Group items tagged

McKinsey & Co. estimates that China’s foreign-language business is worth $2.1 billion annually

"When I returned from Tanzania, I hoped to continue with my studies but I had no chance of doing so because I didn't understand French or Kirundi," Imed Hakiza, now a small-scale trader at Mabanda market, said.

“The situation is complex. The school is not recognized by Burundian law but teachers and the principal are doing something good, which made us decide not to close the school even though we were asked to do so," he added.

"Besides language training, we are adopting a holistic approach in providing returnees with life skills like sports for integration, culture and arts, awareness-raising and discussions of youth-relevant issues such as HIV/AIDS, sexual and reproductive health, environmental awareness and conflict resolution," Zeus said.

According to RET, some 690 students are enrolled in intermediate level courses to learn French and Kirundi and culture clubs have been set up in 37 secondary schools across the provinces of Bururi, Makamba and Rutana.

World literature will also have greater space in this curriculum.

Anjali Chhabra, education officer at the CBSE in New Delhi told India Real Time that subjects will be taught with a more global perspective. For instance, when it comes to history there will be more space for world history, rather than just Indian history, as is the case in the regular curriculum.

Languages are an important component of the international curriculum. The students are also expected to study three languages, rather than just two. Compulsory languages are English and either Hindi or another local language, as is already the case in the regular curriculum, plus a foreign language. Options could include French, Russian, Spanish, German and Portuguese.

So far, only ten schools across India have applied for the international syllabus.

In a major leap for India’s education system the country’s Central Board of Secondary Education has decided to go international with a brand new curriculum.

Rana Najadeh, 12, recalled her horror as she bore witness to the destruction. “I got very scared when the soldiers came to demolish our class,” she said. “I rushed out to check on my six year old brother Suleiman, who was crying.” The demolition did not end there, however, as nine other residential structures were also destroyed that day, leaving 30 children and their families homeless. 

Thankfully, UNICEF and Islamic Relief Worldwide took action to address the tragic situation, by rehabilitating the school and providing a better environment for the students. In addition, UNICEF partnered with both the Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA), and the European Commission’s Humanitarian Aid Department (ECHO), to help the traumatized children find relief from their fear and anger by providing psychosocial sessions through dance, drama, arts and play.

