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He designed a double roof with a vaulted ceiling and airy windows, which brings down the external temperature of up to 40 degrees Celsius in the shade to about 25 degrees inside the school in a natural way – and this without the aid of electricity. The construction of such a school in the OPERNDORF AFRIKA, which provides suitable conditions for children to learn and create according to their own ideas, is already in full swing. When the next school year begins in October 2011, the first pupils will arrive and the school will start its regular activity. Before that, as soon as the school building work is complete (this is planned for spring 2011) the buildings will be used for workshops and teachers will be recruited. |
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At the school, the children will be taught the important fundamental subjects. Boys and girls can attend the school equally and even the fact that many children speak various tribal languages rather than French, the official language, will be taken into account in the timetable, unlike in the French school system. This means that lessons will be taught partly in Moré and other tribal languages. In this way the parents who cannot read or write and do not speak French can establish a connection to the school, and can better understand what their children are doing. Over the long term adult education opportunities at the school are planned. The children leave the school after six years of primary education with the standard primary school leaving certificate, the Certificat d’études primaires (certificate of primary studies), which permits them to attend a higher school.  |
 In the artistic subjects especially, the children are to keep the freedom to approach the various media and art forms in their own way. The aim is not to educate them according to established rules, and to force methods upon them, but rather to learn from the unadulterated viewpoint of the children and to follow the paths they themselves discover, and see what the results are. Learn from Africa! This is also true for the approach to appliances, tools and technical equipment. The children should be told how the devices and technical processes function, and they can have lessons in music and art as well as photography, film- and camera technology. However, the children’s education in this area should always take into account their unformed viewpoint and they should not be forced into any preconceived notions of content or practice, so that they can find their own words, sounds and images. It is essential for the OPERNDORF AFRIKA that children can move freely and explore their fantasies. The opera village is to be understood as a place for unprejudiced access to art and life.
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