Traveling is my element and it’s good that while working I can turn my favorite pastime into an educational process. I feel great excitement when we discover Armenia and different corners of the world together with my students.
The idea of a pilgrimage project didn’t fade my soul after we had failed to go on a trip to Venice, and when there was an offer to make a pilgrimage to Jordan, I was immediately filled with the mission to carry it out. This direction is not known in the Armenian reality, it is not revealed. It’s funny, but many people don’t even have any idea about the location of the country.
I am happy that the Sebastien community, including teachers, parents, and students, united around the idea of pilgrimage and the project became a reality.
On October 18-24, a group of 28 people from Mkhitar Sebastatsi EduComplex went to Jordan realizing the project “Educational Vacation in Jordan”.
The travel project was prepared with great care, for which I am grateful to Hovhannes Martirosyan, who, like me, was enthusiastically involved in this work.
Briefly about the contents of the project
The project included:
Places in the world that have superlative degrees of attributes
• The lowest point of land on Earth: the Dead Sea
• The warmest and saltiest sea, the Red Sea
• The Jordan River has the lowest bed along its entire length from sea level
Sanctuaries important to Christians
• Jordan River, baptismal site of Jesus, administrative sanctuary
• Mount Nabav, mentioned in the Bible as the place from which Moses gazed upon the Promised Land
valuable wonders
• Petra, a city carved by the Nabateans
• Jarash, one of the best preserved Roman cities in the world
• Wadi Rum desert.
The travel project was educational until the end and we were convinced of it at every moment.
Night stargazing was impressive for us. We had about an hour training session in the desert under the open sky at night. The position of the stars and planets visible in the sky was presented in detail. We were given information about them, then we enjoyed the starry sky and made observations with telescopes. Well, we met the dawn of the main dwarf star, waiting for the sunrise in the desert sitting on the rock.
During these 7 days of travel, students showed a respectful and caring attitude towards national and world art values. Thanks to Hovhannes’s multi-content speech, we emphasized being the inheritors of Armenian and world historical and cultural values and realized how important it is to show a responsible attitude in their preservation.
The Jordanian government controls the institute of tour guides and trains them all with one logic: to praise their country, to present the advantages, to encourage tourists to make purchases. I am glad that the speech of Fadih, who accompanied us, was supplemented by Hovhannes with clarifications and biblical stories, which completed our understanding of the country. The presentation of Hovhannes was especially valuable at the pilgrimage stops.
This project was a great opportunity for professional development for the participating teachers, and for the students – acquiring world knowledge.
About our students
Any educational trip has a goal and objectives, which are aimed at the formation of different end results and abilities among students.
Students controlled their feelings and wishes, followed the rules of coexistence, were respectful to the teachers of the group and those accompanying us.
They have developed responsibility, conscientiousness, and time management.
The students of the educational complex have many years of experience in learning by traveling: overcoming the height, country study trips, expedition camps. Thanks to their experience, they are able to show solidarity, friendship, care for one another in any place.
The importance of international projects
International projects are important in the school’s development plan. First of all, it contributes to the growth of admissions in terms of quality, increases parents’ trust in the author’s program implemented in the educational complex.
Thanks to international projects, students get the opportunity to be in another country, get to know and communicate with the cultural values of the given country, develop the skills of communicating in a foreign language.
They appreciate the geographical, cultural and historical values of their country. And the pilgrimage component of the project contributes to the formation of spiritual values and imparts spiritual education to students, which is very important today.
Project development
The project of pilgrimage to Jordan can become continuous, including the following developments, which we developed together with Hovhannes Martirosyan, who accompanied us.
Travel components
• visit to educational institutions in Jordan
• social science discussions
• Greater Middle East: on the subject of the Jordanian factor
• research works
• Religious tourism: Armenia and Jordan comparison
• Jordan: the place of celebration of Islam and Christianity /we have already started the research work on this topic/
• Pilgrimage: Testament readings
• We read modern Arabic poetry – We read foreign literature sub-project
• Recognition of Jordan in a geographical context
• Astronomy – comparatives
• stargazing in Wadi Rum desert, sightings in Byurakan
• study of petroglyphs in Wadi Rum and Karahunj
As a result of the travel project, we will have:
• studies, translations
• defense of research works
• readings
• the materials will be provided in a package to the library of the educational complex
• the pilgrimage project will enter the calendar of the educational complex and more teachers, students, families will become its participants.
Other developments in the Pilgrimage project
The Pilgrimage project can have interesting developments that will give students spiritual upbringing and education.
There are many famous places of pilgrimage in the world, which have their own uniqueness and spiritual mystery. We suggest the following list to get started:
• Spain: Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela, where the body of St. James the Apostle is buried, and his head is buried in St. James of Jerusalem
• Venice: Saint Lazarus Island: Mkhitaryan Monastery
With all these pilgrimages, we will prepare the project groups for the pilgrimage to Jerusalem.
In addition to travel projects, open classes will be held for students, which will prepare them for pilgrimage.