PRIMARY EDUCATION
ENSEIGNEMENT PRIMAIRE



The Bunumbu Experience

Most people in Sierra Leone live in rural areas. Life is difficult and they are unable to produce enough rice to feed themselves and the rest of the country. To improve the quality of life and help make primary education more relevant to the needs of the people, a pilot project was set up at a rural teacher-training college.

(primary education; rural areas; teacher education)

[Code: 0018] Country:  Sierra Leone
Producer:  UNESCO7OPI
1987, English, 24', VHS/PAL


Awakening

The Indian Institute of Education (Pune), has developed a system of part-time primary education to meet the needs of working children, especially girls. Teachers are selected and trained by the Institute; lessons are held in any space available. The basic curriculum is supplemented with health education, culture and sports. Adult education is an essential part of the programme.

(primary education; girls education; part time education; teacher education; health education; adult education)

[Code: 0024] Country: India
Producer:  Government of India
1987, English, 12', VHS/PAL


Teaching/Learning Strategies in Lesotho Primary Schools

This video describes a research project carried out in ten primary schools in Lesotho. The film relates how such basic facts as the existence (or non-existence) of health facilities, number of pupils in class and multiple teaching practices were observed so as to improve teacher training, curriculum development and help develop standard methods of observing classroom activity.

(primary education; primary teacher education; health education)

[Code: 0021] Country:  Lesotho
Producer:  National University of Lesotho;
IDRC, Canada
1988, English, 10', VHS/PAL


Baldia Home Schools: Filling Gaps in Education

In Pakistan under 30 percent of all children go to primary school. This is why mothers in the large Karachi slum of Baldia have created a home school system, providing high-quality non-formal primary education for out-of-school children.

(primary education; preschool education; non formal education; educational quality)

[Code: 0017] Country:  Pakistan
Producer:  UNICEF
1990, English, 15', VHS/PAL


Vera Goes to School

For ten years, school meals in Cape Verde have proved to be an efficient way of improving school attendance and achievement levels of primary school children. The whole community participates in this effort, building schools and supporting the project activities.

(primary education; preschool education; community participation)

[Code: 0019] Country:  Cape Verde
Producer:  World Food Programme
1990, English, 11', VHS/SECAM


Radio: The Interactive Teacher

In Kenya, a different kind of instruction called "English in Action" has proved to be a powerful strategy for ensuring quality education for large numbers. During 30 interactive minutes a day, the radio teaches English in the project primary schools. The method was conceived by the USAID Bureau for Science and Technology and could be applied to any other subject in the core curriculum.

(primary education; educational radio; educational quality; teaching methods; language instruction)

[Code: 0025] Country:  Kenya
Producer:  USAID
1990, English, 20', VHS/PAL


Non-formal Primary Education

Students in the Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee (BRAC) schools are the unreached children of poor landless families with a majority of girls who constitute 70 % of the total pupils. In Bangladesh, only 30-35 % of children ever start school, and by fifth grade, 75 % have dropped out. In response to the demands of village families, BRAC started village schools with a new model of non-formal primary education. Flexible time schedules, little homework, no school fees, special teacher-training for locally recruited teachers constitute the main innovation of BRAC. 95 % of students pass the exam for entry into fourth grade official primary school. BRAC has over 12,000 centres serving some 360,000 poor rural children.

(primary teacher education; nonformal education; socially disadvantaged children; rural areas)

[Code: 0028] Country:  Bangladesh
Producer:  BRAC
1990, English, 15', VHS/PAL


JIP in Gansu

The Joint Innovative Project (JIP) involves Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Korea, India, Nepal, Philippines, Sri Lanka and China represented by Gansu Province in China. JIP in Gansu comprises 4 important fields: developing pre-schools; improving teaching materials and methodologies; evaluating achievement of children; training materials; involving community and parents in primary education.

