ESD: Complementing Initiatives for EFA UNESCO Bangkok, Asia and Pacific Regional Bureau for Education

Universal Education Goals Developing good relationships with others Developing self competence and confidence Developing an aesthetic appreciation for the environment National identity Physical health Vocational skills Learning society Developing spiritual, moral, social & cultural values

UNIVERSAL EDUCATION GOALS Providing access and quality education for all Empowering people through education to create a sustainable future EFA ESD

Comparative Advantages UNIVERSAL EDUCATION GOALS EFA Increasing primary enrollment rates for girls and boys Increasing survival rates to Grade 5 for girls and boys Reducing P/T ratio Increasing youth and adult literacy Increasing enrollment in TVET for boys and girls Increasing % of teachers with required qualifications Quality, relevant learning ESD Quality teaching (student-centered, locally-relevant, project-based, experiential, etc.) Locally-relevant lesson planning Encouraging community participation in education Engaging students and youth in decision making Developing skills and competencies for good citizenship, social behavior and cont’d learning 5

UNESCO General Conference (Paris, October 2007) Sustainability “presents a challenge of learning how to live differently, and education is key to this. But the issue is not just one of putting ESD into the curriculum and teaching materials, important though this is. It is also about cultivating capacities of critical understanding, careful analysis, respect for others and forward-thinking capacities, which enable people to reflect upon and change their behaviour, values and life-styles.” Mr. Koichiro Matsuura, Director-General of UNESCO, to 96 Ministers of Education gathered the Ministerial Round Table on Education and Economic Development, Paris,19-20 October 2007. (Communiqué can be downloaded at: http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0015/001542/154229e.pdf)

EFA ESD QUALITY GENDER LITERACY LIFE SKILLS UPE / UBE ECCE

EFA Global Monitoring Report 2008 Quality monitors three dimensions: Assessment of learning performance, enabling conditions for teaching and learning, and quantity and quality of the workforce. But assessments rarely examine values, attitudes and other non-cognitive skills. 8

South East Asia and the Mekong: Quality Needs Education and training of in-service primary school teachers to improve teaching and learning methodologies; Improving the quality of pre-service and in-service teacher training; The present basic education curriculum is ‘overloaded’ leading to a need to review and decongest the curriculum; and Building capacity for monitoring, evaluation and reporting at all levels (down to the districts and schools).

Life Skills: Another of Many Links EFA ESD Youth literacy TVET Knowledge, skills and attitudes toward personal health Transitioning to secondary and higher education Effective communication Critical thinking, problem solving Systemic thinking Independent learning Team work, cooperation Interpersonal relations Quality awareness The capacity to use these processes: knowing, inquiring, acting, judging, imagining, connecting, valuing, and choosing ESD 10

South East Asia and the Mekong: Skill Needs Training programmes need to better match the needs of either the trainees or labour market demand; The revision and development of TVET programmes that serve today’s labour market as well as tomorrows Mainstreaming entrepreneurship skills in TVET; and Systematic and comprehensive data collection mechanisms and tools yet to be established to provide accurate and up-to-date information on skills training programmes.

Complementary Structures EFA EFA National Coordinator National EFA Forum EFA National Action Plan ESD ESD Focal Point National DESD Committees / Working Groups National DESD Goals & Priorities

Recommendations 1. Conduct a mapping of ongoing quality education and skills initiatives at the national level: How can these initiatives link EFA and ESD? 2. Assist ESD programmes to identify national sustainable development priorities: How can these priorities complement EFA in national sustainable development strategies? How can ESD goals and priorities complement the National EFA Action Plan? 3. Link EFA and ESD programmes at the national level through representation in the national EFA forum and National ESD Committee. 13

Advisor of the Minister of National Education, “One of the challenges of EFA is to produce a harmonious society. All our efforts to fill the gaps between disparities (gender, rural/urban, linguistic, etc.) are not to produce statistics, but the aims are to develop a harmonious and sustainable society.” Mr. Herwindo Haribowo Advisor of the Minister of National Education, Indonesia

UNESCO Bangkok, Asia and Pacific Regional Bureau for Education www.unescobkk.org/education/esd j.bacha@unescobkk.org