Global Peace Games
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GLOBAL PEACE GAMES National Children’s Football Alliance Global Peace Games Evaluation. October 2014 Introduction (3) Outcome aims (3) Background (3) Recruitment (4) Activities (7) Outcomes achieved (8) Media (13) Conclusion (13) Appendix (15) 2 Introduction National Children’s Football Alliance (NCFA) is a coalition of agencies and organisations that safeguard and advance the rights of children in football. As a humanistic voice and advocate for children, the NCFA also acts as a focal point and network for those individuals and organisations seeking sustainable partnerships, information, education and/or training on child-centred approaches and children's rights in football. The NCFA seeks to protect childhood through football. In more than 40 countries there are traditions of Global Peace Games (GPGs) initiative from the United Nations to raise the profile of peace through sport. The Flanders GPGs were inspired by the Christmas Truces of 1914 and how those symbolic moments of First World War history relates to the contemporary mission of the Peace Village, Messines, Belgium and British project partners the NCFA. The GPGs was funded by Erasmus+ (European Union). The funding application was directed by the Peace Village. The Peace Village commissioned the NCFA to provide 20 young people (key stage 3) to represent the United Kingdom at the GPGs. It was agreed that the GPGs give the children the freedom to play the game and learn about conflict resolution in their own way. It provides young people with the opportunity to experience cross-cultural learning through cross-curricular activities. The GPGs provide facilitators and teachers with the opportunity to engage young people in a range of subjects using sport as a vehicle. It also provides the opportunity for the English schools interested in twinning their playing fields with Flanders Peace Fields, to select ambassadors to represent their school through the proposed Peace Fields Project. Outcome aims All participants will engage in learning about the First World War from different cultures All participants will, through guided discovery, explore conflict resolution through interactive workshops All participants will experience a range of activities documented in the First World War, football, cricket, rugby and cycling, they will discover through play – a universal language of peace All participants will understand the value of tolerance, humanitarianism and friendship without prejudice Background / brief history The NCFA work closely with the Peace Village on developing the Peace Fields Project (PFP), a project promoting peace through twinning designated areas of play at primary and secondary schools, with Flanders Peace Field. During the development of the PFP the GPGs were considered an ideal opportunity for both organisations to work together and further raise the centenary commemorations profile. Young people would be introduced to the Christmas Truces, commemorating the First World War and celebrating peace. The NCFA approached the Kent County Council who then published the GPGs in their education newsletter and emailed it to head teachers. Four schools (Herne Bay High School, Maidstone Grammar School for Boys, Oasis Academy and Thamesview School) replied within 24 hours. These schools were considered to have vibrant Sport and History departments. It was felt that teachers passionate in their subjects would be best placed to manage their respective school groups. It was also considered that the schools participating in the GPGs represent a broad spectrum of education from across Kent. Correspondence with Sean Carter, Strategic Projects and Partnership Manager, Kent County Council, Niall Leyden, Outdoor Education Officer, Kent County Council and Gwenn 3 Dejaegere, Project Manager of the Peace Village, provided the NCFA with the necessary guidelines regarding risk assessments, health and safety. Without prejudice, the NCFA provide access for children to all forms of football. There was a clear indication from the above-mentioned experts that the need for a Global Peace Games would best engage young people from diverse backgrounds taken out on a level of heritage, history and sport, which had yet to be contextualised in contemporary themes. It was also considered that football would not be the sole sporting activity of the programme. Although inspired by the Christmas Truces football games the GPGs would embrace rugby, cricket and cycling, all sports documented at home and abroad throughout WW1. Wilfreid Lemke, Special Advisor to the United Nations Secretary-General on Sport for Development and Peace, said, ‘Participating in these Global Peace Games gives you a unique opportunity to play an active role in UN and worldwide efforts to improve the world through sport. It is an opportunity for you to demonstrate to your family, friends, and communities the value that sport has in creating a better world’. Guided by Wilfreid Lemke’s letter to the GPGs the NCFA focused its resources on a project that would actively engage young people at a community