Boosting Early Childhood Care
and Education in low income
countries: the role of GPE
66th OMEP World Assembly
July 1-2, 2014Cork, Ireland
Aigly Zafeirakou, PhDSenior Education SpecialistGPE [email protected]
Photo: Deepa Srikantaiah
Outline
1. What is the Global Partnership for Education?
2. The picture of ECCE in low income countries
3. How global and local partners could support ECCE?
- Call to Action: Investing urgently in ECCE
- The added value of OMEP
The issue: access, equity and quality of education
• Despite huge gains in access, approximately 200 million children in primary school in developing countries are struggling to read even basic words, following several years of schooling!
• The Global Partnership for Education Partners have put as priority to achieve access, equity and quality education for all.
A partnership for basic education to address access, equity and quality
Low income recipient countries
Donor countries
Multilateral, bilateral organizations
Academia, civil society organizations, NGOs, the private sector
GPE strategy
To coordinate a global effort to deliver a good quality education to all girls and boys, prioritizing
the poorest and most vulnerable
Goals• Access for all• Learning for all• Building for the future (systems)
• Reaching every child (marginalized, conflict states)
ECCE in the GPE strategy
Within the strategic goals: Access for All,
Learning for All,
and the strategic objective 3:
Dramatic increase in the number of children learning and demonstrating mastery of basic literacy and numeracy skills by grade 3,
ECCE has an important role to play!
ECCE in the GPE strategy
Supporting efforts to increase Early Childhood Education especially for the more marginalized and disadvantaged
• Development of a sound Education Sector Plan
• Promote in-country partners collaborationoLocal Education GroupoSupervising Entity
• Implementation of the Plan- GPE Grant
• Monitoring the implementation of the Plan
• Technical support
The GPE approach
The GPE approach at country level
Education Sector Plan
Implementation
Monitoring and
Evaluation
ECCE components
Domestic and international investment (i.e. GPE grant)
Early Childhood Care and Education and the Global Partnership for Education Processes
The Global Partnership for Education supports ECCE with:
Financial support through GPE grants for eligible countries
Technical advice, knowledge development and sharing, support of networks and platforms
Entry points for ECCE operationalization
Two levels: System Level: Education Sector Plans Technical level: the appropriate development of
effective, essential, curricula package (s) for developing quality Early Childhood Education with quality language and emergent literacy components; what works from pilots and innovations is crucial!
12
ECCE: what we know:
Proving quality early childhood care and education, language development and emergent literacy experiences help young children and especially the poorest and most disadvantaged to improve primary school achievements and education success.
Preschoolers in emergent literacy activities, Albania, 2010 (photo: Author)
Early successful learning, leads to later successful learning
In fact, good quality ECCE results in:cost-savings and increased efficiency in
primary education: higher attendance and achievement, lower repetition and drop-out rates, less remedial and special education
children who are ready for school and for reading with early/emergent/pre-literacy skills
I. What we know
The starting point: holistic children development
Development is a multidimensional process It contains 4 basic interconnected areas of
child development, from birth to 6-8 years old
Definition: United Nations Convention on the Rights of children 2006
Physical
Socio-emotional
Linguistic
Cognitive
FROM BIRTH
TO SCHOOL
I. What we know
Entry point: language development and emergent literacy as predictors of success in
school and learning
This applies for all young children, but especially for young children from disadvantaged environments
I. What we know
In low income countries: vocabulary scores of Ecuadorian children aged 36 to
72 months by wealth quartiles
Parxson, K. &Schady N., 2005
II. The picture of ECCE in low income countries
A kindergarten class attached to a primary school, with an unqualified teacher, Sub-Saharan Africa
The disadvantaged
• Around 219 million children under 5 are disadvantaged*
61% in Africa
52% in South Asia
39 % in the developing countries
(Grantham-McGregor et al.2007)
*Disadvantaged children: stunted, living in poverty or both
Learning outcomes still lag behind
• Early grade reading assessments show a rather dramatic situation despite the fact that access is a success story, during the last decade.
• Many children in sub-Saharan Africa are failing to master basic literacy and numeracy skills, even if they complete primary school. The Southern and Eastern Africa Consortium for Monitoring Educational Quality (SACMEQ)
The Early Grade Assessment (EGRA)
• This is an alarming situation and ECCE has an important role to play in order to overcome!
