EIDU’s Post

#ElimuSoko: Supporting governments in removing barriers to innovate in public education systems ✔ In this blog post about Elimu-Soko by the Education Finance Network, our colleague Casper Thaning Thulstrup, Head of International Strategic Development & Quality talks about the necessity of having government needs and priorities as the main driver for supporting innovation in public education systems. A first iteration of the Elimu-Soko initiative is being piloted in Rwanda this year, with Rising Academy Network as the implementing education innovator. In addition to strong results in accelerating children’s learning, important lessons have been made including the patience required when moving from implementing a mere stand alone project, to work collectively with government and other stakeholders on solutions intended for government adaptation and scaling. Casper highlights: 🗯 "In an initiative like Elimu-Soko, you need clarity on what type of evidence is needed to trigger a government decision. You need several iterations of testing to arrive at a point where the government can make an informed decision to scale the intervention." While a final government decision on scaling up is expected by the end of 2023, the Hempel Foundation continues to support the Elimu-Soko implementing partner Rising Academies in Rwanda. Simultaneously, we're expanding our footprint in eastern Africa, seeking more partners to join Elimu-Soko. In Zanzibar, a new pilot is in the planning phase. 🙌 Check out the article to learn more about Elimu-Soko: 📰 https://lnkd.in/eCgcTmdR #EducationForAll #ElimuSoko #TransformingEducation #Scaling #EducationFinance

🇺🇬 Strengthening Education Systems in Uganda through Strategic Partnerships This week, Education.org's Evelyn Jepkemei, PhD, M.Ed is in #Uganda, further developing our partnership with the Ministry of Education and Sports (MoES) to enhance our collaborative efforts. The aim of this trip is to: 🤝 Introduce Education.org to key MoES personnel. 🛠 Form a technical team for the LEARRN initiative. 📝 Discuss LEARRN to develop actionable plans for educational reform. 📅 Finalise MOU details, setting the next stage for our partnership 🚀About LEARRN:”Leading with Evidence to Achieve Real Reform Now” is a collaborative initiative between Education.org and the Ugandan MoES. - Goal: Elevate education access and outcomes for all learners by integrating evidence-based practices within Uganda's education system. - Focus: Empower MoES with tools for evidence-informed decision-making, targeting Accelerated Education Programs (AEPs) and support for Out-of-School Children. - Impact: Aimed at enhancing educational equity and learning outcomes, the LEARRN initiative is aimed at systemic change. 🌟Join Us in Shaping the Future of Education 🌟 Thanks to the Uganda MoES for your partnership and hospitality! Together we're committed to a future where #evidence and #partnership drive educational excellence. Follow our journey via the 🔗 in the comments ⬇️ as we work with the Government of Uganda and other stakeholders to transform lives through #learning #sdg4 #transformingeducation #educationforall #education

Ministry of Education pledges support for NESG Triple Helix Roundtable Minister of State for Education, Hon. Tanco Sununu Dr Yusuf, has pledged to support our Triple Helix Roundtable, alongside other initiatives aimed at driving the renewed hope agenda in the education sector. Triple Helix is a collaboration between the NESG, the National Universities Commission (NUC) and the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND), aimed at bridging the gaps between industry and academia in Nigeria. At today’s engagement, the NESG delegation also presented the outcome of research on #learningdeprivation among in-school and out-of-school children in Nigeria. This was well received by the Minister, who also explored partnership with the NESG to optimise vocational education, actualise the child wellbeing compact, as well as integrate skills, knowledge and character development into the nation’s education system. In the coming weeks, we anticipate a joint committee between the NESG and the Ministry to develop a roadmap towards driving a transformational agenda for the Nigerian education sector.

Sharing the latest updates from the Elimu-Soko initiative in Zanzibar: With the support of Axum, Dalberg, and the Government of Zanzibar, TeachUNITED has been implementing a 6-month program in 2024 to demonstrate the short-term effects of their model for intensive instructional training of educators. In addition to capacitating teachers the demonstration project has tested the applicability of the TU model in Zanzibar and the potential effect if delivered at scale for the benefit of all 490.000 students in Zanzibar.📚 A significant milestone was reached on June 14th and 15th, 2024, with the graduation of 210 dedicated educators who completed the pilot phase in Zanzibar.🎓 One participant shared, “This program has helped me ensure I can help students grow intellectually and evaluate them accurately. I can now help my students achieve their goals.” In the pilot phase 210 educators from 41 schools, including 13 ministry officials and Heads of Schools were successfully trained, surpassing the initial target and positively impacting the education of over 20,500 students. Developed in 2021, Elimu-Soko aims to create a collaborative marketplace where education innovators, funders, and governments can address systemic gaps in public education. This initiative bridges the gap between innovative solutions and governmental support—a collaboration that is both crucial and often missing. The demonstration project in Zanzibar is a testament to what can be achieved through collaborative efforts and commitment to change. 🙌 🔹 Read more about Elimu-Soko here: https://lnkd.in/d8VMckpe #ElimuSoko #TeacherTraining #QualityEducation #Zanzibar #EducationForAll #SustainableDevelopment #EducationInitiative #HempelFoundation #Axum #Dalberg #TeachUnited Casper Thaning Thulstrup Heather Hiebsch

