Uganda endorsed school-based management (SBM) through the enactment of the Education Act (2008), which provided for the establishment of the School Management Committees (SMCs) in public primary schools to be in charge of managing schools on behalf of the government. The Act states that SMCs are specifically in charge of Universal Primary Education (UPE) in Uganda and are responsible for the successful implementation of the policy. The purpose of this study was to investigate the roles of SMCs in the accountability for the UPE achievements. This study is rooted in the interpretivist constructionist research paradigm. The researcher utilised semi-structured interviews and observations to generate data to answer the research questions. The qualitative approach enabled the researcher to interact with the participants in order to harness their primary voice while sharing their lived experiences in the real world. Data obtained from the interviews and observations were corroborated with document analysis data related to SBM and accountability for universal basic primary education achievement. The researcher used multiple research sites and participants to generate data, a case study approach which is more robust in comparative data. The sampling for the participants was purposive and four SMCs from four regions of Uganda and four participants from each of the SMCs were selected. The findings of the study indicate that the voluntary SMCs did implement the roles and responsibilities for UPE accountability, though there were diverse degrees of success. The differing measures of SMC effectiveness were as a result of factors such as: member capacity and perceptions; lack of policy implementation; other stakeholder actions: and inadequate resources. The importance of a volunteerism strategy as a cornerstone of UPE implementation was eminent in this study since the schools were poorly resourced partly due to high poverty levels in the community. The researcher concludes that the effectiveness of the SMC in monitoring the implementation of UPE is based on the relationship they have with other stakeholders and, thus, a model was developed to emphasise the importance of the relationships. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2017. / Education Management and Policy Studies / PhD / Unrestricted

<p>In 2002 Tanzania initiated the implementation of the Primary Education Development Plan (PEDP), in which a substantial capacity expansion and quality improvement of primary education was outlined. The most important measure in the plan was to make primary school free and accessible to all, irrespective of financial capabilities. This thesis is a qualitative policy study, which aims at finding out whether or not primary education is free and equally accessible to all in Tanzania. Besides establishing if it is in fact free and accessible, the thesis identifies the main costs and restraints to access and also brings forward the children’s perceptions on these restraints. The answers to these questions were sought in a case study, conducted in Babati District in Northern Tanzania. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with households, school staff and primary school children and their responses has been compared to the national policy on primary education. The main conclusions of the study are that: Primary education is not free in Tanzania, as there are significant costs involved to send a child to primary school, such as school uniform, school material and various contributions to the running costs of the school. Neither is primary education equally accessible to all, as children from households, which cannot pay these costs, are sent home from school on a regular basis. Lastly, being sent home has a damaging effect on the children’s school performances and self-esteem.</p>

In 2002 Tanzania initiated the implementation of the Primary Education Development Plan (PEDP), in which a substantial capacity expansion and quality improvement of primary education was outlined. The most important measure in the plan was to make primary school free and accessible to all, irrespective of financial capabilities. This thesis is a qualitative policy study, which aims at finding out whether or not primary education is free and equally accessible to all in Tanzania. Besides establishing if it is in fact free and accessible, the thesis identifies the main costs and restraints to access and also brings forward the children’s perceptions on these restraints. The answers to these questions were sought in a case study, conducted in Babati District in Northern Tanzania. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with households, school staff and primary school children and their responses has been compared to the national policy on primary education. The main conclusions of the study are that: Primary education is not free in Tanzania, as there are significant costs involved to send a child to primary school, such as school uniform, school material and various contributions to the running costs of the school. Neither is primary education equally accessible to all, as children from households, which cannot pay these costs, are sent home from school on a regular basis. Lastly, being sent home has a damaging effect on the children’s school performances and self-esteem.

Despite the push for universal education, many disadvantaged and poor children in developing countries still do not have access to basic education. This among other reasons is due to poverty where poor families cannot afford the cost of basic education even when it is `free' of tuition (McDonald, 2007). Demand-side financing interventions such as scholarship programs are promising to be viable financing interventions of reaching out to the poor and marginalized children in order for them to access basic education. Although such financing strategies have been praised as having worked in mostly Latin American countries, very little is systematically known about how these interventions would work in poor African countries such as Malawi. This study therefore examines demand-side financing strategy through an evaluation of a scholarship program implemented in Malawi. It uses qualitative mode of inquiry through in-depth interviews of 36 key participants as a primary method of data collection. In addition it reviews program documents and conducts some cohort tracking on beneficiaries in Zomba rural district which is the site of the study. The findings show that community based targeting was used in the program and proved successful in identifying the right beneficiaries in a cost effective manner. It seems to offer a model to be adopted for such interventions in low resource countries. Findings further show that beneficiaries who received scholarships were able to persist however there was a substantial number that dropped out. There were a number of factors that caused this but it seems the internal motivation of beneficiaries to persist was very critical. This puts under the microscope an assumption that once scholarship is received, beneficiaries would persist in school. Last but not least, the findings also show that an assumption that local communities will be able to sustain such programs might be but a mere illusion as communities view themselves too poor to do this. Overall the study praises such programs as effective in targeting the poor and marginalized children however it puts a caution on assumptions about persistence & sustainability. It suggests further scrutiny on these assumptions to improve on the effectiveness of such programs and demand-side financing strategies in general.