Access
Enrollment in preprimary education generally increased between 2000 and 2011
Global Partnership for Education Results Learning Report 2013. http://globalpartnership.org/content/results-learning-report-2013
Tajik
istan
Burkina F
aso
Sierra
Leone
Nigeria
Madag
ascar
Togo
Lao PDR
Sao To
me and Prin
cipe
Vietnam
Moldova
Mongolia
Ghana
Nepal
0.00
20.00
40.00
60.00
80.00
100.00
120.00
Preprimary gross enrollment. Decade change. Selected GPE countries with 2002 and 2012 data. UIS/UNESCO
20002012
Access
Inequalities: participation in Pre-primary is increasing but still limited and unequal (Global
Monitoring Report, 2011)
Tajik
istan
Burkina F
aso
Sierra
Leone
Nigeria
Madag
ascar
Togo
Lao PDR
Sao To
me and Prin
cipe
Vietnam
Mongolia
Ghana
Nepal
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
Access to ECCE by socio-economic status in selected countries. Latest MICS available data (2005-2012).
PoorestRichest
The poorest young children benefit the least
Tajik
istan
Burkina F
aso
Sierra
Leone
Nigeria
Madag
ascar
Togo
Lao PDR
Vietnam
Sao To
me and Prin
cipe
Mongolia
Ghana
Nepal
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
Access to ECCE by geographical location in selected countries. Latest MICS available data (2006-2012).
RuralUrban
Access to ECCE is concentrated in urban areas
Children from rich families are more likely to participate in ECCE programs
Probability for 3- and 4 years old of attending early learning programs: children from the richest 20% compared with children from the poorest 20% Source: Global Monitoring Report, 2010, cited Nanoyama-Tarumi et al.
Children of educated mothers are more likely to attend ECD programs
Source: GMR 2010, Nonoyama-Tarumi et al. p.52
Private preprimary schools catered to an average of 34 percent of children in 2011
Private; 34
Other; 66
Source: Global Partnership for Education Results Learning Report 2013. http://globalpartnership.org/content/results-learning-report-2013
Percentage of private enrolment. Pre-primaryGPE developing partner countries with latest available data (2000-2012) (UIS/Unesco)
100%Country (total pre-primary gross enrollment, private pre-primary enrollment)Eg. The Gambia (30, 77)
Uganda (13,100), Rwanda (13,100),
Tonga (35,100), Vanuatu
(61,100), St. Lucia (61,100),
St. Vincent (78,100), Lesotho (35,100), Comoros (24,100)
75%-99%50%-74% Burkina Faso
(4,76), The Gambia (30,77),
Mauritania (2,79), Guinea-Bissau (6,84),
Ethiopia, Madagascar
(8,91)
25%-49% Congo, Dem. (4,52), Chad (2,
52), Eritrea (13,53), Central
Afr. (6,55), Benin (18,56) , Djibouti (4,57), Myanmar (9,60), Cameroon
(30,64), Congo Rep (14,66),
Guinea (15,72), Mali (4,72)
11%-24% Nigeria (13,28), Togo (11,30), Cote d'Ivoire
(5,35), Burundi (5,36), Kenya (51,38),
Senegal (14, 43), Sierra Leone (9,44),
Yemen (1,45), Bangladesh (25,49)
Under 10% Cambodia (15,13), Sao Tome (50,14), Nicaragua
(55,16), Niger (6,13), Nepal (81,17), Vietnam (77,21), Ghana (114,22), Lao PDR (24,22), Sudan
(26,23), Solomon Islands (43,23)
Guyana (62,7), Mongolia (85,7), Tanzania (34,5),
Kyrgyz Rep. (24,3),
Uzbekistan (25,0.6),
Moldova (79,0.2)
No. of countries:6 9 9 11 6 8
Mapping Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) in GPE countries:
40 country profiles
Structure of the profile sheet
Structure of the profile sheet
TRENDS- ECCE findings in 48 GPE countries
ECCE INCLUDED IN ALL
EDUCATION SECTOR PLANS
ECCE AT EMERGENT STATE IN GPE POOREST
COUNTRIES
INCREASED GROSS ENROLLMENT
CHILDREN 3-5 YRS
SIGNIFICANT INTERNAL INEQUALITIES (RURAL,
POOR, ETHNIC MINORITY AND YOUNG CHILDEN)
MORE COUNTRIES EXPAND PRE-SCHOOL CLASSES AT LEAST 1
YEAR
COMMUNITY-BASED ECCE POPULAR FOR
SCALE –UP BUT SUSTAINABILITY?
