Education Notes

24 items available

Permanent URI for this collection

http://hdl.handle.net/10986/9403

Education Notes is a series produced by the World Bank to share lessons learned from innovative approaches to improving education practice and policy around the globe. Background work for this piece was done in partnership, with support from the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development (DFID).

Items in this collection

Now showing 1 - 10 of 17

Enhancing Accountability in Schools : What Can Choice and Contracting Contribute

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2007-04) Patrinos, Harry Anthony ; LaRocque, Norman

This note claims that contracting in education can be employed for initiatives of varying sizes and across a range of services. For policy-makers, contracting represents an effective means of introducing accountability in the education system. Contracting can also insulate governments from some of the criticism leveled at privatization. Moreover, it can bring in skills and capital to the education sector.
Fast Track Initiative : Building a Global Compact for Education

(Washington, DC, 2005-09) World Bank

The Education for All -- Fast Track Initiative (FTI) was launched in 2002 as a partnership between donor and developing countries to accelerate progress towards the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) of universal primary education. FTI is built on mutual commitments: 1) partner countries have agreed to give priority to primary education and to develop sound national education plans, and 2) donors have agreed to increase support in a transparent, coordinated manner. This paper includes the following headings: the Education for All -- Fast Track Initiative (FTI); FTI promotes education policy reform; FTI promotes aid effectiveness; monitoring and evaluation; FTI trust funds; and expansion of FTI.
Education for All : The Cost of Accessibility

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2005-08) Steinfeld, Edward

The goal of Education for All (EFA) is to provide universal access to primary education throughout the world. To accomplish this goal, as many as 10 million classrooms will be built in developing countries by 2015. A key objective of the program is to ensure that no child is denied access to education because of disability. Access to all schools is necessary to ensure that children with disabilities can participate independently in a mainstreamed environment since most villages will have only one school building. The related construction costs, if any, are not a barrier to providing access and are insignificant when compared to the benefits. Children who are educated with their peers have greater opportunities to become productive members of their societies and be more integrated socially in their communities.
EFA and Beyond : Service Provision and Quality Assurance in China

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2005-07) Wang, Yidan

China is not often thought of in the Education-for-all (EFA) context but its education sector over the past 20 years provides many lessons for countries that are approaching Universal Primary Education (UPE). The most important lesson may be that the need for educational reform does not diminish as countries approach UPE. The first challenge is to expand education opportunities. As coverage expands, however, new challenges inevitably emerge that require constant attention and frequent updates to education policy and financing mechanisms.
In Their Own Language : Education for All

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2005-06) Bender, Penelope ; Dutcher, Nadine ; Klaus, David ; Shore, Jane ; Tesar, Charlie

Fifty percent of the world's out-of-school children live in communities where the language of schooling is rarely, if ever, used at home. This paper discusses the benefits of use of first language instruction. The results of benefits from first language instruction discussed are: increased access and equity; improved learning outcomes; reduced repetition and dropout rates; socio-cultural benefits and lower overall costs. The paper outlines why many countries have been reluctant to deliver basic education in local languages. It also gives lessons learned on: policy formulation around language of instruction issues; bilingual programs; and management of the policy environment of language reforms.
Decentralizing Education in Guatemala : School Management by Local Communities

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2005-02) Rojas, Carlos ; Valerio, Alexandria ; Demas, Angela

Guatemala set out in 1992 to increase access to education in remote areas. Its National Community-managed Program for Educational Development (PRONADE) has evolved from a small, innovative pilot program in 19 rural communities, to a nationwide program reaching over 4,100 communities and 445,000 children. PRONADE is one of the most proactive managerial, administrative, and financial decentralization measures taken in Latin America. Isolated rural communities have been truly empowered to administer and manage the schools. Following are some remaining challenges to be resolved for PRONADE continued success : quality issues and students learning outcomes must be dealt more systematically; PRONADE teachers have not received consistent training in multi-grade and bilingual classroom practices; impact evaluation are needed to determine how PRONADE is affecting student achievement, repetition, and drop-out rates, as well as teacher effectiveness; finally, there have been frequent delays in payment of teacher salaries, as well as transfer of funds for school snacks, educational and teaching materials.
School Fees : A Roadblock to Education For All

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2004-08) Bentaouet Kattan, Raja ; Burnett, Nicholas

There is increasing momentum on the road to Education for All (EFA), but school fees are still a roadblock for too many children. Several African countries have recently abolished school fees outright. The dramatic surge in enrollments that followed, is strong evidence that the payment of fees can be a major obstacle to enrollment. The note examines the prevalence of fees, and their impact worldwide, and draws lessons involved in attempts to eliminate user fees, and to provide alternate sources of financing. Some important lessons are being learned from these efforts, namely, that fees cannot be abolished without consideration of whether, and how, they should be replaced by an alternative source of income. Replacement revenues can be provided by simply increasing expenditures on education, by improving the efficiency of education spending, or by use of debt relief funds to close the financing gap.
When Governments Get Creative : Adult Literacy in Senegal

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2004-07) Nordtveit, Bjorn Harald

This report summarizes lessons learned and key policy findings on the World Bank's work in education in Senegal. In 1993, Senegal established a new policy for literacy programs based on partnership between civil society and the state: the state ensures policy leadership, overall coordination, monitoring and evaluation; the providers (civil society organizations, such as non-profits, village associations, and language associations) implement local literacy activities; an independent contract-managing agency handles contracts and rapid transfer of funds to providers. The World Bank financed project achieved the following results, which were similar to those achieved by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA): about 190,000 participants, of which 87 percent were women, enrolled in literacy classes over a five-year period; capacity in government and civil society organizations improved consistently; the dropout rate averaged 15 percent (much lower than for most adult literacy programs); most participants achieved learning mastery levels for reading (although not for math). The results of the literacy training exceeded target levels. Learning outcomes systematically improved as a result of two factors: providers became more experienced; and research led to improved procedures. The report notes that weak monitoring and evaluation contributed to the following shortcomings: re-financing of low-quality providers; lack of information about impact. As a result of these problems, some of the literacy courses did not provide adequate learning for the participants.
Getting an Early Start on Early Child Development

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2004-06) Eming Young, Mary ; Dunkelberg, Erika

The children born this year, 2004, will be eleven years old in 2015-the age of primary school completion in most countries. This is the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) generation-for whom the international community has pledged that by 2015, all children will be able to complete primary schooling. Ensuring good early child development is the first essential step toward achieving these goals. The note reviews the benefits of early child development (ECD), its options, and coverage by country and region, and provides lessons as follows. A strong institutional framework should be complemented by local capacity, and community participation, while ECD programs should be federally funded. Monitoring and evaluation mechanisms should be in place, as an interactive process, responsive to local needs, and for effective outcomes.
Education for All : Including Children with Disabilities

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2003-08) Peters, Susan

An estimated 40 million of the 115 million children out of school have disabilities. The vast majority of these children have moderate impairments that are often not visible or easily diagnosed. Disabled children include those with learning difficulties, speech difficulties, physical, cognitive, sensory and emotional difficulties. Children with disabilities are likely to have never attended school. A 1991 report by the UN Rapporteur on Human Rights and Disabilities found that at least one in ten persons in the majority of countries has a physical, cognitive, or sensory (deaf/blind) impairment. Fewer than 5 percent are believed to reach the "Education For All" goal of primary school completion. This number may be growing due to global conditions of increasing poverty, armed conflict, child labor practices, violence and abuse, and HIV/AIDS. Because these children are part of a family unit, it is estimated that at least 25 percent of the world population is directly affected by the presence of disability.