The Ethiopia TEACH II activity aimed to strengthen the provision of equitable basic education services by implementing alternative basic education for children and youth, functional literacy for adults and improving the capacity of Woreda Education Offices (WEO) to manage non-formal educational programs. The activity operated in eight regions and provided instruction in four languages. The target population of the study were Level II learners from selected woredas in the SNNP, Tigray, Amhara, Benishangul, Oromia, Afar, Gambella, and Somali regions where PACT-Ethiopia and its partners operated. Students were randomly selected to measure basic literacy skills targeted at the Grade 2 level using EGRA assessments in eight different languages. The EGRA assessment sub-tasks measuring basic literacy skills were incremental in their complexity. Each sub-task was presented to the child on a one–to-one basis. Questionnaires were also administered to understand the background of the students. This data file contains the project's 2012 baseline EGRA.

The Ethiopia TEACH II activity aimed to strengthen the provision of equitable basic education services by implementing alternative basic education for children and youth, functional literacy for adults and improving the capacity of Woreda Education Offices (WEO) to manage non-formal educational programs. The activity operated in eight regions and provided instruction in four languages. The target population of the study were Level II learners from selected woredas in the SNNP, Tigray, Amhara, Benishangul, Oromia, Afar, Gambella, and Somali regions where PACT-Ethiopia and its partners operated. Students were randomly selected to measure basic literacy skills targeted at the Grade 2 level using EGRA assessments in eight different languages. The EGRA assessment sub-tasks measuring basic literacy skills were incremental in their complexity. Each sub-task was presented to the child on a one–to-one basis. Questionnaires were also administered to understand the background of the students. This data file contains the project's 2014 midline EGRA.

The USAID/Kenya Primary Math and Reading (PRIMR) initiative is a task order under the USAID Education Data for Decision Making (EdData II) project that operates in collaboration with the Kenyan Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MoEST) and USAID/Kenya, and implemented by RTI International. The program is a randomized controlled trial intervention that included formal (public or government) schools and low-cost private schools (LCPS) located in Nairobi, Kiambu, Nakuru and Kisumu counties. PRIMR and its Kenyan partners created, published, and distributed new teaching and learning materials, based on the existing Kenyan curriculum; designed and led professional development to build the skills of educators and improve student literacy outcomes; and introduced a number of innovative teaching methods. Teachers and head teachers received training to encourage active learning and participation by both girls and boys in the classroom and were further supported with frequent visits and advising by trained instructional coaches. By mutual agreement among the MoEST, USAID, and RTI, approximately 500 formal schools and LCPSs located in Nairobi, Kiambu, Nakuru, and Kisumu counties were to participate in the PRIMR Initiative. To choose the sample of formal schools, the project team first selected all eligible zones from within the selected locations, then randomly assigned a subset of zones to groups that would receive the PRIMR treatment in phases (Cohorts 1, 2, and 3). Across all three cohorts, 262 formal schools were selected. Sampling for LCPSs began by clustering the schools into geographic groups of either 10 or 15 schools from across Nairobi’s divisions. Twenty clusters then were randomly assigned to Cohorts 1, 2, or 3, stratified by geographic region. The number of LCPSs selected was 240. In January 2012, the Cohort 1 schools (125 schools: 66 public, 59 LCPS) began implementing the reading interventions using PRIMR-designed materials and techniques, and the math intervention followed beginning in July 2012. The Cohort 2 schools (185: 65 public, 120 LCPS) began reading and math interventions in January 2013. Cohort 3 schools (101: 51 public, 50 LCPS) served as a control group for most of the program, and then began receiving the full intervention during the final stages of PRIMR (January 2014). In addition, it was decided that the 2014 phase of the intervention would be extended to all 547 remaining schools, rather than only to Cohort 3 as originally planned. As a result, the number of pupils benefitting increased from 12,755 in January 2012 to 56,036 in January 2014. Randomly selected students from all treatment and control schools were assessed via administration of a combined Early Grade Reading Assessment (EGRA), Early Grade Mathematics Assessment (EGMA), and Snapshot of School Management Effectiveness (SSME) at three time points: baseline, midterm, and endline. The PRIMR Initiative’s research design included several “experiments within an experiment.” These consisted of a study of three different combinations of information and communication technology (ICT) as teaching and learning aids in selected schools in Kisumu County; a longitudinal study of about 600 students who were assessed at all three time points, with their reading and numeracy competency levels compared and contrasted across the assessments; and MoEST-driven policy research on various education issues at the national level.

