School leadership

Blog
  • 30.09.2020

How teachers keep students learning in one of the most difficult places in the world to go to school

The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is one of the hardest places on Earth to go to school. Though rich in natural resources, it struggles with political instability, extreme poverty, limited infrastructure, and armed conflict.

While primary education was officially made free for most of the country in 2010, according to UNICEF, this is not applied in practice with parents still shouldering the majority of schooling costs. UNESCO estimates that 4 million primary-school age children are still out of school.

There is a severe shortage of qualified teachers (particularly of qualified secondary school leaders) in the Congolese education system, resulting in large class sizes which can reach 100 pupils per class in the most marginalised areas. This is in part due to the evaporation of the state budget in the 1980s, with funding for education being cut from 25 per cent to seven per cent of state expenditure, reducing teachers’ salaries to a fraction of what they were before. Even when education is available, many parents fear sending their children to school as armed groups infamously use child soldiers – many of whom are abducted from schools – and frequently target schools for looting and burning.

 

Schools forced to close

Educators in the DRC have also been facing infectious disease. The country has wrestled with an Ebola epidemic in Kivu since 2018 and is still fighting the world’s largest outbreak of measles. When COVID-19 appeared in the DRC in March, the country was battling what a Red Cross leader described as a “perfect storm” of epidemics.

Upon the arrival of Covid-19, schools were forced to close (along with almost all other public spaces) and teachers were sent home in a months-long lockdown decreed by President Félix Tshisekedi. 

 

Door to door visits

While most schools in the Global North switched to online education during school closures, this was not possible across the DRC, where internet penetration hovers at around 19 per cent with regular blackouts.

Save the Children UK have shared with us the stories of teachers who did everything possible to help children retain what they had learned throughout the lockdown. 

During the closures, the charity mobilised to support stranded pupils and teachers, such as by helping to establish distance learning programmes on radio and television. The organisation empowered teachers to encourage pupils to read over notes and work on mathematics with their parents. 

UWEZO MATESO For instance, Uwezo Mateso, a teacher at UHAKI primary school in Mushimbakye in Fizi, South Kivu, encouraged children to continue with their learning by listening to lessons broadcast via community radio with their parents, and doing work assigned remotely. On door to door visits to his pupils, Claude Buivuge Kasherangwa, a fifth-grade teacher at Musenyi Primary School in Sangre, South Kivu also assigned additional school exercises to keep children learning.

I myself have assigned a number of numeracy exercises to some children and show parents what they have to do with children, in order to keep them at home and limit their wandering, which is a risk of being contaminated,” he said. “The big challenge is that many parents are illiterate and they do not supervise children’s learning at home.”

 

 

Teachers lead the community against the virus

Many teachers also took on new responsibilities, such as communicating public health advice to their communities.

Claude BUIVUGE KASHERANGWAKasherangwa, found himself locked down in his village and frightened of being infected by the virus. However, he reached out to advise measures for reducing viral transmission, after attending a health training programme organised by Save the Children.

 

Schools were closed but my community did not know much about this global pandemic, the cause of closing schools,” he told Save the Children UK. “Despite my anguish, and after attending [training] about the impact of COVID-19 on children’s learning, I have taken steps to sensitise my community on barrier measures to protect themselves against the coronavirus." 

Kasherangwa encouraged regular hand washing, social distancing measures such as greeting others without contact, staying home, and wearing face masks. In August, schools were reopened, reuniting teachers and pupils after months of separation.

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Thanks to Save the Children UK for collecting these teacher testimonies from DRC. This blog is part of a series of stories addressing the importance of the work of, and the challenges faced by teachers in the lead up to this year’s World Teachers’ Day celebrations. 

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Cover photo credit: Joan Marie del Mundo / Save the Children. The photos used in the body of the article have been provided by the teachers themselves.

 

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Event
  • 25.09.2020

Professionalization of early childhood care and education personnel: the missing piece for strong leadership?

