Development Instructors

JOIN A VOLUNTEER PROGRAMME :

With 6 months of social work and studies in Skydebanegård in Denmark
6 months of work as a Development Instructor in Africa

GET INVOLVED!
The program is open to anyone, who has passed 17½ years of age, and who is willing and prepared to take up the challenge. There are no specific academic require-ments.

CONTACT INFO:

LINKS

WHY SHOULD IT BE YOU?
There is a great need for people with a personal surplus and a desire to do well. Too many people in all kinds of societies live a very poor life without the social or economical possibility to choose their own future. Even though Denmark is a rich country with a social welfare system, there are many youngsters who do not get the opportunity to change their situation, because there is a lack of will and understanding of what it takes. In our part of the world the main problem is social poverty and exclusion from the opportunities the rest of the population have.

In Africa the number of people living in poverty is unbelievable. They have the will to create changes but in order to succeed they lack the strength that people like you and me have got. Here you get the chance to be involved in social work for 6 months in Denmark and afterwards 6 months in Africa.

THE PROGRAMME
Is organized so that you work together with persons from different countries, ages and backgrounds. The program start always in February, May, August and November
The training consists of 50% studies and 50% voluntary work. You learn practical skills, such as organizing, arranging cultural event teaching students with many different difficulties, organizing practical tasks etc.

YOUR VOLUNTEER WORK AND TRAINING

will take place within the framework of Skydebanegård School Centre
The School Centre at Skydebanegård consists of 1 school for children from 3rd to 11th grade and 2 Care Homes for children with special needs.

The school centre has existed for more than 20 years and has during its existence given hundreds of young people an education and many inspiring and developing experiences. The school is situated approximately 30 kilometres north of Copenhagen. We have beautiful surroundings with fields as far as the eye can reach forests, a lake suitable for swimming and fishing, 10 horses and a diversity of sport activities

All of the children at the two care homes attend the school at Skydebanegård. As well as catering for the 20 pupils from the two care homes, the school also has boarding students and students who are day-pupils.

Altogether 50 children and young people, who, for many different reasons, have a need for a school that can manage their special needs and interests.

Some of the kids are here to get more challenges in the school programme. Some come with the hope that the individual teaching can improve their knowledge. Some have learning problems, some have so many prob-lems at home that they are unable to concentrate on learning. Others have a need for help to make social relations with other kids or with grown-ups.

WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO IN AFRICA?

1. Training rural primary teachers:
When Mozambique and Angola became independent in 1975, only 2% of the population could read and write.

Endeavours to build up an educational system have, in both countries, been seriously damaged by continued wars and destabilization. Peace has finally arrived in both countries.

Today there is a great need of primary teachers who will go to the rural areas where the majority of the population live, and use their position to spearhead both primary education and community development.

Humana People to People is working hand in hand with the Governments of Mozambique and Angola in building up and running teacher-training colleges.

The work of the Development Instructor can be

To teach English at a Teacher Training College
To give courses about topics in which the students learn science
To be in the lead of starting up new preschools
Making "capacity building" programmes for preschool teachers
To be a part of establishing Pedagogical Workshops
To be part of developing sports, arts and culture at the school and in the community
To work with "partnership development"

2. Child Aid and Community Development:
In 1990 UNICEF published "The Situation of the World's Children", and here it was stated that 100 million children would die in the following decade for reasons that could easily be prevented. Humana People to People answered by starting 25 Child Aid projects. The Child Aid projects have developed tremen-dously. Today, there are 30 Child Aid projects involving over 500.000 people in numerous activities, improving the living conditions on community level - for the children and all the people around them. A Child Aid project works along 10 lines of development. The families are organized in groups, and family coordinators are trained to lead the 3-year programme with a step-by-step plan for improvements.