amic Relief Worldwide took action to address the tragic situation, by rehabilitating the school and providing a better environment for the students. In addition, UNICEF partnered with both the Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA), and the European Commission’s Humanitarian Aid Department (ECHO), to help the traumatized children find relief from their fear and anger by providing psychosocial sessions through dance, drama, arts and play. “Sometimes for children it is simply the opportunity to play and have fun – be a child – in a safe environment,” said UNICEF Deputy Special Representative, Douglas G. Higgins. “In the end, the psychosocial project is important for children to have a sense of stability, normality and opportunity to reach their potential.” Dkaika children are not the first ones to receive help however, as UNICEF has worked with ECHO since 2003 to help Palestinian children and their families cope with the conflict and violence that affects their daily lives. The activities focus on children who live in areas exposed to frequent home and school demolitions, as well as young Bedouins and children with disabilities. “We must not fail Dkaika children,” said the Deputy Special Representative. ”Education is the cornerstone for peace and security and is at the heart of equity.” var emailarticleloc = location.href; emailarticleloc = emailarticleloc.replace("http://www.unicef.org",""); emailarticleloc = emailarticleloc.replace("http://unicef.org",""); var emailarticle = "Email this article Email this article UNICEFBLOG.addentry({ linkClassName: "bloglink", image: "", title: "UNICEF provides support to Palestinian students through rehabilitation and psychosocial sessions", blurb: "DKAIKA, Occupied Palestinian Territory, 29 September 2011 - Located just 70 metres away from the Green Line - the 1949 Armistice Line – in Israeli-controlled Area ‘C’, the villagers of Dkaika are forced to suffer under the daily risk of home demolition and harassment. ", languageVariant: "ENG", transition: 'b', offsetLeft: "-150", offsetTop: "-440" }); .UNICEFBlog { background-color: #F3F3F3; color: #000000 !important; border: 1px solid #C3C3C3; height: 425px; width: 425px; } .UNICEFBlog h2, .UNICEFBlog h3, .UNICEFBlog p, .UNICEFBlog a, .UNICEFBlog li { margin: 0 !important; padding: 0 !important; line-height: 1.3 !important; font: 10px verdana,arial,helvetica,sans-serif !important;} .UNICEFBlog img { border: 0 !important; } .UNICEFBlog a { text-decoration: none; } .UNICEFBlog h2, .UNICEFBlog h3 { margin: 0 0 7px !important; } .UNICEFBlog .content { padding: 10px !important; padding-bottom: 20px !important; } .UNICEFBlog #closebtn { float: right; height: 18px; width: 18px; } .UNICEFBlog h2 { color: #DF5E32 !important; font-size: 15px !important; font-weight: bold !important; } .UNICEFBlog p { font-size: 10px !important; margin-top: 10px !important; } .UNICEFBlog strong { font-size: 10px !important; } .UNICEFBlog form { margin: 10px 0 3px !important; } .UNICEFBlogEmbed { margin: 8px 0 !important; padding: 10px 5px !important; } .UNICEFBlogEmbed { background: #ffffff none !important; border: 1px solid #0099FF !important; border-width: 4px 0 1px !important; } .UNICEFBlogEmbed h2, .UNICEFBlogEmbed h3, .UNICEFBlogEmbed p, .UNICEFBlogEmbed a, .UNICEFBlogEmbed li { margin: 0 !important; padding: 0 !important; line-height: 1.3 !important; font: 10px verdana,arial,helvetica,sans-serif !important;} .UNICEFBlogEmbed img { border: 0 !important; } .UNICEFBlogEmbed a { text-decoration: none; } .UNICEFBlogEmbed h2 { margin-bottom: 0 !important; } .UNICEFBlogEmbed h3 { margin: 0px !important; margin-top: 2px !important; } .UNICEFBlogEmbed h3 a { color: #0000ff !important; font-size: 12px !important; font-weight: bold !important; font-family: arial,sans-serif !important; } .UNICEFBlogEmbed a.img { float: left !important; margin: 0 7px 1px 0 !important; border: 0; } .UNICEFBlogEmbed a.img img { border: 1px solid #999999 !important; width: 100px; } .UNICEFBlogEmbed p { margin-top: 2px !important; } .UNICEFPush { clear: both; font-size: 1px; height: 1px; line-height: .1; } Blog This Article Blog this article Post this article to your blog. The story's headline, main picture and summary will be displayed on your page as in the preview below. Writing the rest of the blog post will be up to you! Click in the area below, then copy the code and paste it in your blog page: <div class='UNICEFBlogEmbed' dir='ltr'> <h2><a href='http://www.unicef.org'><img src='http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/images/unicefSmallBlue.png' alt='UNICEF' /></a></h2> <h3><a href='http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/oPt_59933.html'>UNICEF provides support to Palestinian students through rehabilitation and psychosocial sessions</a></h3> <p class='embed_teaser'>DKAIKA, Occupied Palestinian Territory, 29 September 2011 - Located just 70 metres away from the Green Line - the 1949 Armistice Line – in Israeli-controlled Area ‘C’, the villagers of Dkaika are forced to suffer under the daily risk of home demolition and harassment. </p> <div class='UNICEFPush'> </div> </div> <style type='text/css'> .UNICEFBlog { background-color: #F3F3F3; color: #000000 !important; border: 1px solid #C3C3C3; height: 425px; width: 425px; } .UNICEFBlog h2, .UNICEFBlog h3, .UNICEFBlog p, .UNICEFBlog a, .UNICEFBlog li { margin: 0 !important; padding: 0 !important; line-height: 1.3 !important; font: 10px verdana,arial,helvetica,sans-serif !important;} .UNICEFBlog img { border: 0 !important; } .UNICEFBlog a { text-decoration: none; } .UNICEFBlog h2, .UNICEFBlog h3 { margin: 0 0 7px !important; } .UNICEFBlog .content { padding: 10px !important; padding-bottom: 20px !important; } .UNICEFBlog #closebtn { float: right; height: 18px; width: 18px; } .UNICEFBlog h2 { color: #DF5E32 !important; font-size: 15px !important; font-weight: bold !important; } .UNICEFBlog p { font-size: 10px !important; margin-top: 10px !important; } .UNICEFBlog strong { font-size: 10px !important; } .UNICEFBlog form { margin: 10px 0 3px !important; } .UNICEFBlogEmbed { margin: 8px 0 !important; padding: 10px 5px !important; } .UNICEFBlogEmbed { background: #ffffff none !important; border: 1px solid #0099FF !important; border-width: 4px 0 1px !important; } .UNICEFBlogEmbed h2, .UNICEFBlogEmbed h3, .UNICEFBlogEmbed p, .UNICEFBlogEmbed a, .UNICEFBlogEmbed li { margin: 0 !important; padding: 0 !important; line-height: 1.3 !important; font: 10px verdana,arial,helvetica,sans-serif !important;} .UNICEFBlogEmbed img { border: 0 !important; } .UNICEFBlogEmbed a { text-decoration: none; } .UNICEFBlogEmbed h2 { margin-bottom: 0 !important; } .UNICEFBlogEmbed h3 { margin: 0px !important; margin-top: 2px !important; } .UNICEFBlogEmbed h3 a { color: #0000ff !important; font-size: 12px !important; font-weight: bold !important; font-family: arial,sans-serif !important; } .UNICEFBlogEmbed a.img { float: left !important; margin: 0 7px 1px 0 !important; border: 0; } .UNICEFBlogEmbed a.img img { border: 1px solid #999999 !important; width: 100px; } .UNICEFBlogEmbed p { margin-top: 2px !important; } .UNICEFPush { clear: both; font-size: 1px; height: 1px; line-height: .1; } </style> Preview: http://www.un