level. This meant supporting GPGs partners on helping develop the programme and encouraging them to listen to the schools that participated and this would help in achieving the pilot project’s outcomes. It was also important that all partners felt valued in terms of input and that they were given the opportunity to extend their respective networks through the GPG’s growing profile. Recruitment Schools were recruited on the basis of their enthusiasm for the project, links in the community with WW1 and a strong reputation in sport and history subjects. The schools that participated were able to thread the GPGs into their academic year with no disruption to their respective school’s curriculum. It was considered important that all the above-mentioned partners and schools were confident in delivering the project at an age appropriate level. Teachers asked their respective pupils (girls and boys) to volunteer for the project. All four schools reported that they were inundated with volunteers. Available funding meant that 20 pupils represented Britain without paying for the experience. Global Peace Games Staff 4 Who was involved. Participants English schools Pupils Staff Herne Bay High School, Kent. Female Male Male 3 2 1 Maidstone Grammar School for Boys, Kent. Female Male Female 0 5 1 Oasis Academy, Isle of Sheppey, Kent. Female Male Male 5 1 Thamesview School, Kent. Female Male Female 3 2 1 Belgium School Project Team Staff St Theresia Kortryk Female Male 1 Male 7 15 1 Female German School Project Team Staff Female Male 1 Male 5 17 1 Female Film Crew (see appendix 1) National Children’s Football Alliance NCFA Male 2 ‘Recruiting for the Global Peace Games was very simple. As soon as our pupils were informed we were immediately inundated with volunteers’ Lorraine Fairbard, Teacher, Herne Bay High School. The Belgium, England and Germany team line-up 5 Project Partners Organisation Project team GPGs Assistants Peace Village 2 1 Flanders Peace 1 2 Fields Projects NCFA 2 ‘Without the NCFA it would have been very difficult to find schools in such short notice’. Gwenn Dejaegere, Project Officer, Flanders Peace Fields. Sports Sport Facilitators Participants Cricket 2 68 Football 2 68 Rugby Union 2 68 Cycling 2 68 ‘We enjoyed delivering the session to all the young people. They played cricket with enthusiasm and sportsmanship. It was a pleasure to hear laughter and see smiles on their faces’. Belgian Cricket Federation. Natarajan Krishnan & Fazil Mahmoud. Workshops Organisation Facilitators Title Participants Pax Christie 2 Communication Workshop 68 Caritas International 2 Testimony by Political Refugee 68 Guernica Project 2 Graffiti 68 ‘The artwork displayed by young people from three different nations working together was superb’. Guernica Project Graffiti Workshop inspiring Peace through Art 6 Activities Each school participated in all the workshops organised by the GPGs organisers. All pupils experienced taking part in mixed abilities and mixed gender groups. On occasions many pupils buddied-up (partnered) with pupils from others schools from different countries. For instance, the Communication Workshop, facilitated by Pax Christie, reported that some pupils found their workshop challenging, however, pupils later gained in confidence and provided some strong questions and answers at the end of the session. Many of the groups found the workshop to be a good ice-breaker in terms of making new friends. A pupil from Thamesview School reported, ‘I enjoyed the Movement & Peace in the Communication Workshop because it was strange to do and I have never done it before’. In contrast another pupil from Herne Bay High School, said, ‘I found the Communication Workshop strange because it was unexplained why we were doing it’. The Caritas International’s Testimony from a Political Refugee Workshop provided pupils with the opportunity to listen to a political refugee seeking asylum in Belgium. This workshop resonated with many pupils that had witnessed similar stories on television and in their communities. Evidenced in the pupils’ feedback forms (see appendix 2) it was clear to see that this workshop had left a positive impression with one pupil from Maidstone Grammar School for Boys, stating, ‘I thought this workshop was slightly uncomfortable but I found it very interesting’. The Guernica Project Workshop was by far the most popular of all GPGs workshops. Pupils quickly found ways to express themselves through graffiti art. Participating in graffiti art kept the pupils fully engaged, they explored the main GPG’s outcomes and discovered a common ground for forming friendships and this clearly worked better than any other workshops in terms of communication. International groups comprised of boys and girls, some with strong art backgrounds and some with very little art experience. A pupil from Oasis Academy, said, ‘The best workshop for me was the graffiti workshop. I have never done it before and it was something new’. The Global Positioning System Games (GPS) engaged mixed groups of pupils from different nations to discover remnants, artefacts and landmarks in the vicinity of the First World War.