Piloting a national early childhood measurement tool in Liberia

• In Event: Together for Early Childhood Evidence: Building data-informed early childhood education systems

Proposal

While access to early childhood programs has improved significantly over the past decade in Liberia, the Ministry of Education of Liberia has had little information and data on the location, status, and quality conditions of ECE programs throughout the country. This results in uneven distribution of service provision and varying levels of quality and program interventions, leading to disparity in access, and overutilization or underutilization of educational facilities.

Under this project, researchers from the University of Liberia and the Liberian Ministry of Education designed a study to capture information about public, private, community, and faith-based early childhood education centers and schools in the three pilot regions of Liberia. The team adapted and used the Brief Early Childhood Quality Inventory (BEQI) classroom observation and teacher interview instruments to gather information on structural and process components of quality. The team also geographically mapped each ECE center.

The study achieved two goals. First, it captured key information on ECE programs in pilot regions, including location, teacher characteristics, and a snapshot of quality indicators in an ECE Program Quality Catalogue. Second, the study identified important quality-related issues for ECE in Liberia. The study showed that schools often do not have sufficient indoor or outdoor infrastructure to support learning. The data revealed that few play-based activities or practices are being implemented in Liberian ECE classrooms. Children were observed having almost no choice in how to engage in activities; instead, they were mainly involved in whole group activities, and had few opportunities to interact with their peers. Data from the teacher interview showed that many pre-primary teachers are satisfied with their jobs; however, they believe they need additional support and training. Further, 40 percent of pre-primary teachers do not have certification in teaching kindergarten and 60 percent of public-school teachers did not receive in-service training within the last year.

This project marks an important step towards mapping ECE centers and identifying gaps in the implementation of ECE programs. This study can be used by the Ministry of Education, its partners, and school administrators to identify the types of facilities and infrastructure that are needed in each ECE school/center. The study results can also be used to develop strategies to train ECE teachers to ensure all children have access to quality and equitable education to develop lifelong learning skills.
The research team hopes that the Ministry of Education can use this experience to scale up a nationwide study for a comprehensive picture of ECE programs in Liberia. As Liberia continues to learn more about the status and current conditions of their ECE programs, opportunities will arise to leverage those data towards ongoing program improvement, capacity building, supporting the workforce and improving child outcomes through data-driven policies and approaches.

Author

• Barton Pogue