Lessons learned from the National Program for Reading: results of the end-of-project evaluation

• In Event: Evidence-based and ministry-led early-grade Arabic reading curriculum reform in Morocco

Proposal

At the conclusion of the National Program for Reading (NPR), USAID conducted an end-of-program evaluation that examined how well the project had met six objectives: improved learning outcomes, MoE capacity for data use built, reform scaled, parents engaged, private sector engaged, and the effective inclusion of girls, linguistic minorities, and children with disabilities. School-to-School International (STS), hired to lead the evaluation, trained enumerators to conduct Key Informant Interviews with ministry actors, school directors, and program implementers, as well as Focus Group Discussions with teachers and parents from select schools and communities in Morocco. STS also examined secondary data from studies conducted under NPR to identify relationships between project interventions and reading results. Evaluators found improved reading results from midline to endline (Covid-19 had interrupted progress from baseline to midline); increased capacity on the part of the MoE to implement such initiatives; increased parental support; and statistically significant relationships between NPR initiatives and several variables, including the use of supplementary materials. Lessons learned included the importance of involving actors at regional and local levels, including school directors and teachers, in the interpretation and use of data to improve learning, as well as the challenges associated with providing training and materials when going to scale. Most prominently, NPR provides an example of how a ministry can successfully lead the design and implementation of an education reform with strong donor support and sufficient data to foster evidence-based decision-making. This session will elaborate on evaluation findings, lessons learned, and recommendations for future projects.

Author

• Fiona Eichinger, School to School International