Context

Quality early childhood care and education (ECCE) lays the foundation for good health, socio-emotional development, educational success in subsequent schooling and lifelong learning, and future labour market participation. As a key determinant of quality, teacher capacities and working conditions must be paid increased attention in efforts to promote the achievement of SDG target 4.2 on ECCE.  

A critical aspect in the professionalization of all education personnel, including ECCE personnel, is the reinforcement of leadership. Early childhood teachers and educators are in a position to take leadership in determining and adjusting curriculum and pedagogical practices and reaching out to parents and other stakeholders for the wellbeing and learning of young children. This capacity has been called upon particularly at times of crisis, such as crisis arising from natural disaster or conflicts or health crisis including the COVID-19 pandemic that we are still facing today. 

However, is leadership an integral part of pre-service and in-service training of early childhood teachers and centre directors? Is leadership a notion that teachers and centre directors are aware of as part of their professional identify as well as pedagogical and professional practices? Early childhood personnel may not consider that leadership is a quality that everyone can nurture, as they lack societal recognition of the importance and value of their work due to their inadequate working conditions and status. What can be done concretely to motivate early childhood teachers to constantly improve their leadership competencies? 

The World Teachers’ Day of 2020 is an excellent opportunity to raise these issues in relation to ECCE, to celebrate the tireless efforts and dedication of ECCE personnel in supporting young children and their families in uncertain and difficult times, and to reflect upon and learn from others’ experiences to enrich our own perspectives and practices. The webinar is jointly organised by VSO International, VVOB and the Thematic Group on ECCE Teachers of the International Taskforce on Teachers for Education 2030 (TTF).

 

Objectives and expected outcomes

The aim of the session is to raise awareness of the importance of teacher leadership in relation to ECCE, to discuss key issues around teaching leadership in the context of ECCE, and to point to innovations and recommendations on how to strengthen teacher leadership in ECCE. This will be accomplished by reviewing a set of international guidelines developed on the promotion of decent work of early childhood educators from the perspective of teacher leadership; discussing two concrete national studies from Africa and Asia; and highlighting lessons and experiences from the perspectives of an early childhood education centre leader working in a refugee camp as well as of an education ministry department in charge of early childhood education. Some of the key questions to be raised during the webinar are:

  • Why is teacher leadership important in the context of ECCE?
  • How leadership at different levels (i.e. classroom-, school/centre-, and community-level) affect factors of teacher motivation?
  • What kinds of pre-service and in-service training and other mechanisms are needed for nurturing a strong teacher leadership?
  • How can early childhood centre managers and education authorities facilitate teacher leadership in early childhood education, thus increasing their motivation?
  • What experiences can we find in teachers taking leadership, notably in curriculum and pedagogical innovations in times of crisis, including emergency situations and the COVID-19 pandemic?

The session is intended for all those concerned with the development of and investment in early childhood care and education (ECCE) and the education sector. This includes teachers and directors of early childhood centres, professionals from policymakers, teachers and directors of early childhood centres, professionals from teacher training institutions, civil society, private sector and international organisations supporting ECCE and education sector development.

Provisional agenda

PROGRAMME

 


Speakers’ bios

Anna Carmen Murru, VVOB

Zambian by birth, I hold a Masters’ Degree in Political Sciences, with a focus on International development and Africa, Anna Carmen Murru is currently the Partnership Manager at VVOB, working out of Zambia, but covering all VVOB partner countries. With VVOB, Anna has also previously served as Zambia Country Programme Manager, working with the Ministry of General education to build the capacity of teachers and educational leaders through existing educational structures, which is VVOB’s core work and approach. Her current role in the organization is to support networks, partnerships and programmes that cut across our country specific engagements.

Nikolina Postic, ILO

Nikolina Postic is a Technical Officer in the Sectoral Policies Department of the International Labour Organization. Her work primarily focuses on working conditions and labour rights in the teaching profession, with emphasis on social dialogue and the future of work in the education sector. She is currently managing a project on digitalisation, the future of work and the teaching profession in East Africa. Nikolina co-chairs the thematic group on ECE teachers and educators of the International Task Force on Teachers for Education 2030.   

