Lebanon

Leadership Training in Education

Institutionaling Listening and Problem Solving Skills

In 2009, Search for Common Ground (SFCG) received funding from the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs to conduct a pilot program that promotes listening and problem-solving skills in schools across Lebanon. This project was undertaken in partnership with the Ministry of Education and Higher Education and other local organisations.

Educators work on the cooperation squares exercise, which is all about non-verbal communication and working for the interest of the group

With support from the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and in partnership with the Lebanese Ministry of Education and Higher Education (MEHE), Forum for Development Culture and Dialogue (FDCD), LCPS, Hariri Foundation, and the Arab Group for Christian Muslim Dialogue (AGCMD), SFCG implemented a project in 2009 on Institutionalizing Listening and Problem Solving Skills in schools in Lebanon.

A core group of 15 practitioners with a background in conflict resolution, education and mediation were first trained in April 2009 in Cyprus on collaborative education and peer mediation. This group then went on to train a total of 110 teachers in 7 public and private schools across Lebanon during the months of July through September 2009.

The trainings proved to be a success with teachers and principals alike feeling inspired by the content of the training and the resources provided. Upon implementation, they felt that not only did their relationship with their colleagues improve but also their relationship with students, who seemed to better listen to them and be more engaged in the subject at hand.

Building a Human Rights Culture

Participants prepare for theatrical performance of "The Story of the Rainbow."

As a result of the school training project's success, the Danish and Dutch Ministries of Foreign Affairs granted SFCG funding to expand the program, which delivered a series of trainings in March 2010 and March 2011. The two-year Building a Culture of Human Rights in the Leaders of Tomorrow project promotes listening and problem-solving skills in schools across Lebanon. The effort aims to build a culture of human rights amongst the next generation. The project resulted in 141 educators from 113 public schools from across Lebanon's six governorates (Beirut, Mount Lebanon, North, Bekaa, South, Nabatiyeh) being trained in promoting dialogue, equality, respect and adapting human rights skills training for school system transformation. Out of the 141 trainees, 115 (81%) are women. The group included 14 school directors and 59 guidance counselors, key target audiences that are now capable of positively influencing school culture in Lebanon. Further funding is anticipated to institutionalize the training and certify it.

In Their Words

the Danish Ambassador His Excellency Jan Top Christensen, the Dutch Ambassador His Excellency Hero de Boer and the Dutch Counsellor Hans Peter van der Woude visited the training and met with both participants and trainers.

"I've been going to trainings as a counselor since 1990 – but this is the most practical and beneficial. This is the first time I have been on my own but I don't feel alone. I left my family but don’t even miss them. The trainer is great with lots of experience. SFCG's team has made it so easy, practical and comfortable."

"I feel appreciative and appreciated. I feel that I have learnt how to appreciate differences. Before I never thought about listening to the 'other' but now I have learnt that the other can have an opinion that does matter and that can enrich me."

“I feel hopeful. This workshop made me feel like I can make a difference even in a society where I felt inferior.”

“You should push for this book and training to be compulsory in all public schools.”

SFCG Lebanon thanks the following donors for their support