Partnership for Education Project: Testing

• In Event: USAID/Ghana Partnership for Education Project

Abstract

Ghana has made great strides in increasing access to basic education in the past decade, reducing the number of out of school children, increasing gender equity in education and implementing an ambitious Free Compulsory Basic Education (F-CUBE) program. Despite these gains, data on student performance, including the National Education Assessment and Early Grade Reading and Math Assessments, demonstrate persistent, low learning outcomes. Without commensurate measures to ensure quality, these efforts risk undermining Ghana’s achievement of Education for All and in the long-term could reverse initial gains made in expanding access.

Ghana’s cutting edge language of instruction policy has made it a country to watch in the use of mother tongue instruction. Primary school teaching and learning includes the use of 11 Ghanaian languages and a proven approach for mother tongue instruction in the early grades before a transition to English as the medium of instruction in the upper primary grades. However, implementation challenges abound. Recent assessment and evaluation results suggest that focused interventions, resources, and accountability mechanisms will be needed to reach Government of Ghana goals on education quality.

To directly support the Government of Ghana in its reading and literacy improvement efforts, USAID/Ghana has designed the USAID Partnership for Education Project, a suite of discrete, independent yet inter-linked financial and technical support activities. Building on successes and learning of schools, communities and NGOs and promising efforts by government, USAID, and other Development Partners, the Project seeks to catalyze early grade reading improvement in and out of the classroom.

Hear USAID staff speak about progress to date under the Partnership for Education Project and promising practices and lessons learned in implementing a multi-pronged approach to supporting reading and early grade learning.

Author

• Elizabeth Randolph, RTI International