Global connections

"Educational exchange can turn nations into people, contributing as no other form of communication can to the humanizing of international relations.  I do not think educational exchange is certain to produce affection between peoples... it is quite enough if it contributes to the feeling of a common humanity, to an emotional awareness that other countries are populated not by doctrines that we fear but by people with the same capacity for pleasure and pain, for cruelty and kindness, as the people we were brought up with in our own countries."

--Senator J. William Fulbright


Without a doubt, the Research Journalism Initiative owes much of its early success to a few gutsy teachers for whom we tailored individualized primary-source encounters. Building on this experience, we are now working to develop an ongoing, sustainable program of international videoconferencing (DVC) throughout the school year.  Through an comprehensive program spanning the arts, politics, human rights and international current events, RJI strives to provide avenues for student engagement in real global issues by connecting them with young people for whom such issues constitute a daily reality.

RJI’s strategy includes the contributions of a wide array of international “experts,” including artists, poets, politicians, academics and activists, in order to bring students into contact with great thinkers in Palestine, the United States, Canada and beyond.  Yet however important these expert opinions may be, RJI has found through several years’ experience that the most powerful learning experiences are those which include direct dialogue between young people.  Consequently, RJI will also continue to emphasize the involvement of Palestinian youth organizations throughout the West Bank, Israel and elsewhere in the Middle East.  As RJI’s network of international schools and speakers expands, our capacity to provide rich and transformative experiences for students will continue to grow.

Our strategic partnership with the dynamic eLearning organization TakingITGlobal will allow students in RJI’s Global Connections program to develop asynchronous discussions and critically investigate international keystone events by helping teachers to develop spaces for content exploration and collaborative learning both before and after videoconferences.  In addition, our exciting partnership with the Centre for Global Education introduces expert technical coordination for multi-point online encounters and allows for the simultaneous participation of multiple schools in each videoconference.

RJI celebrated the official launch of our Global Connections program with an International Poetry Slam “Beats Without Borders” in February, 2011. 


Topics for the 2011-2012 School Year:

The Middle East in Transition
Part of an ongoing series, this video conference will look at the shifting social and political landscape in various nations across the Middle East, inviting students to explore the complexities of political change in the Arab world.

Beats without Borders, Poetry Slam
This video conference will explore the genre of Poetry of Witness and the use of poetry to express and bear witness to one’s experiences.  Participants will include hip hop artists and slam poets from Palestine and across the world, including such participants as Andrea Gibson, Anis Mojgani, Mahmoud Jrere and Falastine Dwikat.

Resistance Art in Palestine
This video conference will explore the use of art to express experience, particularly the resistance art of the First and Second Intifadas and the artistic protests which cover the separation wall around the West Bank.  Guest artists will include native Palestinians and internationals...

Women in Leadership in the Middle East
This video conference will explore the challenges for women in the Middle East, particularly those women who would like to create change.  The exchange will explore various feminist agendas in the region and explore women's vision for the future here...

Water Issues in the Middle East
This session will explore the use and distribution of water across the Middle East, and will explore the role of water in controversey and control. Guests will include Barbara Petzen of the Middle East Policy Council

Non-violent Human Rights Activism
This video conference will explore the answer to the question so often posed by students after an RJI experience: “Now what can we do?”  We will explore the history, strategies and goals of the non-violent, Palestinian human rights movement in the Middle East.

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