Peel District School Board middle school students have raised $42,061 to build a school in the Ampara district of Sri Lanka as part of the Peel board's Global Groundwork project, a year-long program focusing on Canada's role in global development. According to the Canadian non-governmental organization Free the Children, Sri Lanka lost 500 schools as a result of the December 2004 tsunami and the Ampara district lost 40, making it the hardest hit area.

"Our students are always quick to respond when disaster strikes and affects their peers in other areas of the world," says Janet McDougald, chair of the Peel District School Board. "The goal was for middle schools to raise $30,000. I'm proud that we've exceeded that goal. The additional money will furnish the school, pay teacher salaries and help keep the school operating for many years."

Students involved in Global Groundwork attended a one-day conference in the fall of 2005 – they participated in workshops facilitated by various development organizations and leadership groups. At the conference, students voted to select the region in which they would like to build a school. To follow up, students were then invited to a one-day leadership workshop in winter 2006 in which they worked in teams to develop their leadership skills and draft action plans to help them raise funds and reach their goal.

"The Global Groundwork project was a very valuable experience for my students," says Addie McGuire, teacher at Fallingbrook Middle School. "The conference sparked many insightful conversations in my classroom, and the students were able to get Fallingbrook's student body excited about fundraising so that their counterparts in Sri Lanka could go back to school. It's so uplifting to watch young people become inspired to make a difference on a global scale."

"The Peel board believes that global education should be a part of every child's learning," says Jim Grieve, director of education. "Our teachers need to pose the tough questions about our world and allow students to form their own opinions. By helping young Canadians understand the realities that children are facing in other countries, we can help make sure that eventually every child will have the same access to education that we do in Canada."

Notes Grieve, "We are so thankful for the support of the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) through the Global Classroom Initiative (GCI). For the past five years, the GCI has enabled the Peel board to provide valuable training to our students and teachers."

The Peel board will run Breaking Barriers: students take action for equality during the 2006-07 school year. The new program will look at gender equality as well as Canada's role on the global stage. Breaking Barriers will kick off on Nov. 29, 2006 with a one-day conference at the Pearson Convention Centre in Brampton.

"Through the generosity of the Pearson Convention Centre, the Peel board has been able to offer this one-day conference for the past three years. The management and staff of the Pearson Convention Centre are incredibly accommodating as more than 500 students and teachers take over the facility for the entire day," says McDougald.