Availability of final grades

On occasions, primary students can find themselves in areas where the full educational cycle is not offered, preventing them to continue their studies locally. In these scenarios, a number of strategies exist in order to guarantee the availability of a complete primary cycle. Some, such as the construction of new schools can be medium- to long-term tactics, requiring heavy financial investment. Some alternatives will be more appropriate as short term solutions, but are nevertheless preferable to students being left without a space to receive an education. It should still however always be ensured that schools meet regulatory standards, and that they are accessible, safe, hygienic, reasonably comfortable, and cognitively stimulating. 

Promising policy options

Building new schools

The construction of schools is the most straightforward way to make the full cycle available at a local level. The opening of specially-designed spaces to host students finishing Primary school greatly increases the chances of students obtaining their Secondary diploma.

As building new schools can be a costly and slow process, this can be described as a medium- to long-term strategy, unlike other more short-term tactics described below.

There are multiple reasons for having an insufficient supply of schools in a certain area. The following boxes deal with some of the most common root causes:

Difficulty to build new schools:

• Due to economic constrains:
  • Not having enough budget. (For more on this subject, consult Policy page Insufficient budget for school construction.)
  • The unit cost of new schools is too high. (For more on this subject, consult Policy page High costs for school construction.)
• Due to logistic constraints in the construction of schools: (For more on this subject, consult Policy page Logistical constraints in paying teachers.)

Geographic distribution of schools poses a problem: (Consult Policy page School location.)

There is a difficulty to recruit teachers for possible new schools:

• Due to an unsustainable salary level for teachers (For more on this subject, consult Policy page Teacher incentives.)
• Due to the difficulty in retaining teachers (For more on this subject, consult Policy page Teacher deployment, Teacher retention.)

Other policy options

One-room schools

One-room classrooms, with one teacher and one chalkboard, are commonly used in rural settings, with a small number of pupils and little infrastructure. This option is a cheap way of providing education in isolated areas with limited access to high-quality teaching centres. One-room classrooms, which tend to be multi-grade and multi-age, allow for an almost zero marginal cost by a student, since the facilities and teaching staff are fixed. Studies have shown that, on the aggregate, one-room classrooms provide the same quality education as single-grade classes. A downside of this methodology is, however, that over a certain number of students per classroom, the quality of education starts to decrease, since the attention of the single teacher has to be divided among more pupils.

Multiple programmes exist around the world, with different approaches and methodologies, in many cases adjusting the teaching and curriculum to the local circumstances. This is important since it implies the contextualization of the learning experience within the one-room classrooms. In general, this is a cheap and easy alternative to provide multi-grade, multi-age quality education, mostly present in remote, isolated rural environments, with a near-zero marginal cost per additional student. However, it is important to notice that over a certain number of students, the quality of education starts decreasing.

Use of existing buildings for schools

Existing unoccupied buildings within communities can be utilized as learning spaces in lieu of new school construction. This strategy is most appropriate for sparsely populated rural areas in which one-roomed schooling would be required. This solution is not ideal, as the spaces may not be adapted to be optimal learning environments for students; however, it can be a short-term solution in the face of budget constraints. Generally, it is possible to use community spaces, youth centres, religious centres or homes, and it is generally more appropriate in sparsely populated, rural areas. However, this is only a short-term strategy.

Small school model with multi-grade teaching

While there is a tendency for large school construction, a small school model with multi-grade teaching might be more appropriate for rural areas with low population density. This model can be less costly overall, and minimizes travel distance, which is another prominent barrier to schooling. A one-room school could effectively accommodate a village population of under 240 (see Annex 1). Multi-grade teaching may be considered controversial, but it has been found to be at least effective or even more effective for learning outcomes compared to single-grade teaching and schools can then be expanded if the population increases.

Annex 1

School size and minimum village population required

Source: Theunynck, S. 2009. School construction for universal primary education in Africa: Should communities be empowered to build their schools? Washington D.C.: The World Bank. Retrieved from: http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/109291468007863249/pdf/488980PUB0prim101Official0Use0Only1.pdf

Double-shift Schooling

Double-shift or multiple-shift schooling allows schools to hold multiple sessions during the day for different sets of students. This permits the use of existing school infrastructure, rather than creating new buildings or investing in expansion, allowing significant cost-savings. However, this shortened school day often means an overall lower quality of education and reduced student learning outcomes (for more on this subject, consult Policy page Double-shift schooling).

