A Workshop
in Beit Sahour Entitled
‘Teacher’s
Manual on Methods in Teaching
about the
Three Monotheistic Religions.’
Al Quds Newspaper Saturday
10th of October 2009
– From George Zeinah.
The Arab Educational Institute
– a member Organization of Pax Christi International
– organized a workshop for the teachers of the AEI Project: Living
In the Holy Land: Respecting Differences.
The workshop was about the
methods in teaching the other’s religion.
The teachers draft manual
was prepared by Dr. Toine Van Teefelen
– the AEI development director. The encounter took place at the Golden
Park Hotel Hall In Beit Sahour.
The opening session started
with a prayer read by Fr. Nicolas Shahin and was followed by a reading
from the Holy Quran recited by Mr. Abdil Rahim Abu Shama. The AEI general
director Mr. Fuad Giacaman welcomed the audience, thanked them for their
commitment and emphasized the importance of the teacher’s manual.
He requested the educators & teachers to give suggestions , comments
& recommendations to enrich and approve this manual.
Dr. Walid Mustafa
– the Islamic coordinator of the project delivered a speech in which
he presented the aims of the workshop including the use
of new ways of teaching the three religions. The suggested topic is
called the moral dilemma or moral choice.
It is based on the student’s
participation through difficult moral choices taken from the Palestinian
life situations in addition to our religious values. These values have
to lead us on our way in defending our rights, justice ,
equality and strengthening our Palestinian sumud or steadfastness.
The drama method is also
an essential element in this new active learning way because it aims
at using still images and other dramatic activities.
These new teaching methods
express our Palestinian people’s suffering & reality resulting
from the daily practices in front of the checkpoints and in facing
the land confiscation , settlement construction & the
Separation Wall building.
The second session was chaired
by Mrs. Raeda Sheibi – AEI
coordinator in Ramallah. Dr. Toine Made a brief
presentation about the main points in the teacher’s manual.
Mr. David Clemence – a German volunteer from the
Cologne University - spoke also about the use of drama as a technique
in teaching about religions.
Fr. Dr. Jamal
Khadir – the Dean of Arts at Bethlehem University gave a presentation
in the third session which was run by May Al Buzur. In his lecture Fr.
Jamal made an analysis of the contents of the manual in which he emphasized
the importance of openness, the knowledge of the common values among
the adherents of the three monotheistic religions.
Mr. Atallah Danoun chaired
the fourth session in which Dr. Barakat Fawzi
– the Islamic & Christian religious education supervisor at the
Ministry of Education in Ramallah – gave a lecture.
He suggested many examples,
moral choices and stories from our Palestinian social & religious
heritage. Dr. Barakat focused on the role of the teachers
, students & schools and their cooperation in the implementation
of the contents of this teacher’s manual.
The fifth session was run
by Mrs. Ferial Qassis in which she presented Mrs. Huweida Muslih.
The latter gave some comments and answers on how to implement the suggested
ways of the manual.
The last session of the
workshop was moderated by Mr. Tony Nassar.
The speaker in this meeting
was Mr. Naiaf Awaidat who gave his own positive analysis , comments
, questions & answers regarding the possibility of implementing
these new teaching methods at the beginning
of this school semester.