Purna Kumar Shrestha, VSO International

Mr. Purna Kumar Shrestha is an expert in education and development with 30 years of experience in classroom teaching, education leadership, teacher training, project management of grass roots-development works, research, advocacy, and participatory facilitation skills. He started his teaching career as a pre-primary teacher in 1990, and worked for Room to Read in Nepal. He is currently Education Lead Technical Advisory at VSO International. He led an innovative home-based early childhood education programme for Rohingya children in Jamtoli camp, Cox’s Bazar, and developed a mobile application VSO School app to empower ECE teachers and caregivers. He contributed to the development of MESHGUIDES on Early Childhood Care and Education in Emergencies. Purna is a member of the steering committee of the International Task Force on Teacher for Education 2030 and a member of United Nation Girls’ Education Initiative International Advisory Committee. Father of two young children, he founded the Early Years Education Society – UK ( www.eyes-uk.org) in the UK in 2017.

Join the webinar here

 

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News
  • 22.09.2020

2020 World Teachers’ Day Teachers: Leading in crisis, reimagining the future

A week of events to celebrate teachers from all over the world

Teachers’ vital role at the heart of the education system has been highlighted this year, as never before, by the leadership they have demonstrated in ensuring continuity of learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. This crucial achievement is marked by the theme of World Teachers’ Day 2020, on October 5: “Teachers: Leading in crisis, reimagining the future”.

Every year, World Teachers’ Day is an opportunity to celebrate the teaching profession, highlight teachers’ accomplishments and draw attention to teachers’ needs and voices. The day commemorates the adoption of the 1966 ILO/UNESCO Recommendation concerning the Status of Teachers and the 1997 Recommendation concerning the Status of Higher-Education Teaching Personnel.

Since the adoption in 2015 of fourth Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) – “Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all”, World Teachers’ Day has also provided an occasion to take stock of progress towards SDG target 4.c. on increasing the supply of qualified teachers and address challenges faced by the teaching profession.

Those challenges have multiplied exponentially this year as the unprecedented situation created by the COVID-19 pandemic has severely tested education systems that were already constrained. Teachers have individually and collectively demonstrated leadership, innovation and creativity at classroom, school and community levels while responding to the many challenges imposed on their work and working conditions. The pandemic has also highlighted the importance of systemic and ministerial support for teacher leadership at times of crisis.

In the light of teachers’ experiences during the pandemic, World Teachers’ Day events this year will explore the theme of teacher leadership. Discussions and interactions throughout the weeklong celebration will focus on how teacher leadership in different forms can enable the building of resilient education systems in the face of crises.

 

Multiple initiatives to strengthen effective teacher policy-making

As part of the week’s events, the Teacher Task Force will officially launch the Knowledge Platform, with a Knowledge Hub promoting evidence-based policy-making that supports teachers with over 300 quality documents and the Working Space where members and partners can connect and exchange valuable resources.

A virtual campaign featuring powerful stories of teachers and school leaders has already been launched, with the precious contributions of Teacher Task Force members and partners. The campaign’s articles and short videos put the spotlight on teachers and school leaders who ensured that learning continued during school closures, highlighting the importance of their leadership role and the challenges they face.

Together with the Global Education Monitoring Report team and the UNESCO Institute for Statistics, the Teacher Task Force will co-publish a World Teachers’ Day 2020 fact sheet and a policy paper focusing on teachers and inclusion.  

Along with the UNESCO regional offices, members and partners, the Teacher Task Force will organize a series of regional meetings to explore different types of teacher leadership in diverse national contexts and their roles in achieving quality education and developing effective solutions to tackle challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic. The meetings will highlight member countries’ and organizations’ experiences related to teacher leadership at various levels in times of crises. Drawing on this experience, the meetings seek to shine a light on good practices, challenges, and enabling and constraining factors for the holistic development of teacher leadership to build crisis-resilient education systems.

The meetings are open to Teacher Task Force member countries and organizations as well as non-members. Find out more and join the events through the following links:

A meeting convening members and partners from Latin America and the Caribbean is also being planned.