Credit Accumulation and Transfer: A Game Changer for Kenya’s Education System Kenya’s education system is on the brink of a significant transformation with the anticipated approval of the Kenya Credit Accumulation and Transfer System (KCATS) policy. This policy, currently awaiting Cabinet… #CAT #KCATS #KNQA #UNESCO >>> Read more

Meaningful systems change can only happen through deep collaboration with government and the use of evidence-based methods. In Tanzania, Educate! spent the last few years building strong partnerships and carefully mapping the policy environment to support the government’s vision for education reform. Learn about Educate!s approach below

📣 🌍 New Blog! https://lnkd.in/dWA7MqPY Equipping youth with the skills needed for today’s labor market is central to the East African regional agenda of aligning education with real-world employment opportunities. Educate! has been working alongside governments for years to make their vision a reality. Earlier this year, we signed a six-year MoU with the Tanzania Institute of Education to support the government’s rollout of a new compulsory Business Studies subject in lower secondary education, alongside a teacher training framework. The new subject will eventually 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗲𝗲 𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘀𝘁𝘂𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀, preparing them with essential skills for employment and entrepreneurship.🥳 𝗛𝗶𝗴𝗵𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸: ➡️Aligning with national and regional policy frameworks to ensure long-term success. ➡️Co-creating with education officials, teachers, school leaders, parents, and students for meaningful collaboration. ➡️Drawing on proven methods from other government partnerships in the region. Check out the full article here 👉🏾 https://lnkd.in/dWA7MqPY

I had the chance to present at the #BAICE conference this year thanks to the support of Pauline Rose and the Research for Equitable Access and Learning (REAL) Centre. Getting to share some of my early research findings alongside colleagues and fellow politics of education (#POLED) enthusiasts, Kenechukwu N. and Asma Zubairi, was an exciting opportunity; we got to highlight how political settlement analysis has been applied to different country contexts and to discuss the shortcomings and continued potential of this approach. I also attended a UNESCO webinar this week about the lessons learned from scaling up accelerated education programs (AEPs) in West Africa. My research in Tanzania is on AEPs (only by a different name) and in both the webinar and the conference sessions, a central topic of conversation was the 'scaling up' capabilities of these programs. The scaling up of learning initiatives involves a number of complex processes that I continue to reflect on in my work. Political buy-in from governments is key and remains something we can't quite crack in terms of frameworks or practical understanding. But beyond elite buy-in and government policy support, I can't help but feel like we're asking the wrong questions when it comes to scaling. Scaling, per se, was not the focus on my fieldwork but one of the major takeaways from it was the incredible capacity of local actors to make up for larger policy failings when they have the space (and will) to do so. The AEP centers in Tanzania that seem to serve their students best are ones led by dedicated local leaders staying as far away as possible from the scaling push currently underway and it seems naive to think that Tanzania is an outlier in this. Tanzanian AEP schools and teachers know more about what works for their students than policymakers do and, while we all know as much, this crucial bit of knowledge gets lost somewhere in the discussions about scale. The largest gaps in scaling seem not about proper funding, finding what works, or improving implementation practices. Of course, all these things matter a great deal, but the critical and widely ignored gap remains the side-stepping of the local pockets of knowledge practices that enable learning even within larger systems that don't. Perhaps especially in the context of AEPs, local efforts to get children learning are correcting for system failings in a way that bringing them into the system might risk diminishing? Ricardo Sabates made some valuable remarks about local innovations in the UNESCO session and left me thinking about how much embedding AEP programs into government plans is not only about securing buy-in from the top, but also about incorporating and protecting local knowledge in that embedding. To think about one without the other leaves the scaling rhetoric incomplete for all of us wanting to understand how to help bring more children into learning. Just a few long-winded reflections from a thought-provoking week!

2024 SDG 4 Scorecard now out and it got me thinking about how my Country Uganda is progressing. While Uganda is on the path toward achieving SDG 4, significant challenges remain that require sustained effort and collaboration among government, communities, and international partners. Addressing issues related to the quality of education, infrastructure, funding, and the impacts of COVID-19 still remain crucial for Uganda to fully realize the goal of providing inclusive and equitable quality education for all. https://lnkd.in/eZdS89sY

#AfricaBrief: Malawi Reviewing Inclusive Education Strategy to Leave No Learner Behind LILONGWE, Malawi -- Malawi's Ministry of Education is undertaking a four-day workshop to review its National Inclusive Education Strategy, which expired in 2021, to ensure equitable access to quality education for all learners, including those with special needs, writes Winston Mwale. https://lnkd.in/dM7q5VZ7