Global Action Week 2012 Concluding Ceremony
Global Action Week 2012
From April 22nd to 28th 2012
Rights from the Start - Early Childhood Care and Education now
On 28th April 2012 at Nigam Pratibha Vidhyalaya, Janak Puri, National Coalition for Education organized Culmination Ceremony of Global Action Week. Many eminent guests from Teacher organizations, representatives of donor agencies (UNICEF, UNESCO, CARE, OXFAM, and SAVE THE CHILDREN), local elected representatives, more than 500 students and around 50 teachers and parents from All Delhi Primary Teacher’s association participated in the programme. Programme was chaired by Mr. Prithvi Raj Sahni ,Ex Mayor NCR and facilitated by Dr. Supriti and hosted by Mr. Ram Chandra Dabas, President, All Delhi Primary Teacher’s association.
The culmination ceremony started with a very warm welcome done by Mr. Rama Kant Rai, Convener, NCE. In his welcome address he welcomed all the guests including chief guest, Teachers, parents, students and activists working on education. Further he emphasized that till date only 40% children access education in India and through this event every year we try to ensure that governments and institutions keep their promises and monitor that Education for All really is achieved.
The inaugural address presided by honorable Chief Guest Mr. Shigeru Aoyagi, Country Director, UNESCO, India. He stated that “he is glad to attend the programme and got an opportunity to hear the experiences of children, parents and teachers on ECCE related issues. Further he said that the first six years of life are the most crucial in laying the foundation for a healthy and productive life. The foundations for cognitive, social, emotional, physical/ motor development, language and communication, inculcation of social values and personal habits are laid in these years, all of which last a lifetime.” Therefore Early Childhood Care and Education is very important part in development of individual’s life.
Further Mr. Prithvi Raj Sahni, Ex. Mayor, Delhi NCR said that “Quality early childhood care and education significantly contributes to development and learning of children, prepares them for school and sets a good foundation for life. It is high time we must make efforts to bring this issue under Right to Education Act and take into the notice of state. All the eminent dignitaries raised the issue of engaging all the state and non state stakeholders to advocate the plight of ECCE for making it a justifiable right towards achieving the goal of “Education for All” by the end of 2015.”
Ms. Rajni Mamtani, Area Councilor in her note said that Celebrating and remembering the significance of this week is very important. This reminds all of us that until and unless we do not ensure early childhood care and education andelementary education of each child we should not stop our efforts towards achieving the goal of Education for All. Because I represent government through this platform I promise that I will ensure that every child in my area enrolls in school and complete his/her elementary school with quality.
Mr. Alisher Umarow, Head Education, UNESCO in his address stated that GAW is for children and every child and his parent needs to know about the child’s growth and development aspects to ensure and flourish the childhood. I want to see adults saying that they had best childhood. There is a need to bring all the children living in deprived conditions into Dakar framework.
Ms. Yokoko Fujimori, UNICEF said that School is a place where children study and enjoy together and understand about them and around. In another hand parents and teachers have responsibility to make conducive environment for children to enhance their growth and development.
In the end of the programme Mr. Ram Pal Singh, General Secretary, National Coalition for Education and General Secretary All India Primary Teacher’s Association gave vote of thanks to all the guests. The main demand came from the programme for the state was that Early Childhood Care, Education and Development must be incorporated in Right to Education Act 2009.
Education is a fundamental human right. It is the key to sustainable development and peace and stability within and among countries, and thus an indispensable means for effective participation in the societies and economies of the twenty-first century, which are affected by rapid globalization.
Every year, over 200 million children across globe under the age of five do not receive these rights, denying them their best chance to achieve their potential and end the cycle of poverty.
Early childhood care and education (ECCE) is Goal 1 of the six Education For All goals, agreed by 164 governments in Dakar in 2000, and is affirmed as an individual right in numerous international and regional treaties. But report on Rights from the Start done by Global Campaign for Education clearly shows that it is a goal that is far from being achieved and aachieving Education for All goals should be postponed no longer. The basic learning needs of all can and must be met as a matter of urgency.