 

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Blog
  • 23.09.2020

3 reasons why school leadership is vital for teacher success

School improvement rarely occurs without effective leadership, and school leadership is only second to classroom teaching in its influence on student achievement. A new evidence review report from Global School Leaders paints a complex and ever-changing picture of school leaders, with their roles, responsibilities, and impact varying around the world.

In the lead up to World Teacher’s Day (5 October), we’ve outlined three ways that school leaders are vital for teacher success and student outcomes:

1. School leaders establish great teaching practices

School leaders can support educators and their pupils by establishing effective teaching practices. They can harness the talents and motivations of teachers, students, and parents; develop inclusive and inspiring learning cultures for the whole school; and provide intensive, individualised, and sustainable teacher training.

The impact of strong school leadership on education is clear; a recent study spanning 65 countries found that students led by the top 25 per cent of school leaders receive the equivalent of three extra months of learning every year compared to those led by the bottom 25 per cent. There is considerable interest in targeting school leaders amid efforts to improve outcomes for students in a cost-effective manner, with one study finding that a one-point increase in scoring on school management practices is associated with a 10 per cent increase in student performance.

In order for leaders to develop the best teaching practices for their schools, it is essential that they are not burdened by unnecessary administrative responsibilities (they commonly spend less than 25 per cent of their time managing student learning activities), and that they receive appropriate training. 

Where training for school leaders is limited, there are a number of free resources available online.  For example, the UNESCO Institute for International Capacity Building in Africa’s training manuals for school leaders – which were deployed in Guinea, Lesotho, Nigeria, and Sierra Leone – can help plug these gaps in training. We have also published this Toolkit to help school leaders support and protect teachers and education support staff in the return to school following COVID-19.

2. A good school leader understands the needs of their school

Since the 1980s, decentralisation efforts have shifted decision-making powers to the lower levels of education systems in many countries. This transition is based on the premise that school leaders are familiar with the specific needs of their school, and are therefore better placed to make and execute decisions about how they are run.

Autonomous school leaders may make their own decisions about budgets, curricula, and personnel, rather than being overly restricted to implement government policies. This freedom can allow schools to adjust quickly to changing educational expectations and the particular needs and interests of their students. A study of schools in South Korea found that school leader autonomy over curricula and assessment had a positive association with achievement in mathematics, particularly for lower-performing pupils.

At present, however, some school leaders are appointed based on seniority or political considerations rather than on skills and experience. In order to ensure that decentralisation benefits teaching and learning, increasingly-autonomous school leaders should also be held accountable and armed with necessary skills and resources. According to the Global School Leaders report, this should include training on interpreting and utilising learning data.

3. School leaders show the way through troubling times

When schools are facing adverse circumstances, strong leadership is critical for resilience, adaptation, and recovery. Natural disasters, conflicts, and health crises like the coronavirus pandemic severely disrupt education and force educators to adapt to challenging circumstances.

The best educators may seize opportunities in the midst of a crisis. Dr Sara Ruto, chair of the Kenyan Ministry of Education’s Covid-19 response, has said that the current COVID-19 crisis “is giving energy to some of the pillars of the curriculum that had not found a voice before - for example, parental engagement, empowerment, and values-based education.” He advised school leaders to use this opportunity to engage parents to help them enrich the student experience.

Evidence points to strong leadership as a critical factor in seeing school communities through crises. For instance, preliminary evidence from Puerto Rico appears to suggest that strong school leaders were better placed to utilise remote learning tools and retain student engagement throughout Covid-19 school closures. And an analysis of school closures during Hurricane Matthew in Haiti in 2016 showed that despite devastating infrastructure damage, schools with strong management still improved the reading grades of early year students.

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This blog is part of a series of stories addressing the importance of the work of, and the challenges faced by teachers in the lead up to this year’s World Teachers’ Day celebrations.

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Cover photo credit: GPE/Ludovica Pellicioli

 

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Event
  • 23.09.2020

Regional Virtual Meeting for Anglophone Africa - Teachers Leading in crisis, reimagining the future

The International Task force on Teachers for Education 2030 (TTF) in collaboration with UNESCO International Institute for Capacity Building (IICBA) will host a Regional Virtual Meeting for Anglophone Countries on 7 October at 15:00h-16:30 (Paris time GTM +2).

