Important Dates to Celebrate with STAR4Africa’s School2School Programme

STAR4Africa’s School2School programme focuses on making a direct connection between education in the UK and schools in Africa, specifically Ghana, Kenya, Malawi and Zambia. According to a 2011 statement by the Development Education Association, more than half of the UK’s children ‘are not learning about major world events and problems’.

STAR4Africa works to change that by establishing international school partnerships that further education and communication. Trustee David Nicholson, headteacher and educational consultant, has been an advocate for this type of collaboration throughout his career.

The programme is entirely free. Among the many resources available to participating schools, STAR4Africa sponsors celebrations commemorating International Awareness Days, helping to create a shared cultural experience for all School2School students, as well as bringing attention to important world problems.



These are some of the fun events, past and present. 

• February 7 – Idea Exchange – in 2013 and 2014, teachers at schools enrolled in School2School took part in cyberspace sharing to learn more about their colleagues and compare teaching methods. 
• March 22 – World Water Day – this day was designated by the UN in 1993. In 2012, School2School organised a challenge for students in participating schools to find out ‘how much water they eat’. Students researched the amount of water it took to make their favourite foods and shared their findings in a contest. 
• April 2 – Children’s Book Day – commemorating Hans Christian Anderson’s birthday, this has been celebrated since 1967. In 2013, School2School students made personal recordings of their favourite stories and shared them with their international peers. 
• June 5 - World Environment Day – students challenge each other to design the most environmentally conscious project for this day, celebrated around the world since 1974. 
• June 21 – World Music Day – also called Fête de la Musique, this started in 1982 in Paris. On this day, students learn about world music and share a recording of their country’s national anthem with their School2School partners. 
• October 5 - World Teacher’s Day – this day has commemorated the important work teachers do since 1994, and it is an annual celebration for School2School. In 2012, students shared the most valuable thing they’d learned from their teacher, and STAR4Africa printed the messages on an ‘appreciation towel’ for all the teachers involved. 
• October 16 – World Food Day – this day honours the founding in 1945 of the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization, and it is an annual pledge to eventually eliminate hunger. School2School activities have included learning about the effect of world food prices and a school cooking competition judged by UK cook and entertainer, Levi Roots. 

With its focus on sharing world events, STAR4Africa’s School2School programme makes learning an international collaboration. This benefits students in African countries as well as in the UK and helps to promote higher educational standards everywhere.