Seward Incorporated

Seward Inc. has partnered with Creative Associates International, Inc. on the Technology for Improved Learning Outcomes (TILO) project in Egypt, funded by The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). The TILO team is working closely with the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology, the private sector, and communities across eleven governorates to develop and deliver a holistic integrated model for introducing technology into school-based reform activities. The goal is to benefit the larger community through increased student learning.

The TILO program is designed to enhance the quality of teaching, learning, and decentralized school management through the effective use of technology in schools. TILO schools go through two stages of participation:  

Seward will support the project with online learning materials and instructional design training. Seward will also consult about design and development of Moodle-based courses that are being repurposed from existing face-to-face training (http://moodle.org/).

On a recent trip, a Seward representative met with the new Technology Adviser to the Egyptian Minister of Education. The team presented Moodle as an option for improving teacher training across Egypt. Moodle allows for consistent training delivery and makes it easily. The shift to Moodle would cut training costs and improve training logistics.

About Seward Incorporated
Seward Incorporated is a leader in education technology solutions for corporate, academic, and government clients. Founded in 1990, Seward Inc. works nationally and internationally, developing custom eLearning solutions, consulting on building education systems, and training educators in the use of online tools. 

About Creative
Creative is a 32-year-old privately-owned non-governmental organization that addresses urgent challenges facing societies today. Whether they are shifts in demographics, the workplace, the classroom, technology, the political arena or the needs of stabilization in post-conflict environments, Creative views change as an opportunity to improve, transform and renew. We help our clients turn transitional environments into a positive force toward creating more empowered and effective communities, systems and institutions. For more information, visit www.caii.com.

Greg Sales (CEO, Seward Inc.) will present at the 54th Annual Conference of the Comparative and International Educational Society (CIES) conference (www.cies2010.msu.edu), taking place March 1-5, 2010 in Chicago, Illinois. Sales’ presentation is about modifying pre-service teacher education in Oman to reflect student-centered learning methods. The presentation reflects the conference theme of “Reimagining Education.” Conference participants will examine the interaction of education with governance at a large and regional scale and its effects at the micro levels on schools, classrooms, teachers, and pupils.

Sales’ session will describe the process of developing a student-centered pre-service teacher training pilot program for the Oman Ministry of Education (MOE) and Sultan Qaboos University. The program integrates more structured active learning methods. His presentation will also explain the goal of the pilot project—to change the faculty’s approach so that they model appropriate classroom methods and expose students to resources that help them understand the instructional advantages of a student-centered approach.

The MOE partnered with the Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI) to pilot a number of programs. The pilot Sales led was embraced by teachers and students and is gradually being expanded through an in-service teacher training program.

Greg Sales has been designing and developing technology-based training for more than 30 years. He has applied his e-Learning expertise for a variety of clients including Fortune 500 companies, government agencies, and universities. In addition to recommending customized training solutions, Greg provides consultation on the development of comprehensive e-Learning strategies to organizations seeking to improve training productivity while reducing costs. Prior to founding Seward Inc., Greg was a professor of instructional design and technology and program chair at the University of Minnesota.