Best Practices in Teaching Transcend Political Boundaries in Central Asia

Spotlight on the Field!...Equatorial Guinea

Teacher Training in Jordan: From Supply to Demand

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Best Practices in Teaching Transcend Political Boundaries in Central Asia

By Alison Price-Rom

Since the break-up of the Soviet Union in 1991, the former Soviet Republics of Central Asia have gradually moved away from educational practices developed during the Soviet era. These practices promoted traditional teacher centered instruction and discouraged student participation in the classroom.  Increasingly, the countries of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan have developed their own individual country approaches to teacher professional development and the education of children. 

Through the support of AED’s Central Asian Republics Participation, Education and Knowledge Strengthening (CAR-PEAKS) program, master teacher trainers from Uzbekistan developed digital teacher-training modules in interactive teaching and learning methodologies.  The modules focus on the pedagogical theories underlying learner-centered education as well as practical exercises on how to integrate new methods into everyday lessons.

Although project activities in Uzbekistan were brought to a close in August 2006, as the Uzbek government forced the closure of many international non-governmental organizations, the Uzbek education experts continued their development of the teacher training modules by extending their work to Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan.  The Uzbek trainers were warmly received in both countries, where they worked with local teacher trainers to adapt the modules to the local context. 

In Tajikistan, CAR-PEAKS master trainers from Uzbekistan provided training to instructors from Tajikistan’s in-service teacher training institutes to prepare them to deliver training on interactive teaching and learning methodologies.  This course was especially timely as Tajikistan recently received $18.4 million from the Education for All Fast Track Initiative (FTI), and has committed to train nearly 3,000 teachers by the summer of 2008. 

Since the institutes have not updated their programs for several years, the PEAKS project’s ready-made modules will ensure the best possible outcomes from the FTI investment.  Because the modules are designed to integrate local learning theory and curriculum, their sustainability is ensured.

Spotlight on the Field...Equatorial Guinea

The Education Development Program of Equatorial Guinea, the largest public-private partnership ever dedicated to education, is currently in its initial phase of operations.  Stemming from a joint agreement between the Government of Equatorial Guinea and the Hess Corporation, AED provides technical leadership to assist the nation in accelerating education development in primary schools.  GEC’s Carmen Siri, Vice President and Senior Team Leader, moved permanently to Equatorial Guinea to lead the field team.

While recently implemented, the Education Development Program has been under development since AED’s three-month study trip in 2005.  During the study trip, AED identified teacher training and child learning as the priorities for educational improvement in Equatorial Guinea.  These priorities are now incorporated into the program’s ten year strategy and an initial Five-Year Action Plan. 

The Action Plan aims to train up to 70% of the country’s teachers and develop active learning methodologies: by upgrading 40 model primary schools; creating training materials; establishing two National Quality Teaching Laboratories; training 1,700 teachers on active learning principles; building the capacity of the Ministry of Education; and developing a national reading program.

The program’s ten-year strategy focuses on national expansion.  Over the course of these ten years, the program hopes to produce a variety of quality changes in youth learning in the classroom, schools, the community, and in the management of the education system.

For more information, contact Verónica Vélez-Paschke (vvelez@aed.org).

Teacher Training in Jordan: From Supply to Demand

From the Jordan ESP Project

Responding to a World Bank recommendation to transition from supply to demand-side training, the ERfKE Support Project (ESP) funded by USAID, worked with the Jordan Ministry of Education to create the professional development program.  This program enhances teacher training by responding to the specific needs of teachers in Jordan.

For many years the Ministry of Education held the same training programs for all teachers.  This large-scale training was often highly theoretical and often failed to address specific problems that teachers were facing.  The new Professional Development Program directly targets the needs of teachers, which the teachers themselves identify, tailoring training to identified educational gaps.

To support this initiative, ESP conducted a needs-assessment study with teachers who identified the areas and concepts they found difficult to understand.

The results of the assessment identified 80 concepts in the 6 subject areas. As a result of the assessment, ESP formed the Instructional Design Teams, whose members were drawn from teachers and supervisors working in schools.

After four months of work, the instructional design teams produced a manual with more than 80 learning and training events for the six subjects that were approved by the ministry.

As a result, beginning in September 2006, teachers in Jordanian schools have a selection of courses from which to choose based on needs they identified.  Interest in teacher training has subsequently been high, with 90% of teachers in Jordan signing up for these non-compulsory courses.  Ministry and project officials expect this interest to translate into higher quality education for students in Jordan.