ere’s a Pasadena-bred UCLA-educated philosopher, who also happens
to be a bit of a romantic and idealist, and who’s found his way to Lori
Province, Armenia. He’s been there for a year now, teaching History,
English, and now Logic and Critical Thinking to 6th-12th
graders in a tiny, little village nestled among the hills of Northern
Armenia, about a half hour drive from Georgia. He’s closer to Tbilisi
than to Yerevan, but he makes the three hour drive down south every
week, to dig up new and interesting materials for his classes, and of
course to see his friends visiting from different parts of the world.
“Living out here I see friends from LA and elsewhere more often than
when I was back in the States, and there’s someone new visiting just
about every week. The road to Yerevan is long and winding, but the drive
gives me time to reflect and the weekly exchanges provide me with fresh
ideas with which to develop my education theory and practices,” said
the educator. He is a fellow with Teach for Armenia and his name is
Khachig Choukhajian.
“Inspire the future is Teach for Armenia’s
motto, and each teacher is trained to bring that motto to the students
we work with in our own unique way. For me, it’s about guiding them to
find a sense of self, as well as a sense of national and global historic
understanding with my history classes, the ability to think through
questions and problems with logic and critical thinking lessons, and an
expanding of cultural horizons to bring them beyond the mostly Russian
influenced media they consume with the films and songs I introduce them
to. Ultimately, they’re the leaders and citizens of tomorrow. Either
we’ll see more of the same from them, or we’ll have a wiser, more
virtuous and visionary, inspired and inspiring generation of take the
helm of this nation of ours,” continued Khachig.
Khachig says that this is the opportunity Teach for Armenia has given
him – to commit to Armenia’s development in a more serious and
impactful way. “I had been looking for my in and I found it with TFA. A
lot of people from around the world are in Armenia doing great things.
We all felt some responsibility towards this country, but there was
something else there too,” stated the Teach for Armenia Fellow. “We fell
in love with this place and want to make it work for ourselves here.
And, somewhere along the way, there’s this transition that takes place,
from the burden of responsibility to a sense of opportunity. You come to
see yourself as an inextricable part of this place and Armenia as an
inextricable part of you.”
This particular Teach for Armenia fellow had plans to go into the
Education field for some time prior to applying, so that when Teach for
Armenia founder Larisa Hovannisian presented the initiative at a UCLA
Armenian Students Association meeting a few years ago, it was “the
perfect opportunity for me, as if it just fell into my lap out of the
sky.” On the other hand, the fellowship offered by TFA is a means to
develop leadership skills in oneself and one’s students, so that the
experience gained can be used in any field one chooses to go into in the
future. “I see a lot of people with leadership qualities in Teach for
Armenia’s fellowship who wouldn’t be teachers were it not for this
opportunity, and that’s a good thing. I think everyone should teach in
some capacity, if only for two years. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t know
if everyone can, because it demands a lot of love, in the Pauline sense
of great kindness, patience, and generosity, but if you have that to
offer, then you should. You want to test if you know your field of
study? Try teaching it, in a language other than the one you studied it
in, in somewhat difficult conditions, to kids who grew up in a context
very different from your own. If you succeed, then you’ve got a real
grasp of your masnakidootyoon – your subject of specialization,” concluded Khachig.
Khachig Choukhajian will be returning to California from September 21st -29th
with Teach for Armenia representatives Narek Ghazaryan and David
Hambaryan, to present fellowship opportunities and take questions from
anyone further interested in Teach for Armenia, Education in Armenia,
and his experience of teaching in an Armenian public school. Events
include Innovate Armenia on September 23rd at USC, with other events following in Los Angeles, Fresno, and San Francisco.
"Asbarez," September 20, 2017
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