A Sustainability Frontiers UK team consisting of David Selby and Fumiyo Kagawa completed a 2021 UNESCO Multi-sectoral Regional Bureau for West Africa (Sahel) consultancy focussing on a National Curricula Review to Integrate Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) in The Gambia.
The Curriculum Review Project in The Gambia aimed at contributing to improved awareness, knowledge and action-taking for DRR among Gambian children through a review of early childhood and basic education curricula to achieve alignment with the African Union Programme of Action for the Implementation of Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030.
The SF team provided technical support for the integration of disaster risk reduction in national curricula for early childhood, primary and secondary levels throughout the project.
After developing a detailed workplan in consultation with key national and international project stakeholders, the SF team developed a technical guidelines document on how to integrate DRR in education, which served as a tool and roadmap for integrating DRR in The Gambian school curricula. The draft guideline document was presented and discussed at a national stakeholder workshop held from 28 to 30 June 2021, in which the SF team participated and facilitated virtually. The guidelines document was subsequently finalized by incorporating the feedback received.
The SF team then prepared a comprehensive curriculum review report identifying existing DRR curricular opportunities and entry points, together with key recommendations. A Review of The Gambian Early Childhood and Basic School Curriculum through the Lenses of Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Change Learning was presented and discussed in a stakeholder workshop held on 1 and 2 September 2021, in which the SF team again participated and facilitated virtually. The review report was finalized by incorporating a curriculum audit report developed by the Gambian national team and the workshop feedback and comments received.
Following that the Gambian team worked on the integration of DRR components in pre-primary to lower secondary curriculum, the SF team offering technical guidance and detailed feedback from a distance.
Finally, the SF team developed the DRR teaching and learning support materials (i.e. toolkits) for teachers to guide their implementation of the new DRR curricula at early childhood and basic education levels. Four Teacher Toolkits were developed for: early childhood teachers; lower basic school teachers at grades 1-3; upper basic school teachers at grades 4-6; and upper basic education school teachers working at grades 7-9. A total of 46 sample learning activities was included in these toolkits. The draft materials were finalized by incorporating the feedback gathered during the key stakeholder material review workshop held on 13 and 14 December 2021.