News Stories
Second Step Program to be Taught in Greenland Elementary Schools
Now Used in 21 Countries Around the World
Committee for Children has formed a new partnership-in Greenland! We've finalized a licensing agreement with the Greenlandic Ministry of Education to bring the Greenlandic translation of SECOND STEP: A Violence Prevention Curriculum to all of the country's 85 elementary schools!
After a two-year SECOND STEP pilot, the Greenlandic Ministry of Education is moving ahead with the translated curriculum-called Tulleriit, which literally means "successive steps." The Ministry will train teachers to use the program over the course of the coming year.
"Although Committee for Children programs are translated into 13 languages and taught in 21 countries around the world, this is our first total nationwide rollout of the SECOND STEP program," says Joan Cole Duffell, director of partnership development at Committee for Children.
Duffell, who leads our international program efforts, worked with the Greenlandic Ministry of Education as the SECOND STEP program was translated, culturally adapted, and pilot-tested in schools. Duffell will also assist the Greenlanders as they begin training teachers and introducing the program to students.
The SECOND STEP program is part of a larger education reform effort underway in the Greenlandic education system, according to Dr. William Demmert, a professor of education at Western Washington University who is a noted expert on teaching practices in Greenland.
"This Greenland school reform effort is a model in partnerships that recognizes the important role teachers play in an educational system," says Demmert. "Working with partners like Committee for Children and the SECOND STEP program will ensure that Greenland develops the best teaching force they can muster."
"We are thrilled to form this new partnership with the Greenlandic Ministry of Education," states Mark Crawford, executive director of Committee for Children. "We continue to believe that as we expand the use of our programs internationally, these kinds of partnerships will help ensure the safety, well-being, and positive development of children throughout the world."