Accelerated funding to strengthen Global Partnership for Education’s response to COVID-19

The COVID-19 pandemic is affecting millions of learners at all levels across the world. Children with disabilities, in particular, are facing greater challenges following the move to online teaching programmes, resulting in digital exclusion and increased risk of being left behind due to the absence of appropriate assistive technology, access to the internet, and accessible learning materials and support.

In this context, UNESCO Asia and Pacific Regional Bureau for Education, with financial support from the Global Partnership for Education (GPE), is undertaking activities in the eight countries Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, Lao PDR, Nepal, Pakistan and Timor-Leste through the interventions outlined below.

Objective

The project seeks to ensure that children with disabilities continue to learn during this critical time. To achieve this, the focus is on the production of learning materials in accessible formats for children with disabilities and developing capacities of teachers through online training to support children with disabilities.

Project deliverables

Development of accessible reading materials

Produce 800 accessible reading materials in accessible formats, for children with disabilities, in the eight GPE eligible countries in Asia (Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, Lao PDR, Nepal, Pakistan and Timor-Leste). These will be. These accessible reading materials will be made readily available in the Global Digital Library platform and available in the languages of each country, to build on students’ knowledge and experiences to assist them in learning new concepts and skills. They can also be used as supplementary reading resources for students.

• Accessible reading materials – Afghanistan (Farsi Afghanistan) https://digitallibrary.io/fa-af/
• Accessible reading materials – Afghanistan (Pashto): https://digitallibrary.io/ps/
• Accessible reading materials – Bangladesh (Bengali): https://digitallibrary.io/bn/reading/library-books/
• Accessible reading materials – Bhutan (Dzongkha): TBC
• Accessible reading materials – Cambodia (Khmer): https://digitallibrary.io/km/
• Accessible reading materials – Lao PDR (Laotian): https://digitallibrary.io/lo-laoo
• Accessible reading materials – Nepal (Nepali): https://digitallibrary.io/ne-np
• Accessible reading materials – Pakistan (Urdu): TBC
• Accessible reading materials – Timor Leste (Tetum): https://digitallibrary.io/tet/

Development of an online teacher training course to support children with disabilities

An online, multilingual regional teacher training course will be developed and piloted in four GPE Education Sector Program Implementation Grants (EPSIG)-eligible countries in Asia (Bhutan, Cambodia, Lao PDR and Timor-Leste) to enhance teacher capacity to adequately support children with disabilities during and after crisis, including COVID-19, in four areas:

1. Stress management and psychosocial support
2. Utilization of different assistive technologies
3. Developing emergency response plan
4. Continuity of Learning

• Register for the online teacher training course at: http://onlinecourse.seameo.org/
• Teacher training course promotional video (long version) -  https://youtu.be/1xAYy4ZQEIw
• Teacher training course promotional video (short version) - https://youtu.be/CDJV_gktWjU

Resources

• Translate a Story - https://translateastory.org

Main photo credit: ©Shutterstock/GUNDAM_Ai