Collaborative solution and Blended Learning
A.Uranchimeg is an ESEL teacher/counselor for the “Entrepreneurship-Focused Socio-Emotional Skills for the Most Vulnerable Youth in Rural Mongolia” project, which has been implemented in Sumber soum, Gobisumber province, since 2020. She graduated from the “Gurvan-Erdene” Pedagogical Institute with a degree in Mongolian-English language teaching and is currently serving as a Mongolian language and literature teacher at General secondary school No. 1 in Sumber soum.
She shared her thoughts on becoming an ESEL teacher/counselor: “I learned about the project and realized that by participating in the training to become an ESEL teacher/counselor, I could create new opportunities for my students to develop personally, equip them with proper financial knowledge, and build their capacity while learning and growing together with them. I’m grateful to have been selected from the pool of applicants when the project started, and to have become an ESEL teacher/counselor.”
The ESEL teacher/counselors learne how to guide children and young people in uncovering and developing their hidden talents and skills, setting goals, working independently, and acquiring the knowledge and skills necessary to engage in entrepreneurial activities.
Combining classroom and online training
The global COVID-19 pandemic was the biggest challenge when ESEL training began in Sumber soum. A few days after the training began, a local lockdown was imposed due to the pandemic, making it impossible to continue the training as usual. At that point, a solution was found and training was completed both online and in the classroom.
Out of the total 66 hours of training, 23 hours were held in the classroom, while 43 hours were conducted online, and the students successfully completed the program. Online learning came with both advantages and challenges. On one hand, students learned to independently use new learning methods and technologies, tackle problems, and develop solutions. Teacher A. Uranchimeg also grew alongside her students, which was a key benefit of the training. She researched the best software for online courses, selected the most suitable one, and helped her students navigate it effectively. A. Uranchimeg is currently leading her fourth ESEL training session.
Guiding the Project to Successful Outcomes
She led two classes to graduation in the 2021-2022 school year. The students formed four teams on their own initiative and developed project proposals such as, “Intellectual Sun Child Development Hall”, “Little Scientists”, “Eternal Heaven’s Letter”, and “Movie Club”, and then participated in the subgrant competition. Two of these proposals were selected in the first grant competition, while “Eternal Heaven’s Letter” and “Movie Club” did not qualify. However, the students revised and resubmitted the proposals, and both were selected, each receiving 2.8 million MNT in funding.
A.Uranchimeg emphasized, ” This is proof that the training was very successful.” These project proposals secured 100% funding, and with the support of the school administration, the students are now renovating their classroom on their own while successfully managing their operations. She also mentored the fall 2023 ESEL class, which worked on three project proposals, and plans to facilitate their participation in the next subgrant competition.
A.Uranchimeg noted, “The Governor of Sumber soum, members of the project’s Provincial and Project Soum Level Counsels, the director of the school No. 1, G. Soninbat, and training managers Ts. Avirmed and M. Mungunbaatar provided significant support and collaboration to address the challenges we faced. Their contributions were instrumental in the successful implementation of the project.”
The Graduates Achieved Remarkable Success
The students taught by teacher A. Uranchimeg have achieved remarkable success. For example, 12th-grade student O. Urangoo was enrolled in the Russian Government Scholarship Program. Her successful completion of the ESEL course, development of personal skills, and active participation in extracurricular activities played a key role in her selection for the scholarship.
S.Tsogzolbaatar, a resident of Sumber soum (father of Ts. Temulen, a 10th-grade student at school No. 1), shared his thoughts on how his son changed after participating in the training: “My son learned a great deal from the training. In addition to developing skills like writing, planning, and implementing projects, he learned to manage finances wisely, work effectively in a team, and express his opinions confidently in front of others. His social engagement has improved, his participation in school activities has increased, and he has learned to prepare and process documents”.
Ts. Emujin, a member of the “Intellectual Sun Child Development Hall” project team, shared: “Teacher Uranchimeg conducted the ESEL training in a very engaging and clear manner, tailoring her approach to each child’s characteristics and interests. Additionally, working in teams helped each child understand their roles and responsibilities, providing opportunities for them to develop both independently and as part of a group. Our team participated in the subgrant competition, won funding, and renovated the child development room by ourselves. It was the most amazing and memorable experience.”
The “Entrepreneurship-Focused Socio-Emotional Skills for the Most Vulnerable Youth in Rural Mongolia” project has been successfully implemented in Sumber soum, Gobisumber province, since 2020. The students, children involved in the project, and ESEL teachers/counselors have all experienced great success and are full of enthusiasm.
This is the story of one such ESEL teacher/counselor, A. Uranchimeg, whose success is truly inspiring.