Following from the Regional Meetings initiated in May/June of 2020 on distance teaching and the return to school, the TTF, with member organizations and partners is organizing a new series of discussions to coincide with the WTD celebration.  These will build on the initial dialogue while also exploring the topic of teacher leadership and its key role in developing effective solutions to address challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic and building back resilient education systems.

In particular, the regional meetings will provide a forum to:

  • Share examples of leadership that emerged, were implemented or are planned during different phases of the pandemic including the transition to remote teaching and the return to school;
  • Identify the different systemic or policy level enabling factors that were conducive to foster effective leadership amongst school leaders and teachers at the classroom-, school- and community-levels;
  • Identify challenges that need to be addressed to ensure leadership can be enhanced and teachers can take the lead on different dimensions of teaching and learning;
  • Discuss different tools available to support teacher leadership, including the new TTF Toolkit for Reopening Schools, and TTF Knowledge Platform.

Some of the main questions to be covered will include:

  • What government interventions were implemented or are planned to strengthen leadership capacity of school leaders and teachers to ensure the continuity of learning in the use of distance education and the return to school (if applicable) at the classroom-, school-, and community-levels?
  • Given the lack of time to prepare for school closures in most countries, what examples of leadership decisions and actions emerged to ensure the continuity of learning at the micro-(classroom), meso-(school) and macro- (community) levels?
  • What forms of social dialogue were conducted or are planned within a strong teacher leadership orientation to ensure the voices of teachers are included in planning?
  • What enabling factors and challenges currently exist to foster a leadership mindset?

The meeting is open to TTF member countries and organizations as well as non-members. TTF focal points, representatives of Ministries of Education, and other relevant education stakeholders working on teachers’ issues in the region are invited to join the meeting.

 

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Event
  • 22.09.2020

Regional Virtual Meeting for Francophone Africa - Teachers Leading in crisis, reimagining the future

The International Task force on Teachers for Education 2030 (TTF) in collaboration with UNESCO International Institute for Capacity Building (IICBA) will host a Regional Virtual Meeting for Francophone Countries on 8 October at 15:00h-16:30 (Paris time GTM +2).

Following from the Regional Meetings initiated in May/June of 2020 on distance teaching and the return to school, the TTF, with member organizations and partners is organizing a new series of discussions to coincide with the WTD celebration.  These will build on the initial dialogue while also exploring the topic of teacher leadership and its key role in developing effective solutions to address challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic and building back resilient education systems.

In particular, the regional meetings will provide a forum to:

  • Share examples of leadership that emerged, were implemented or are planned during different phases of the pandemic including the transition to remote teaching and the return to school;
  • Identify the different systemic or policy level enabling factors that were conducive to foster effective leadership amongst school leaders and teachers at the classroom-, school- and community-levels;
  • Identify challenges that need to be addressed to ensure leadership can be enhanced and teachers can take the lead on different dimensions of teaching and learning;
  • Discuss different tools available to support teacher leadership, including the new TTF Toolkit for Reopening Schools, and TTF Knowledge Platform.

Some of the main questions to be covered will include:

  • What government interventions were implemented or are planned to strengthen leadership capacity of school leaders and teachers to ensure the continuity of learning in the use of distance education and the return to school (if applicable) at the classroom-, school-, and community-levels?
  • Given the lack of time to prepare for school closures in most countries, what examples of leadership decisions and actions emerged to ensure the continuity of learning at the micro-(classroom), meso-(school) and macro- (community) levels?
  • What forms of social dialogue were conducted or are planned within a strong teacher leadership orientation to ensure the voices of teachers are included in planning?
  • What enabling factors and challenges currently exist to foster a leadership mindset?

The meeting is open to TTF member countries and organizations as well as non-members. TTF focal points, representatives of Ministries of Education, and other relevant education stakeholders working on teachers’ issues in the region are invited to join the meeting.

The concept note for this event with the agenda in French is here. Read the global concept note in English here.

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