Local4Global

Vision: We planned a two week project on the continent of Africa either side of the autumn half term in 2007. We saw this project as a way of bringing the whole school together to work in a creative way to enrich the cultural experiences of all members of the school community.

Aims
• To broaden the cultural experience of the pupils
• To work as a whole school on a project
• To work in a creative way on a focused project
• To use personalisation as a way of selecting a pathway through the topic.
• To use outside experts and artefacts to enrich the project

Links to SDP
Key Issue 3 - Personalisation
Dev Issue 1 - Develop pupils' cultural knowledge
Dev Issue 3 - Continue to develop the creative curriculum
Dev Issue 5 - Create opportunities for Parental involvement

Outline: In our recent OFSTED report it was noted that our pupils do not have broad enough "understanding of other cultures." With this in mind we wanted to introduce an exciting new cultural project. We saw this as being an annual project, and would study a different continent each year. Our first continent was Africa. We wanted to develop the skills we have gained so far working on our creative curriculum to pursue a whole school project, where the children would have the opportunity to work across different age ranges. It would be a two week project, either side of October half term. The first week would have the input of visitors and resources. We wanted to use the half term to give the children chance to further research the project and then bring their findings back together after. Further creative work then occurred in school, culminating with an exhibition in which all classes took part. This coincided with our Autumn term parent's evenings. The display was then put up in the Bracknell Forest Education Centre where it was seen by a wider audience. We also created a book of the project showing children's perceptions and how the project changed these. Bracknell Forest bought copies of the book and gave them to every primary school in the borough.

Resources: Staff visited RISC during the planning stage of the project. We have also had staff members attend RISC's Global Citizenship Advocates training throughout the year. This has helped us develop the children's concepts of themselves as global citizens, which is linked to our Rights Respecting Schools level 2 work. It has also helped staff by raising awareness of the curriculum in global terms, as well as introducing the ideas of global change and social justice.

RISC provided us with resource boxes on different countries in Africa, which were an important part of the project. These ensured that children had a real hands-on experience and were able to discuss the similarities as well as differences in a more concrete way.

Working with RISC also gave us more access to resources to help us plan the project and think about our aims. RISC supported us with publications to kick-start the planning process, such as ‘Education for Global Citizenship' and ‘Global Focus Weeks'. The list of ‘do's and don'ts' was also very useful for staff when promoting ‘similarities' and presenting a more complete picture of the countries involved.

To measure the change, we asked children at the beginning of the project their perceptions on Africa. Comments included: everyone being poor, living in mud huts, famine and an overall idea of Africa just being one place.

Children were involved in planning what was covered. The half term break allowed all children to work on a project of their own interest which had been stimulated by the experiences from the creative visitors and use of artefacts. A selection of these were also displayed in the exhibition.

Evaluation of Africa project (staff perspective):

The general consensus was that the project was a great success.
The main strengths of the project included:

• That the children's perceptions changed and they are now aware of the other side of life in the continent of Africa.
• They have a concept of large buildings, education, transport and the other areas the school highlighted as ‘things we want to change'.
• They were able to explain similarities as well as differences between our culture and way of life.

Evaluation of Africa project (student perspective):

One child from each class from Reception to Year 6 were interviewed about the Africa project they unanimously enjoyed it.

What do you think you have learnt about Africa?

• There are different people- but everyone is the same,
• There are 6 big animals, to make houses some use pressed cowpats. Others use brick and mud and straw for the roof, oranges and apples come from SA
• There are 53 countries- they could name lots approx 8/9, there are tribes, Africa is a continent not a country
• There are 54 countries in Africa, elephants weigh more than 3 tonnes, elephants can live up to 80 years, it's a continent, they have electricity
• Not all of it is poor, there are lots of countries - it's a continent - could name Asia, North and South America, Antarctica.
• Africa isn't all poor and sandy - we still see the picture of poor, black children - like Comic Relief but we do know that it isn't all like that
• That buildings are made from brick, there are lots of languages and countries and a variety of animals.

Have your perceptions of what Africa is like changed, having done the project?

• Yes- didn't know anything before
• Have a better idea of what it would be like to live there, thought all houses were mud huts- but they do have big cities, thought it was all poor but we now know there are rich cities, thought there were not markets- but there is a big one in the middle
• We know more about Africa, they do live in brick houses as well - they have electricity, argument over transport - some insistent that they travel by animals others that they use cars and trains etc
• Thought it was all poor - but children had computers, thought everyone lived in shanty towns and mud huts - but they have brick houses, thought they all travelled by camel and walking - but they have bikes, motorbikes, cars, buses etc just like us
• Thought that people lived in mud huts but most live in houses like us but there are traditional people who do still live in houses. It is hard to stop believing they are all poor after everything we have seen
• Thought it was hot and sandy but regions of wet weather, thought houses were made of mud but people but live in houses like we do. Thought people walked and use bikes, but they have cars, buses, trains - they have the same transport as us. There are areas that you would not think it was Africa because of the skyscrapers.

Conclusion:
The project was a great success and impacted on children's perceptions and helped staff develop their application of global awareness in the curriculum.
The project will continue; each year we will focus on a different continent to look at the similarities and develop children's cultural awareness. We are currently working towards a project on South America and the Caribbean to challenge perceptions of this region.

Lynsey Johns, Harmans Water Primary School, Bracknell
September 2008

Website: www.hwps.ik.org

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