Breaking Down the Barriers

Cross-Cultural Education with a Twist.

Many of us enjoy international travel these days – but what do we really learn from those visits and how much do we actually take on board when it comes to sampling the culture of other nations? Often very little one suspects.

To address this phenomenon and help break down cross-cultural stereotypes for some of the more senior of our citizens the WEA and the Catcliffe and Brinsworth Partnership have developed and run an Indian Crafts and Culture course for residents at the Godric Green Community Centre in Brinsworth, near Rotherham in South Yorkshire .

WEA tutor Kumkum Chandra led the students through a diverse range of activities from making greetings cards and imitation flowers using Indian materials through to eating Indian food and wearing a Sari. For some, it was their first taste of Indian food – and putting on a Sari was a new experience for everyone in the group. Bindis were used in the manufacture of the cards; this acted as a catalyst for a discussion of the use of the Bindi in its more traditional role as a forehead decoration, which led on to a wider discussion on Indian Culture.

With a lot of questions posed and answers given the course helped debunk myths and open a window into another world.

The Godric Green Community Centre is a council run Sheltered Housing Complex for the elderly; the attendees were in the main residents of the sheltered accommodation complex. The course was developed by Gill Lawrence, the WEA Organiser for South Rotherham , and Kevin Thompson, Development Worker for the Catcliffe and Brinsworth Partnership. Kevin took the photographs on this page, which feature tutor Kumkum Chandra and students on the course.

The course has also been run with other groups including those with learning disabilities.

For further information about courses in the South Rotherham area, contact:

Gill Lawrence
WEA Yorkshire and Humber Region
6 Woodhouse Square
Leeds , LS3 1AD

Tel: 01709 709208
Email: glawrence@wea.org.uk
Web www.wea-yn.org.uk