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With the exception of health and safety concerns, I don't believe anyone has the right to "impose" their ideas or methods on anyone else. However, we, as human beings, all have an obligation to each other and to the world around us. It is our responsibility to work together to make this world the best possible world it can be.

Rather than imposing a particular set of teaching methods on others, educators and educational researchers should share their knowledge and findings with other communities and help them adapt a system of best practices to their local environments. In this way, the local culture remains intact while their productivity and methodology advance. This process is something that falls under the term "capacity building" or "capacity development."

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has a system in place to help and train developing countries, as well as any country interested in upgrading their policies and procedures, without stripping away the local identity. The UNDP defines capacity as "the ability of individuals, institutions and societies to perform functions, solve problems, and set and achieve objectives in a sustainable manner." They further define capacity development as "the process through which the abilities to do so are obtained, strengthened, adapted and maintained over time."

Just because one process works for one nation doesn't mean it will work for another. The policies, practices, technologies and belief systems of each locality play a large part in what an area is able to offer its citizens. By sharing research and resources, municipalities can extract the processes and qualities that will suit their location, and adapt them to the needs of their culture.

If we force a teaching method on a country that cannot sustain it, we are not only damaging the customs and identities inherent to that region, we're damaging an already fragile learning environment. We're trying to make education a one-size fits all practice but the reality is that the world is made up of vastly different people with different needs and abilities that must be considered before making any blanket statement or rule. This applies to imposing teaching methodologies locally and across the world.

It's time to work together as humans to learn and grow in peace and harmony, to share resources and knowledge for the betterment of all. It's time to stop thinking one person or country has all the answers, or that our answers are the right or best ones, and to start understanding our differences and how we can use them for good.

Learn more about this author, Virginia Lynn Emrick.
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