No description available.

This thesis deals with the role of teacher agency in the reform of curriculum under Universal Primary Education (UPE) in Uganda. It draws on empirical research conducted in two UPE case study schools in Uganda. The study was conducted in order to highlight the role of teacher agency in teachers’ professional practice and to analyse the ecological factors that contribute in shaping it, as well as its effects. The thesis begins with a description of the UPE curriculum in its global dimensions. It subsequently reviews the theoretical and empirical literature dealing with the role of teacher agency in the reform of curriculum under UPE, under the themes of ‘globalisation’, ‘teacher/biographical barriers to UPE reforms’, ‘contextual challenges of the reforms on teachers’, ‘teachers’ mediation of the reform challenges’ and ‘effects of the teachers’ mediation of reforms’. The study’s theoretical position draws on the critical realist philosophy of Roy Bhaskar and Margaret Archer, which guided the development a two-phased study design comprising of secondary document analysis using retroduction (Elder-Vass 2010; Edwards et al. 2014) in phase one and field work within the framework of Priestley et al.’s (2015b) ecological approach to teacher agency in phase two. The field work involved semi-structured interviews, observation and primary document analysis. The study established that the globalisation of UPE was driven by Education for All (EFA) under a neo-liberal agenda, which involved both structural and cultural reform. The structural reform has impacted UPE’s ecology through the evolution of a new ‘governance’ structure underpinned by partnership, decentralisation and performativity. Furthermore, it has involved access and inputs reform, which has been characterised by universalisation and the adoption of a partnership funding approach. Cultural reform has focused on curriculum and pedagogy. However, at the micro level of school/classroom practice, most of the reforms have resulted in ‘first order’ changes (Cuban 1998; Priestley 2011a), which are currently manifested by only partial success in absorbing the curriculum and pedagogy reforms, coupled with the continued lack of inputs. This is attributed, among others, to the responses of the teachers, or teacher agency. The study analysed the role of teacher agency in the case studies and concluded that it is widely manifested and is primarily driven by the practical-evaluative dimension, followed by the projective and iterational dimensions respectively. Furthermore, it has significant effects, which are both positive and negative. It therefore plays a significant role in the teachers’ professional practice, which needs to be acknowledged in educational planning. Finally, the study offered some recommendations and suggestions for further research.

