COLCHESTER pupils are hoping to enter the Guinness Book of Records after taking part in a bid to take part in the world's largest lesson.North Primary School and Nursery was one of the schools in the area to contribute to the record attempt which involved 100,000 children worldwide.

COLCHESTER pupils are hoping to enter the Guinness Book of Records after taking part in a bid to take part in the world's largest lesson.

North Primary School and Nursery was one of the schools in the area to contribute to the record attempt which involved 100,000 children worldwide.

The record attempt was organised by the Global Campaign for Education – a group of charities and trade unions – which aims to increase awareness of the number of children worldwide who are denied access to education.

North Primary School teacher, Elizabeth Jurd, taught the lesson to the school's 217 pupils at 9am, as the timing of the record attempt and the lesson content had to be the same around the world.

She said: "They really enjoyed it. We looked at other world records, eg the largest pizza, and the children were asked what they valued in education.

"I think they were amazed at the number of children, especially girls, who don't go to school. They looked at the reasons behind it – poverty, school fees, war – the children realise you can't go to school if you are in the middle of a war."

Roger Elbourne, Oxfam's spokesman for East Anglia, said: "Today, 115 million children, of which 65 million are girls, are denied a basic human right – the right to an education.

"Oxfam is campaigning for governments and institutions to really put their money where their mouth is and make the dream of education for all a reality."