The Respect for Diversity through Education program consists of a series of initiatives to promote tolerance and respect for diversity through curriculum and textbook reform and pre and in-service teacher training. Each pilot is designed to enhance capacity building. Each is also aligned with a large-scale national initiative supported by the World Bank (as well as other donors). | 
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While education promotes personal and economic development and poverty alleviation, it has also served as a weapon of cultural repression and promoted cultural domination of politically powerful groups through the manipulation of curricula (esp. history) and textbook content. 
| Overly nationalistic education systems have contributed to internal and external wars, loss of life (including teachers and students), and social disruption. Socio-economic exclusion perpetuated by educational content have perpetuated marginalization of substantial populations and have had a particularly strong negative impact on girls and minorities. |
| When client governments are interested in taking action on these fronts, the World Bank can support reforms in teacher training, textbooks and materials development, and curricula, to support pluralistic and inclusive perspectives and critical thinking, and to eliminate stereotyping and deep biases. | |
The Bank began this effort by convening expert-practitioners and commissioning background papers in order to orient itself to the issues. The sequence was as follows:
- A planning conference with international agencies was held in Paris to elicit support and to help avoid needless overlap. The planning meeting narrowed down the range of potential interventions (from ten) to three priority areas: (1) teacher training, (2) curriculum development, and (3) textbooks. It also helped identify international experts to review the state of existing knowledge on the link between each of these areas and the promotion of respect for diversity
- International experts prepared a series of position papers on each of the targeted areas and on countries where policy makers and donors have a key interest in using education to promote respect for diversity (e.g. Palestine, Rwanda, Sri Lanka)
- An expert workshop to orient the Bank's work, was held at the end of March, 2003. The above papers were presented at the three-day workshop, which was attended by Bank staff, international donor agencies and experts. For transcripts of the workshop, click on the link below.
- Draft guidelines for task leaders were prepared, to be used in dialogue with clients and to support Bank staff managing the overall program.
- The program was reviewed by a working group of expert-practitioners on engendering respect for diversity through education in June 2003. To see their report or a video of their deliberations that was webcast through B-Span, click here:
- Preparation of a draft checklist/set of guidelines for task leaders to use in dialogue with clients and to support Bank staff managing the overall program.
Beginning in 2003-4, support began to be provided in pilot countries. B-Span, the World Bank's webcasting station, has produced a video coverage of 2003 workshop of Respect for Diversity through Education. To see it, click on the link below: For more infornation see also: |
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