(primary education; teaching materials; teacher education; teaching methods; educational programmes; developing countries)

[Code: 0051] Country: China
Producer:  Gansu Institute of Educational Research
1990, English, 52', VHS/MESECAM


Spider's Place

As part of a Pilot Programme using Puppetry in education for primary physics and science lessons produced by the Handspring Trust for Puppetry in Education, meet Frankie, Spider, Ayanda, Mama Bones, Jay and the Cat in Spider's Place. When the puppet gang runs into a derelict warehouse behind Mama Bones' shop to escape the rain they become trapped and it's dark. Frankie trips up and boxes and beams fallon topof him. The warehouse is full of old mirrors which the gang learns how to use to reflect the sunlight on to Frankie so that they can see him. They find some old wood they use as a lever to free him, and also to prise open a trapdoor to the tunnel which lets them out. They also learn other facts about light and discover a laboratory bench and talk about what it is used for.

(primary school; puppets; science)

[Code: 0223] Country:  South Africa
Producer:  Facet Film and Television
1992, English, 20, VHS/PAL


Innovative Strategies for Improving Primary Education

The general objective of this project is to enhance primary education by means of innovative educational ideas and improving the internal and external education environment. It is necessary to mobilize the parents and the community through school and parents' meetings. Teacher-training must include adaptability, emphasis on achievement, integration and school-based teacher-training. Various effective teaching methods are designed and implemented by school teachers.

(primary education; community participation; parent participation; teacher education; teaching methods)

[Code: 0071] Country: China
Producer:  ACCU; Gansu Institute
1993, English, 32', VHS/SECAM


Aapla Varg, the Story of PROPEL

Like 3,000 other out-of-school girls in Maharashtra, India, Kamala goes to Aapla Varg "our class" a non-formal education programme designed by the Indian Institute of Education. This programme, called PROPEL (Promoting Primary and Elementary Education), is now active in 137 villages and has succeeded in reaching girls, often excluded from primary education by deeply rooted social customs. Local teachers, flexible hours, community involvement and modern pedagogical methods are among the keys to its success. This project shows that education for rural girls is possible when integrated into community life. Greater community awareness about the importance of education is a powerful tool to stem the tide of dropouts and increase the quality of education.

(primary education; girls education; community participation; nonformal education; rural areas)

[Code: 0154] Country:  India
Producer:  UNESCO/OPI
1993, English, 29', VHS/PAL/SECAM/NTSC


The Journey Begins

The District Primary Education Programme (DPEP), the first general sector programme launched in education in Asia, is conceived as a model for overhauling the primary education system in India. The Programme draws on national experience and the best features of several state level initiatives. DPEP emphasizes decentralized management and community mobilization and undertakes district and population-specific planning. Addressing issues of content, process, quality and equity in education, the programme goes beyond conventional approaches and has been taken up in 42 districts in 7 states. The film gives a brief overview of the spirit and goals of the programme for the Universalization of Elementary Education, illustrating some of the programme's achievements in its first year.

(primary education; educational strategies; community participation; rural areas)

[Code: 0155] Country:  India
Producer:  UNESCO/ED/BAS
1995, English , 11', VHS/PAL/SECAM/NTSC


Cambodia's Children: Investing in their Future

After two decades of war and devastation, Cambodia had to begin all over again in many fields, especially education, where there was an acute shortage of teachers, inadequate classrooms, an antiquated curriculum and a dearth of teaching materials. With the help of the international community, Cambodia is rebuilding from the bottom up targeting on primary and early secondary school children to improve their literacy and reduce the drop-out rate.

(children; primary education; secondary education; literacy)

[Code: 0252] Country:  Cambodia
Producer:  Asian Development Bank
1996, English, 11', VHS/PAL


MultiEducaçao

"Multi Education" is the name for an educational policy that vitalizes the 1033 municipal schools the mega network of the city of St. Sebastian of Rio de Janeiro. It came into existence in 1992 when the Municipal Government of Rio de Janeiro decided to instigate a Basic Core Curriculum to provide quality education to primary school children nation-wide. This video describes the Multi Education programme, which aims at providing education in the city, respecting cultural pluralism, promotes the use of new technologies to increase access to knowledge, improved management of educational systems, emphasis on social policies and local, national and global education cultures, including a culture of peace to preclude urban exclusion. "MultiRio", a computer technology company, has been involved in providing a wide variety of multimedia programmes to inform, guide and support the work of teachers and students.

(primary education; curriculum development; new information technologies; culture of peace; distance education)

[Code: 0258] Country:  Brazil
Producer:  Secretaria Municipal de Educacao
1997, Spanish, 1h15, VHS/NTSC