More often than not, it is a perception that knowledge of Chinese will be a vital asset in tomorrow’s job market that is driving demand, he says.

In July, Swedish education minister Jan Björklund floated the idea of every school offering Chinese classes to their students. “Chinese will be much more important, from an economic perspective, than French or Spanish,” he told the Dagens Industri newspaper.

Another important factor is the financial support from Beijing, which has stepped up the activities of the Confucius Institutes, a network of cultural diplomacy bodies tasked with increasing china’s “soft power” around the globe.

hese institutes are often likened to Germany’s Goethe Institute or the Alliance Française but are considerably more aggressive in pushing Beijing’s worldview and shutting down discussion of any topics regarded as politically sensitive such as tibet or China’s human rights record.

Education ministry officials stressed that the new English lessons, Gaikokugo Katsudo (Foreign Language Activities), will be different from English lessons at the junior high level, and students won't be drilled on comprehensive grammar rules or vocabulary.

The goal of the new program is to help children experience and understand other languages and cultures, motivate them to actively communicate with foreigners and become familiar with the sounds and basic expressions of another language, the ministry says.

According to a survey last July and August by the think tank Benesse Educational Research and Development Center on 4,709 elementary school teachers nationwide, 68.1 percent of classroom teachers said they don't have much confidence or they have no confidence in teaching English.

The teacher, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said one of his colleagues told him he was afraid of giving lessons with his broken English, while another pointed out the possibility that this will merely cause children to dislike English.

Because of Bill 101,the French Language Charter, intensive English classes in French schools can't involve instruction in other subjects like mathematics and science.

Since formal education often leads to future job prospects, a culture of teaching peace ought to offer dynamic examples of careers with a conscience, or choosing a vocation which utilizes their unique gifts and talents and which is ecologically sound, morally upright and globally-minded. Giving evidence that peace is a viable and tangible career option can open doors and broaden students' perspectives.

Science teachers can teach peace by promoting environmental awareness and ecological thinking. Foreign language teachers can read and/or translate primary-source texts from the target language which detail experiences in personal, local, national and global peacemaking efforts. Physics classes can learn about the subatomic exchange of matter and energy which binds all humans to one another. Themes of peace and justice can be infused in every content subject so that peace is pervasive in the curriculum.

