Promoting Transition to Secondary Education through ICT Support: Lessons from Communication for Development in Uganda

1. THE REPUBLIC OF UGANDA Information Communication Technology support to promoting transition toSecondary Education Lessons learned on Communication for Development for Education Transition from Primary to Secondary Uganda

7. Education in Uganda

8. Situation of Primary Education • 15% of children have never attended school: C4D focuses on enrollment into pre-primary and primary schools. • Enrollment rate in primary is extremely high 96% at the lower levels. When these cohorts progress to upper primary the drop out rate increases. For post primary schools the rate of enrollment and retention decreases further. C4D intervenes through the Go Back to School campaign. • Includes focus’ on increasing access to education for vulnerable groups. C4D encourages parents, teachers community leaders to improve the teaching learning environments and other relevant conditions - equally improving the quality and inclusion of education. THE REPUBLIC OF UGANDA

9. Situation of Primary Education Key Findings: Situational Analysis UNICEF May 2015; • ECD policies improved at national level, but implementation and coordination is low • Primary school enrollment tripled with no gender parity, • Survival rates at Primary Seven, is 32% and transition to Senior One is 69.9% • One in 5 children has never enrolled in school • Conflict and disasters continues to undermine provision of quality education • The Education budget has increased but in the last 12 years it has declined in service provision (30% down to 13%). THE REPUBLIC OF UGANDA

10. Challenges in Service Provision • Pre-primary enrollment is 23% • Budgetary allocations to Early Childhood Development is limited • Implementation of integrated ECD services isolated and fragmented • Primary school low quality of service delivery • 1 in 5 teachers had master of curriculum they taught. • Teacher absenteeism - 23.8% absent from schools and 52.5% from classroom • Only 5% of children living with disabilities access education within an inclusive setting in regular schools • Poor/ inadequate WASH facilities at schools exceeded national standards at 70:1 • Violence against Children (VAC) in schools is prevalent and 83% of children declared having experienced violence in school. THE REPUBLIC OF UGANDA

11. Challenges in Service Provision • Secondary attendance by students is low due to the high costs - Innovations presents opportunities for learning provided beyond formal education • Low achievement proficiency in Science subjects such as Mathematics, English Language and Biology • - Innovations provides online access to science classes as part of remedial tuition • Education in Emergencies and conflict disrupts education and affects quality of service provision - Innovations provide temporary learning spaces THE REPUBLIC OF UGANDA

12. C4D Interventions

13. C4D Interventions • To address these gaps in providing quality education learning spaces through approaches and the issue of community and individual participation: Social mobilization • Community Baraazas: District stakeholders, parents, administrative officers, Politicians Partners with the district to reflect on the action plans under the learning • District Dialogue meetings: The districts reflect and develop their action plans together. Behaviour change • School family initiations: Pupils/ Students with teachers to guide as parents. Raise the concerns of pupils and learners concerns, family THE REPUBLIC OF UGANDA

14. C4D Interventions Social and Behaviour Change: • Radio campaigns: Going Back to School, Staying in School and Completing School. Conducted in all the 78 focus districts in Uganda and nationwide. • Radio talk shows: Under the Peace Building Education and Advocacy Programme. • Community and National Theatre: Music, Dance and Drama by 4.3 million children singing with one voice to effect social change. • District and National Advocacy: Parliamentary advocacy to effect increment in funding to the improve inclusive and quality driven education service delivery. THE REPUBLIC OF UGANDA

15. Information Gaps Innovations in Education (Learning) support to strengthen these frameworks to overall improve on learning outcomes; • Limited data: On existence of pre-primary services in the country and effect on primary performance • Quality: teacher performance, absenteeism, motivation • Children living with disabilities: Lack of disaggregated data on different disabilities and needs • Lower attendance in secondary attendance due to high costs to parents • Low achievement in academic scores more challenging learning environment. THE REPUBLIC OF UGANDA

16. Information Gaps Redressed • Tutors in teachers colleges in the peace building and conflict sensitivity in for pre primary and primary education • Integration of peace and conflict sensitivity into teacher education curriculum (professional studies) - colleges are supported to collect data; • Teacher guideline on engagement on peace education in primary schools – • Support in evidence gathering on Violence Against Children (VAC)in schools, roles of parents, safe learning spaces. • Providing opportunities for children to report cases of Violence to Police authorities and get health support for the survivor THE REPUBLIC OF UGANDA

17. Interventions: Quality Improvement a) Instructions Materials Units targets: • Reduced time in procurement and delivery • Storage of learning materials (RTI and UNICEF) Boxes • Books in hands of children • Books Vetting Committee in relation to school curriculum • Reduction of Pupil Book ratio – target to achieve is to have 1 child for 1 one book (Pupil: Book ratio is 3:1 for Primary schools but the MoESTS plans to achieve the target of 1:1. b) Community and District Baraazas: Planning, implementation and monitoring and evaluating programme delivery. THE REPUBLIC OF UGANDA

18. Children's’ Challenges Redressed • Vulnerable and Marginalized Groups especially those in the categories of Children in refugee camps and those in Pastoral communities: • Enabling learning environment which includes; development of learning materials and capacity building for Teachers, Publishers and Disability Persons • Teachers on the use of accessible materials, advocacy capacity building for publishers to develop materials for learners with disabilities • CDOs to mobilize and create awareness on availability of accessible innovations and assistive learning materials.

19. Innovations • EduTrac: 6200: It is a mobile phone based data collection system under pilot by UNICEF and Ministry of Education, Science, Technology and Sports to complement the paper based annual school census. • U-report: Short Messaging Service (SMS) that engages children and youth on issues they care about. Analysis done on 3 million messages in 2014 with Education receiving the second highest responses • GenderTracis a mobile phone based tracking system designed mainly to provide messages to Teachers in Primary Schools. It is to re-inforce capacity building skills to improve on behaviour change (attitudinal change) towards gender biases within the learning environment. • U-Portal- This Software package has information on vocational training and non-formal educational opportunities (both digital and hands-on) • Open educational materials and games • Videos and audio programmes developed by a range of content from education partners THE REPUBLIC OF UGANDA

20. Transition to Secondary Lessons Learnt: • Improved access to learning materials by vulnerable groups such as girls and children living with disabilities in primary and Youth centres to open up spaces for primary and secondary school children • Creativity in learning for children offered by new tools for Teachers and accessed by pupils and students. • Real time data from innovations that informs behaviour and social change approaches and also informing district and national level advocacy for overall increased funding to the Education Sector. THE REPUBLIC OF UGANDA

21. A Child’s Quote • “I want to go to school. But I know that it is not going to be easy for me because I am disabled. But if I got the chance, I would work hard and want to be a doctor one day to help other children not get Polio.”

22. Her Barriers to access and utilization • A girl related to the cultural social gender preferences to boys • Requires special needs (child living with disabilities) • In one of the most remote areas of the country • Society governed by cultural norm on Female Genital Mutilation/ Cutting and Child Marriage • Poorly funded sector that requires special attention made vulnerable groups – especially girls and children living with disabilities (Inclusive and Quality Education)

23. 2015 Teddy Pulkol in Primary 6 Teddy Pulkol in Senior 2 2012

24. C4D SBCC: FGM/C and Child Marriage