The project aims to improve the access to, and quality of, education in Svay Rieng Province, Cambodia.
Project implemented: 1 July 2016 – 30 June 2019
Improving access to, and the quality of, education by promoting child-friendly teaching methodologies focusing on teacher quality and inclusiveness.
The project complements DFAT’s Australia-Cambodia bilateral program which includes a focus on better health and education outcomes.
This project is an extension/expansion of a pilot and builds on the initial work undertaken by ChildFund & KAPE in Svay Rieng
The project has a cutting-edge approach to basic primary education, and utilises new technologies.
The establishment of peer-to-peer tutor groups is reducing the pressure on teachers, who often have over 50 students in a single class. A school sirector in Svay Phaem noted: “I’m relieved as I no longer have to worry as much about students’ reading abilities. The older tutor students are very good at teaching the younger students in a way they find interesting and enjoyable. I can see that many more students’ reading abilities are getting better.”
This project builds upon 18 months of previous collaboration between a local organisation, Kampuchean Action for Primary Education (KAPE), and envisages four key results areas: (i) improved educational access; (ii) improved educational quality and relevance; (iii) improved early grade literacy with links to technology-based learning; and (iv) improved school management and community engagement
Key activities include: mapping of vulnerable and excluded children; identifying barriers to the participation of girls and vulnerable children; providing scholarships to the most vulnerable students; developing and providing grants for annual school improvement plans; training teachers on ‘child-friendly schools’ methodology; providing life skills curriculum to schools; enhancing classrooms; addressing teacher shortages; training and supporting teachers to use reading benchmarks and literacy improvement tools; recruiting and training literacy coaches; establishing model libraries and e-libraries; introducing tablet-based learning; awareness raising with communities on importance of education; and training school management on leadership, planning and proposal writing.