Pierce engaged to write climate change materials for RTCs

Well known educationist, Charley Pierce, who spent over 30 years teaching and being involved in education matters including curriculum development in Vanuatu until mid-last year, has been engaged by the Vanuatu Rural Development Training Center Association (VRDTCA) to draw up materials for its new climate change program.

VRDTCA aims to use the new materials in the new climate change program in Rural Training Centers (RTCs) in the country.

Pierce spent about two weeks during the end of March and early April working with VRDTCA before starting work to transfer the Community Education and Dissemination Council (CEDC) climate change materials into the format to be used by RTCs. He will be modifying the CEDC material to local standards for Vanuatu for climate change and disaster risk management.

During his two-week stay, Charles Pierce has come up with seven units of competency standards which he has presented to VRDTCA’s Industry Advisory Committee, the chairman of which is Jerol Arhnambat, VRDTCA’s Curriculum Manager, and Climate Change and Disaster Risk Reduction Committee.

Arnhambat says the materials Pierce will produce will be in English and French with the Bislama version to be produced at a later stage.

Pierce has since returned to Australia where he now resides to continue writing, with the first drafts due for viewing by VRDTCA in May.

The materials he is producing will include a learners guide, a learners work book, and a trainers or facilitators guide.

Arnhambat says training and launch of these materials along with the other materials will take place at the next bi-annual general meeting of VRDTCA to be held at Morobien Rural Training Center on Malekula in November this year.

He says this will be the first material for rural training centers which will be more extensive than those for formal education.