The First Consultation Meeting with SEAMEO Affiliate Members on SEAMEO CARES Project and SEAMEO Border Schools Quality Inclusive Education Project (BSQIEP) under SEAMEO Priority Area Number 2 "Addressing Barriers to Inclusion"

Tuesday, 3 August 2021
10:00-11:30 hrs (Bangkok Time, GMT+7)

On 17 June 2021, the 51st SEAMEO Council Conference has approved the SEAMEO COVID-19 Accessible and Responsive Education Support (SEAMEO CARES) project utilizing the Affiliate Member funds. Later on 3 August 2021, SEAMEO Secretariat conducted the First Consultation Meeting with SEAMEO Affiliate Members virtually to discuss on SEAMEO CARES Project and SEAMEO Border Schools Quality Inclusive Education Project (BSQIEP) under SEAMEO Priority Area Number 2 "Addressing Barriers to Inclusion."

SEAMEO CARES Project is responding to the call of the Ministries of Education during the SEAMEO Ministerial Policy e-Forum last 18 June 2020 to sustain “the development and advancement of resources such as open educational resources in the region that best respond to the education needs of every learner in Southeast Asia.” SEAMEO Border Schools Quality Inclusive Education Project (BSQIEP) aims to increase access of marginalised learners to inclusive schools and inclusive education in Southeast Asia. 

The SEAMEO Border Schools Quality Inclusive Education Project (BSQIEP) under the SEAMEO CARES project intends to strengthen the partnership of SEAMEO with the Affiliate Members in developing the capacity of teachers in border areas. The adopt-a-border-school initiative is one of the many efforts and initiatives that SEAMEO intends to launch to alleviate the impact of COVID-19 in the region.  

Seven representatives came from the five Affiliate Members, namely, 1) British Council, Thailand and Indonesia; 2) International Council for Open and Distance Education (ICDE), Norway; 3) University of Tsukuba, Japan; 4) China Education Association for International Exchange (CEAIE), China; and 5) British Columbia Council for International Education (BCCIE), Canada.

The Affiliate Members fully support and are thankful to the SEAMEO Secretariat for the initiatives under the strong leadership of Dr Ethel Agnes Pascua-Valenzuela, Director of SEAMEO Secretariat. It is recommended that SEAMEO CARES Project and SEAMEO Border Schools Quality Inclusive Education Project (BSQIEP) should be strengthened and expanded to cover Southeast Asian Countries based on the needs of each country. Good and effective teaching and learning materials should be translated into the local languages. The capacity building and training on how to teach remotely should be addressed to teachers, principals, and schools. By addressing barriers to inclusion, SEAMEO Centres/Network are the key factors that should play the concrete action by adopting the schools across SEAMEO Member Countries.