Jamie's Educational Technology Blog

Paul Salopek’s 21,000 mile journey across the world is something unheard of in today’s society. The fact that he took so much time to document all of his experiences for us is even more amazing. We are so quick to get caught up in our own world that we often forget that we do not live in a bubble. It was incredibly humbling to read about his journey and to bring myself back down to earth while learning about other parts of the world that I would not have otherwise known anything about. 

The first destination that I was captured by was in Chapter 3: Autumn Wars. “Walking Through a Landscape of Pain in the Caucasus” was eye opening to read. To know that the suffering that was endured by the Armenians is essentially being erased from their history is bone chilling. I’ve read about the Armenian Genocide before, but it’s sometimes difficult not to separate history lessons from real life when we are so far removed from tragedies like this. It is fitting that this particular story is an excerpt from a story originally named “Ghostlands”, as Salopek accurately describes Ani as just that – “a monument to forgetting”. This is definitely a story that I feel history teachers should take an interest in sharing with their students. If we do not make it our obligation to continue teaching about this tragedy, it will eventually be erased from history, which is a very scary thought, for as the saying goes, “Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it”. And while that may just be an aphorism, it does not negate that all history is important history.

Another one of Salopek’s destinations that peaked my curiosity was from Chapter 2: Holy Lands. I really enjoyed reading “Aftertaste”; whether or not that was because I love to food remains to be seen. I think it is so great that the women in this chapter care enough about the preservation of their culture to set aside time in their lives to dedicate to cooking authentic Nablusi food. They also state that “Our history is mixed into our food. It is the food of a crossroads.” They know that their food alone is capable of telling a story, their history. Food and cooking is such a big part of culture and it is something that not many Americans take pride in. We are so quick to run to the line of a fast food restaurant, that we often take for granted those of us lucky enough to have parents or grandparents who are capable of making authentic food native to our different cultures and backgrounds. I think that preserving tradition is very important in an ever changing world. While the world continues to evolve, it’s nice that some people keep a little bit of the past alive through cooking. 

I was intrigued to see that Salopek’s story is not yet complete. In fact, his latest story is from less than a month ago from Myanmar, in Southeast Asia. More specifically, he visited the Irrawaddy River, a sacred river of the Pyu culture. His description of his trek to the river makes it feel like you’re right alongside him in his journey. I think what is most important to take away from Salopek’s journey, is that history is invaluable. We are so fortunate to be able to learn about the hardships and sacrifices of our ancestors rather than having to experience them ourselves. And while we won’t be able to experience the same grueling yet rewarding journey as Mr. Salopek, I hope that we can all experience a even small part of it during our lifetime to open our eyes to what life is like in other parts of the world outside of our western bubble.

Chapter 4 of The Global Educator explores the impact of global learning. I found one of the more significant topics covered in this chapter to be the idea of teaching students to be open-minded. Being open-minded is so important, especially in today’s society. It is more than just listening to others’ experiences and opinions; it is understanding those experiences and opinions to gain a better understanding of the world.

Teaching our students to be open-minded lends a big hand in making them into global citizens. We can teach our students to be open-minded by exposing them to other students from around the world and providing them with the opportunity to cultivate relationships with them. Their personal interactions and collaborations with others of different cultures and backgrounds enables them to breakthrough and look beyond stereotypes that so many of us unknowingly hold. When we present our students with these types of learning opportunities, it allows them to not only learn from and respect the beliefs of others, but to also challenge their own. When we encourage our students to look deeper into their own thoughts and beliefs, they begin to develop a sense of self-reflection, something very important for global learning.

Equally as important, open-mindedness leads students to begin understanding that we do not always have to agree with one another, but we can still respect the thoughts and ideas of others. When students can respect one another and coexist even in the event of differing opinions, the result is a more positive and peaceful learning environment for all. Stephen Opanga from Kenya states that this “leads to environmental sustainability, because students care about posterity”. When students are aware of what is going on around the world, they no longer see the world through a two dimensional lens. They become more likely to want to lead and effect change in their own schools and communities. They begin to understand that they’re capable of impacting the world in a positive way. In my opinion, teaching others to be open-minded is one of the most amazing things an educator can instill in their students. When we come together and start to care about things that are bigger than ourselves, we can truly change the world.

After finishing this chapter, I decided to research some different ways to teach open-mindedness in the classroom. I came across this helpful article that goes over some “Teaching Open-Mindedness Dos and Don’ts”.

Some important tips I took away:

1. Teach students to analyze multiple perspectives to understand how different people view different issues and make decisions
2. Have students develop a habit of examining primary sources
3. Do not make overgeneralizations about other cultures or parts of the world
4. Identify and address stereotypes through media and interaction
5. Have students interact with individuals from other cultures – directly teach cross-cultural skills in communication and collaboration
6. Teach about prejudice and discrimination within and across diverse world regions