‘KwaraLEARN, a data-driven education transformation project’

KwaraLEARN (Leading Education Achievement and Reform Now), the transformative educational programme that entails digitizing teaching and learning to improve learning outcomes in public schools, has concluded training enumerators for a baseline study.

The baseline study aims to ascertain the foundational skills of pupils in English literacy and numeracy before the deployment of KwaraLEARN’s full intervention.

The training, which happened last week, involved SUBEB officials, Education Secretaries from each Local Government Education Authority among others to ensure collaboration and successful program delivery.

Apart from improving the capacity of enumerators, the training also strengthened the measuring and evaluation skills of education secretaries, including sampling strategies, the ability to administer assessments (fluency, ICAN) effectively, conduct observations using the World Bank TEACH tool, and knowledge of the different teacher and headteacher interview protocols.

The Kwara state government has reiterated its readiness to provide quality and sound education that will be accessible to the common man in the state. The Executive Chairman of Kwara State Universal Basic Education Board, Prof. AbdulRaheem Sheu Adaramaja disclosed this during the 2-day training for enumerators on KwaraLEARN’s School baseline study at the conference hall, Sinclair Hotel, GRA, Ilorin recently.

Adaramaja speaking through the Director Planning, Research and Statistics, KWSUBEB, Mr Abdulquadri Zakariyau stressed that, “the present administration led by Mallam AbdulRahman AbdulRasaq has vowed to deliver dramatic improvements in learning outcomes for public school children across the state through numerous interventions that his administration has embarked upon, such as comprehensive renovation of schools, rehabilitation of dilapidated classrooms, training and retraining of teachers, digitalization of teaching and learning through KwaraLEARN, among others”.

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The Chairman said, the training agenda for selected 68 enumerators is on baseline assessment in order to monitor progress in literacy and numeracy, as well as among the non-learning indicators like teacher instructional practices and headteachers management practices.

Prof Adaramaja further said, the baseline assessment will also examine differences in school management, teacher practice, and pupil growth for first hand information before the full takeover by KwaraLEARN.

In his words, “the baseline assessment will collect data on the level of literacy and numeracy of students and teachers and also through observations and interviews about teacher and headteachers attitudes and practices. In addition, the assessment will provide rich performance and contextual data that can be used for comparison with subsequent follow-up studies after the introduction of the KwaraLEARN programme. This will allow KwaraLEARN, Kwara SUBEB, and other stakeholders to understand and highlight the progress achieved through the KwaraLEARN Programme”.

He stressed that the first phase of the programme will start in 4 local government comprises Ilorin West, Ilorin South, Offa and Baruten local government respectively.

The Chairman however implored the enumerators to be objective and factual in discharging their duties for the programme to be successful. Launched in November 2021 by Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, KwaraLEARN is a three-year program between 2022-2025. It will cover all the primary schools in the 16 Local Government Areas in Kwara State with a target of 400,000 pupils.

The initiative would use innovative technology, data-driven platforms, high-quality learning materials, practical training and continuous coaching and support for teachers and school administrators. It will also enhance the teacher-pupil interaction experience through technology (eLearning) and strict curriculum adherence.