| What's
Worldraw? |
- A cross-cultural program:
Worldraw provides school children with the opportunity
of making friends in various countries, learning about each
others' cultures and ways of life, and learning how to talk
about one's own culture.
- A pictorial experience
for communicating with new friends overseas:
Worldraw presents another web site called e-pals
which enables you to find partner classes in other countries.
The language barrier with japanese still makes setting up an
exchange difficult at times. Worldraw shows you though what
can be achieved between kids of different languages using pictures.
- A volunteering experience
for youth in Japan:
Worldraw empowers high schoolers and university students with
the opportunity of taking on practical and responsible roles
as volunteers who support child education. They attend the computer
drawing sessions and help the kids with English, French and
sometimes other languages.
|
| A
cross-cultural program |
What's specific
about Worldraw?
|
Many on-going e-mail cross-cultural programs are currently
done through English or another common language. Worldraw
can somewhat fill the gap between countries not sharing the
same language or/and not wanting particularly to use
English as the main means of communication. English remains
nevertheless used in captions with the drawings. These drawings
based on pre-defined topics with the children allow them to
express with a minimum of words, a maximum of things and ideas
about themselves and their immediate world. See some samples
of what children around the world have done at Worldraw
Pilot Programs. |
Worldraw
Topics
|
Teachers in both countries decide together
or/and with the children the array of topics that they would
like to adress throughout the exchange. Topics are principally
oriented towards the everyday lives of the children (breakfast,
school, favorite
games, who I want to become later, etc) as well as some more
general topics concerning social issues (garbage throwing,
pollution in the neighborhood, etc). Specific cultural events
also appear (festivals,
celebrations, etc). |
|
| A
pictorial experience for communicating with new friends overseas |
|
We found some of our partner schools abroad thanks to a
grand website called E-pals. They allow you to find schools
in Japan and almost any other country in the world to set
up an e-mail exchange program between classes. We highly recommend
you go to their website and see the amazing things happening
there. |
| Plenty of drawings! |
On our website you'll also find many drawings
made by over 800 participants in the program. Not all has
been shown but you should get a good enough idea. |
|
| A
volunteering experience for youth in Japan |
| Why Japan? |
By the year 2000, the Japanese Ministry of Education
had funded the installation of new Internet accessible computer
labs in all elementary schools throughout Japan. School teachers
with very little or no experience in computers were suddenly
asked to make use of these labs by setting up computer clubs
or through the new extra-curricular program implemented in
2001 (in Japanese: Sougougakushu). |
| Volunteers |
The Pilot Programs (in 4 schools) started in Kumamoto City
Japan with a group of volunteer japanese high schoolers, university
students and adults who came together to set up the Worldraw
concept and bring it into elementary schools. Throughout the
exchanges, set up notably in Musashi and Kurokami elementary
schools of Kumamoto City, the volunteers also helped
children with computers and English or French during the drawing
sessions. The E-Friends volunteers also gave technical support
and advice to Ikenoue and Yamanishi elementary schools to
pursue the program. This Web Site is the result of a
year's effort from volunteers in Kumamoto as well as the teachers
and pupils involved in the exchange at their respective schools.
We hope that your class may benefit from our shared experience. |
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