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Cultures of Innovation : Alex Dragon Goes to Kenya
D uring the summer of 2023 , Falk Laboratory School ’ s middle school science teacher , Alex Dragon , traveled to Kenya for one month as part of a University of Pittsburgh faculty trip aimed at fostering collaborations with Kenyan educators .
The group traveled as part of a Fulbright-Hays Group Projects Abroad Program grant won by Maureen Porter , an associate professor in the University of Pittsburgh School of Education , and its 14 participants were led by Porter and Filipo Lubua , Swahili program coordinator in Pitt ’ s Department of Linguistics . Dragon and his fellow group members toured several schools in the country , including K-12 and university schools , in settings that ranged from urban and well resourced to smaller schools in rural villages . The group also enjoyed cultural experiences during their stay , including feeding giraffes and taking in a dance performance by members of indigenous tribes .
“ The purpose of the trip was for us to go around and learn about Kenya ’ s education system and different cool projects and innovations there so that we ’ re learning the reality on the ground and coming back as better representatives of the actual country , rather than repeating the same images of poverty that are often perpetuated in our media ,” says Dragon .
In addition to fostering collaboration between tour members and Kenyan educators , the trip was intended to spark even deeper engagement with Kenya ’ s culture and educational system by educators on the trip and those they interact with back home , such as Dragon ’ s colleagues at Falk .
One of the conditions of going on the trip , Dragon says , was that participants would develop a curriculum based on their experiences in Kenya .
“ The criteria were that the participants were not supposed to go with an idea in mind ,” says Dragon , “ but look around and think about what they were seeing and notice what draws them .”
He became interested in the use of native plants for medicinal purposes and conducted research in university libraries in Kenya . Upon his return , Dragon continued to research the topic and worked with colleagues from the trip to create a curriculum on the uses and history of a number of plants native to Kenya .
The lessons introduce students to ethnobotany , the study of the interrelationships between humans and plants , highlighting plants and plant families that are used for similar purposes across cultures .
“ The curriculum defines ethnobotany , and it talks about connections to food security and food systems ,” Dragon says . “ It defines indigenous knowledge and gives some examples of indigenous knowledge of the plants around us .”
The curricula created by educators on the trip have been uploaded to a database that will be accessible to a widespread network of teachers . Keeping that in mind , Dragon and his collaborators built enough flexibility into his curriculum to allow other educators to adapt the lessons to fit their specific contexts .
He prepared slides that gave an overview of Kenya , incorporating everything from the geography , climate , and ecosystem to political divisions .
“ The idea is to then compare Pennsylvania — or whatever the teacher ’ s locality is — to Kenya ,” he says .
Such a comparison may include looking at where information on plants and their uses comes from . Who are the keepers of this information , and how has it been passed on ? In Kenya , indigenous leaders and communities have preserved this knowledge , but a teacher in an American school might bring in a local indigenous leader or community member to talk about how they use native plants . Dragon sees the potential for a comparative research project that asks students to talk with family and other community members to ask about their uses of plants and whether this knowledge was passed on from their relatives .
“ Or you could find a plant in the local environment and connect it to one in Kenya ,” Dragon adds , whether the similarity is based on a shared biological ancestor or how the plants are used today .
The curriculum Dragon created lends itself to connections with different kinds of content , from nature journaling in the visual arts to social studies explorations of political and tribal histories .
14 EN AVANT | 2024 ISSUE