HAZLOFÁCIL POR LA PAZ MAKE IT EASY FOR PEACE

Project Objective:

Provide young people and mentors with comprehensive training in various disciplines that will enable them to acquire the skills required in today's world, through an innovative B-learning model (a blended learning model), which is student-centered and practical in approach.

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Community Assessment:

The municipality of Temoaya in the State of Mexico (with 105,766 inhabitants) is currently considered “the homeland of the Otomí people” because it is the municipality with the largest number of inhabitants of this pre-Hispanic ethnic group.
The project begins with the first meeting attended by: The mayor of Temoaya, Berenice Carrillo Macario, and the director of DIF, Bernardo Rivera Sánchez, representing the municipal authorities, with the participation of Imelda Escamilla, PhD, and Diana Bolaños, MAD, president and secretary of CR Lindavista, where the need to implement a project for young people was raised, involving the resolution of existing conflicts within families and neighbors.
An inventory of assets continues to be made in different middle and high schools, where the need to update computer, robotics, and arts workshops has been detected. The Lindavista CR is currently actively participating in achieving the delivery of the refurbishment of these spaces.
A project in the area of peace and conflict resolution is proposed at Official High School No. 44, and meetings are being held with high school authorities and teachers, who state that young people require comprehensive training in areas such as literacy and good communication in English and Spanish, emotion management, physical and mental health care, the languages of science, soft skills, logical and reflective thinking, and topics related to lasting peace.
An online mapping of 514 students is implemented to register them as potential candidates to participate in a training project for peace and conflict resolution.
An online survey is implemented for registered students that considers categories such as: communication skills, conflict resolution, safety and violence in their community, leadership, free time, and health.
We are implementing the selection process based on the results obtained in the survey and the possibility of awarding scholarships to 90 students.
Subsequently, a more detailed mapping of the needs and interests of the students proposed for scholarships will be carried out.

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Project Design:

GOALS
Empower individuals and communities to transform conflicts and build peace.
Train community members in areas such as communication, logical and critical thinking, comprehensive health, and leadership for peacebuilding and personal development.
Using the indicators derived from the pillars of positive peace:
1. Good governance
2. Equitable distribution of resources
3. Free flow of information
4. Good relations with neighbors
5. High level of human capital
6. Acceptance of the rights of others
7. Low levels of corruption
8. Strong business environment
IMPACT
To increase young people's skills in preventing and resolving conflicts in complex situations, and to generate tangible ways to improve peace measures in their communities.
Through a high-impact educational program that focuses on improving their health, developing logical and analytical thinking, strengthening their personal identity, improving their English language communication skills, reinforcing their reading comprehension, oral and written communication, problem solving, scientific thinking, use of ICT for personal and professional development, creativity, and development of 21st-century skills.
Each of the courses is designed by experts in various fields of knowledge, applying innovative learning strategies that promote autonomous learning.
TARGET POPULATION
90 high school students aged 13 to 18 and 18 mentors from the community of Temoaya
CURRICULUM MAP
The curriculum map includes six critical topics:
i. Reading comprehension, writing, and oral communication
ii. Achieving happiness and goals
iii. The everyday world of science
iv. Logical and analytical thinking
v. Living peacefully and healthily
vi. Analysis of contemporary readings in English
All of these topics are transversally linked to 21st-century skills. They have been carefully selected based on the needs expressed by students who, despite being in high school, have not yet learned these skills for various reasons, and these deficiencies prevent them from facing the challenges of a highly demanding modern world.
Making a change in student education requires time and innovative design, which is why the following is being considered:
a) A duration of three semesters
b) Three modules: basic, intermediate, and advanced
c) Each module includes six monthly courses
d) A total of 18 courses on specialized critical topics
e) The educational design is carried out by volunteer specialists from the best universities in Mexico. All of them offer their services, knowledge, and skills to benefit the youth of Mexico.
f) B-Learning model with a theoretical-practical approach
g) State-of-the-art 24/7 educational platform

A comprehensive learning strategy called “LA PLUMA ROTARIA” has been designed. Each course generates a set of comprehensive learning projects developed by students and evaluated by mentors and specialists, which form the basis of the strategy in each module. The results (stories, news articles, and radio programs) will be disseminated on social media and in the media.

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Direct Beneficiaries:

Beneficiaries
Direct
90 young people and 18 mentors
Indirect
The families of the young people
The families of the teachers
The students that the mentors work with in their groups
People in the community who benefit from the projects.
Approximately 1,000 people in total will be impacted by this project.

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Sustainability:

Sustainability
Rotary in Mexico has the opportunity to implement this program in an area of interest that has not been implemented in Mexico, and collaborating for peace is of vital importance. Beneficiary communities will be able to continue advancing in peacebuilding and conflict prevention once the participation of Rotary clubs or districts has concluded.
PHASES
Phase 1: Certify student mentors, equipping them with the skills to carry out professional mentoring with key performance indicators to guide participants as ambassadors of peace.
Phase 2: Mentoring results will be measured based on the number of young people who express their willingness, enthusiasm, and collaboration to learn, as well as by organizing positive peace events that involve the local community.
Phase 3: Weekly reports on the results of the learning assessment in the different courses included in each module of the program.
Phase 4: Random monthly comparative studies of students' academic performance as the program progresses.
Phase 5: Surveys of students, the community, and parents to measure the impact on the culture of peace.

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Collaborators:

COLLABORATORS
Municipal authorities of the Temoaya government:
Nelly Brigida Rivera Sanchez, Local Representative of the LXII Legislature of the State of Mexico.
Berenice Carrillo Mcario, Constitutional Municipal President of Temoaya.
Jorge Bernardo Rivera Sánchez, Honorary President of the Municipal DIF System.
Educational authorities of Temoaya:
Corina Sonia Cuestas Flores, School Principal of Official Preparatory School No. 44.
Betania Iñiguez González, Assistant School Principal.
Angélica Jacinto Arana, School Secretary
International peace organizations:
National Peace Academy (NPA) of the University of Cleveland, Ohio,
Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP) based in the US and Mexico,
MOVILIDAD GLOBAL CD Mexico Institute of Higher Education,
National Rotary Clubs
David Carranza Acevedo, Imelda Escamilla, and Diana Bolaños Alonso
CR Lindavista
International Rotary Clubs
Georgina Rivera Singletary
District 6950 CADRE BEL and SIT Coordinator
Experts specialists
1 MC. Mari Carmen García Meza
Communication Module
UAEM
2 MC. María del Carmen Gómez
Communication Module
UAEM
3 MC. Mercedes Llano, MC. Beatriz Beltrán Bauwer, and MC. Alma Altamirano
Science Language Module
UNAM
6 MC. Ruth Gómez Rodríguez
Comprehensive Health Module
UNAM
8 Dr. Jesús Carlos Guzmán
Psychological Well-being
UNAM
9 Dr. Silverio Gerardo Armijo
Logical and Analytical Thinking Module
IPN
10 MAD. Diana Bolaños Alonso
Educational Design and Model
ITESM

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Evaluation and Monitoring:

1. Instructional design for 18 courses
2. Website and educational platform setup
3. B-Learning implementation for:
18 mentors and 3 groups of 30 students each.
4. Direct beneficiaries: 90 students and 18 mentors

Host Partner

International Partner (Optional)

Project Status