ARE YOU A FAIRTRADE SCHOOL? - ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW
Produced by the Fairtrade Foundation
THE Fairtrade Foundation's new schools DVD called ‘Are you a Fairtrade school? - All you need to know' has been launched.
The schools DVD features 25 school case studies from the UK.
It provides ideas and inspiration for students, teachers and young people in education.
The DVD has sections on ‘How does Fairtrade work',‘How to become a Fairtrade School' and ‘Fairtrade in the Curriculum'.
It is packed with ideas on organising events such as Fairtrade assemblies, harvest festivals, fashion show and Fairtrade days.
There is also an animated film which illustrates the inequalities in trade and shows the difference buying Fairtrade products makes to farmers in developing countries.
The film gives examples of interactive games such as the trading game or snakes & ladders game, showing how easy it is to incorporate Fairtrade into school life and the curriculum.
Fairtrade is taught across a wide range of subjects including citizenship and business studies. Fairtrade also fits in with learning outcomes for geography, history, literacy and maths at different key stages in both primary and secondary education.
The Fairtrade Schools Scheme has been running for two years and more than 3,000 schools from around the UK are currently registered on the scheme.
The scheme is a national initiative by the Fairtrade Foundation to engage young people in development issues and help tackle global poverty through trade.
Joanna Brightwell, Fairtrade schools manager for the Fairtrade Foundation, says: "We've had a fantastic response to the initiative, and we are pleased that so many schools are registered and working towards Fairtrade status.
"Children have a very clear sense of justice so Fairtrade seems to resonate with them particularly strongly."
To achieve the Fairtrade status, schools must meet five criteria, including setting up a Fairtrade school steering group, made up of both teachers and pupils, and committing to use Fairtrade products within the school.
They also have to write and adopt a school Fairtrade policy, incorporate Fairtrade into lessons and promote Fairtrade both within the school and to their wider community. Schools have to renew their Fairtrade status regularly to prove their ongoing commitment.
The Government's Department for International Development has given £240,000 to help fund the scheme for threeand- a-half years.
International Development Secretary Douglas Alexander applauds the schools scheme saying: "I've always been struck by the enthusiasm and interest among pupils in Fairtrade and international development issues when visiting schools that are committed to selling, learning about and using Fairtrade products.
"The interest in education in the developing world and Fairtrade from young people in British schools gives me confidence that the future of the Fairtrade movement."
? Chelmsford Diocese was awarded Fairtrade status in 2006 thanks to the commitment of individual churches.
? The DVD can be obtained from the The Fairtrade Foundation, 3rd Floor, Ibex House, 42-47 Minories, London EC3N 1DY. Resource order line: 020 7440 7676, email: mail@fairtrade.org.uk
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