase included workshops on fossils, minerals and rocks, planning and building projects for teaching via investigation and evaluation. At the end of the first phase, teachers presented some of the work that was completed during the week, along with a discussion of different aspects of the activities.
The second phase of the programme took place in the following week, and focused on teachers of grades 1- 4. The teachers worked with Richard Kern and Rebecca Hardesty, from Woodrow School in the UK, on the subject of Mantle of the Expert approach. Nine teachers from three public and UN schools in the governorates of Bethlehem and Jerusalem participated in the second phase.