UIL launches a course on family learning and Indigenous knowledges

How does the integration of local and indigenous knowledges into family and intergenerational learning programmes contribute to improving literacy for all and achieving sustainable development? The UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning, in collaboration with the Commonwealth of Learning (COL), and supported by the UNESCO Chair in Adult Literacy and Learning for Social Transformation at the University of East Anglia is launching a self-directed, self-paced online course on Family Learning and Indigenous Knowledges to address this question. 

For centuries, people and communities have relied on local and Indigenous knowledge systems and practical skills to learn to live in a community and society as well as to inform their everyday decisions and navigate their life.  These knowledges and skills are rooted in local history, culture and identity, and have been providing a basis for living and developing sustainably. Learning has been viewed as a significant part of living and existing, through complex social interactions and exchanges among different generations and across various cultures.  

This new course is designed to support the independent learning of academics, researchers and material/curriculum developers in adult learning and community education. It can be accessed freely anywhere, anytime. The learner can easily register on the course, take charge of their learning process and complete the course at their own pace. The course draws on existing literature on family learning, Indigenous knowledges, and sustainable development, and more recent research conducted by the UNESCO Chair in Adult Literacy and Learning for Social Transformation teams in Ethiopia, Malawi, Nepal, and the Philippines. This work was supported by the University of East Anglia's Global Research Translation Award funded by United Kingdom Research and Innovation (UKRI, EPSRC) with the Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF), part of the UK's Official Development Assistance. 

Accessibility: The course will be freely accessible until 31 December 2022 

Duration: Approximately 35 learning hours 

Certification: Upon completion a certificate is being issued 

Registration: Register here  

Two further new self-paced, self-directed courses on ‘Facilitating family and intergenerational literacy and learning programmes’ and ‘Learning materials and activities in family learning’ will follow soon.