iEARN International
is a decentralized global network of educational groups working
collaboratively and sharing the same goals. The majority of the
project activities in iEARN are initiated and managed by teachers
and students in schools around the world.
iEARN
has an international structure to support iEARN teachers and students,
support new teachers and countries to iEARN, enter into partnerships
on behalf of iEARN and ensure that the missions and goals of iEARN
are maintained.
iEARN International
is a registered NGO in Spain (registered Association NO. 586513)
and has an international office in Callus, Spain. All official
correspondence should be sent to: International Education and
Resource Network - iEARN , Passeig Anselm Clavé, 16, 08262
Callús. Catalunya, Spain. The work of iEARN International
is funded through annual contributions provided by iEARN Centres.
Each iEARN
country or group is an autonomous member of the iEARN International
network. Each is financially independent and organized according
to practices in the local country. In many countries, iEARN is
a registered NGO or non-profit organization as an independent
legal entity. In some countries, iEARN is part of the Ministry
of Education. In still other countries, iEARN is organized as
a group of volunteer educators. Regardless of the local organization's
structure, each subscribes to the goals and objectives of the
international network and provides support and training to enable
young people in their country to participate in online collaborative,
project-based learning.
There are
two documents that govern the operation of iEARN International
and outline the relationship between iEARN countries and groups,
the iEARN
Constitution and Operational
Decisions of the iEARN Assembly
The
iEARN Assembly
The iEARN
Assembly is the decision-making body of iEARN International.
Membership
of Assembly
iEARN Centres
Youth Representative
Copen Family Fund
The Assembly
discusses and makes decisions on issues - both online throughout
the year and at an annual meeting held in conjunction with the
iEARN International Conference in July. Each Assembly member has
one vote.
The Role and
Responsibilities of the Assembly and its members is included in
the iEARN
Constitution
Members of
the Assembly are listed on the Coordinators/Representatives/Contacts
web page and are designated with an asterisk (*) following the
country name.
Executive
Council
The Executive
Council is an elected three person volunteer committee which conducts
the daily business of the international network and facilitates
discussions and decisions by the Assembly.
Members of
the Executive Council are elected for a term of 2 years by the
Assembly.
The current Executive Council members are listed at the bottom
of the Coordinators/Representatives/Contacts
web page.
Country
Participation
There are
three levels of administrative and programmatic participation
in iEARN:
1. Centres
The iEARN
International Constitution defines a Centre as:
.... a consortium
of sites or affinity of special interest groups, and can include
individuals, with a management infrastructure to support training,
development, and research; which shares the vision and purpose,
and supports goals and principles of iEARN as stated in the Preamble
and the Constitution, and meets other requirements that will be
instituted by a decision of the iEARN Assembly.
Centres:
- are
legally recognized entities in their own countries
- have
been participating in iEARN collaborative projects for at least
one year
- have
a clearly defined support structure
- have
been approved by the Assembly for membership of Assembly and
have the right to publicly state that the Centre represents
iEARN
- are
legally recognised members of iEARN International
Centres
have a vote in the Assembly on all issues facing the international
network.
Centres
can have a Management Team or a Coordinator representing their
Centre.
Centres
are listed on the Coordinators/Representatives/Contacts
web page and are designated with an (*) following the country
name.
There is a
Centre Application
available for download.
2. Representatives
Representatives
are individuals or groups that:
- have a
clearly defined support structure
- represent
countries or parts of countries that are not currently represented
by an iEARN Centre or other Representative
- represent
constituencies of young people or affinity groups which would
like to be involved in the global iEARN network and are not
currently represented by a Centre or other Representative.
- have active
student and teacher participation in iEARN
- have been
approved by the iEARN International Assembly to serve as a Representative
and have the right to publicly state that s/he is representing
iEARN
Representatives
are listed on the Coordinators/Representatives/Contacts
web page and are designated with an (^) following the country
name.
There is a
Representative Application
available for download.
3. Contact Persons
Contact
persons are educators who:
- are in a country without a Centre or Representative
- are active in collaborative projects online
- have offered to speak to other educators about iEARN to assist
them in becoming involved in collaborative projects in his/her
geographic area.
They do not
assume responsibility for coordination of a national or regional
iEARN structure.
Contact
persons are listed on the Coordinators/Representatives/Contacts
web page and are designated with an (#) following the country
name.
To serve as
an iEARN Contact person, contact the Executive Council: ec@ iearn.org
Communication
between Centre Coordinators/Management Teams, Representatives
or Contact Persons
As a Centre Coordinator/Management Team, Representative or Contact
Person it is important to have contact with other Centres, Representatives
or Contact Persons.
There are
four ways to find contact information for Country Coordinators/Management
Teams, Representatives and Contact Persons:
Annual
Reports
Each Centre,
Representative and Contact Person submits an annual report of
activities in their country. These can be downloaded in pdf format
from: www.iearn.org.au/international/reports.htm
