Global education initiative starts at Marka’s girls’ school

AMMAN — The British Ambassador to Jordan Edward Oakden has recently launched the Connecting Classrooms through Global Learning programme at the Marka Prep Girls’ School Number 2 as part of The World’s Largest Lesson project.

The global education programme enables girls from Marka’s Prep School in Amman to chat with students at St Joseph’s School in London. The schools are connected by the programme through various technological devices, giving the opportunity to children and teachers to “exchange both culture and knowledge”.

“We have become friends with the girls there, because we spent a lot of time chatting in the past year. We talked about our hopes and aspirations together, and also about the challenges we face in life,” said a 10th grade Marka student, to the ambassador, at the launch.

In exchange, students at St Joseph’s sang a song in Arabic that they were taught by Marka’s Prep School teachers, as “an appreciation for the lasting friendship that was created over the past year”.

The British embassy told The Jordan Times that the previous Connecting Classrooms programme involved more than 5,000 schools around the world working in partnership, and reached more than one million children between 2015 and 2018. The new programme that the ambassador launched is also aimed at “increasing awareness and understanding of global issues and different cultures” by reaching a further 3 million pupils during a period of three years.

UK Secretary of State for International Development, Penny Mordaunt, who was joining the event all the way from St Joseph’s, said, “The Connecting Classrooms through Global Learning programme is a win for the UK and a win for the developing world… I have been really moved to hear the stories of children taking part in the programme and learning how much they actually have in common, how alike they are.”

Although the girls at Marka’s Prep school repeatedly expressed their delight at the programme and all that it has enabled them to do, they revealed to the ambassador that they could not help but feel sad when they connected with St Joseph’s and were exposed to the advanced facilities and great opportunities that their own school lacks.

Marka’s Prep School is one of 172 schools in Jordan that are funded by the UNRWA. According to the British ambassador, over 120,000 Palestinian children benefit from the relief agency’s support.

The ambassador said that the visit came at “a critical time” for the UNRWA, adding: “It is important to support UNRWA’s role in sustaining Palestinian people, two million of which are residing here in Jordan.”

Asked about Britain’s position on UNRWA, the ambassador emphasised that his country is looking to increase its donations this year by at least 60 per cent. “We have announced two increases so far this year, and we will have further announcements as well.”

On a political level, Oakden said that Britain is “very committed to close UNRWA’s immediate funding crisis, as well as put it on a sustainable footing for the medium term so that we don’t have a crisis every September over whether UNRWA has enough funding”.