later to be announced, Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh, India
IHEYO is glad to announce for its 5th International Conference in Vijayawada, India under the theme ?Critical Thinking & Free Inquiry Education?. Taking place from 28 October to 4 November. The conference offers a lot of information and practical training on methods and practices of teaching critical thinking and free inquiry.
We will stay together, we will have really interesting field visits, intercultural activities, key note speeches by well known humanists, and we will do some concrete work in small groups. Together with 50 other youth leaders from 20 different countries.
About the theme: Why is learning to think independently and critical, important? When people learn to assess information and make up their own minds, they learn to have more control over their lives. It empowers them and builds better learning abilities. In addition, some of the beliefs people hold out of ignorance, can be really harmful to people. In India there are many examples of discrimination and human rights violations based on traditional beliefs or ignorance (the caste system, witchcraft practices), and such examples can be found around the world (discrimination against minorities etc.). Critical thinking promotes tolerance, active citizenship and reduces prejudice.
Many humanists recognize the importance of critical thinking and free inquiry in education. One can find courses and methods for this in countries such as the Netherlands, US, India, Germany, Belgium, Nigeria, etc. And there are non-formal educational activities in many other countries that stimulate young people to think on their own, like in Russia, Nepal, East Africa, all Scandinavian countries, Italy, Australia, Peru to name a few. In some organisations the methods are more developed; in others one can find the ideas in practice but not so thought out.
This conference will be an international training for using educational methods in critical thinking and free inquiry and a start for much more intense collaboration between Indian and youth groups and individuals worldwide. It would give young people from around the world a better understanding of critical and free thinking and the problems in India as well as an opportunity for networking with like minded international organizations.
In this sense it is an unique activity with a global and national impact.
Go To The Eventlist