Open and Distance Learning

Distance education or open and distance learning refers to education where the constraints of time and space are removed, and students can learn remotely using various information and communication technologies, rather than attending a school campus. Mobile electronic devices such as phones, media players, and tablet computers are becoming increasingly affordable and common throughout the world, and offer new possibilities in reaching populations that are unable to attend physical school campuses. While open and distance learning is primarily used for tertiary education, teacher training, and other programmes targeting adults, there are also opportunities for it to be applied to primary levels. Kenya recently launched a distance learning program using radio broadcasts, to reach nomadic populations. However, programmes may not be sufficiently developed yet to adequately replace in-person primary education models. Other challenges include safety and privacy issues, and education quality.

When developing open and distance learning programmes, various aspects must be kept in mind. As explained by Castillo, Adam and Haßler (2022), EdTech must be based on students’ needs, digital competencies, and learning motivation. It is also key to understand the physical and digital infrastructure available, which can be done by creating an initial needs assessment and community mapping exercise (Castillo, Adam and Haßler, 2022). Moreover, equity, inclusion, sociocultural factors, and ethical considerations must be taken into account to ensure that EdTech solutions do not reproduce inequalities. Particularly, those considerations do not only concern aspects related to access, but also the ‘inequality in authorship, narratives, contributions, and epistemic diversity’ within the design process of EdTech initiatives (Graham et al., 2015; Adam, 2020b as cited in Castillo, Adam and Haßler, 2022: 119).

In 2015 an international group of stakeholders developed the Principles for Digital Development, which should also be acknowledged when planning, designing, implementing, and monitoring distance education programmes (Castillo, Adam and Haßler, 2022). The principles include: ‘design with the user, understand the existing ecosystem, design for scale, build for sustainability, be data-driven, use open standards, reuse and improve existing research, address privacy and security, and be collaborative.’ (Castillo, Adam and Haßler, 2022: 123).

Policy options for improving Equity and Inclusion

Gender-responsive policies

Not offering the full educational cycle locally –doubled by underlying gender factors–, can lead to pushing out certain children from the education system. The following policy recommendations should be taken into consideration.

Promising policy options

Construction of new schools

By constructing new schools, Ministries of Education and local authorities can impede the drop-out or even the push-out of children from the education system. Additionally, this long-term, cost-effective measure is known to dramatically increase attendance and retention rates for all children, particularly that of girls:

• Studies reveal that decreasing the school distance (30 minutes walk maximum) decreases the likelihood of dropping out of school by 50 percent (UNICEF, 2015).
• An analysis of 31 villages in north-western Afghanistan, where local schools were constructed, showed a significant improvement in girls’ enrolment rates (Burde and Linden, 2013). 

Other policy options

Small school model with multi-grade teaching

As expressed in the general section, implementing a small school model with multi-grade classrooms is an alternative policy strategy in order to ensure last-grades are taught at a local level. A relevant example is Colombia’s multi-grade community schools programme known as Escuela Nueva or ‘New School’: Implemented since 1975 by Colombian’s Ministry of Education, it reached students of different ages, grades and abilities by teaching them in the same classroom and by providing flexible schedules. Teachers were trained and supported to move away from rote teaching methods into active teaching and learning techniques. Solely implemented in rural communities at first, it was later on expanded to disadvantaged areas in cities. A study done in 1992 showed that due to this initiative, enrolment rates in rural areas increased from 50 to 80 percent, benefiting girls in particular (Benveniste and McEwan, 2000, Rugh and Bossert, 1998 cited by Sperling, Winthrop and Kwauk, 2016).

Along with the principles of inclusive education, multi-grade teaching promotes and welcomes diversity. Yet, it is essential to ensure that teachers are adequately trained and prepared so as to provide quality education for all (UNICEF, 2015).

Double-shift schooling

In contexts where cultural particularities do not allow girls and boys to attend the same school and there is a shortage of school facilities, double-shift schooling could be a solution. For example, Pakistan implemented double-shift schooling in rural areas in order to tackle down the shortage of schools for girls (UNICEF Regional Office of South Asia, 2014).

Flexible delivery modes, such as double-shift schooling, can tackle down children’s dropout. Although this policy option does raise up many questions, for many children, this might be the most realistic option in order to enjoy an educational opportunity. For instance, Bangladesh’s BRAC schools, which operate only 2.5 hours daily, have allowed drop-out figures to stay below 1 percent of enrolled students (Sperling, Winthrop and Kwauk, 2016).

Open and Distance Learning

Open and Distance Learning can be a solution when the last grades are not available locally. Through this solution, students who have been pushed out of the system can continue and finish their education. The following recommendations should be taken into consideration:

Mainstream gender throughout the Open and Distance Learning offer. New ODL programmes should be conceived through a gender perspective. Existent ODL programmes should be reviewed to increase gender equity in content, context, and terminology.

