Leonel Fernández Urges Educators Not to Replace the Arts for Science and Technology

The former President of the Dominican Republic and President of GFDD/Funglode spoke at the opening of the 26th Annual Conference of the Association of Academic Programs in Latin America and the Caribbean (AAPLAC), where more than 50 educators from Latin America and North America gathered.

The former President of the Dominican Republic and President of Fundación Global Democracia y Desarrollo (Funglode) and Global Foundation for Democracy
and Development, Dr. Leonel Fernández, invited educators not to replace the arts for science and technology, speaking at the opening of the 26th Annual Conference of the Association of Academic Programs in Latin America and the Caribbean (AAPLAC), organized by the internship program InteRDom, an initiative of GFDD.

Fernández said: "Knowledge and training is not only science and technology," adding that the artistic component in education is also needed.

Former Dominican President considered: "We cannot forget the humanities to formalize science and technology, because technology can also be part of the arts".

Fernández mentioned during the opening ceremony, held at the
headquarters of Funglode from February 18th to 21st, that the formation of Latin American teachers has been inadequate, so it is necessary to educate quality teachers who can use the technology.

"A good math or chemistry teacher in a recording session can reach a student who is in Santo Domingo or near the Haitian border through a computer screen."
He also stated that Latin America needs to develop a debate on the current education system,
to thereby answer the questions "Education for what? How to educate? And which are the teaching methods to use?”

Likewise, he expressed that in the Dominican Republic there is a problem with college students who have no connection between the academic world and society, "so the students are not connected with the real world".

Fernández recommended that education authorities not only focus on international
scholarships for students. "It is appropriate that national and international teachers are also included to develop educational workshops".

About the 26ª AAPLAC
This conference welcomes more than 50 educators from different programs in Latin America as well as higher education institutions in North America, which gather in Santo Domingo to discuss best practices in international education and other topics related to the
conference theme: “Preparing Today’s Students to Discover the Specific Realities of Latin America and the Caribbean".

Related links:
www.aaplac.org/conference
http://www.interdominternships.org/
http://www.drfellowsprogram.org/
www.globaldominicanacademicexchange.org