En Haïti, l’effort public pour l’éducation reste insuffisant. De plus, l’enseignement primaire est peu développé et de qualité faible. Ainsi, en dépit des progrès substantiels qui ont été réalisés durant ces vingt cinq dernières années, le pays reste très en retard face á l’objectif de l’éducation pour tous (EPT). En effet, les dernières données statistiques disponibles indiquent que plus de 4 500 000 filles et garçons sont actuellement en dehors du système scolaire. Outre l’abandon, le redoublement, le mauvais regroupement des élèves, l’encadrement pédagogique est médiocre. Ce qui pèse négativement sur les acquisitions des élèves. Les mauvais résultats obtenus des élèves aux examens officiels en témoignent. Par ailleurs, la rémunération des enseignants est très insignifiante et les conditions d’exercice de la profession enseignante laisse à désirer. Enfin, le système scolaire souffre d’un déficit de pilotage, de gouvernance et d’efficacité externe.Pour accompagner les décideurs politiques haïtiens et planificateurs nationaux dans leurs stratégies d’action en faveur de l’éducation pour tous, les principales organisations multilatérales, notamment la Banque mondiale, mettent en œuvre le Projet d’Education pour tous (EPT I et II). Spécifiquement, le Projet d’Ecoles Publiques à Gestion Communautaire (EPGC) cible la scolarisation primaire universelle (SPU) dans des milieux ruraux défavorisés où l’accès à l’enseignement primaire de base demeure un bien rare, voire inexistant dans les régions ciblées. Par l’aide. Cependant, malgré les divers projets ou programmes d’aide internationaux dédiés notamment à l’expansion de la scolarisation universelle sur l’ensemble du territoire national du pays, atteindre l’éducation pour tous est très aléatoire.Les conclusions de l’enquête empirique montrent que de nombreuses difficultés nuisent à la mise en œuvre effective de l’aide et ceci tant au niveau central, départemental et communal. Les données collectées sur le terrain indiquent un impact significatif sur la participation des acteurs locaux dans la gestion des affaires éducatives. Sur le plan des réalisations éducatives, les analyses de l’investigation confirment des effets sur les taux nets d’accès à l’école ainsi qu’un impact appréciable sur la parité filles-garçons. Les conclusions de l’enquête révèlent quelques effets pervers par exemple sur la qualité de l’école, des dynamiques locales, ainsi que des modes d’organisation administrative et de gestion pédagogique du système scolaire dans les zones allocataires ciblées pour la mise en application du Projet EPGC. Aussi, l’objectif de l’éducation pour tous ne sera pas atteint en Haïti et le chemin semble encore long. . / In Haiti, the public effort for education is insufficient. Primary education is underdeveloped and is of low quality. Despite substantial progress made during the last twenty five years, the country is still far behind from achieving the goal of Education for All (EFA). The latest available statistics indicate that more than 4.5 million girls and boys are currently outside the school system. Abandonment, repetition, bad grouping of students and poor educational support reflect negatively on learning achievement. Teachers' salaries are insignificant and teaching conditions deprived. Hence, the school system suffers a deficit of control, governance and external efficiency.To accompany Haitian national planners and policy makers in their strategies for universal education, major multilateral organizations, including the World Bank, implement the Project Education for All (EFA I and II) also called. Through a program called “Project for Public Schools to Community Management (PPSCM)” they aim to achieve universal primary education in some disadvantaged rural areas where access to basic primary education remains inadequate or nonexistent. However, despite the various projects or international aid programs dedicated to the expansion of universal education all over Haiti, the goal of achieving Education for All is far from being reached.The findings of our empirical analysis show, the positive effect of international aid on school access and its significant impact on gender parity in Haiti. On the other hand, it exposes many difficulties that obstruct an effective implementation of international aid for education in Haiti at central, departmental and communal levels. The data collected in the field point out some negative effects, for example on the quality of the school, local dynamics, as well as administrative organization methods and educational management of the school system in areas where the PPSCM is implemented. The conclusion of this study reveals that the goal of Education for All will not be achieved and there still is a long way to go to provide school to all children in Haiti.

