 Children enjoy a workshop |
Young people in Norfolk are getting the chance to discover African music, Indian poetry and Latin American dance, thanks to an educational scheme with a difference. The World Voices project, run by the charity Norfolk Education and Action for Development (NEAD), encourages children and their teachers to find out about other cultures directly from people whose heritage is rooted in the countries of South America, Asia and Africa. 
Developing global citizenship |
NEAD has brought 26 people and 17 different nationalities together to offer workshops covering a host of topics - Chinese writing, American Indian history, rainforest ecology and human rights in Chile are just some of the subjects covered. At the launch of a booklet aimed at schools across the county, project co-ordinator Sandy Betlem explained the idea behind the National Lottery-funded scheme. "The aim is to get people from Africa, Asia and Latin America into schools so that kids and school teachers can meet them and learn from them," he said. "I think it is very important in Norwich because Norwich is predominantly white and kids have very few of those opportunities." John Makina is one of the volunteers taking part. The Oxfam worker from Malawi is spending a year studying at the University of East Anglia; he gives workshops on the geography and rural life of his homeland. John sees the NEAD project as a two-way opportunity - as well as bringing his experiences of Africa to schools in Norfolk, he also hopes he can take new skills back home. more>>> | 
