Resilient learners, teachers and education systems

Objectives

This cross-border initiative supported 7,249 children and youth, including internally displaced persons (IDPs), refugees, and host community members. Indirectly, over 32,000 learners benefited from improved teaching quality through teacher training. The project engaged directly with learners, teachers, and communities while providing broader support to strengthen education systems in South Sudan and Uganda.

Implementation

The project aimed to enhance literacy and numeracy skills through accelerated education (AE) interventions, while also strengthening children’s emotional well-being. Accelerated education programmes provided flexible, age-appropriate, and certified basic education for disadvantaged, over-age, out-of-school children and adolescents.

Additionally, a 'bridging programme' was delivered to support language acquisition for learners not yet ready to enter formal education in Uganda. The project operated in 18 accelerated education centres in South Sudan and 4 accelerated education centres and 20 primary schools in Uganda. Gender equality was promoted throughout all project interventions, with whole-school approaches, prioritising female teachers and representation in school governance, developing gender action plans, and supporting girls’ club activities.

An adapted training programme suitable for crisis contexts was developed and implemented based on the Inter-agency Network for Education in Emergencies (INEE) Teachers in Crisis Contexts package. This was a key component of the project, providing teachers with professional development through a mix of training, classroom observation, peer learning, and school visits. Training covered pedagogical skills, classroom management, lesson planning, and gender and conflict sensitivity, equipping teachers to manage diverse classrooms. The project worked closely with teacher trainers from education authorities to ensure sustainability.

The project also bolstered the resilience of education systems through multi-stakeholder dialogue, policy advocacy, research, and improved data collection. This included collaboration at the school level with parent-teacher associations (PTAs) and school management committees (SMCs) on roles and responsibilities, school development planning, and promoting gender and inclusion.

Research focused on student and teacher well-being, the interconnections between the two, the impact of project interventions, and the broader context in which they took place. Additionally, a study on the impact of COVID-19 on teachers and learners was completed.

Results

Student outcomes

The project reached 7,249 learners (49% girls) through AE programmes and bridging programmes, significantly improving enrolment rates in target communities from a baseline of 16% to 52% in Uganda and 60% in South Sudan. Additionally, 75% of targeted students completed the primary cycle exam. Students’ life skills knowledge increased from 76.9% at baseline to 89% by the end of the project.

The endline evaluation found that 86% of both learners and teachers reported feeling better able to handle stressful situations. However, fewer students than expected (30%) transitioned to formal public education, partly due to a preference for completing primary school through the AE programme and the impact of COVID-19, which led some students to discontinue their education.

Improved teaching

The project reached 855 teachers and 22 teacher trainers with professional development, supporting 22 accelerated education (AE) centres and 20 formal primary schools in improving teaching practices. As a result, 81% of teachers reported applying participatory methods and using gender and conflict-sensitive approaches. Teachers became more aware of and adept at challenging gender norms, ensuring equal treatment of girls and boys, and employing diverse teaching methods to engage all learners. This improvement was corroborated by 97% of learners, who perceived a significant enhancement in the quality of teaching and learning.

‘It was such a wonderful opportunity for me to become a teacher in the Education for Life project. In this community, there are many problems, especially with girls who leave school because they have children at an early age. Through the project, we have the opportunity to bring them back to school – and give them the hope of a brighter future. It makes me proud to see these girls study again. They grow increasingly independent, and some of them even share their new knowledge with those in their community who are still at home. These girls are the future mothers of the nation – what they learn in school now will help our country later on.’ - Gloria Akoli, 27-year-old teacher at Awich Primary School, Palabek, Uganda.

Improved learning environments 

School management and the timeliness of school-level data collection improved, with 91% of schools providing timely data and 100% of schools having functioning and inclusive parent-teacher associations (PTAs) and school management committees (SMCs). All target schools received training in disaster risk reduction, and 59% developed and implemented disaster risk reduction plans.

The project's endline evaluation revealed a remarkable reduction in fear, with 87% of learners and 77% of teachers feeling safe in the alternative education centres. This was a significant improvement from the inception phase, where only 58% of learners and 32% of teachers felt safe.

Strengthened education systems

The project played a significant role in the implementation and adaptation of nine education policies in favour of displaced populations at national and global levels. These policies included the Education Response Plan for Refugees and Host Communities in Uganda and the Accelerated Education Guidelines in Uganda. Additionally, the project contributed to UNESCO’s contribution to the UN Secretary General’s SDG report and the Global Convention on the Recognition of Qualifications in Higher Education.

These policies addressed critical issues such as the harmonisation of salaries for refugee teachers, maintaining per-capita grants to schools, and incorporating the cost of refugee education within national education sector plans. A notable achievement was the admission of the National Teachers Union of South Sudan as a member of Education International. This membership integrated the Union into the global governance system for teachers’ unions, providing opportunities for support and growth.

Partners

• Forum for African Women Educationalists Uganda
• Uganda National Teachers Union
• AVSI
• Luigi Giussani Institute of Higher Education
• Community Development Initiative
• Education International 
• Columbia Global Centre
• Inter-agency Network for Education in Emergencies