L’Éducation Pour Tous mobilise la communauté internationale et les gouvernements depuis 1990. Cet engagement global renouvelé en 2000 sous l’auspice de l’UNESCO puis des Nations-Unies, porte notamment sur un objectif de base : l’universalisation de la scolarisation primaire complète pour tous les enfants d’âge scolaire à l’horizon de 2015. Plusieurs études sur la réalisation de cet objectif montrent que les pays en développement sont les plus à risque et que les progrès accomplis dans la plupart de ces pays, pourraient être plus importants si la pratique du redoublement faisait davantage l’objet de régulation et de contrôle. Cela contribuerait à améliorer la réussite scolaire et accroître la rétention des élèves au sein des systèmes éducatifs. La pratique du redoublement est en effet une tradition dans plusieurs systèmes éducatifs. Elle est particulièrement prépondérante dans certains groupes de pays ou régions, notamment en Afrique francophone au sud du Sahara. Dans ces pays, le PASEC - Programme d’Analyse des Systèmes Éducatifs de la CONFEMEN (Conférence des Ministres de l’Éducation Nationale des pays ayant le français en partage) - œuvre à améliorer l’accès à une éducation de qualité pour tous, par exemple, en informant les politiques sur la situation nationale du redoublement. Cette recherche sur le redoublement, la réussite scolaire et l’objectif de la Scolarisation Primaire Universelle (SPU) privilégie la dimension pédagogique, l’analyse empirique et étudie le cas du Sénégal. Elle présente et discute les indicateurs internationaux de suivi de l’objectif de la SPU, fait le point de l’état des connaissances sur le redoublement et la réussite scolaire et montre le défi que représente la réalisation de l’objectif de la SPU notamment dans les pays francophones d’Afrique sub-Saharienne. Exploitant les données existantes de l’enquête longitudinale de suivi de cohorte du PASEC au Sénégal entre 1995 et 2000, cette recherche examine le parcours scolaire des élèves en vue de la réalisation de l’objectif de la SPU. L’examen effectué combine des approches d’analyse transversale et longitudinale du redoublement et des apprentissages par rapport aux caractéristiques personnelles, familiales et scolaires de l’élève. Les résultats d’analyse montrent des variabilités, notamment par rapport aux caractéristiques personnelles de l’élève et à celles de sa classe et de son milieu de scolarisation. L’analyse longitudinale du redoublement s’est appuyée sur le diagramme de flux scolaire et a permis de produire un ensemble d’indicateurs d’efficacité interne du système éducatif du Sénégal. Pour la cohorte étudiée, du fait de l’importance des redoublements et des abandons scolaires, il faut en moyenne 9,4 années de scolarité pour que l’élève progresse du deuxième au sixième (dernier) grade du primaire. Seulement 39% de l’effectif de la cohorte survivent au dernier grade ce qui suggère que si cette tendance se maintenait, le Sénégal serait à risque de ne pas réaliser l’objectif de la SPU. Une évaluation de la situation courante à partir de données plus récentes serait requise. Le diagramme de flux scolaire constitue un outil de planification de l’éducation et représente de ce fait un important levier aux mains des autorités politiques pour agir sur les paramètres du système éducatif (paramètres liés à la qualité de l’éducation, à l’efficacité interne, etc.) afin de répondre à des objectifs spécifiques ou d’étapes pouvant conduire, par exemple, à la réalisation de l’objectif de la SPU. / The Education for All is mobilizing the international community and national governments since 1990. This global commitment which was renewed in 2000 under the auspices of UNESCO and the United-Nations has set a basic goal: the universalization of a complete primary education for all school-age children by 2015. Several studies on the achievement of this goal show that developing countries are most at risk and that progress in many of these countries could have been higher if the practice of grade repetition was better regulated and controlled. This measure would contribute to the improvement of academic achievement and increase retention within the education systems. Indeed, grade repetition practice is a tradition in several education systems. It is particularly overwhelming in some groups of countries or regions, especially in Francophone sub-Saharan Africa. In these countries, the PASEC – «Programme d’Analyse des Systèmes Educatifs de la CONFEMEN (Conférence des Ministres de l’Éducation National des pays ayant le français en partage)» - works to improve access to quality education for all, by for example, informing policies on the national situation of grade repetition. This research on grade repetition, school success and the Universal Primary Education (UPE) goal favors the pedagogical dimension, the empirical analysis and studies the case of Senegal. It presents and discusses the international indicators for UPE goal monitoring, takes stock of current knowledge on grade repetition and academic achievement and shows the challenge that represents the realisation of UPE goal especially in Francophone sub-Saharan Africa countries. By using the existing 1995-2000 PASEC longitudinal survey data in Senegal, this research examines pupils’ school careers toward the realisation of UPE goal. Transversal and longitudinal analyses of grade repetition and learning achievement based on the pupil’s personal, family and school characteristics have been used. Results from these analyses show variabilities related especially to individual, classroom and school location factors. The longitudinal analysis of grade repetition is based on the school flowchart which allows the calculation of a set of indicators about the internal efficiency of Senegal education system. For the cohort studied, due to the high grades repetition and dropout rates, pupils are required, on average, 9.4 years of schooling to progress from the second to the sixth (final) grade of primary. Only 39% of the initial cohort survives to the last grade, which suggests that if this trend remains unchanged, Senegal would be at risk of not achieving the UPE goal. An assessment of the current situation based on more recent data would be required. The school flowchart is an educational planning tool. Thus, it represents an important lever for political authorities to act on education system parameters (parameters related to education quality, internal efficiency, etc.) in order to effectively attain specific objectives or milestones resulting, for example, to the achievement of the UPE goal.

Between 2000 and 2015 the Millennium Development Goals were the focus of much global attention and activity. They were selected in light of astounding poverty, with over 1 billion people at the time living on less than $1 per day. In a sense the MDGs were morally undeniable. The focus of this study is MDG2, universal primary education. It sets out to establish how and why MDG2 came to be selected. Whilst its selection seems obvious, for years developing countries complained about the short-sightedness of prioritising primary over secondary and tertiary education (Klees 2008). A task force commissioned by the World Bank and UNESCO at the time showed that the Bank’s rate of return analysis on primary education was flawed. It argued that developing countries need highly educated people to be economic and social entrepreneurs, develop good governance, strong institutions and infrastructure. In this way MDG2’s selection is problematic. Using case study method, first the literature is examined. Three hypotheses are generated: one based on a rational synoptic theory, one on critical theory and one on world society theory. A range of data are used to establish findings and test hypotheses. The study then considers implications of the findings for theory and the policy process. The findings show that priorities promoting more equal opportunities, such as MDG2, were gradually preferred. Whereas priorities promoting more equal outcomes, such as elimination of trade barriers, were gradually excluded. The study finds no evidence that the General Assembly ever voted on the list of 8 MDGs. Rather, the MDGs were selected by elite policy actors, addressing multiple interests. The study considers the assertion that marginalization of the poor does not happen because people harbor ill will toward them, rather because “The poor have no friends among the global elite” (Pogge 2011, p. 62).

