In this article, we are delighted to share an interview with Paloma Nascimento Saraiva, a Portuguese and English teacher at Colégio Loyola, in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil, who participated in the “Ignatian Global Citizenship” group course held in October 2023. This is a facilitator-led global course that offers a synchronous global learning experience for Ignatian educators. A new course modality that offers members of our global community the opportunity to learn together as a global group, with educators from other Jesuit schools and countries around the world. Pre-registration for the April 2024 Global Cohort Courses is open, read more here.
We would like to thank Paloma for sharing her learning experience with other members of our global community through this interview. Thank you Paloma!
Q1. Which of the topics covered in this course most interested you during this group learning experience? And why.
All the topics were interesting and important to me. However, the meeting whose discussion was the richest and most enriching for me was the one on caring for our common home. On that day, we were able to discuss how to bring students closer to climate issues, given that many of them do not directly experience the consequences of global warming.
Q2. Did you feel you gained a richer or deeper understanding of this topic by reflecting on and discussing it with a global group? If so, please explain.
Definitely yes. It was very enriching, for example, to realize that many of the challenges we face here in Brazil are also faced in the Philippines, a country that also carries a history of colonization and is also in the tropical zone of the globe.
Q3. Was this your first time taking a course related to “Ignatian Global Citizenship” as a global group? Please explain your experience.
It was my first experience in a Global Cohort and I really felt grateful for the exchanges we had. I say this not only for myself, but also for my colleagues at Colégio Loyola who had the opportunity to take part in this experience. Everyone was unanimous in saying that they could never have imagined that one day they would have the opportunity to talk about the Ignatian educational mission with colleagues from Poland, Mexico, India and the Philippines.
Q4. What other takeaways would you like to share with other educators who might be thinking of taking this course?
Just take part! And make a point of attending the online meetings. There are very rich discussions and the course material itself is very well curated and put together.
