Innovations and Approaches in Professional Development that Support Reading and Math Instruction in Georgian Primary Education

• In Event: Improving Teaching and Learning

Proposal

Recognizing that the quality of its education drives social and economic development, the Republic of Georgia has been implementing ambitious reforms to transform its education system from a teacher-centered model to student-centered, encouraging Georgian children to develop to their full potential. USAID supports this goal by supporting primary-grade students (grades 1-6) to acquire foundational reading and math skills that will help them become critical thinkers, entrepreneurs, and leaders. The Georgia Primary Education (G-PriEd) Project contributes to this goal by ensuring that primary grade students (grades 1-6) acquire foundational reading and math skills that will help them become critical thinkers and leaders.
G-PriEd is comprised of four main components to help achieve this goal. The first component aims to improve reading and math classroom instruction through improved teaching methodologies and increasing the availability and use of reading and math materials. The second component focuses on professional development for teachers and strengthening the system surrounding formative assessments. The third component aims to engage parents in their student's reading and math outcomes and also to increase community stakes in utilization of education data. The fourth component introduces business skills development, reinforcing the importance that students master reading and math basics. In order to address these components, G-PriEd engaged 122 pilot primary schools in which to test its interventions, matched to comparable control schools, and gradually expand to more than 500 schools.
Objectives: This panel session will describe results to date of the implementation of these interventions. The panel will specifically discuss how the project used the data from its baseline assessment to assist the Georgian Ministry of Education and Science to set national norms in reading and math, and to work with teachers from a diverse selection of schools to improve instructional delivery through peer mentorship and coaching. Scholars and practitioners in international education will have the opportunity to learn how Georgian educators are adapting global best practices to their local context.
Panelist Abstract
Teacher Learning Circles: Exploring sustainability model in Georgia
International research suggests that access to continuous, school-based professional development is an important determinant of teacher effectiveness and key to student achievement. Until recently, teacher professional development in Georgia was oriented toward external trainings. USAID's Georgia Primary Education Project (G-PriEd) piloted a continuous school-based teacher professional development program, called a Teacher Learning Circle (TLC), in a sample of Georgian primary schools. The TLC allows teachers to meet as a group and engage in a professional dialogue in a productive and results-oriented setting. Through the TLCs, teachers can discuss the results of the classroom diagnostic assessments, an innovation in the Georgian system, and support one another in the implementation. This session will share G-PriEd’s experience working with TLC facilitators, the resources and materials (e.g., parental engagement manual, case studies) the project developed for facilitators to guide TLC sessions, and the capacity building efforts that the project will provide to formalize the facilitator as mentors and coaches.
G-PriEd’s model enables teachers not only to acquire new knowledge and skills, but to examine and change instructional beliefs and behavior to effect real improvements. The model is designed to be cost-effective for resource-strapped environments, and to tap local resources in facilitating the dialogue. The presenter will discuss briefly the research behind this particular form of professional development and its impact in Georgia.

Authors

• Annie Mchugh, Chemonics International

• Jennifer Burdett, Chemonics International