The Guyana Learning Channel will be broadcasting taped classroom sessions of the UN World’s Largest Lesson at noon today and tomorrow.
The “World’s Largest Lesson,” an initiative to raise awareness about the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) among children in over 100 countries, was officially launched in Guyana on Wednesday by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the Ministry of Education.
Tagged the “global goals for sustainable developments,” these 17 SDGs, which succeeded the eight Millennium Developmental Goals (MDGs), aim to “achieve 3 extraordinary things in the next 15 years.”
These, according to the Global Goals website, are to “end extreme poverty, fight inequality and injustice and fix climate change.”
In an effort to “tell everyone” about the SDGs, the Global Goals campaign founding partners Aviva, Getty Images, Pearson, Standard Chartered and Unilever have supported the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organis-ation (UNESCO), TES Global and Berlitz in the creation of the World’s Largest Lesson.
According to the UNICEF website, public figures and leaders, ranging from Queen Rania Al Abdullah of Jordan to PLAN International global ambassador Freida Pinto, are participating in the World’s Largest Lesson, and several have created lesson materials. These lessons include: introductions by Serena Williams, Kolo Touré, Neymar and Dani Alves; an animated film by Aardman and author and education expert Sir Ken Robinson; and a downloadable comic book by Josh Elder, Karl Kesel and Grace Allison.
In Guyana, the lessons are being publicly disseminated via The Guyana Learning Channel, which has collaborated with curriculum specialists from NCERD to produce three lessons for the project.
Dr Seeta Shah Roath, Executive Director of The Guyana Learning Channel Trust, told Stabroek News that the lessons were delivered by teachers of the North Georgetown Secondary School, the Bishops’ High School, and the St. Pius Primary School.
She said that the broadcasts were expected to be uploaded to the channel’s website for access worldwide yesterday and will be transmitted via the Guyana Learning Channel’s network over the weekend today and tomorrow at 12 noon.
This initiative strives to do more than simply educate children about the SDGs. It “will also engage children in efforts to achieve the SDGs and encourage them to act as drivers of change in their communities.”
At the Guyana launch of the Lesson, learning and development officer of UNICEF Audrey Rodrigues noted that “the opportunity afforded by the 17 SDGs, to work towards providing a better world for our children, will be wasted if we do not focus efforts and investments on reaching the most disadvantaged and vulnerable.”
According to Rodrigues, “girls and boys will learn that they can be agents of change if we provide them with empowering and relevant education in a child-friendly school environment. This can help to reduce their vulnerability to risk, while contributing to sustainable development for their communities. Getting our children involved early will help to nurture more responsible adults.”