As a Development Instructor you might work with one, two or more of the lines

Strengthening of the economy of the family
Health and hygiene, including HOPE
Preschools
Children as active in the social, political, cultural and economic sphere of society
Children without parents
Education
District Development
Environment

3. Hope - an AIDS aid programme
Aids is the worst epidemic in human history. Every country in the world has citizens infected with the HIV virus leading to AIDS. Currently 38,5 million people are living with HIV. Since the epidemic was discovered 25 million have died. 15 million children have become orphaned. 25 million people living in Southern Africa are infected. In some countries we talk about 20-35% of the adult population being infected. These are only a few of the horrible figures surrounding this pandemic.

In 1996 Humana People to People started HOPE centres, working to fight AIDS. The Hope centres are places that are open to all people. Here they can get information and encouragement. People can take part in Positive Living Courses, courses on health and hygiene, on nutrition, on home based care of sick people, etc. There is also a voluntary counselling and testing unit staffed with a nurse and a doctor.

Here are some examples of the work you can do
Make sure that all the activities described in the Outreach Programme are taking place and develop. Make HOPE clubs in schools and workplaces Plan, organize and implement cultural evenings at the HOPE-Centre Help the HOPE Centre to arrange sport events in the afternoons. Make the Positive Living Movement visible and lively in your HOPE zone
Start new Positive Living clubs so that every compound has one and start Youth Clubs
Mobilize 250 people for testing in your HOPE zone. Organize a door-to-door cam-paign to get more people to get tested.

AFTER YOUR PERIOD IN AFRICA
2 months in Camp Future
Camp Future is a base for Development Instructors during their 3rd period after your work in Africa. You will meet other DI's from other schools who have also completed their job in Africa.
You can share your experiences with them and evaluate the last 12 months. You will prepare and make presentations for schools; clubs etc in Denmark or Europe about your time in Africa. By that way you help new DI's to get prepared for the project in Africa. During this period you can also make plans for your future and can get help by that from the school and teachers.

PRACTICAL INFORMATION

Background
During the 25 years when the Development Instructor Programme has been in operation the world has changed considerably. Our capacity as human beings to save, prolong and enhance life has increased.

Our insight into the nature of life and the universe around us has increased. When considering the capacity of humankind today, it is in fact within reach to wipe out some of the calamities, that are still with us, making life unworthy for many of our fellow human beings - hunger, illiteracy, lack of clean water, lack of education, the AIDS pandemic or destruction of the environment.

If the will is there.
If the money is spent for the purpose.
If courageous people from across the world get together and take the lead, inspired by love and passion.

But our capacity to destroy has also multiplied. Tragic occurrences like September 11 have brought forth powerful forces that are busy stirring up incitement to increase military budgets, promoting war as a solution and turning people against people.
400 billion USD are easily available for military expenses - but the 10 billion USD it costs to get the AIDS pan-demic under control are NOT available.

Subsidies for cows in the rich part of the world are 7 times as much as the development aid rendered to fellow human beings in the poor part of the world.
Today it is more necessary than ever that humanitarian forces stand up, speak out and take action for the sake of peace and development.

Humana People to People in cooperation with the Interna-tional DRH-Movement (the Danish abbreviation for The Travelling Folk High Schools) invite people from all corners of the world and from all walks of life to join the Devel-opment Instructor Programme.
Humana People to People are currently running more than 180 projects in Africa, involving more than 2,5 million people. So far, 6000 Development Instructors (our word for volunteer) have participated in starting up and in running these projects.

NO DRUGS, NO ALCOHOL
As long as you are a participant at one of the schools or working at a project, you cannot take any kind of alcohol or aphorizing drugs.

ECONOMY
You pay an enrolment fee of 4000 DKK (550 €) before you start. You pay a school fee during the training. You can have a DI job to pay the school fees in this period. We share the travel costs to Africa - you pay 50% and Humana pays 50%. Your 50% of the travel costs is 6000 DKK (850 €). You can pay this yourself, or your team can decide to fundraise the money for the travel expenses. During the time at the Humana project in Africa you receive food, accommodation and pocket money.