Through a network of schools, Centre for Mass Education in Science (CMES) promotes a curriculum offering practical vocational skills and appropriate technologies in rural areas. CMES is replacing traditional rote learning, a widespread practice in rural Bangladesh, with life-oriented technological skills, thus integrating the two worlds of learning and work. The centre reaches out to 20,000 students each year, 66% being adolescent girls, through a network of 500 basic schools, advanced basic schools and Rural Technology Centres (RTCs) that influence educational practices throughout Bangladesh.