Quality ChallengesExamples
Obsolete programs and technologies
Need for adequate furniture, equipment,
library, toys, visual learning aids.
Unsatisfactory sanitary conditions in
preschool institutions
Very few teachers with higher
education degree
High incompatibility of teacher training with modern early child
development requirements
Salaries of kindergarten teachers are still very low compared to salaries of
production workers
GPE country allotments to ECCE in US millions and periodCountry Total grant Part of total grant
Kyrgyz Rep. 12.7/ 2014-2017
Mongolia 12.12/ 2012-14
Moldova 4.4/ 2012-2014
Nepal 59/2009-2014
Uzbekistan 20.7/2014-2017
Nicaragua 15.9/2013-2016
Uganda 7.0/2014-2017
Sierra Leone 1.0/2014-2017
Tanzania mainland 1.7/2013
Eritrea 1.3/ 2014-2017
Ethiopia Less than 1.0
Cameroon Less than 0.5
The Gambia 0.366/ 2013
Yemen 0.88/2013-2016
GPE country allotments to ECCE in US millions and periodCountry Total grant Part of total grant
Tajikistan 13.5/2010-2012*
Cambodia 57.4 /2010*
Mozambique 90 /2011-2015*
* Confirmed allocation to ECCE yet unspecified in GPE Grant Application Document
Sources: GPE Grant Application Documents, Project Documents and draft note “SUMMARY OF ECD/ECCE ACTIVITIES INCLUDED IN GPE PROJECTS APPROVED NOVEMBER 2013 IN AFRICA”
ECCE Impact evaluations
• The Promise of Preschool in Africa: A Randomized
Impact Evaluation of Early Childhood Development in
Rural Mozambique. World Bank, 2012.
Mozambique
• Impact Evaluation of Three Types of Early Childhood Development Interventions in Cambodia. World Bank, 2013.
Cambodia
• Supporting emergent Literacy skills among preschool age children. Save the Children 2014. Ethiopia
From ESPs to ECCE/ECD implementation
Countries with ECCE comp. in the GPE current grants)
Kyrgyz Rep., Nepal, Moldova, Mongolia, Uzbekistan, Nicaragua, Uganda, Yemen, Tajikistan, Cambodia, Mozambique, Cameroon, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Niger, Sierra Leone, Tanzania Mainland.
In total: around 137 million awarded for specific ECCE and ECD components
Activities included in GPE grant proposals
• Sub-sector analysis, (2) • Expansion of preschool
classes (4) • Modules for initial teacher
training, training, Teacher guides (3)
• Materials for training (1)• Standards (2) • Impact evaluations (2)• Piloting new approaches (2)• Day care, Parenting
programs (3)• Capacity development (2)
III. How global and local partners could support ECCE?
The road ahead: the role of GPEopportunities for OMEP
- Call to Action: Investing urgently in ECCE
- Implementing the GPE Strategic plan: Technical Reference Group (TRG)
- The added value of OMEP: technical platform part of the TRG?
Other critical technical questions for GPE ECCE partners
• Define and identify age group intervention levels (preschool classes)
Programming (qualification of educators / pre-school teachers, curricula, learning and teaching aids, pedagogical materials, emergent literacy etc.)
- Appropriate mix in the ground between education, health, nutrition, care, etc.
- Education and school readiness as goal, other interventions as enabling factors
)
Nest steps for discussion
Multiple opportunities for OMEP action within the GPE:
Member of the incoming Techincal Reference Group Contribute to the deliver of the implementation plan but
contributing at global and country level in supporting efforts to increase ECE especially for the more marginalized.
Provide inputs on new research, thinking and evidence on ECCE programming, essential ECCE packages, ECD, alternative innovative service delivery
Contribute to knowledge development, and sharing, analytical work, advocacy (ECCE workshops in Africa 2014)