Partnership with South African schools

 

Schools in Cheshire East will be sharing ideas and information with their counterparts in South Africa after a new partnership was set up.

Cheshire East Council has joined up with the Gauteng Province Education Department. Gauteng is one of South Africa’s main provinces and includes major cities such as Johannesburg and Pretoria.

Both groups have signed an agreement pledging to develop long-term and mutually-beneficial education programmes and help exchange cultural practices.

This will be achieved by:

• Joint curriculum projects, or projects in specific areas;
• Increasing language learning;
• Exchange visits of students and teachers;
• Expansion of opportunities for students to communicate with each other through information and communication technology; and
• Professional development of the teachers from Cheshire East and Gauteng by sharing best practice in education.

Representatives from Gauteng have recently visited Cheshire East, where they worked in the schools involved in the scheme and signed the partnership agreement.

Councillor Hilda Gaddum, Cabinet member in charge of children and family services, said:

“This is the second of Cheshire East’s formal partnerships – one with schools in Kenya and now South Africa. 

“These partnerships reflect the huge commitment from the staff of schools in both countries to develop a greater understanding of each other’s cultures, so that our young people become truly global citizens with an understanding and tolerance of each other. 

“I fully endorse the work of the partnership and thank the British Council for their support.”