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

These case studies look at education reform efforts over the long term in
several recipient countries, reviewing the overall process, and focusing
on one or two main areas of reform to track progress. The methodology
included document review and interviews with key stakeholders in the Ministry,
civil society, and donor community. The review draws heavily on project
documents and studies available to the researchers. Each case study used the
conceptual systems framework for reform as the central lens for analyzing the
dynamics of reform.
The case studies do not represent an evaluation of specific projects, programs, or
reform strategies, and the report does not seek to stipulate what policies should
be adopted, but to articulate what enables sustainable policy and system change
as identified goals, and how external assistance can support such change. The
study looks at the political, institutional, and technical dimensions of reforms
over two decades. Five major USAID investments are included in the review. The
studies are not comprehensive, in terms of reviewing all reform efforts, and are
certainly not a comprehensive review of the numerous national and international
projects in this period.
The makeup of the sample for the case studies was determined by several
factors. First, the five selected countries provide a diversity of country contexts,
geography, and educational challenges. Second, the countries given priority are
those in which one or more EQUIP2 partner organizations were currently active,
and ideally had been involved for much of the study period. This provided the
researchers with access to documents and individuals that might otherwise have
been difficult or costly to obtain. The relatively limited resources available for the
study dictated this process.
SUMMARy OF COUNTRy CASE STUDIES
The study reviews the experience in five countries in the approximate period
from 1990 to 2009: El Salvador, Egypt, Namibia, Nicaragua, and Zambia. Each
of these countries has significant contextual and historical events affecting the
process, as is the case in all countries. El Salvador and Nicaragua were both
SECTION 2: lESSONS fROM COUNTRY CASE STUdIES
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