Students to learn the effects of development and globalization in field course to the Philippines

caroline.zentner — Tue, 20 Jan 2015 21:43:01 +0000

A group of ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge students will have the learning opportunity of a lifetime this summer as they trade the classroom for the streets of Tacloban City, Philippines.

“Instead of sitting in the classroom, they will get lectures in the field,” says Dr. Glenda Bonifacio, the U of L professor in the Department of Women and Gender Studies teaching the course and a former resident of Tacloban City.

During their month-long stay beginning June 20, 10 students will visit non-government organizations working in the area, evacuation centres and women’s co-operatives, attend community festivals, meet with representatives from different government agencies and hear on-site lectures by Filipino scholars, practitioners and local officials.

While much has been rebuilt in Tacloban City, the landscape still bears the scars of Typhoon Haiyan, which hit the Philippines in November 2013, killing thousands of people and destroying homes and infrastructure.

“It will be the first field course for women and gender studies and the first one to the Philippines,” says Bonifacio. “They’re going there to immerse in the society, in the community. In the end, the goal is to develop global citizenship from a gender perspective.”

The Philippines is still considered a developing country, although the literacy rate is about 95 per cent. In 2013, the island country placed in the top 10 in the world for gender parity while Canada was in 20th place. Bonifacio says the field course will give students the chance to understand and analyze how local and global forces manifest in the lives of people by looking at geography, environment, society, culture and economics.

“I was very excited because I love travelling and I’ve been on school trips before that have taken me to different places that I wouldn’t have visited on my own,” says Jasmine Saler, a fourth-year U of L student majoring in kinesiology and women and gender studies. “To go with someone who has lived there, who knows the languages, who has connections there, that’s the perfect way to travel.”

Saler is also looking forward to learning a different way of living in the context of recovering from a natural disaster.

“I can’t imagine ever having that opportunity again,” she says. “I am most eager to see the festivals and the vibrancy of the culture. Understanding the connection between peoples is also what I’m really excited to learn about.”

Christina MacDonald, a third-year U of L general social science student from the Onion Lake Cree Nation, which straddles the Alberta-Saskatchewan boundary, applied for the field course in keeping with her parents’ teaching to take any opportunity to travel. Not having travelled outside of Canada before, she admits the prospect of a month in the Philippines is rather frightening.

“I’m really scared but I always learn something amazing from that fear,” she says. “I’m always interested in how other people live. We’re all human beings at the end of the day but we have these intersectionalities, such as gender, race and class, which we have to deal with every single day. To actually experience the intersectionalities that other people face firsthand will allow me to understand it better.”

Even though students have expressed interest in most of the spots, Bonifacio encourages other students who’d like to attend to put their names on a wait list. With five months yet to go, she says openings may occur and students on the wait list will have priority.

In addition to paying tuition for the six-credit course, students have to cover the cost of their flight, housing, accommodation and meals. They’ve received $750 each from the Campus Alberta Grant for International Learning but with the cost of a flight nearing the $2,000 mark, the students hope to raise more money through fundraising initiatives. Anyone interested in sponsoring a student is invited to contact Bonifacio via email at glenda.bonifacio@uleth.ca.

Bridging experiences

trevor.kenney — Tue, 30 Mar 2010 20:55:39 +0000

Christina MacDonald has cleaned hurricane-ravaged streets in Honduras, taught English to Ethiopian children and delivered food to disadvantaged seniors in her hometown of Fort Smith, N.W.T.

The fourth-year ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge nursing student isn't short on ambition and her interests are many. Globe-trotting and volunteering are major themes in her life, as is conservation. An avid camper and outdoorswoman, MacDonald spends her summers at Wood Buffalo National Park, teaching visitors about the area's spectacular geological wonders, flora and fauna.

This January, MacDonald began her biggest adventure yet: a three-month practicum in Kampala, Uganda. She and fellow student Andrea Fandrich will be the first U of L undergraduate nursing students to complete their final practicum overseas.

MacDonald got a taste of international work after volunteering for SOS Children's Villages in Ethiopia after completing high school at the prestigious Lester B. Pearson College of the Pacific in Victoria, B.C. While MacDonald had long hoped to complete her senior U of L nursing clinical experience internationally, she didn't realize it was a possibility until she began swapping stories with one of her professors, Dr. Jean Harrowing. Harrowing had done her master's thesis research in Uganda and still had connections in the capital city of Kampala.

Both Harrowing and MacDonald recognized this as the perfect opportunity for MacDonald to travel overseas and for the U of L to continue building a rapport with the Ugandan nursing community. Harrowing volunteered to be MacDonald's faculty advisor and put her in touch with the assistant nursing director at Mulago Hospital, the largest hospital in Kampala. Prior to leaving, MacDonald held high hopes for the experience.

"From what I've heard, the nurses there are so amazing and work so hard. I'm looking forward to being a part of that team and learning from them," says MacDonald.

It wasn't set in stone what MacDonald would do after she arrived in January, but mentoring first- and second-year nursing students from the nearby university was one possibility.

"We're going into this very open-minded, keeping in mind the fact that we'll have to be flexible," she says.

MacDonald recognized that living and working in Uganda would be very different from anything she's ever experienced. With inconsistent Internet access, it would be a struggle to communicate with her professors, family and friends at the U of L. She also anticipated that it would be a challenge to adjust to a clinical environment that may not have the same technologies as a typical Canadian hospital.

With this in mind, MacDonald and Fandrich stuffed their suitcases with a large cache of medical equipment both to use on their trip and to leave behind for the nurses at the hospital when they head home. For several months, the girls invited students and faculty at the U of L to donate stethoscopes, gloves, blood-pressure cuffs and other medical tools for the students to take on their travels.

"It's our hope that we can create a bit of a bridge between Lethbridge and Kampala, and facilitate nurses in Canada supporting nurses in Uganda in their practice," says MacDonald.

But while confident she'll make a contribution to the hospital, MacDonald thinks she has more to gain from the experienced nurses she'll be working with.

"I'm aware going into this it's likely I'll take away more than I'm able to give."

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UNews - Christina MacDonald

Students to learn the effects of development and globalization in field course to the Philippines

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Bridging experiences

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