The Diversity & Education program has pilots planned in six countries: Colombia: We've just received a request for CE support for teacher training, textbook reviews and curriculum improvements to develop more of a pluralistic outlook and critical thinking. Laos: Identifying and targeting specific ethnic minorities in villages to be able to provide improved educational services in their native languages. Working with the Laos education team, CEERD is sponsoring a study on linguistic mapping in Laos, to open dialogue on multilingual education, important to both EFA and social inclusion. There are diverse ethnic groups in Laos who have been largely ignored and/or relocated for many years. These groups have not been previously mapped and identified, nor have they had schools which use native languages. Through this study, the GOL could better identify and then target specific ethnic minorities in villages and be able to provide improved educational services in their native languages.
Nigeria: Focusing on the development of critical thinking skills to promote tolerance and respect for diversity in pre- and in- service teacher education initiatives in three provinces. CEERD is supporting the Universal Basic Education task team, to prototype improvements in teacher education, emphasizing respect for cultural and religious diversity and gender sensitivity. Adapting an approach that was used in Eastern Europe with the support of the Open Society Institute, the Reading Association of Nigeria will train teacher trainers in development of critical thinking skills, emphasizing mutual understanding, and respect for different perspectives. The teacher trainers will offer pre-service courses in their institutes and in-service training of existing teachers in their respective regions. This will be piloted in 3 states under the Universal Basic Education Project (FY02), with a view to being scaled up nationwide. Sri Lanka: Capacity building to ensure that textbooks do not promote content or art work that contains historically inaccurate or culturally inappropriate material deemed offensive to other groups (e.g. Tamils/Muslims) or nationalities (e.g. Israelis). CEERD is also supporting textbook reforms in to remove stereotyping, pejorative and biased material, linked to the textbook component of the Sri Lanka General Education Project 2. The CEERD support in FY05 will help move the textbook reform from the initial review stage to accelerated development and concerted review under agreed criteria and systems. CEERD will draw on technical support from groups such as the George Eckert Institute and the International Reading Association to provide training for textbook authors and illustrators, teacher educators, selective teachers, administrators, editors and publishers. It will also refine the sensitivity rating system used by subject specialist teams and the evaluation workbook used by Diversity Review Panels and train these teams and panels in their use. This supports the CAS' emphasis on post-conflict reconstruction and conflict prevention, and improves the quality of education under the General Education II Project and beyond. West Bank-Gaza: Training in textbook development and review process to improve tolerance and fairness in textbook content and artwork (especially maps). |
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