Educator Reflection: Challenging our Comfort Zones
By Ted Eischeid, Middle School Science Teacher, Fond du Lac, WI
Below, Ted reflects on his experience leading a group of students to Baja California with Global Explorers. These excerpts come from an essay submitted by Ted as part of a requirement for receiving three graduate education credits through the University of Wisconsin in partnership with Global Explorers.
The impact of the Global Explorers trip on our students was immense, albeit hard to quantify. One of the most positive experiences was the completion of a local service project in Baja, California. The service project surprised both the students and me. I think the students really appreciated getting their "hands dirty" working on a project they thought would benefit someone they had just met--a local Mexican cattle rancher and his family. This ranch was being a pioneer by adding an ecotourism component to its operations. If successful, it would serve as a model to ranches around the Baja Peninsula as ranchers cope with the economics of staying in business and preserving their way of life in a rapidly changing world. Given this context, the students weren't just building a trail, but were perhaps helping to preserve a way of life--a culture we had discussed in our pre-trip curriculum and they were now experiencing onsite.
We are now energized and excited about continuing the service component of the Global Explorers Program by constructing a nature trail at our local Fond du Lac High School that will be used by both the school and broader community as the trail links our school with a current recreation trail. As the mantra says, think globally--act locally!
In Baja, we saw our students be challenged, have unique experiences, intimately encounter a different culture, and persevere through the challenges faced as they learned about others and themselves. As a teacher, I must often use my "gut instinct" or premonitions in evaluating the impact of my actions on students. Given such, it seems that this program has succeeded in helping our students learn about science, culture, and leadership. Indeed, the program seems to have accomplished the profound act of making our students better world citizens. This is something I personally am committed to and attempt to foster in the four walls of my classroom.
What I saw occur on our Baja journey reinforces something I already know. It is when we engage the world outside the traditional classroom, when we are challenged outside our normal comfort zone, that we learn the most and the best. Not only about this world that we share with all life forms, but about ourselves on this personal journey called life. These are the gifts that we try to leave the next generation, and these are the gifts our students received by participating in this international field experience to Baja, Mexico.
Student Perspectives: The Most Amazing Experience of my Life
By Crystal, 2006 Amazon Adventure Participant, Age 13
Over the summer, I went to the Amazon Rainforest in Peru. It was the most amazing experience of my life. I spent a week in the middle of the jungle with thirty other kids, some parent chaperones, three teacher chaperones, about eight guides, and two wonderful Global Explorers representatives. Although seven days does not seem like much, the entire trip was a one-year endeavor. I signed up for it in June of 2005, and throughout the 2005-2006 school year, went to monthly (and sometimes more) meetings where we learned about the trip or the places we were going to visit.
I would have to say the thing I liked best about the rainforest trip was going to the village of Infierno. Being in Infierno, taught me that Americans (including me) have too much extra "stuff". It is a poor village, but everyone seemed very happy with their life and the children were very excited to see us. We played them in a soccer match in which we lost horribly except when we had some of them on our team! Their soccer goal posts were nothing but three pieces of wood with two standing upright, and one standing on top of them. We also gave some of the local children bubble wands. It was lots of fun to watch their amazement as a bubble formed on the end of their wand. It was interesting to think that bubbles are something simple that everyone knows of in our country but that they had probably never seen them in their lives.
One of our guides, Caesar, explained to us how he and the native people collect the fallen Brazil nuts and sell them in local markets to earn money. We had the opportunity to try it and found that it was much more difficult than it looked. You use a tool that is a tree branch split at the bottom where you wedge the Brazil nut into it. You then "whack" it loose into a basket strapped to your forehead and resting on your back. It was hard work, but fun to try. Another especially favorite memory was of my first close-up encounter with the wildlife (we had seen some in the distance from the boat). While walking down one of the paths, a beautiful Blue Morpho (metallic-blue-colored butterfly) flew right behind me.
Going to the rainforest helped me realize how strong a person I really am. In addition, I have always known that we have a much higher standard of living than other people, but I never really thought about it until I traveled to Peru. It made me remember that we don't need half of what we have in our lives. Going to the rainforest taught me so much about who I am. I would recommend it to everyone!
Why Would a Blind Teenager Hike to Machu Picchu if She Can't See It?
By David Shurna, Global Explorers' Executive Director & Co-Leader of 2006 Leading the Way Expedition to Machu Picchu
Bells jingling in our hands, we continued to climb away from the Andean town of Chilipahua (elevation 14,300 feet). This day would be our hardest – a 1,000 foot plus ascent at high elevation where the effects of the altitude were already being felt by many. If the team could summit Wayana Pass, it would give the confidence that we could reach the ancient city of Machu Picchu. We knew from our many months of preparation prior to the experience that this mountain pass would be our most telling climb.
