By:Kim DeCoste Issue: Biennial of the Americas 2010 Section:The Americas Roundtables
Biennial of the Americas 2010
The Organization of American States (OAS) is working on programs to support teachers. There are cross-cultural exchanges, scholarships and a very exciting new Educational Portal of the Americas which is a distance education tool that can be used by teachers around the Americas. Fundamentally, the OAS deals with academic issues as well as capacity building in the member states. Elevating the level of programming and working on regional accreditation has also been part of Ms. Leven’s responsibility. She has served in all levels of education – from primary to university – which enables her to address these challenges with knowledge acquired through personal experience.
Teaching democratic citizenship and good practices to the youth of the Americas is central to the OAS’s goals. Reaching as many children as early as possible is a hemispheric priority. Supporting the dedicated teachers in the region is imperative. Ensuring that they have access to current resources with common standards is also vitally important. All of this work begins as early as the onset of language acquisition. The more we can do to educate the young, the better we will all fare when they come into their own as the future citizens and leaders of our respective countries.
These goals are shared by all of the 35 member countries. We will work together to continue to address challenges, share best practices and innovate for the future. Ms. Levens is confident that we are making progress and that it will continue if we remain focused, keep it simple and start early.