Ministries of Education from Baghdad and Kurdistan agree on a common Curriculum Framework during a workshop organized by UNESCO in Doha
Doha, 15 March 2011 – UNESCO conducted two workshops to empower Iraqis to Develop New Curricula and Support Teacher Training
In partnership with the Office of Her Highness Sheikha Moza Bint Nasser, First Lady of Qatar and UNESCO’s Special Envoy for Basic and Higher Education and the International Bureau of Education (IBE), UNESCO organized two simultaneous workshops at la Cigale Hotel from 12 to 16 March 2011: the first one on the Development of the Iraqi curriculum framework and the Establishment of the Iraqi National Curriculum Centre; the second one on the Development of a National Strategy for Teacher Education.
The fact that Curricula and Teacher Training are actually strongly interconnected has been recognized taking into consideration that as curriculum implementers, teachers have a crucial role in delivering and ensuring the success of the new curriculum. Therefore, UNESCO is keen to ensure that both projects proceed in a parallel manner and that the outcomes of each are used to complement the other. These activities are also part of a wider initiative supporting the rehabilitation of the Iraqi education and higher education systems as well as literacy and non-formal education.
The participants of the Teacher Education and Training workshop identified and agreed on the challenges facing the sector and proposed policies to address those challenges, while the participants of the Curriculum Development workshop discussed a first comprehensive draft of the Curriculum Framework. They also agreed on the structure and functions of one Iraqi National Curriculum Center and presentations were made to introduce international experiences and efficient practices in these fields.
UNESCO is proud to have contributed to a historic event in the process of Educational Reform in Iraq namely the agreement of the Ministries of Education in Baghdad and Kurdistan on a common Curriculum Framework. The second major achievement of these workshops is the completion of the stage of identifying challenges and proposing policies for the National Teacher Education Strategy.
Finally a Steering Committee for the implementation and coordination of all Teacher Training Projects in Iraq was established including members of International agencies such as UNICEF, British Council, and the World Bank in addition to representatives from the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research in Iraq.
For more information, please contact: Ms. Nidhal Al-Kadhim, UNESCO Iraq,
E-mail: n.al-kadhim@unesco.org, mobile: +962776723418