ECD training for supervisors 2015
General context:
In Nepal there are 75 districts, Gorkha is one of them. In this district there are 18 resources centers.
Resource Centres (RCs) are the extended arm of DEOs (District Education Offices). They lead the educational activities conducted at local level i.e., at the school and community level. Each RC is headed by a Resource Person (RP). RPs are selected among the teachers of RC catchments area. At present, there are all together 1,053 RCs throughout the country. RCs are supervised, evaluated and monitored by the School Supervisor.
Functions of the Resources Centres:
- Conduct various meetings to uplift education standard;
- Collect, analyze and disseminate education information;
- Supervise, monitor, evaluate /follow-up and provide feedbacks to schools and teachers;
- Bridge in-between DEO and Schools.
Region and district-wise RC distributions (2010):
Public targeted by the training:
After the meeting in Gorkha city with the District Education Officer, Dendi Sherpa (CDCA director) and Chief of Resource center Arughat (the main person of one resources centre of Gorkha District);
It has been decided to not only give advantage to 1 resource center but to give the opportunity to take part to the training to all the resource center of the district.
So instead of training directly the Early Childhood Development (ECD) facilitators of 1 resources centre, the training will be for the ECD supervisors of each resources centers.
I don’t have the number of schools per resource centers.
CDCA introduced me to a local NGO : Seto Gurans, which is providing technical support (training givers to implement ECD centers), and with the help of Save the Children (financial supporter) and UNICEF (financial supporter) implements ECD centers in governmental schools.
Seto Guras is operating since 1979 and has trained and equipped ECD centers in 58 districts.
However, during the civil war lots of schools and therefore ECD centers have been close down + many people (parents, teachers and government officers) don’t understand the importance of ECD.
Nowadays Seto Guras has reinitiated ECD centers in 25 districts in Nepal (see below).
Gorkha is not part of these district
Seto Gurans has helped to developed this handbook for national purpose: http://www.ibe.unesco.org/curricula/nepal/np_ppfw_2006_eng.pdf
That can help to develop more tools and give more ideas than the pictures of material showed below.
With Dendi, we have met Seto Gurans staff. They showed us the material that they are using in their training. They actually train the ECD facilitators to develop/build themselves the material that they will be using in their ECD centre. Seto Gurans believes (CDCA and me too) that the material should be developed with local resources/material (cf. see below examples of material produced locally in villages).
Seto Gurans is providing “tool box” after training but most of the material is produced with the trainees during training. The tool box costs around 11.000 Nepali Rupees (around 100 Euros).
We are in the process to see with CDCA+Seto Gurans what material is totally compulsory in this tool box and that cannot be produced with local material (like educational poster and books).
Regarding the ECD curriculum of Seto Gurans, they recommend to create at least 6 ECD areas in the ECD room (with pictures below):
A corner can be developed with books as well as a mini library; as well as doll/puppet handmade by the mothers of the child.
This training has therefore different goals:
- Equip the future ECD centres;
- Train de ECD resource centres’ supervisors:
- How to make the future material,
- How to use the material made,
- How to make an ECD room child friendly,
- Demonstrate them the importance of ECD (not an easy task!),
- Give them tips on how to train the ECD facilitators of their own resource centres;
- Give them tips on how to help the ECD facilitators to convince the parents about the importance of ECD (involve parents in the creation of games for their children and for home).
- Give them tools to monitor, evaluate the work of the ECD facilitators and the progress of each child,
One translator will be required; CDCA and/or the district officers will try to find a local youth who would like to learn about ECD, can speak good English and who has confidence to speak in front of a group of older people.
One day in Seto Gurans can be (and should be) organized before departure for Gorkha.
I recommend the visit of a French kindergarten to see the different techniques for the weakening of the child from 3 to 5 years old.