Building community systems to support holistic learning in communities furthest behind in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania

• In Event: Rethinking Education Systems: Equity, Evidence, and the Challenge of Supporting Holistic Learning Worldwide

Proposal

In any educational system, the importance of community support cannot be overstated. A school is not an isolated entity; it is part of a larger ecosystem that includes parents, local organizations, community structures, and government agencies. Each of these agencies plays a role in shaping the learning experiences of students. Community support refers to time and resources provided by these groups, helping to create an environment where learning, especially for children furthest behind is valued and they are supported to grow and thrive. Whether it’s financial support, emotional support, or advocacy for educational policies, community involvement helps create a strong foundation for students to excel.
Working in some of the underserved communities in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania we have leveraged and harnessed the power of community and community structures to support learning for learners furthest behind. This community based, owned and driven program is anchored on the African communal living set up and culture to mainstream parents and community involvement in learning. We are partnering with nine grassroots organizations in Kenya, four in Uganda and five in Tanzania to implement this structured parental empowerment and engagement program. The grassroots organizations have owned the process of contextualizing community owned and led learning initiatives.
In its third year of implementation, and implemented in community spaces, this program has reached over 25,000 parents in Kenya and Uganda and Tanzania. The program is changing parents’ role in their children’s learning from the more superficial involvement roles to deeper and structured parental engagement. It is equipping the parents with the practical skills and contextualized skills they need to support children’s learning in school and at home. This program has drawn parents’ interest in children learning. We are recording a particular interest of men in supporting learning for children, especially girls. Being that we work in patriarchal societies steeped in culture that is retrogressive to girl’s education and development, this is a significant milestone in the quest for ensuring quality children’s learning. We have also recorded women’s support for education. Women in groups have contributed to supporting children’s education materials like sanitary pads, and books. Youth from the community, in their pre-tertiary education gap year are supporting with supervising individualized and group remediation activities for their siblings and neighbors.
Building on the success of these individual community systems in supporting learning, we are now working to bring them together to create a grassroots movement and system that supports learning for children. Parents, communities, community-based organizations and local government officials have designed structures for engaging in conversations to support children learning. This system based on trust and values is working to hold each other accountable for sustained learning outcomes for children in underserved communities in Kenya and Uganda Tanzania. We are also recording an increasing girl's agency and voice in demanding education opportunities.

Authors

• Samwel Mwayi Mbewa, GRIC AFRICA

• Wangui Wangui Nyaga, GRIC