In September, 2011, Lee Havis, IMS executive director, traveled to Kurdistan, Iraq, to prepare for the IMS workshop scheduled for Erbil on December 3-4, 2011. Erbil is the capital city of this autonomous Kurdish region of northern Iraq, which is under the jurisdiction of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG).

Lee noted that “Erbil is an ancient city that is now the fast-growing center of Kurdish culture which includes a large part of northern Iraq. There are also significant Kurdish populations in neighboring Syria, Turkey, and Iran as well. The KRG region is well-recognized as safe and secure for international travelers who can easily enter the region through the new, modern Erbil International Airport.”

Nesreen Barwari, representative of a local Kurdish NGO and development company, is the primary local coordinator for the IMS workshop in December. Lee and Nesreen met before in the United States to plan this workshop as part of a larger framework for introducing Montessori education to the region. The plan is to help meet the needs of many young families who are seeking quality education for their children.”

During his September visit to Kurdistan, Lee met with government, community, and educational leaders to describe Montessori education and explain the purpose and opportunity of the IMS workshop in December. Lee observed that “Although Montessori education seems relatively new to many, the Kurdish people appear eager to learn and understand more about it as well. I think many parents would be willing and even eager to enroll their children into IMS Montessori educational programs.”

The local Breeze of Hope NGO and RANJ development company are sponsoring a number of scholarships for Kurdish residents to attend the IMS December workshop at no cost. The intention of these scholarships is to encourage local residents to train and prepare for Montessori teaching in new schools to be established in the region.

After the December workshop, IMS plans to offer continuing training for qualified persons to further develop their Montessori teaching skills. Lee says, “This training will include a series of lessons to practice applying the IMS technology to certain hypothetical teaching situations with children. It will also include another IMS workshop in 2012. The total program will ultimately prepare graduates to effectively conduct Montessori teaching with children.”

IMS plans to work closely in the development of Montessori educational programs for children in Kurdistan. Lee says that “One possibility is to help establish a model ‘laboratory’ Montessori school on the campus of one or more of the local universities. This type of experimental school will be a valuable asset for those studying in the field of early childhood education. Observing at this school will greatly benefit the students’ practical teaching skills with children.”

Lee also expressed his hope that the nearby middle eastern countries of Iran, Syria, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Israel, Dubai, and UAE would be represented at the December workshop as well. He said, “This initial workshop could be the beginning of a center for Montessori study and learning to serve the whole middle east region. It could also network well with the Character Teaching (CT) project in countries such as India, Philippines, Pakistan, and Nepal. The long-range potential for this ‘new education’ effort in Kurdistan is therefore very promising on many levels.”

Register on-line to attend the December 3-4, 2011 workshop in Erbil, Kurdistan, Iraq, at the IMS website: http://imsmontessori.org. For specific information, Contact Lee Havis, IMS in USA at 301-589-1127 or in Kurdistan (KRG), Dilpak Tahir, Tel. +964-750-4155234, dilpakhuseantahir@yahoo.com