A comprehensive global network of educators promoting peace will create waves of new teachers who are motivated to teach peace

But the increase in school attendance is only a start. Despite the surge in enrolment, almost half of the 72 million children out of school worldwide in 2007 lived in sub-Saharan Africa.

The UN's MDG Monitor website, which tracks progress towards the goals, estimates that school fees and other mandatory charges, such as uniform costs and dues for parent-teacher associations, consume an average 25 per cent of poor families' household budgets in Africa. But except for the costly fees often assessed on parents in wealthy districts, the sums collected are too small to dramatically improve the quality of learning.

Malawi primary school: The abolition of school fees greatly increased school enrolment, but without sufficient teachers or adequate funding, educational quality suffered.

Despite the huge increase in students, the number of teachers in Kenyan primary schools has increased slowly amidst government concerns that hiring large numbers of unqualified teachers would lower instructional quality and increase costs. By reassigning teachers from overstaffed areas to understaffed districts and running some schools in double shifts, Kenya kept its national pupil-to-teacher ratio from rising beyond 40 to 1 in 2004. Ratios were much higher in some provinces, however.

The government also managed to reach its target of one textbook for every three students in most subjects - an improvement in many poorly performing, largely rural districts that were not given priority for teachers and supplies before 2003

But within India, there is widespread recognition that the country has not invested enough in education, especially at the primary and secondary levels.

In the last five years, government spending on education has risen sharply — to $83 billion last year, up from less than half that level before. Schools now offer free lunches, which has helped raise enrollments to more than 90 percent of children.

But most Indian schools still perform poorly. Barely half of fifth-grade students can read simple texts in their language of study, according to a survey of 13,000 rural schools by Pratham, a nonprofit education group. And only about one-third of fifth graders can perform simple division problems in arithmetic. Most students drop out before they reach the 10th grade.

Those statistics stand in stark contrast to China, where a government focus on education has achieved a literacy rate of 94 percent of the population, compared with 64 percent in India.

Canada also has the weakest record on teaching national history that the council could find it its review of school curricula in other countries. Most Canadian provinces require only one high school course in Canadian history, and they tend to put a very regional lens on the material.Canadian schools are doing an especially poor job of history education when compared to American ones, said Jeremy Diamond, a director for the Historica-Dominion Institute.“We don’t start young enough, we don’t make it a priority, and we have a generation of young people who don’t know the essential things we as Canadians should know about our history,” he said.

The Canadian Council on Learning says there needs to be more school-industry partnerships, like those in part of Central Europe where there are a number of apprenticeship options available to high school students. In Canada, however, a bottleneck occurs as students struggle to find placements in their area of training.

It also recommends that Canada set up a national French-language teacher training college, “in order to preserve and enhance bilingual education.” Canada is facing a shortage of French-language teachers, both in the French school boards outside Quebec and for French immersion programs.

The lack of facilities meant that many classes met under trees, and books and teaching materials arrived months late, if at all. Despite increases in the education budget, spending per student, already low, declined by about 25 per cent and contributed to the decline in quality. As a result nearly 300,000 students dropped out during the first year, and high dropout rates continue to this day.

Overall, reports the UN study, only about 20 per cent of boys and girls successfully complete eight years of primary education in Malawi. This is largely a function of the country's deep poverty, the researchers say, and the lack of resources, such as nutrition programmes, to help poor children remain in school.

The abolition of school fees is a precondition for getting large numbers of poor children into school, but it must be accompanied by strong public and political support, sound planning and reform, and increased financing.

fter systems adjust to the surge in enrolment, they argue, resources must be directed at improving quality and meeting the needs of the very poor, those in distant rural areas and children with disabilities. The analysts say that a particular focus should be girls, who face a range of obstacles to attending and staying in school, including cultural attitudes that devalue education for women. Improved sanitation and facilities and better safety and security conditions can make it easier to keep girls in school.