The Global Campaign for Education is calling on governments to commit to:
· ECCE for all children, without discrimination: Governments must ensure availability of ECCE for all children, taking measures to overcome all forms of discrimination and reduce inequalities in access to and quality of ECCE.
· Teacher and curriculum development: Governments should ensure that ECCE teachers are trained and supported as professional teaching staff, and that ECCE programmes encompass children’s educational, developmental, nutritional, health and individual needs, including through parenting support.
· Increased investment and improved coordination in early childhood care and education
· Governments must adopt a single, coherent ECCE policy, which may include work carried out across different ministries and agencies (e.g. education, health), but which has one clear lead agency.
· Governments should ensure that at least 1% of GDP is spent on early childhood services.
Observing the immediate need to take action on to ensure ECCE as a policy demand in the country this year under Global Campaign for Education’s Global Action Week (which has been organized every year from 22nd to 28th April) did campaigning for Rights from the Start: early childhood care and education (ECCE). With this clear agenda NCE is advocating with the government and policy makers to make sure these young children get the rights they are entitled to.
During Global Action Week, National Coalition for Education organized a series of activities with different stakeholders in national and state headquarters. On 28th April 2012, the last day of the Global Action Week, along with 13 states i.e. Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, Hariyana, Uttarakhand, Odisha, Panjab, Maharastha and Uttarakhand, and national capital Delhi organized a programme at Nigam Pratibha Vidhyalaya, Janakpuri. At this occasion, students from four Nigam Pratibha schools presented cultural programmes and also participated and awarded for drawing and painting competition on the emerging issues of Early Childhood Care, Education and Development of children between the age group of 0 -3 & 3-6 years.
Activities done during the Global Action Week 2012
1. Meeting with UNESCO: UNESCO and other donor agencies in consultation with NCE organized a planning meeting in mid April to discuss on the programme can be done during the GAW across country.
2. Meeting with Teacher’s Association: A meeting with General Council of teachers of around 13 states was organized by the NCE to communicate about the planned activities of GAW and for getting support from their association to organize programmes to be planned in schools in their respective states on ECCE theme.
3. Teacher’s orientation on ECCE: NCE members held orientation sessions with teachers in states and delhi before organizing drawing competition. The main objective of discussions was to orient them on ECCE issues.
4. Student’s orientation on ECCE and drawing Competition: In all the schools NCE members did sensitization and a discussion on ECCE issues with students and most of them shared their views on the issue as per their experiences seen in their families and neighborhood.
5. Drawing Competition: Around 600 students of 4rth and 5th standards from four schools of Janakpuri area i.e. Nigam Pratibha School C-5 A, Nigam Primary School C-4E, Nigam Primary School C-2 and MC Primary School, Tihar Prison participated enthusiastically in the competition. Students were told to draw their thoughts on an ideal early childhood care and education situation for their younger brothers and sisters and asked to picture what helped them learn and grow when they were in early childhood. Pictures telling the stories of importance of breast feeding, importance of immunization, care, health services and education and role of play and learning stages were amazingly drawn by the students.
Remarkably Global Action Week various program held in different places over 11 states. Let have a look onto the activities held in Merath coordinated by Sanjeev kumar and Mukesh kumar.
Sanjeev kumar, NCE representative in Meruth,
District cooridionater Shri Sanjeev Kumar
In Mumbai our state Research & documentation office Vinod Satwe also organished GAW program in various government schools in Mumbai.
In other hand when we are talking about the program in Udisa than we can find the best programme held in this state. Our state research & documentation office Naba Kishor Pujari has done marvelous job have a look on some pictures-
School and Mass Education Minister Mr.Pratap Jena was presented memento to Mr. Ambrish Rai and a write up on ECCE on the eve of Global action week.
NCE Staff participating in the discussion
If we can talk about Delhi’s programme onto Global Action Week 2012 than yes lets have a look on some pictures.
We talked about 0to 6 years old children not only in India but all over the world.
Mr. Shingaru chief guest UNESCO, dialogued with children in the programme at Janakpuri.