The Ethiopia TEACH II activity aimed to strengthen the provision of equitable basic education services by implementing alternative basic education for children and youth, functional literacy for adults and improving the capacity of Woreda Education Offices (WEO) to manage non-formal educational programs. The activity operated in eight regions and provided instruction in four languages. The target population of the study were Level II learners from selected woredas in the SNNP, Tigray, Amhara, Benishangul, Oromia, Afar, Gambella, and Somali regions where PACT-Ethiopia and its partners operated. Students were randomly selected to measure basic literacy skills targeted at the Grade 2 level using EGRA assessments in eight different languages. The EGRA assessment sub-tasks measuring basic literacy skills were incremental in their complexity. Each sub-task was presented to the child on a one–to-one basis. Questionnaires were also administered to understand the background of the students. This data file contains the project's 2013 baseline EGRA.

The Ethiopia TEACH II activity aimed to strengthen the provision of equitable basic education services by implementing alternative basic education for children and youth, functional literacy for adults and improving the capacity of Woreda Education Offices (WEO) to manage non-formal educational programs. The activity operated in eight regions and provided instruction in four languages. The target population of the study were Level II learners from selected woredas in the SNNP, Tigray, Amhara, Benishangul, Oromia, Afar, Gambella, and Somali regions where PACT-Ethiopia and its partners operated. Students were randomly selected to measure basic literacy skills targeted at the Grade 2 level using EGRA assessments in eight different languages. The EGRA assessment sub-tasks measuring basic literacy skills were incremental in their complexity. Each sub-task was presented to the child on a one–to-one basis. Questionnaires were also administered to understand the background of the students.

The Ethiopia TEACH II activity aimed to strengthen the provision of equitable basic education services by implementing alternative basic education for children and youth, functional literacy for adults and improving the capacity of Woreda Education Offices (WEO) to manage non-formal educational programs. The activity operated in eight regions and provided instruction in four languages. The target population of the study were Level II learners from selected woredas in the SNNP, Tigray, Amhara, Benishangul, Oromia, Afar, Gambella, and Somali regions where PACT-Ethiopia and its partners operated. Students were randomly selected to measure basic literacy skills targeted at the Grade 2 level using EGRA assessments in eight different languages. The EGRA assessment sub-tasks measuring basic literacy skills were incremental in their complexity. Each sub-task was presented to the child on a one–to-one basis. Questionnaires were also administered to understand the background of the students. This data file contains the project's endline EGRA.

The Tusome Early Grade Reading Program involves a national effort in Kenya to scale up a proven model for improved results in early grade literacy. Based on positive findings during a rigorous impact evaluation of a pilot test of this intervention, the Government of Kenya (GOK) asked USAID/Kenya to assist with the nationwide rollout of an activity to improve reading skills and increase the capacity of educators and the GOK to deliver and administer early grade reading (EGR) programs modeled on the pilot activity’s success. Tusome, which means “Let’s Read” in Kiswahili, targeted 28,000 formal and nonformal public and low-cost private primary schools in the 47 counties in Kenya (nationwide). About 1,000 of these are informal schools that exist mostly in urban “slums,” while the vast majority of the remaining 27,000 schools are in rural areas. Roughly 5.4 million children who entered primary school between 2014 and 2017 are expected to benefit from this scaling-up initiative. Intermediate beneficiaries include: 1) approximately 60,000 class 1 and 2 teachers, 2) 28,000 primary school head teachers, 3) 1,052 Teacher Advisory Center (TAC) tutors, plus “coaches” for nonformal schools and 4) 300 senior education personnel. Tusome also assisted the GOK at the technical and policy levels to sustainably improve reading skills beyond the span of the activity.

