U.S. ATTENDS FIRST COUNCIL MEEETING OF THE INTERNATIONAL

UNCLAS PARIS FR 000184

State for IO

SIPDIS

E.O. 12598: N/A
TAGS: EAID KPAO UNESCO SCUL
SUBJECT: U.S. ATTENDS FIRST COUNCIL MEEETING OF THE INTERNATIONAL
BUREAU OF EDUCATION


1. (SBU) The U.S., represented by PAO and Dr. Larry Wexler, Director
in the Department of Education's Special Education Programs,
attended its first International Bureau of Education (IBE) council
meeting in Geneva January 27-29. (The IBE is a UNESCO Category I
institute specialized in providing expertise on curriculum reform
and development.) The U.S. was elected to the 28-member council at
the October 2009 UNESCO General Conference. This year's council
meeting featured a forum on "Inclusive Education," as well a report
on IBE's 2009 activities and the establishment of a strategic
working group which will advise on transforming IBE into a UNESCO
Center of Excellence.


2. (SBU) The council also elected Norway's Ole Briseid as president,
with the following regional group vice-presidents: Georgia,
Dominican Republic, Pakistan, Tanzania and Oman. Group 1, comprised
of Western Europe and North America, appointed Israel, also a new
member, as its representative on the administrative committee. After
some negotiation, Switzerland and the U.S. agreed to serve as Group
1 representatives on the strategic working group, which will meet up
to four times in 2010 as it maps out a plan of action to be approved
at the January 2011 council meeting; the U.S. Department of
Education has agreed to support Dr. Wexler as its designated expert.
Switzerland, in its capacity as host country, has authorized the
funding of an external consultant to facilitate the group's work.


3. (SBU) Reporting on its plan of action for 2010, IBE reported that
it will continue to give special attention to UNESCO priorities in
gender and Africa, as well as possibly expand its work in
post-conflict situations. (Note: During IBE's report on its 2009
activities, several African delegates expressed concern that IBE was
not active enough in Africa, which is a commonly heard refrain at
UNESCO. End note.) While the catastrophic state of Haiti's education
infrastructure was noted, council members agreed that the country's
most urgent need was teacher training and counseling and school
reconstruction; IBE's expertise in curriculum development would be
best tapped once the situation stabilized.


4. (SBU) The council also approved the continuation of eight
specific programs for 2010: communities of practice in curriculum
development; technical assistance in Angola, Sudan and Vietnam;
capacity-building in HIV and AIDS education; integration of ICTs
such as Carnegie Mellon's GigaPan module in country curricula;
"Learning for Life and Work" in sub-Saharan Africa; expanded access
to EFA resources; promotion of dialogue on inclusive education; and,
strengthening of the IBE council itself.

KILLION