The Ceibo’s Knowledge Preserves A’i Cofán Wisdom
With UNICEF’s support, sages, teachers and families constructed an educational methodology for children to learn in their own language and culture.
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The canoe comes to a stop on the sand after crossing the Aguarico River, in the province of Sucumbíos, in the Ecuadorian Amazon. Wilson Criollo, 38 years old, is waiting on the shore. He is one of the leaders of the A’i Cofán community in the parish of Dureno and is also a teacher at the "Guillermo Quenama" Language Keeper Educational Unit. Under an intense sun, we walk with Wilson along a dirt road that will take us to the school where children learn the richness of their culture and their language utilizing the methodology "The Ceibo’s Knowledge", developed with the support of UNICEF.
The intercultural education model, "The Ceibo’s Knowledge", recovers ancestral knowledge, values and customs of the A’i Cofan culture. It also includes A’ingae, the language spoken by the Cofan people living in Dureno, Duvuno and Sinangü.
The ceibo, the tree from which the methodology gets its name, is a symbol of knowledge for the A’i Cofan. In the community of Dureno, the members conserve a thousand-year-old ceibo tree that they consider sacred. In the mornings the children play among its tall roots and hang from the vines that fall from high above. However, at dusk they cannot go near it, because they believe that the spirits of their ancestors live in the tree and at night they return to rest and safeguard their wisdom there.
A short distance from the sacred ceibo is the community school. Wilson is one of its seven teachers. He says that for the first time now they have their own teaching model, designed with UNICEF’s support, which includes pedagogical content and didactic materials based on their own culture. Community sages, community leaders, teachers and families participated in this process, sharing their knowledge, experiences and memories.
"The Ceibo’s Knowledge" includes ancestral songs and stories, the dynamics of living along the Aguarico River with its fish and birds, as well as the main customs, traditions and beliefs of the A’i Cofán culture. The methodology, which follows the Intercultural Bilingual Education System Model through Community Family Early Childhood Education, also incorporates positive parenting principles to promote respect and affection in the care of children.
Also through community participation, a kit comprised of 14 learning materials was developed. The kit is designed so that children and educators, teachers, mothers and fathers, interact through play, exploration and dialogue. Among the items included in the kit are puzzles, cloth books, memory games, a community life calendar, etc.
Although the model was created with the needs of children from 0 to 5 years of age in mind, it can also be used for all students’ learning.
"This process was carried out in order to value early childhood based on our culture," affirms Wilson. As part of the Ecuadorian Ministry of Education’s Secretariat of Intercultural Bilingual Education and Ethno-education (SEIBE) teacher team, Wilson also has the job of training other colleagues and officials in "The Ceibo’s Knowledge" methodology. One of his greatest hopes is that the A’i Cofán wisdom and cultural wealth reach other peoples and nationalities, so that the A’i Cofán heritage does not become extinct.
Three culturally relevant education models
UNICEF supports the creation of intercultural bilingual education models with Ecuador’s diverse indigenous peoples and nationalities so that children, from early childhood onwards, learn in accordance with their culture, with local teaching materials and in their own language.
"The Ceibo’s Knowledge" is the third pedagogical methodology developed by UNICEF and SEIBE. Previously, two educational models were created: "The Hummingbird’s Knowledge" together with the Kayambi people and "The chakana Yachay" with the Karanqui people.
The development of "The Ceibo’s Knowledge" methodology is a UNICEF Ecuador initiative, in coordination with the Secretariat of Intercultural Bilingual Education and Ethno-education and the A’i Cofán community of Dureno. This work is made possible thanks to the contributions of individual donors and funding from Kimberly Clark and Diners Club of Ecuador.
