VIEWS Volunteer Service Overseas (VSO)
‘The road to prosperity’ - changing lives through education
In May, ALICE CHANDLER will be flying off to Myanmar to volunteer. This is her second placement with VSO. She recalls her first adventure in Cambodia following a long teaching career in Canada.
I decided it was time for me to embark on an exciting journey, so I leapt halfway across the world to volunteer for two years with VSO in Cambodia. I wanted to go to a developing country where I could be part of the community and work for the wellbeing of others. In 2013, I was placed as a Primary Education Adviser at the Provincial Office of Education in the beautiful hills of Mondulkiri - the poorest rural province in Cambodia. I worked with teachers, school directors and various staff to help improve the quality and access to basic education. I fell in love with this amazing place and I was fortunate to get my placement extended until 2016.
In the west, teachers are trained by professionals, but in rural Mondulkiri, teachers receive minimal training. They’re poorly paid and sometimes don’t even turn up for work. They often have two or more jobs or work in the fields to make ends meet. Pupils in isolated Bunong rural villages have difficulty in seeing the value of education. Attendance is low because children are expected to help with household chores and work in the fields. School infrastructure and sanitary conditions are poor. Buildings are exposed to the elements and become problematic during the rainy season. Despite the challenges, I was inspired by local teachers who implemented workshops for rural schools. I watched them blossom before my eyes and saw smiling children explore endless possibilities through their schoolwork. Laughter became contagious and learning became easier. Humour is an important part of facilitating positive change. Every year, local communities conduct a School Enrolment Campaign in the villages 15 days before the start of the new school
year. In 2015, local men and women in Mondulkiri province were asked to share their personal stories about how their education has positively impacted their lives. These stories were broadcast on local radio to encourage children to go to school and stay in school. My local colleagues and I worked on a collection of interviews and short stories about the value of education, social inclusion and gender equality. It eventually became a book: ‘The road to prosperity – my education, my life’. In January 2016, this book was approved by the Mondulkiri Provincial Office of Education and was funded by VSO. School directors and teachers are trained to use this book with their students to promote school enrolment throughout the province. It was wonderful to feel part of a community where neighbours have time for each other. I truly enjoyed working and living among local people who were full of energy and hope despite their circumstances. Volunteering with VSO gave me a sense of accomplishment and an opportunity to learn from teachers who do the best they can with limited resources. I enjoyed my experience so much, that after 12 months of returning home, I’ve decided to volunteer again in Myanmar for a year!
https://www.vsointernational.org/educationroles May 2017 British Educational Suppliers Association (BESA)
This election, let’s pledge to “Resource Our Schools”
This month, PATRICK HAYES, Education Today columnist and Director of BESA, the trade association for UK education suppliers, issues a call to the UK’s political parties to put schools firmly at the centre of their manifestos.
In the run-up to June’s general election, BESA is initiating the “Resource Our Schools” campaign, dedicated to highlighting to government the need for schools to be adequately resourced with the equipment they need, even during a time of unprecedented budgetary pressures. We agree wholeheartedly that teachers should be at the heart of the UK education system, but they need support! They need access to the right training and course guides to ensure that they are well positioned to introduce students to the “best that has been thought and said” in order to give them the best possible life chances. To bring this learning to life for students, they need the right pedagogical equipment at their disposal: literature, textbooks and teaching aids. Importantly for the 21st Century classroom, it’s vital that pupils have access to the unprecedented learning opportunities that the digital world provides. It’s equally important that teachers and schools can access the rich data that is consequently generated to shine a light on a student’s performance in innovative new ways. We know schools are having to make some tough financial decisions at the moment, and there is a wealth of evidence suggesting that they are cutting back on resources as a result. While there are doubtless efficiencies to be made, the impact of cutting back on resources upon a child’s education should not be underestimated. There is a powerful evidence base to show that resources matter - from the size of the furniture, to the quality of the science equipment The Education Secretary has recently outlined her vision to build “the capacity to enable genuine and sustained school improvement in the future”. Core to school improvement must be ensuring teachers and schools alike can access the right resources. Throughout their careers, teachers need access to the right CPD materials and training. Not least during a time of considerable curriculum and assessment reform. Improving the quality of what is taught and how it is taught cannot take place without the right teaching aids. Cutting-edge developments in education technology have the potential to transform the way in which classes are taught, pupils are assessed and in which schools are managed. Parental and community engagement is being taken to another level, and pupils can explore the entire globe from within the classroom walls like never before. Its potential should be seized.
But this is only possible if schools have adequate access to the internet. Worryingly only 44 per cent of the UK’s primary schools say they are currently well-resourced with broadband, meaning millions of pupils across the UK are currently being denied access to the transformative potential of education technology.
The “Resource Our Schools” campaign is dedicated to ensuring that every school has access to the resources they need to deliver the education that our children deserve.
The UK is renowned the world over for its high standard of education and there is a voracious demand for UK educational resources, technology and talent overseas. As schools across the globe benefit from the UK’s leadership in education resources, it is of the greatest importance that pupils across the UK do as well. For more information, and to sign the “Resource Our Schools” statement, visit:
www.resourceourschools.com
For information from BESA contact: Patrick Hayes 020 7537 4997
patrick@besa.org.uk
www.besa.org.uk
www.education-today.co.uk 7
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48
