The Power of Persistence: Education System ... - EQUIP123.net

In terms of quality, the impact on student achievement in the northern regions
is also notable. The charts below show the changes in Grade 10 student grades
in each region over the period from 2001 to 2007. The scores are a composite of
the five best subjects and English. From a maximum score of 42, the statistics
capture the percentage of the students scoring between 23 and 42—or above 55
percent. The regions are grouped as follows: a) the six northern regions, which
are traditionally disadvantaged areas that received considerable international
assistance and particularly the BES 1, 2, and 3 projects; b) four colored/ white
regions and the capital, which traditionally have had the best schools and
teachers; and c) three other regions that were not the focus of particular donor
intervention. The national averages reflected slight improvements in student
learning over this period, but the differences between the regions were dramatic.
The Northern regions have experienced consistent improvement, moving from
being well below the national average to reaching the national average.
By contrast, the colored/white areas have dramatically decreased in student
learning, while the other areas have held more or less steady.
The patterns between specific regions are equally striking. On a national scale,
the improvement was minimal—with slightly more than one percentage point
improvement. All of the Northern regions showed improvement over this period,
with the best showing being in Oshikoto, which went from 43 percent to 57
percent of students with high scores (scoring 55 percent on the grading index).
Overall, Kuhene showed the most significant increase in student performance
in this period. In the traditionally white and mixed areas, however, performance
suffered. This study did not investigate the possible reasons for this decrease.
CASE ANALySIS: DIMENSIONS OF REFORM
Technical Dimensions
The government’s reform efforts, largely politically driven but based on solid
education research, proved a powerful combination in terms of improving key
features of education delivery. In terms of overall change in the system and its
results, student assessment and community involvement as realized through
school self-assessment and school improvement planning have been the most
fully implemented education reforms.
The central technical initiatives involved pedagogical approaches such as learner
centered education and continuous assessment, school management and
governance approaches including school self-assessment and school improvement
planning, and enhanced decentralized support and professional development at the
circuit and regional level. These three approaches were integrated and mutually
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SECTION 2: lESSONS fROM COUNTRY CASE STUdIES