Learning To Be an Anthropologist (2)

When we went to the field to collect oral histories or stories or experiences of U Pein Bridge, we did not know how to explain our tasks or talk about them. Our group then applied what we had observed the foreign anthropologist do - smile and make eye contact. We adopted this when we spoke to a fried-fish seller who we first thought may know about something of the U Pein Bridge. First, we bought a pack of fried fish with 2000 Kyat before asking her about U Pein bridge. So, we used our money to get data and we were very happy.

Learning To Be an Anthropologist (1)

This was the first field trip for us and there were many new experiences for us. All of us as first-year anthropology students had never experienced this kind of field trip; and we asked ourselves, ‘What are we going to do?’ We motivated ourselves by asking the question, ‘If we are afraid to ask questions, we will know nothing’.

Learning While Walking in the Forest: Where the Village Practices Shifting Cultivation

Every day, the youth of Huay Hin Lad Nai community go into the forest to find food. The forest serves as the local supermarket. Accompanying them into the forest today are students from Chiang Mai University, who are part of school's Ethnic Studies and Development program. Both the students and the youth group woke up early at 5:00 a.m to go and learn in the forest together. The local youth shared stories about shifting cultivation, properties of variety of vegetables and herbs, and their way of living with the forest and nature.

Jaadoonagri (Wonderland)

Kumar Unnayan, Centre for Community Knowledge, Ambedkar University Delhi wrote Jaadoonagri (Wonderland) for the session on Day 2:Reading/Writing/Re-writing/Telling/Re-telling using objects/prompts, 20 December 2019.

Giving Healthy Food Awareness to the School Children

Giving healthy food awareness to the school children in Taungthaman village

Brainstorming the Impact of Urban Life: Classroom Discussions

In the class, I asked my students that “how does the increasing degree of urbanization change the next generation’s view on localized cultural identity? And how should we as anthropologists collaborate with the community?”

In the class, I discussed on the concept of urban life and then I asked the students to think about the ways in which they all could engage with Taungthaman Village to understand the impact of urban life.

Weaving luntaya acheik (2): The Making of Myanmar Traditional Dress

The Saunders Weaving and Vocational Institute accepts trainees on per year/per month basis. There are regular as well as other vocational training options. In case a local organisation wants to set up a training school, then it can get in touch with the Institute. The educational qualification requirements of the Institute are limited to matriculation, middle and primary school levels. The trainees must be single and under 25 years of age. The numbers of trainees accepted vary between 5-50 depending on the course.

Building Vocational Skills

The Saunders Art, Gallery and Museum were opened on the August 2, 2004 to commemorate the 90^th anniversary of the Saunders Weaving and Vocational Institute. It was supported by the Small Scale Industries Department (Myanmar) and Kanasarwa College (Japan). The objectives of establishing the museum were to develop vocational school studies and small scale industries in rural area. There are three rooms: museum, demonstration room and gallery.

Curriculum and Fostering Pride in Locality

Dr. Thidar Htwe Win drew small engagement curriculum to foster value and connection of the local children with their locality. To do this, the school children were asked - "what are the most beautiful and valuable places for them in their village and around it." By asking this, we could draw out what the children unconsiously valued.

At first the children were too shy to speak in front of the crowd. We persuaded them with incentive of rewarding them with cute stickers. This helped them to become more engaged. We could even create a competitive environment among them.

Family and women: Leiden and Mali

The family is a social institution. It is beautiful to see a mother and her children together because it reflects the natural love and the affectability that exists between her and her offsprings. In Leiden, the parental concept is very visible in the streets because it is found that the parents and their children are at the edge of a bicycle (the parents and their children: case where all drive together; the case where the mother also pilot alone). Education is one of the priorities of the population of this city of the Netherlands.

Humanities across Borders

A Humanist Model of Collaborative Higher Education

Learning