La question de l’efficacité de l’aide publique au développement est complexe et protéiforme. L’aide se présente sous de nombreuses formes et implique de nombreux instruments et acteurs, dont les objectifs et mêmes les philosophies diffèrent fortement entre les pays et les organisations. De cet enchevêtrement, les économistes ont jusqu’alors échoué dans leurs recherches de relations macroéconomiques robustes censées guider l’action publique. Ainsi, aucun consensus ne semble pour l’instant émerger de ce débat. Dès lors, l’orientation des politiques de développement a essentiellement été influencée par des hypothèses contestables reposant sur des fondements empiriques fragiles. Ce travail tente d’apporter de nouveaux éléments au débat sur l’efficacité de l’aide au travers de sept essais. Les trois premiers chapitres se consacrent à la question de la relation entre aide et croissance du point de vue statistique. Les nouvelles approches qui y sont proposées tentent de surmonter la plupart des défauts de la littérature empirique existante. Nous y montrons que la relation entre aide et croissance est extrêmement complexe et qu’il est difficile de l’appréhender à l’aide des méthodes économétriques usuelles. De plus, bien que l’aide semble globalement efficace en termes de croissance du PIB, son efficacité dépend de différents facteurs révélés par la présence de seuils aussi bien conditionnels que non-Conditionnels. Parmi ces facteurs, la vulnérabilité économique semble jouer un rôle primordial et sa prise en compte s’avère indispensable pour une compréhension globale du lien entre l’aide et la croissance économique. Dans une seconde partie, les deux chapitres suivants s’intéressent plus particulièrement à l’aide sectorielle, à travers l’étude de l’efficacité de deux initiatives largement reconnues que sont l’aide à la scolarisation primaire universelle et l’aide au commerce. Leur efficacité sera alors déterminée non plus en termes de croissance du PIB mais en termes de scolarisation et de performance à l’exportation. A l’instar des trois premiers chapitres, nos résultats semblent confirmer la présence d’une relation significative entre l’aide et les objectifs visés. Nos conclusions, notamment celles en termes d’éducation, vont clairement à l’encontre de l’idée selon laquelle l’aide aurait fait plus de mal que de bien. Enfin, en se basant sur les résultats précédents, les chapitres six et sept explorent, dans une troisième partie, les possibilités d’amélioration des stratégies actuelles d’allocation de l’aide mises en œuvre notamment par les grands bailleurs multilatéraux. Une de nos principales observations est que la vulnérabilité économique est un facteur important devant être pris en compte dans le design des méthodes d’allocation de l’aide. / Aid effectiveness is a complex issue. Aid comes in many instruments, has many targets and involves many stakeholders whose objectives, methods and philosophy greatly differ across countries and institutions. From this mixed bag, economists have struggled finding strong regularities at the macroeconomic level to guide the political debate and consensus have failed to emerge. Hence, political stances have often been influenced by strong assumptions based on weak or at least hotly debated evidence. This work is an attempt to provide new perspectives on the aid effectiveness debate through seven essays. The first three chapters address the technical question of the aid/growth relationship issue using new approaches and new statistical instruments in an attempt to overcome most of the caveats of the aid empirical literature. We show that the aid/growth relationship is complex and difficult to measure using common statistical methods. Moreover, while aid is globally effective, its effectiveness depends on different factors reflected by the existence of conditional and unconditional thresholds. Among those factors, economic vulnerability seems to be a key component that has to be taken into account in order to identify this relationship. In a second part, we try to assess the effectiveness of two flagship initiatives which are Aid for Trade and Universal Primary Education with regards to the outcomes they ultimately target, namely, export performance for the former and school enrolment, gender parity and repetition rate in primary school for the later. As in the first three chapters, our results support the existence of a significant relationship between aid and the targeted outcomes. Those results, notably for the education sector, clearly argue against the idea that aid has done more bad then good. Finally, based on previous results, in a third part, chapters six and seven explore the mean to improve the current aid allocation strategies used notably by the Multilateral Development Banks. One of the main conclusions is that economic vulnerability is a central factor to be taken into account in the design of aid allocation strategies.