The British Council and Plan Ceibal have won this year’s British Expertise International Award for International Positive Social Impact.
The award recognises the innovative English teaching project, Ceibal en Inglés, which uses videoconferencing technology to reach 80,000 children in over 550 primary schools across Uruguay. The programme, which has been running since 2012, aims to overcome the challenge of teaching English to primary school children in Uruguay, where there is a shortage of teachers.
The British Expertise International Awards champion the power and promise of UK professional services around the world. The International Positive Social Impact Award is judged on a project being successful, having a strong local social impact, being delivered on time and to budget, and showing innovation in the processes and technologies used.
Ceibal en Inglés combines the British Council’s expertise in English language teaching with Plan Ceibal’s commitment to transforming education through technology. The partnership matches classroom and remote teachers to deliver English lessons to pupils aged nine to twelve years, using collaborative expertise and innovative team-teaching methods. The programme supports equal access to education and helps young people to develop the skills, resilience and networks they need to better their lives.
Graham Stanley, English for Education Systems Lead at the British Council, said:
“We are thrilled that this innovative project, co-created by the British Council and Plan Ceibal, has been rewarded with such a prestigious award. It comes at a particularly challenging time for the education sector globally and is testament to the hard work and effort of all the educators working on the project, especially the remote teachers.”
Gabriela Kaplan, Ceibal en Inglés Coordinator, said:
“We have always been aware that Ceibal en Inglés has a positive social impact, but this international recognition provides us with even more motivation to continue working towards better opportunities for the members of our community. We are most grateful for this prestigious award.”
Three other British Council programmes were shortlisted for British Expertise International Awards this year: Connecting Classrooms; Global Language for Resilience Hub; and Teaching for All.
ENDS