2009.02.18: February 18, 2009: Headlines: COS - Ethiopia: University Education: SMC Collegian: John Knight went to Ethiopia, where he taught English and other subjects to elementary and middle school students
Peace Corps Online:
Directory:
Ethiopia:
Peace Corps Ethiopia :
Peace Corps Ethiopia: Newest Stories:
2009.02.18: February 18, 2009: Headlines: COS - Ethiopia: University Education: SMC Collegian: John Knight went to Ethiopia, where he taught English and other subjects to elementary and middle school students
John Knight went to Ethiopia, where he taught English and other subjects to elementary and middle school students
He went to Ethiopia, where he taught English and other subjects to elementary and middle school students. These subjects included geography. Knight explained that he had to try to teach his students this subject while at the same time they attended religious studies classes in which they were taught that the world was flat. "I had to walk in and sort of present a view that's 180 degrees different," he said. "They were fascinating discussions for me as a young man who had not even bothered to consider that people might look at the world in a different way."
John Knight went to Ethiopia, where he taught English and other subjects to elementary and middle school students
John Knight
Melissa Vlach
Issue date: 2/18/09 Section: News
John Knight a professor at Saint Mary's for 29 years, has been exposed to various people and ideas from around the world.
Knight came to Saint Mary's College in 1980 to teach in the intensive English program for international students. The program has been reduced in recent years, but he still teaches English and American culture classes to these students in addition to seminar and January Term classes. He and Nushi Safinya, director of Studies for International Students, serve as advisors for the students during their first year (or first semester for transfer students). He also works with the Center for International Programs and is involved in the fall retreat for international students.
Originally from central New York, Knight's desire to learn about non-American ways of life began when he was young. His father was in the Air Force, and his family lived on an Air Force base in Germany for three years. During this time they traveled all over Europe. "I was interested in things outside of America," he said.
Knight attended Hamilton College in central New York as an undergraduate, studying politics with a minor in French. After graduation he realized the dream he had had since high school of joining the Peace Corps.
He went to Ethiopia, where he taught English and other subjects to elementary and middle school students. These subjects included geography. Knight explained that he had to try to teach his students this subject while at the same time they attended religious studies classes in which they were taught that the world was flat. "I had to walk in and sort of present a view that's 180 degrees different," he said. "They were fascinating discussions for me as a young man who had not even bothered to consider that people might look at the world in a different way."
After four years he returned to the United States and attended graduate school at the University of Arizona in the program for teaching English to speakers of other languages.
Following this, he moved to Saudi Arabia to teach English to Air Force warrant officers so that they could receive training and become mechanics on the planes.
"Most of the teachers in the group were former Peace Corps volunteers, so we had a good time trying to deal with the culture and the language without the support that we got from the Peace Corps," he said.
After coming to Saint Mary's Knight did not stop traveling. A number of years ago he and his wife biked across the Alps from Turin, Italy to Grenoble, France.
One thing that concerns Knight is the shrinking of the international student program at Saint Mary's. "In the almost 29 years that I've been here I've seen a slow, slow decline in the number of international students," he said, saying that the program had over 100 students when he came in 1980, but had 69, including graduate students, in fall 2008. "It saddens me, especially since we're supposed to be an institution that is committed to international education," Knight said.
These days Knight enjoys spending time with his six-year-old granddaughter. This has included working in her cooperative preschool and studying Italian so he can speak the language to her.
"It was exhausting, educational and fun because three-, four- and five-year-olds are fascinating human beings that are like sponges who can't get enough of learning how the world is," he said.
Links to Related Topics (Tags):
Headlines: February, 2009; Peace Corps Ethiopia; Directory of Ethiopia RPCVs; Messages and Announcements for Ethiopia RPCVs; University Education
When this story was posted in February 2009, this was on the front page of PCOL:
Peace Corps Online The Independent News Forum serving Returned Peace Corps Volunteers
| Director Ron Tschetter: The PCOL Interview Peace Corps Director Ron Tschetter sat down for an in-depth interview to discuss the evacuation from Bolivia, political appointees at Peace Corps headquarters, the five year rule, the Peace Corps Foundation, the internet and the Peace Corps, how the transition is going, and what the prospects are for doubling the size of the Peace Corps by 2011. Read the interview and you are sure to learn something new about the Peace Corps. PCOL previously did an interview with Director Gaddi Vasquez. |
Read the stories and leave your comments.
Some postings on Peace Corps Online are provided to the individual members of this group without permission of the copyright owner for the non-profit purposes of criticism, comment, education, scholarship, and research under the "Fair Use" provisions of U.S. Government copyright laws and they may not be distributed further without permission of the copyright owner. Peace Corps Online does not vouch for the accuracy of the content of the postings, which is the sole responsibility of the copyright holder.
Story Source: SMC Collegian
This story has been posted in the following forums: : Headlines; COS - Ethiopia; University Education
PCOL42874
31