What is the situation of Foundational Learning in Kenya, Malawi and Cameroon: Evidence from Unlocking Data Initiative

• In Event: Unlocking data initiative: Increasing the use and users of data in Kenya, Malawi and Cameroon.

Proposal

Education data management in sub-Saharan Africa, particularly in foundational learning, faces a complex web of challenges. These include resource limitations, outdated technology, fragmented coordination, and a lack of standardized metrics (Majgaard & Mingat, 2012). Despite the availability of data, access remains a significant barrier, with policymakers often lacking the capacity to effectively locate and utilize these resources (Lawson & Heady, 2020).
This presentation delves into the current state of foundational learning data in Cameroon, Kenya, and Malawi. Our work, guided by the Unlocking Data mapping methodology, seeks to understand the full data landscape, including collection, management, and use. we employed a mixed-method approach, integrating both qualitative and quantitative research techniques. This involved desk reviews, online data searches, systematic literature reviews, document reviews, and data collection through surveys, focus group discussions (FGDs), and key informant interviews (KIIs). Through this comprehensive approach, we identified gaps and challenges while also pinpointing opportunities to improve data accessibility and sharing, ultimately contributing to more evidence-informed decision-making in foundational learning.

The barriers and drivers of evidence were grouped into four groups mapping barriers and drivers. These were first, socio-economic (organizational capacity and working in silos). This category included the institutional capacity to mine for evidence, store, synthesize and use the available evidence. Second was the systemic factors that included the mistrust between actors on data and evidence usage and the power balance between the data owners and users. The identified solutions to systemic factors were collaboration and co-creation. The third set of factors was technical and included data security and quality. Policymaking requires high-quality data and evidence which is hard to come by in the ecosystem. The fourth category of factors involved the lack of a clear policy on how evidence and data are shared in the ecosystem. One of the solutions recommended was the signing of a data/evidence-sharing agreement before engaging in a project.

In the three countries, knowledge is primarily in a grey form comprising university theses in university repositories as compared to published knowledge. The majority of the knowledge developed focuses more on literacy than numeracy and very little if any on social skills. In Kenya, there were no studies on social skills. Further, while FL knowledge studies extended to Grade 4 in Malawi, 47 percent of studies in Kenya, focused on Grade 1 to Grade 3. In addition, there is a shortage of knowledge base in areas such as policy and financing, access to education, students’ learning and assessment, and information and communication technologies. Further, the dearth of literacy and numeracy research is mainly on language and curriculum, teachers and teaching methodologies, institutional leadership, culture and facilities, and equitable and inclusive education. Weaker knowledge bases exist in areas such as policy and financing, access to education, learning, assessment, and information and communication technologies. These are the areas where knowledge generation should be redirected. The existing knowledge is also not synthesized into a usable form that can be useful for decision-making in foundational learning.

Authors

• Laté Ayao Lawson, Education Sub-Saharan Africa

• Rigobert Hanny Pambe Miong, eBASE Africa

• Charles Gachoki, Ziziz Afrique Foundation