| The directionality and distribution of knowledge has largely been controlled by the West. The Third World has knowledge to share and the West needs to participate in a freer exchange of knowledge. Two Kenyan denominations wanted their leadership to have a theological education in Canada. This case study analyzes a project where Canadian Theological professors went to teach Kenyan students in their own context. The Canadian credential offered to the adult learners was modified through mutual collaboration to suit the recipients. Graduates, students, professors and administrators were interviewed and their thematically coded responses and narratives form the body of the research. Professors who were concerned about their ability to contextualize returned to Canada expressing that it was a life-changing experience. Kenyan students described the experience as "liberating", "empowering" and making a "dramatic change" in their lives and their work. In development terms it was described as holistic in focus, empowering, beneficial beyond the primary recipients, and having an end goal of self sufficiency. Both Canadians and Kenyans initially thought the purpose was to alleviate some "Kenyan deficit" in knowledge. The process, which was met by some initial internal opposition, was more significant as social transformation than either party had anticipated. Both parties had entered the project with an assumed "modernization paradigm" yet learning took place in both directions, changes occurred for both groups and as the project continued, critical analysis questioned both the dependencies, the underdevelopment, the value of each culture's knowledge, and the ways collaboration could enhance the reciprocity of knowledge transfer. |