The USAID Opportunities for Equitable Access to Quality Basic Education (OPEQ) activity was a school-based intervention implemented by the International Rescue Committee (IRC) in partnership with the DRC’s Ministry of Education and focusing on early grade reading and math skills. The IRC integrated into OPEQ its social-emotional skills building curriculum which has resulted from the IRC’s education research and experience in conflict and crisis-affected areas. The OPEQ activity had four components: (1) informing national level in-service teacher-training policy and systems, (2) community mobilization and engagement, (3) alternative education and vocational training for out-of-school youth, and (4) Learning in a Healing Classroom (LHC), an in-service teacher professional development and integrated curricular program. The impact evaluation of OPEQ’s LHC activity employed a 3-year cluster-randomized trial, measuring the impact of LHC in treatment schools to wait-list control schools. The intervention was assigned to two cohorts defined by geographic location and timing of implementation. The Katanga 4 cohort had schools that received one year and two years of LHC located in Katanga province. The Kivu+ cohort had schools that received one year of the LHC intervention located in South Kivu and some parts of Katanga province. At each school in the sample, field researchers surveyed 81 students randomly selected from the student enrollment register. For the baseline and midline phases, students in the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th grades were tested. For the endline phase, students in 3rd, 4th, and 5th grades were tested.

This data file contains student, teacher, and headteacher data from the project's 2015 baseline. The Tusome Early Grade Reading Program involves a national effort in Kenya to scale up a proven model for improved results in early grade literacy. Based on positive findings during a rigorous impact evaluation of a pilot test of this intervention, the Government of Kenya (GOK) asked USAID/Kenya to assist with the nationwide rollout of an activity to improve reading skills and increase the capacity of educators and the GOK to deliver and administer early grade reading (EGR) programs modeled on the pilot activity’s success. Tusome, which means “Let’s Read” in Kiswahili, targeted 28,000 formal and nonformal public and low-cost private primary schools in the 47 counties in Kenya (nationwide). About 1,000 of these are informal schools that exist mostly in urban “slums,” while the vast majority of the remaining 27,000 schools are in rural areas. Roughly 5.4 million children who entered primary school between 2014 and 2017 are expected to benefit from this scaling-up initiative. Intermediate beneficiaries include: 1) approximately 60,000 class 1 and 2 teachers, 2) 28,000 primary school head teachers, 3) 1,052 Teacher Advisory Center (TAC) tutors, plus “coaches” for nonformal schools and 4) 300 senior education personnel. Tusome also assisted the GOK at the technical and policy levels to sustainably improve reading skills beyond the span of the activity.

The overall aim of the USAID/SA basic education program is to improve primary grade reading outcomes by building teacher effectiveness and strengthening classroom and school management. This is being accomplished through support to innovative, local interventions that have a demonstrated capacity for scale-up. The main USAID/SA program is the School Capacity and Innovation Program (SCIP), which also leverages significant private sector resources, amplifying the impact of USAID’s investment in the South African education system. SCIP is co-funded by The ELMA Foundation and J.P. Morgan and designed in collaboration with the South African Department of Basic Education. SCIP supports local South African models or interventions that work directly with teachers and school management teams in innovative ways in order to improve their practice as instructional leaders and managers. SCIP is aligned to the USAID Global Education Strategy (2011–2015) which supports interventions to improve learning outcomes with a focus on primary grade reading as a measure of performance. In addition to seeking initiatives that demonstrate innovation and impact, sustainability and scalability are key components of the SCIP program. The goal of the kaMhinga Literacy Project is to demonstrate that the combination of teacher training and community-based teacher support can sustainably achieve primary grade reading levels at a 60% learner literacy level. This will be done through activities aimed at developing the capacity of teachers. Two assessments are reported per year: a baseline assessment completed in February and a final assessment completed in November. To date, a total of three assessments will be reported – Baseline February 2013, Final November 2013 and Baseline February 2014.