From Queen Rania to Minister of Education Khaled Touqan to Amman Mayor Omar Maani, the delegation heard the message that Jordan is determined to reform its schools so Jordan could take its place in the global knowledge-based economy - much as Ireland has done. While the country enjoys a 90 percent literacy rate, its public school system feeds an economy with high unemployment and poverty rates. The monarchy is dramatically expanding the preschool system and injecting more computer technology to the K-12 classroom. Mayor Maani expressed concern that the country's schools are too structured, without enough room for creative thinking, and that the culture is so accustomed to hierarchy that teamwork is a foreign concept.
During a visit to the Ahliyyah School for Girls, however, the American delegation witnessed the huge potential of Jordanian youth. This is a private school dedicated to graduating high-minded, creative and outward-looking young women, all of whom go on to college. Housed in an old building with the inherent dignity that comes with right proportions and simple lines, the Ahliyyah School exudes an excellence that eludes even some much better-heeled and more famous girls' schools. Director General Haifa Najjar greeted the delegation, offering a classroom experience and and tour of student art exhibits - which ranged from tame beauty to racy takes on Jordanian teen life. Each American woman was guided by one of the school's impressive young women.
With an admonition that education is not about luxury, Ms. Najjar conducts a pedagogy based on principles, those of trust, respect and generosity toward all human beings. Not only is the environment non-competitive among the students, but teachers and administrators operate with the conviction that all members of the school body - including the faculty - learn with and from each other, all together, every day. The tasteful aesthetic and comfortable ambiance would be sufficient to convince an observer of the efficacy of the school's ethos, but the most persuasive element is that of the girls' grace, intelligence and quiet spirit of goodwill, apparent in every exchange.
|
