Workshop for GCED Capacity-building of Bhutanese Stakeholders for Curricular Integration

The Ministry of Education and Skills Development (MoESD) of the Kingdom of Bhutan and the Asia-Pacific Centre of Education for International Understanding (APCEIU) co-organized a five-day capacity-building workshop on global citizenship education (GCED) on 4-8 June 2023 in Paro, Bhutan.

Bhutan, alongside Malaysia, Bangladesh, and Ghana, is a partner country of APCEIU’s fourth round of the GCED Curricular Development and Integration (CDI) project. In its second year of the project, one of the main goals of Bhutan for this workshop was to prepare educators to create pilot lesson exemplars based on the draft GCED integration framework and guide developed by the curriculum specialists of the GCED CDI working committee.

Around 60 participants, comprised of GCED CDI working committee members, curriculum developers, teachers and school principals from 15 schools across the country, as well as district education officers and heads of divisions from the MoESD, attended the workshop. Also present were two representatives from APCEIU and three international experts from Australia, the Philippines, and India.

The workshop kicked off with a candle lighting ceremony to signal peace and goodwill. Ms Jeongmin Eom, on behalf of APCEIU, was received as the honorary Chief Guest by Mr Pem Tshering, Chief of the School Curriculum Division in the Department of School Education. The workshop consisted of presentations by Bhutanese and APCEIU experts on GCED, as well as group activities that encouraged educators to develop strategies to integrate GCED into their subjects, such as Language and Social Studies. The workshop provided an opportunity for the participants to recognize common elements across GCED and Gross National Happiness, which is one of the key guiding philosophies of the kingdom. 

During the workshop, APCEIU experts also had an opportunity to visit Khangkhu Middle Secondary School in Paro and gained insight into the Bhutanese school system by observing lessons and interacting with students.

After the workshop, APCEIU representatives had an opportunity to meet Mr Tshewang Chophel Dorji, the Acting Secretary of the MoESD and Secretary-General of the Bhutan National Commission for UNESCO, together with the heads of other departments and divisions within the MoESD. During the meeting, APCEIU and the MoESD were able to reaffirm their commitment to the GCED CDI project and strengthen their partnership.

Based on the discussions made during the workshop,  the GCED CDI working committee members will revise the GCED framework and guide it while the teachers and principals will develop ideas for the lesson exemplars. In the next year, these outputs will be pilot-tested and further refined with the aim of nationwide distribution.