York University master of education (MEd) student Hawa Sabriye has been awarded an Aga Khan Foundation of Canada Fellowship in Mozambique. Hawa is one of 19 Canadians chosen to participate in the 2017-18 International Youth Fellowship Program.
Hawa Sabriye
Sabriye, a teacher, is in the International Development Management stream of the master’s degree program, and will be training teachers through the fellowship program. She has been doing similar work with refugee teachers in Dadaab, Kenya over the past few years through York’s Borderless Higher Education for Refugees (BHER) project.
Sabriye will be working as an outreach program support fellow with the Mozambique Aga Khan Academy, a unit of the Aga Khan Education Service, organizing and collecting data from educational research to benefit the academy.
“This fellowship relates to my research, because in Dadaab I had gained experience working in classrooms and within a teacher training program (BHER),” said Sabriye. “As a graduate assistant for the BHER project, I have been fortunate enough to develop research and report-writing skills that can support documentation and communication of projects that will benefit and relate to this fellowship opportunity. And as a current elementary school teacher, I have been particularly interested in expanding my knowledge and skill set in primary education within international development.”
The fellowship offers an international development training program and an eight-month overseas placement to recent university graduates and young professionals who are 30 years of age or younger.
Each fellow spends eight months in Africa or Asia working with agencies and partners of the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN), one of the world’s largest and most respected international development agencies.
Before fellows depart for their eight-month overseas placement, they attend a month-long seminar in Ottawa, which provides a thorough grounding in the skills and knowledge required to contribute effectively to their host organizations. Leading international development professionals based in Canada and overseas facilitate workshops.
“The fellowship will influence my pedagogical practices and provide me with the opportunity to develop teaching and learning resources with a diverse group of educators,” said Sabriye. “My studies at York and experience working with the BHER project have impacted my desire to continue to learn and implement education as a tool for sustainable development.”