State and UNICEF implement Literacy and Bilingualism course for indigenous children

With the aim of encouraging reading and writing practices in first and second languages ​​for indigenous students, the State Government, through the Ministry of Education and Sports (SEyD), launched the First Course “Literacy and Bilingualism for indigenous girls and boys.

The activity was developed by the Directorate of Educational Research and Development, through the Coordination of Continuing Training, in collaboration with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the Autonomous University of Chihuahua (UACH).

The training was aimed at 300 teachers who teach the first and second grade of Indigenous Primary Education, which will provide theoretical elements with the intention of strengthening and transforming their work in the classroom, for the direct benefit of the school community they serve.

The start of the work was carried out at the Technological University of Tarahumara (UTT), in the municipality of Guachochi, and was headed by the head of the SEyD, Sandra Elena Gutiérrez Fierro, who highlighted the relevance of this type of activities academic training that helps the comprehensive development of students.

“This is a fundamental step in our commitment to inclusive and quality education for all, literacy and bilingualism are fundamental pillars for the comprehensive development of our children in an increasingly diverse and globalized world, we are sowing the seeds for a future where knowledge and culture are intertwined, where identity and learning are inseparable allies,” said the official.

In her intervention, the head of Education at UNICEF Mexico, Astrid Hollander, said that all girls and boys have the right to learn from their native language, which is why she asserted that these types of activities promoted by the Government of the State of Chihuahua are fundamental to provide opportunities to communities that have general particularities according to their ethnicity.

Likewise, he reiterated the firm commitment to work hand in hand with the Ministry of Education and Sports to promote all the policies that are necessary to guarantee a Chihuahuan childhood that has all the tools for its integral development.

The course was taught by a group of experts in the field and consisted of three modules: “Development of literacy at the beginning of the school years”, “Acquisition of the writing system in bilingual contexts”, and “Teaching strategies for reading and writing in bilingual contexts.

As part of the follow-up to this activity, UNICEF will deliver booklets in the Odami and Rarámuri languages ​​of the Alta Tarahumara for each first and second grade student of Indigenous Primary, in addition to monitoring and accompaniment in the classroom to the group of teachers. , to finally carry out a final evaluation of the project.

To carry out this event, with a direct impact on 300 teachers, as well as girls and boys from indigenous communities, procedures were carried out before the General Directorate of Continuing Training for Teachers and Managers, for the corresponding registration of the course, as well as authorization to the implementation with resources of the Program for Teacher Professional Development (PRODEP).