The community preschools will provide child-centered early childhood education to local village children in Bonduma and Bonakanda Villages, in Buea, Cameroon. They will be based at the local community centers and will have a holistic approach to young children's education, providing for their cognitive development, health, nutrition and cultural heritage.
There are currently no child centered preschools in Bonduma or Bonakanda Villages. Even though government nursery schools exist in nearby villages, resources are extremely limited and teaching methods are based on rote learning, teacher directed and are very outdated. The child centered model of early childhood education is the most appropriate learning model for children aged 3 and 4 years, and it is yet to be developed in most areas of Cameroon.
The Bonduma and Bonakanda preschool projects will provide a model of quality early childhood education centers and contribute to the development of child centered early childhood education in Cameroon. The project activities comprise the upgrading of local community halls to include an early childhood facility, a children's playground area, and provide developmentally appropriate learning resources such as play equipment, books, art materials and furniture.
Research on the benefits of quality early childhood education shows a positive match with children's later school achievement, social development, self esteem and physical development. The community ownership model being used empowers families by engaging them in their children's education and learning. The preschool will be a pilot project with the goal of establishing similar centers, where there is a demonstrated need, in other motivated villages in the South West region of Cameroon.
This project has provided additional documentation in a PDF file (projdoc.pdf).