By then, seven days into our expedition, our nine blind and visually-impaired high school students and their sighted partners had developed a good system of working together. Here's how sighted participant Estey Masten, age 18, described the partnership:
I had never hiked with a blind person before, and I was willing and eager to learn. The guide rang a bell so that the blind person could tell where to go and also alerted him/her to obstacles and changes in terrain. At first my description of a rock in the path went something like this: "There's a small rock on your left. It's about the size of volleyball. It slants down to the right and it has a pointed top. The earth around it is a little damp, so be careful because it might be slick." I soon realized that my descriptions were way too detailed. Erik Weihenmayer gave us some advice: "Only say what you have to." What genius insight! By the time I was done with that paragraph-size description above, the rock I was describing was 50 meters behind us. Eventually, as I worked on being more direct and concise, I mastered the art. The description became, "shin buster left." Life became so much easier!
Most of the sighted students had little experience leading blind students and many assumed it was going to be a lot more work than it was. What surprised the sighted students about guiding was how quickly they forgot that their partners were blind. Most blind students could walk for hours on relatively uneven terrain with little or no guidance. With changes in environment (e.g. rocks, cliffs, and rivers), guides and their partners would buckle down and focus, making sure each word and step counted.
But as Jill Millkey, age 15, and Weihenmayer describe, it is the independence of blind people that is often most surprising to a sighted person on an expedition like this.
To be honest in the month leading up to the trip, I was rather worried that I would lead someone off of a cliff on the trip. But I realized how seldom that could happen because whenever I said "right" instead of "left," the blind student would say, "Are you sure?" and proceed to feel around with their pole and step left anyway.
And Weihenmayer, in response:
When my friends are guiding me, I can hear how their voice(s) are projecting. So you're not just blindly following and doing what someone says, you have to be responsible for yourself. You have to know the risks because it is you that is stepping out there, not other people. That relationship and that communication between the blind and sighted person is really awesome, and it builds up a lot of trust.
With this in mind the entire team, both overjoyed and exhausted, reached the Wayana Pass summit. We each added a rock to the cairn marking the point. Smiles were as wide as the Andean sky above. Two days later, we arrived at the Sun Gate of Machu Picchu. Kyle Coon, age 14, noted the following in his voice recorder, "I can feel this huge wide open space in front of me and this wall behind me. Wow. I don't even have words to describe it. I am feeling so proud of this entire team -- we made it to the Sun Gate. It's unbelievable!"
Standing there with tears in my eyes, I finally had a more complete answer to the most common question we received prior to this expedition: "Why would a blind student want to go all the way to Machu Picchu if she can't see it?"
The truth is, whether blind or sighted, most of us traveled to Machu Picchu for the same reasons. For the adventure and challenge; to meet, interact and work side-by-side with people of a different culture; to experience the hustle and bustle of a local market; to feel the spiritual energy of an ancient land by touching the rocks that were laid by the Quechua hundreds of years ago; and to work together as a team towards a common goal. There is so much more to the experience along this trail than vision alone can capture.
Andrew Johnson (age 16), a blind high school participant, summed up our experience perfectly when he said, "Lots of people visit Machu Picchu. Some go for the history, some for the hiking, others because they feel a spiritual connection to the city. We went for those reasons. But I think on the trek, we discovered something deeper. We learned about working as a team and pushing through barriers and perceptions and we learned about the importance of service and giving back to society."
Specialty Programs for 2007
In addition to all of our other life-changing programs, we are offering a few specialty programs in 2007. To apply, contact us at or visit our website for application materials.
Leading the Way 2007: Blind and Sighted Students Join Erik Weihenmayer in the Andes
Join Erik Weihenmayer, the first blind man to summit Mount Everest, and Global Explorers' staff for our second annual trek through the magical land of the Incas.
Sounds of the Amazon: Blind and Sighted Students Explore Bio-Acoustics in the Rainforest
Join Global Explorers and bio-acoustic scientist Stan Rullman for an Amazon Adventure in surround sound! For this unique digital sound collecting expedition, we will capture and analyze the acoustical essence of each layer of life: from canopy to forest floor.
Amazon Educators Workshop
We invite educators to participate in our 2007 Amazon Educator's Workshop: Tropical Ecology and Conservation! During this weeklong workshop in the Peruvian Amazon, you will study tropical ecology with field scientists and local guides, work on a community service project with Peru's ribereño (riverside) communities and explore the bustling streets and markets of Iquitos.