Open and Distance Learning and the use of Information and Communication Technology in Education can help advance gender equity and inclusion (Ó Siochru, Attwell and Nexus Research Cooperative, 2019). The project Mobile Literacy for Out of School Children, implemented in Thailand by UNESCO Bangkok, in partnership with Microsoft, has assisted 4,000 underprivileged children –particularly girls– in rural areas.

The Literacy Project for Young Girls and Women in Senegal (Le Projet d’Alphabétisation des Jeunes Filles et Femmes au Sénégal – PAJEF), implemented from 2011 to 2015, reached 40,000 girls and women.

The project Empowerment of Girls and Women through the Use of ICTs in Literacy and Skills Development implemented in Nigeria from 2013 to 2016 reached 60,000 girls and women in Rivers State and Federal Capital Territory (FCT). For a country-based example of how to mainstream gender throughout ODL consult Botswana, 2008.

Policies for children with disabilities

Promising policy options

Building inclusive mainstream settings

In order for all previously recommended policy options from the general section of this Policy page to apply, it is necessary to ensure that children with disabilities access mainstream settings.

Building inclusive mainstream settings is a cost-effective strategy, compared to maintaining a segregated system (UNICEF, 2014). By building inclusive mainstream settings, Ministries of Education could ensure that all children –including children with disabilities– are provided a full educational cycle locally.

*For specific details on how to build inclusive mainstream settings consult Policy page School location.

Other policy options

Small school model with multi-grade teaching

Multi-grade teaching is a cost-effective measure to enhance inclusive quality education (UNESCO, 2009c). Along with the principles of inclusive education, multi-grade teaching promotes and welcomes diversity within the classroom and encourages the use of inclusive pedagogy (Howgego, Miles and Myers, 2014). Within multi-grade classrooms, peer-to-peer collaboration is enhanced (Makoelle and Malindi, 2014). Nevertheless, it is essential to ensure that teachers are adequately trained and prepared so as to provide quality education for all (UNICEF, 2015). Particularly, teachers should be supported with practical tools and methods in order to understand and mobilise children’s varying abilities (for specific recommendations consult Policy pages: Teacher content knowledge, Classroom practices, and Teaching skills).

Double-shift schooling

In case the lack of school infrastructure leads to the unavailability of the full educational cycle locally, educational planners should study the possibility of implementing double-shift schooling (UNICEF Regional Office for South Asia, 2014).

Since multiple studies show contradictory and insufficient findings concerning learning achievements of children in double-shift schools, Ministries of Education should track the progress of children with disabilities enrolled in this type of school and make necessary accommodations accordingly (PASEC CONFEMEN, 2015). For instance, a possible solution to compensate for the reduced instruction time could be to increase the number of school days per year. This measure could lead to learning advantages for children with certain disabilities for whom long breaks widen their learning achievement gap (Sellors, 2017; Zachry, n.d.).

Open and Distance Learning

Open and Distance Learning (ODL) is recognized as ‘one of the most sustainable methods for overcoming the educational barriers faced by persons with disabilities’ (UNESCO, 2016: 7). One of the many barriers is the geographical distance from educational centers, for instance, when the full cycle is not available locally.

Ministries of Education and all relevant stakeholders must ensure that ODLs are inclusive, so that all children, including children with disabilities, can easily access them and thus benefit from the same educational opportunities.

UNESCO’s Guidelines on the Inclusion of Learners with Disabilities in Open and Distance Learning (2016) gives a set of specific recommendations to each stakeholder. They include the following, among others (please consult UNESCO, 2016, for specific details):

Ministries of Education should:

• ensure an adequate legal and policy framework for the development of inclusive ODL;
• provide sufficient funding;
• enhance cooperation and partnership among multiple stakeholders (include Disability People’s Organisations in the process to find pertinent solutions to accessible and inclusive ODL);
• promote research on the area to improve ODL’s accessibility; and
• provide Assistive Technologies to children with disabilities and ensure inclusive Information and Communication Technology ICT.

Educational Institutions delivering ODL should:

• encourage and support the enrolment of persons with disabilities in ODLs;
• guarantee that the content is inclusive and thus meets the needs of all students;
• ‘ensure that assistive technology is able to remove barriers to learning, including, but not limited to, cognitive, physical and sensory barriers’, implement the principles of Universal Design for Learning for this purpose (UNESCO, 2016: 17); and
• provide support services to all participants.

Instructors should:

• recognize and meet the individual needs of all the students;
• promote inclusive pedagogies;
• monitor regularly the content to ensure that it is inclusive and accessible; and
• continuously participate in professional development as well as knowledge exchange between peers.

Policies for displaced populations and host communities

Contents under review

Policies for minority populations

Contents under review