CURRICULUM // EXPERT CONTRIBUTOR 40K Foundation empowers teenagers across rural Asia to engage with the world through English.
Developing global citizens for a kinder world REGISTERED AUSTRALIAN CHARITY, THE 40K FOUNDATION, HAS IMPROVED THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNING OUTCOMES AND ACQUISITION OF OVER 16,000 CHILDREN ACROSS RURAL ASIA. IT IS NOW ON A MISSION TO BRING RURAL ASIA TO CLASSROOMS ACROSS AUSTRALIA. The Covid-19 pandemic and prolonged border closures may have seen Australians retreat from the world for a while, but it remains important for young Australians to develop a global outlook and a better understanding of their region, said 40K’s Head of Foundation, Lisa Colquhoun. “Global mindedness, and particularly what might be called ‘Asian mindedness’, not only prepares Australian students for the new global economy, but it also helps to combat the inward-looking instincts and self-versusothers mentality that has unfortunately come out of the pandemic,” said Colquhoun. With the support of the Australian government and the Atlassian Foundation, the Sydney-based organisation has for the past 12 years empowered teenagers across rural
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Asia to engage with the world through English as the de facto global language. Recognising the growing need to (re) globalise the outlook of young people in its own backyard, the 40K Foundation saw an opportunity to connect Australian students with the students it supports in Asia which led to the creation of The Kindskools’ Project. The Kindskools’ Project links participating Australian schools with schools across rural Asia (currently focusing on Cambodia), providing a range of opportunities for the partnered schools to interact, share and learn from each other. The program is open to high schools anywhere in Australia. At the start of the program, participating schools are tasked with creating a presentation about their school, locality and culture to share
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with their partnered school. Following this, students work on small collaborative projects each quarter, designed to build knowledge of their partner school’s culture and way of life. The schedule of quarterly projects spans multiple learning areas and is developed in consultation with teachers to align with the learning outcomes for each grade. Joint school assemblies are conducted multiple times each year via videoconferencing. These assemblies provide opportunities for students to interact and show-case their culture through creative performances, as well as present and discuss the projects they have worked on during the quarter. Throughout the year, teachers and students interact with their partner school
