"What must underlie successful epidemics, in the end, is a bedrock belief that change is possible, that people can radically transform their behavior or beliefs in the face of the right kind of impetus." - Author Malcolm Gladwell

Earlier this week, Wellspring was invited to the "Teacher Education, Management and Professionalisation Reform Summit" hosted by Rwanda’s Ministry of Education. It was a chance to hear about the general direction education is heading with regards to issues such as pre-service training, in-service training, and the quality education agenda.

Those in attendance included Ministry of Education employees, District Education Officers, or those involved in pre-service education (those programs granting initial teaching certification). Also there were those from the donor community – Department for International Development (Britain), UNICEF, U.S. AID, and the British Council. In short, everyone who is important in the Rwanda education community was present.

Kirsten Lake, Mark Thiessen & Jeff Komant listen attentively to a
keynote address at the recent Teacher Education Summit in Kigali

Of approximately 150 attendees to the Summit, only a handful are actually involved in the type of in-service training that Wellspring conducts in our Whole School Development Program. We feel we have much to add to the conversation of what constitutes a quality education for our students and what constitutes quality professional development for teachers and Head Teachers. Still, for whatever reason, we have not been as influential as we feel we could be.

While we believe our training program for teachers, educational leaders, and parents is second to none in Rwanda, we are still not as visible as we would like to be. When those involved in education hear about the wide scope of the Whole School Development Program, they are usually suitably impressed.

Those who have come before me (Jeff Komant, Yvonne Dyer and Kirsten Lake) have worked tirelessly to have Wellspring’s name become known in order to be welcomed and appreciated in the schools with whom we work. They have met with Ministers of Education, Ministers of State, district leaders, and other influential leaders within the Ministry and the education sector.

Kirsten serves as the reporter for her quality education
discussion group and addresses the entire audience

Author Malcolm Gladwell has written a book entitled, "The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference". He argues that information can spread like a virus and that some carriers of information are much more effective in promoting a message than others. When a message begins to spread exponentially, he calls this a "successful epidemic". We are looking for a tipping point right now as we complete the first full phase of the implementation of our training program. While we learned some of the direction of the Ministry of Education while at the Summit, we also had the chance to network with as many influential people as we could. We feel it is important to have the endorsement of those with national influence in order to enter our new schools with this solid foundation in place.

While Gladwell can give many examples of what he calls a "successful epidemic", he fails to mention that it is only God who can instantly provide the impetus for change. We acknowledge God’s sovereignty and know that this may certainly be the case with regards to the future of Wellspring’s programs in Rwanda.

We feel we are on the edge of a breakthrough. Pray specifically for us to determine with wisdom what our next steps should be as we move forward. It is not always easy to navigate through uncharted territory.