Dr. O’Sullivan’s course examines several issues that are simultaneously local and global. Students learn from Maya indigenous communities about their struggles to reclaim their culture after 500 years of colonialism and 36 years of genocidal civil war which has been recognized as a genocide. As part of the two week-long international field experience to Guatemala, Dr. O’Sullivan’s students tour ancient Mayan ruins, spend time with a survivor at the Peace Park which was the site of a 1990 massacre of Indigenous protestors by the Guatemalan military, attend music and cultural performances, visit women run Mayan co-operatives that produce chocolate, textiles and art and participate in a traditional Mayan ceremonies. Students also visit schools and universities where teaching and learning is conducted from a Mayan perspective.
“We learned their history and the challenges they face including racism, and other struggles that they’ve experienced up until this point,” said Jenny Korkes, a graduate student who participated in the course. “Learning all of that and then going to see how strong and hopeful they still are, it’s inspiring.”
The trip also highlights the value of experiential education, an important learning opportunity for Education students and future teachers. “I already knew that experiential education was a beneficial thing,” says Olivia Belmonte, now a teacher but a Concurrent Education student at the time of her trip. “I think this trip really emphasized how important it is because it was not only an experiential learning opportunity for myself going into this culture, but I also got to see how experiential learning happened within their culture.”
For Dr. O’Sullivan, the immersive learning experienced by students on the trip cannot be replicated in the classroom. “The learning they soaked in will impact their future teaching practice and will influence their thinking, not just for the duration of the course, but for years to come.”
Dr. O’Sullivan, whose background is in Political Science and Latin American studies, welcomes students from other faculties as the program is cross disciplinary and is designed to inform students of all backgrounds of Indigenous issues in a post-conflict setting.
Course Outline:
The attached course outline is the one followed for the trip in October, 2022. Because the trip will now be four days longer than the 2022 trip and we will have the opportunity to do activities not done in 2022 that could change the resource materials and could a simple update of the context. The course outline for the upcoming trip will be similar to this one but undoubtedly modified, but this should give you an idea of what we do during the pre trip classes.
Course: Undergraduate: EDUC 4P36 – Global Education: Field Experience; Graduate: EDUC 5P98 – Independent Study in Education
Dates: Late April to early May, 2024
Approximate Cost: Attend an Information Session to learn more.
Information Sessions: Clicking on the link for the date below will take you directly to that Information Session. Trouble logging in? Email Nathalie Jackson at nj14in@brocku.ca.
