DESIGN PRINCIPLE 1
Move Beyond Digital Literacy to Cultivating Digital Citizenship
COLLEGE CATTS PRESSOIR HAITI
SOLUTION EXAMPLE: Guy Etienne developed an innovative curriculum at the College Catts Pressoir in Haiti that integrates science, technology, innovation, and entrepreneurship into every lesson throughout the school day, from primary to high school. The focus on student input, innovative thinking, creativity, or teamwork is a large departure from the traditional Haitian education system that emphasizes rote memorization. At College Catts Pressoir, students practice self-reflection, problem solving, and develop their creativity, all of which stimulates their growth as agents of change. Students’ annual team projects address real community needs and often incorporate technology, and local and recycled materials. In the ‘90s, students built the first traffic light in Haiti after 20 years without operation, drawing the attention of the Haiti President. Other student innovations range from a surveillance camera offered to the National Police to a public transportation system for Port-Au-Prince that was later adopted by the Minister of Public Works. Etienne’s school model is successfully implemented through the engagement and training of multi-stakeholders in education, including parents, school directors and teachers. The buy-in of parents into the new education system was essential to the implementation of the results-based approach.
Guy Etienne | cattspressoir.org
“Eight years ago, there was no traffic light working in Haiti. The students in the 10th grade decided to reinstall the traffic light, and they did it. After one year, someone cut the cable and the traffic light didn’t work for two weeks. The students decided that they were going to learn how to reinstall the traffic light using solar energy.”
IMPACT: > Students at the College Catts Pressoir model begin learning about robotics as early as 1st grade and demonstrate their robotic inventions at the school’s annual ExpoScience which draws 5,000 people, including government officials. >40 percent of innovations created by students are later adopted by the school, government or other external institutions, such as a robotic prototype to help clean the streets of Port-Au-Prince. >40,000 copies of a civic education textbook for community development has been printed and distributed across five regions. >The school model is being spread nationally through the training of 18 public schools and six officials of the Ministry of Education, and internationally through collaboration with two major universities in Haiti and social entrepreneurs in France to build a collaborative platform.
Additional Patterns: * Educational and Vocational Training Can’t Keep up with Changing Job Market (Barrier C)
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“One school can’t change a country, but one school can change another school, and with another school, we can change the country.”