Authors: Alisha Parikh, Inclusive Quality Education Associate & Meghan Mattern, Inclusive Quality Education Advisor
In February 2023, more than 3,600 educators participated in the Comparative and International Education Society 67th annual conference, under the theme “Improving Education for a More Equitable World.” CIES highlights trends and approaches to improve the access to and quality of inclusive and equitable education.
Over the span of seven days, hundreds of presentations connected and inspired education professionals with knowledge sharing and brainstorming opportunities. Several key themes were highlighted throughout the conference and are important to creating the best outcomes for learners around the world.
Key takeaways
- Expand the boundaries and ways of thinking about what education is and means. In order to improve access to inclusive, quality education for all, it is critical to rethink traditional ways of learning. Adaptability and innovation in programmatic work and interventions will pave the way for ensuring that we are reaching the most marginalized.
Example: The Improving Adolescent Girls Inclusive Education (IMAGINE) project in Mali, funded by Global Affairs Canada and implemented by Plan International, aims to tackle social norms that are barriers to girls’ access to education. In times of crisis, non-formal alternative education is sometimes the only way children are able to learn. Providing out of school girls with alternatives to formal schooling, such as through reading camps, home-based learning or accelerated education programs, facilitated by locally trained individuals, can support their eventual transition into formal education. The project highlights rethinking traditional ways of learning, leveraging local approaches and resources, and integrating adaptability and innovation in program implementation.
- Conduct stakeholder mapping to determine key actors at all levels, including in communities, schools, systems, institutions, laws and policymaking. For a particular intervention to have meaningful impact, stakeholder trust, engagement and buy-in is essential. High-impact, high-engagement stakeholders are a key aspect of program intervention.
- Build an evidence base and best practices for inclusive, quality and gender transformative education. By measuring impact and documenting evidence, current and ongoing work can inform future programs to be more meaningful and transformative.
Example: The Graduation Project, implemented in two communities in Zimbabwe and funded by Plan, aims to improve girls’ access to education, successful transitions to the next grade and, ultimately, their completion of secondary education. The project utilizes the GirlEngage approach, a socioecological model that positions girls as partners and co-designers in all phases of a project. Girls are experts in the challenges they face and are best placed to design solutions the reflect their needs, priorities and aspirations. Through participatory action research, the girls identified solutions that engage key actors at all levels — individual, school, family and community.
- Promote gender equality in and through education by integrating a gender transformative approach at all levels, in all contexts. A gender transformative approach addresses the root causes of inequities and utilizes all aspects of an educational system to promote gender equality and girls’ ability to learn, lead, decide and thrive. When key actors at various levels are engaged, particularly in conflict-affected settings, projects can achieve greater levels of impact and success in promoting girls’ access to quality education.
Example: The Safer Schools in Burkina Faso (FASST) project, funded by Global Affairs Canada and implemented by Plan, aims to reach children who are out of school, particularly girls, through an accelerated education program called speed school. The project engages girls, teachers, schools, parents, community leaders and governments to address key gender equality issues and girls’ education in crisis. Teachers are trained in gender-responsive pedagogy to create a more conducive environment for girls’ learning. A strong level of engagement and oversight of parents, school officials and community leaders leads to greater investment from key actors to ensure success of project activities. And, governments are engaged at district and national levels such as by being integrated into the speed school model in the National Education in Emergencies strategy.
- Influence mindset shifts and behavior change as a way to gain trust and buy-in. Shifting mindsets is a key link between practice and policy. If we aim to address the root causes of inequities, shifting mindsets and behavior change bridge the divide in creating impact between the individual and community level to the policy and legal level.
Example: A key part of education programming work is to create transformative change by addressing the root causes of gender inequality and engaging all layers of the socioecological framework. For example, in Somalia, Plan utilizes radio messages and discussions with an audience of approximately 250,000 people to raise awareness on the importance of girls’ education and risks that girls face. In engaging the community at a broader level, the initiative seeks to shift mindsets, behaviors and attitudes around girls’ education.
Overview of Plan International presentations
With 10 presentations from our offices around the world, Plan International highlighted its work in inclusive, quality education as a girls’ rights organization. From teacher training programs for girls’ inclusive education to promoting a growth mindset among girls in STEM, presentations by Plan International offices stimulated discussions around innovative methods to promote girls’ education. A few prominent themes that emerged were around early childhood education and education in emergencies, through the lens of a gender transformative approach and girl-led interventions. Plan International consistently places girls at the center of transformative change, and implements programs that promote and uphold girls’ rights in order to create inclusive, more equitable education systems around the world.
Reflections
By bringing together key players in the international educational development space, CIES 2023 was an opportunity to reflect on best practices; share knowledge and learnings; and brainstorm innovative solutions to existing challenges and inequities.
In today’s world, conflict, COVID-19 and climate change are threatening progress in the humanitarian and development space, particularly for girls’ rights. The conference highlighted these challenges and provided interventions to address them through emerging and trending themes. These include areas such as early childhood education, education in emergencies and social emotional learning.
Through a wide variety of research methodologies, community-based approaches and ways of promoting education in diverse contexts, speakers not only illustrated promising and innovative practices in this space, but also identified critical gaps and areas for further work.
We are looking forward to CIES 2024 as an opportunity to continue to drive transformative and meaningful change.
