Education in Crisis and Conflict Network

Permanent URI for this collection

https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14394/29

Now showing 1 - 5 of 7

Adaptive Management Annotated Bibliography
(2016-01-01) Hartwell, Ash; Boisvert, Kayla; Flemming, Jenn; Novrita, Julia
The technical knowledge of the elements needed to provide equitable basic education is well established: well-crafted curricula, qualified teachers supported by professional development, adequate infrastructure, appropriate texts and instructional materials, and a regular process for assessing learning achievement. However, in conflict/crisis-affected environments, there are a host of barriers and challenges to providing these elements, including insecurity, weak institutions, inequalities, historical traumas, and fault lines. These contexts are deeply complex, dynamic, often times unpredictable, and difficult to manage. USAID’s programs, while they often provide pilot and demonstration projects that point the way to system change, cannot sustain the delivery of education services and reform – this must ultimately be accomplished by host-country institutions. However, it is precisely in countries affected by conflict that institutions have the weakest capacity to deliver and support basic education. The recent increase in the use of the term theory of change by development agencies and organizations arises from the need for more well-grounded and creative strategies to achieve progress in challenging and complex environments. A theory of change approach calls for greater rigor in examining contexts, systems, organizations, strategies, and project designs in crisis and conflicted environments, seeking to understand both the drivers of conflict and ways that improved access to education can mitigate the effects of conflict on children and youth. The USAID-ECCN Annotated Bibliography on Theories of Change in Development as of 2016 has reviewed more than 150 studies in the form of existing reviews, concept papers, research, cases, and guidance. Documents have been drawn from published sources, institutional and private think tanks, donor agencies, development organizations, and non-governmental organizations. This document contains a selection 36 studies that highlight the major findings and good practices that apply the concept and practice of theory of change in development assistance, with a focus on contexts affected by crisis and conflict. The documents selected for the first phase of the Annotated Bibliography were chosen based on: (i) our judgment on the quality of theory and evidence, (ii) degree to which they are cited in the literature, and (iii) their specific contribution to the concepts and application of theory of change relevant to education in crisis- and conflict-affected settings. The annotated bibliography is an ongoing process that is now available online in the form of evidence gap maps that provide systematic access to research findings.
USAID/Kampustan ECCN Simulation
(2016-01-01) Hartwell, Ash; Boisvert, Kayla
This PowerPoint presentation introduces a complex simulation developed by the UMass Education in Crisis and Conflict Network (ECCN) project team. The simulation provided the basic framework of a training workshop for USAID education officers from multiple countries affected by crisis or conflicts, held in Bangkok during the week of October 31 to November 4, 2016. Simulations are a powerful training methodology that is modeled on real-life situations, but are compressed in time and scope. Simulations are used to provide opportunity for active participation of all participants and to require them to understand various stakeholders. By having to take on various roles participants must understand the perspectives and motivations of the stakeholder they are playing. Simulations lead to lively interaction and more intense involvement with the subject matter. In this training workshop, the simulation requires participants to create an actual project design. The goals for the workshop were to: Use data and information on crisis and conflict-affected contexts to inform responsive programming. Procure and oversee or manage a Rapid Education and Risk Analysis. Create relevant, evidence-based project designs using theories of change that address key challenges of education programs in crisis and conflict-affected environments, including equity, conflict-sensitivity, safety, and institutional capacity. Apply principles of collaborative learning and adaptive management (CLA) in the design, management, monitoring and evaluation of education programming in crisis and conflict affected settings. Select and use appropriate award mechanisms to provide flexibility and adaptation for education programs in crisis- and conflict-affected environments. The participants were introduced to a country they had never heard of before: Kampustan. The ECCN training team created this fictional country as a sandbox for participants to explore the goals and concepts. Kampustan was designed to be an East Asian country struggling with equity issues, government upheaval, protests and armed rebellion. It was crafted with care, based on research from seven countries in the region, and included an artist’s rendition of Kampustan’s geography with regions, ethnic identities, military and agriculture. Participants were divided into groups which examined stacks of data cards for Kampustan as part of a simulated Rapid Education and Risk Analysis (RERA) activity. Discussions were animated as they decided which issues in Kampustan were causes of the major problems, which were effects, and how the issues related to each other. They refined their analysis into a list of findings, a simplified version of what would be found as part of a real RERA activity. The groups were challenged to find the right level of detail, language and tone in their list of key findings. Groups were then asked to plan education programs for the specific challenges in Kampustan using tools and resources specific to crisis and conflict contexts. The need for flexibility in such environments was stressed. This is one of several simulations developed by the UMass ECCN team. Previous simulations were used in workshops organized by ECCN in Ethiopia and north-east Nigeria.
USAID ECCN Policy Issues Brief: Accelerated Education for Out-of-School Children and Youth in the DRC
(2016-01-01) Hartwell, Ash
This policy brief draws from the findings of USAID Education in Crisis and Conflict Network’s recent study on alternative education in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in order to raise vital policy issues linked to achieving national and global goals for education. That study, after a careful review of relevant literature, involved fieldwork in North Kivu as well as interviews in Kinshasa with key informants from government ministries, UN agencies, the World Bank, the Global Partnership for Education, bilateral donor agencies, and international NGOs. This brief is intended to serve as a catalyst for government, donor, and NGO dialogue on policy issues related to increasing the provision and quality of accelerated education programs, which provide a strategy for reaching the large number of children and youth who have missed out on basic education, particularly in regions affected by crisis and conflict.
Case Study Report: Norwegian Refugee Council, Dadaab, Kenya
(2017-01-01) Flemming, Jenn
The AEWG is a working group made up of education partners working in Accelerated Education (AE). The AEWG is currently led by UNHCR with representation from UNICEF, UNESCO, USAID, NRC, Plan, IRC, Save the Children, ECCN and War Child Holland. Based on the aim for a more standardised approach to accelerated education provision globally, the AEWG has begun to develop guidance materials based on international standards and sound practice for AE. In 2016, the AEWG developed a set of 10 principles for effective practice (i.e. “the principles” or “AE principles”), and also accompanying guidance to these principles (known as the Guide to the AE Principles). The purpose of this case study was to more fully understand the relevance, usefulness and application of the AE principles and guidance within the context of the Norwegian Refugee Council’s (NRC) AEP in Dadaab, Kenya. This case study sits along three others – from Kenya, Afghanistan, and Sierra Leone – all implemented by different actors and working with different populations of learners.
AEWG Guide to the Accelerated Education Principles
(2017-01-01) Boisvert, Kayla; Flemming, Jenn; Shah, Ritesh
A large number of donor agencies, non-governmental organizations and governments have set up AEPs to meet the needs of over-age, out-of-school children and youth. These programs vary widely and are of differing quality and effectiveness. While there is guidance on quality education and education in emergencies generally, prior to this Guide, no AEP-specific Principles have existed to support these stakeholders in designing, implementing and evaluating their AEPs. With the goal of strengthening the quality of Accelerated Education (AE) programming through a more harmonized, standardized approach, the Accelerated Education Working Group, led by UNHCR and with representation from nine member organizations, has identified a set of 10 evidence-based Accelerated Education Principles. The Principles elaborated in this Guide help establish clear, common aspirations for AEPs globally.

Recent Submissions