Orientation to CSTL From Policy to Practice Sharing

Orientation to CSTL: From Policy to Practice Sharing Meeting 2015 Tuesday 24 November CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Overview: New CSTL Materials Overall purpose To develop materials to support understanding of and commitment to the CSTL Programme, as well as to facilitate implementation at district- and school-level Defined target groups for each of the three sets of materials CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Three Sets of Materials National & Number 1 sub-national • Booklet • Programmes for 2 different facilitated sessions • PPT Number 2 District • Resource File & school • Facilitator Guide Parents • PPTs x 7 caregivers & Number 3 communities CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Preamble This booklet was developed in response to calls for a resource that presents essential facts about the CSTL Programme It is intended for leaders and decision makers in education, officials at all levels, and those in partnership with education sectors across the SADC Region CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Target Groups and Purpose 1. Representatives from National Ministries of Education – all MS 2. Representatives from the other National Ministries – all MS 3. Implementing partners of the National Ministries To create an understanding of and commitment to lead their CSTL Programme To create an understanding of and commitment to participate in and support the CSTL Programme 4. Members of CSTL National Coordinating Units 5. To build capacity at national level to lead and manage the implementation of their CSTL Programme Ministry officials, partners and To build capacity at sub-national level to manage / others representing subfacilitate the implementation their CSTL national CSTL structures Programme 6. MS representatives attending To build consensus around and commitment to Sharing Meetings CARE AND SUPPORT the. FOR SADC CSTL Programme TEACHING AND LEARNING

Stand-alone Resource or Reference in a Facilitated Session For first three groups: half- to one-day programme – National Education Ministry officials – Other National Ministry officials – Implementing partners For other three groups: two-day programme – CSTL NCU members – Ministry officials, partners and others representing sub-national CSTL structures – Member State representatives attending Sharing Meetings Care and Support for Teaching and Learning Orientation for Education Ministries and their Partners CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Discussion Topics In your Member State, identify the important historical milestones relating to care and support for teaching and learning that your Ministry has either initiated or played a role in. Using the illustration above, consider which factors are barriers to education (access / attendance / participation) in your Member State and, importantly, identify any others that are specific to any area or any group of children and youth within your Member State. Are these education facts true for your Ministry and Member State? What is the actual data relating to enrolment, attendance and retention in your Ministry? Where possible give data for primary and secondary school and for girls and boys. CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Purpose • To create an understanding of the SADC CSTL Programme • To generate commitment to lead / participate in / support your CSTL Programme • To build capacity to lead / manage / facilitate implementation of your CSTL Programme CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Session One: Introduction to CSTL Objectives • To present an overview of the SADC CSTL Programme • To examine factors that make CSTL unique • To mark the progress of CSTL from the first small pilot project • To identify Member State and Mo. E care and support milestones CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Care and Support for Teaching and Learning • A unique regional collaboration to advance the rights of all children and youth to quality education • Shaped by the participating Member States and led by their Ministries of Education • Member States develop a national CSTL model to address the specific vulnerabilities faced by children and youth Resulting in reduction / removal of barriers to education and leading to improved education outcomes CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

The CSTL Concept • Not a replacement for existing initiatives • Instead–an overarching conceptual framework within which to initiate, coordinate and expand care and support activities for vulnerable children and youth Approved and adopted by SADC Ministers of Education in Zambia in 2008 CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Realities noted by the Ministers: • In all Member States, the education rights of many children and youth are compromised • Though there are commonalities across Member States, there are many important distinctions as well • Schools and other learning centres are well positioned to identify vulnerable children and youth and to assist in accessing care and support services for them CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Conditions set by the Ministers: • CSTL must incorporate both existing care and support programmes, as well as new ones • Measures of success of the CSTL Programme must be in terms of education outcomes– improved access, retention and progression • Education the core business of Mo. Es–so partnerships essential to access relevant care and support services for vulnerable children and youth CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Way forward Ministers agreed that: • Mainstreaming care and support across all disciplines within education and at all levels will result in meaningful and sustained change, by ensuring that the responses that emerge fall within the scope and mandate of the sector CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

CSTL Milestones CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

CSTL Milestones CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Discussion Topic In your Member State, identify the important historical milestones relating to care and support for teaching and learning that your Ministry has either initiated or played a role in. CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Current Phase of CSTL 2013 -2018 Goal Children and youth in SADC realize their rights to education, to safety and protection and to care and support, through an expanded and strengthened education sector response. Focus on: • Children and youth affected by HIV&AIDS • The sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) of children and youth • Children and youth – especially girls – who are marginalised CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Three Major Strategies • Systems strengthening – to enable education sectors in Member States to respond to the prevention, care and support needs of children and youth, especially vulnerable girls • Improved coordination and integration of services – to facilitate local services and safety nets that address HIV&AIDS, SRHR and other health needs of children and youth, especially vulnerable girls • Policy harmonization and implementation – to promote and protect the rights of vulnerable and marginalised children and youth CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Session Two: Children and Youth in SADC Objectives • To identify common vulnerabilities faced by children and youth in SADC • To examine current education outcomes across the Region • To interrogate the link between child / youth vulnerability and education outcomes CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Children and Youth in SADC • Poverty is widespread • Orphaning results in multiple risks and challenges • HIV&AIDS epidemic means increasing poverty, stigma and discrimination, neglect and exploitation • Further difficulties for girls and children and youth with disabilities Disproportionate number of children and youth who are deprived of essential care and the chance to develop their optimum human potential CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Education Rights Context for CSTL: poverty; hunger; poor health; lack of access to services like water, sanitation and energy; gender and other forms of inequality; parental illiteracy; orphaning and rural residency amongst other factors SADC Policy Framework on Care and Support for Teaching and Learning (July 2014) Children and youth across SADC have the right to education BUT: Many face barriers to accessing education; barriers to remaining at school; and barriers to achieving at school CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Intersecting Vulnerabilities Impacting on Educational Opportunities CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Discussion Topic Using the illustration above, consider which factors are barriers to education (access / attendance / participation) in your Member State and, importantly, identify any others that are specific to any area or any group of children and youth within your Member State. CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Education Realities Enrolment • Pre-school enrolment rates low • Primary school enrolment rates have improved but progression through primary school remains a problem • Secondary school enrolments less than half that for primary schools Attendance • 20% of enrolled primary school children do not complete their education Retention • High drop-out between primary and secondary levels • Secondary school completion rates lower than for primary schools • Secondary completion rates also lower for girls than boys CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Discussion Topic • Are these education facts true for your Ministry and Member State? • What is the actual data relating to enrolment, attendance and retention in your Ministry? • Where possible give data for primary and secondary school and for girls and boys. CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Session Three: CSTL Mandates in Policies and Regulatory Frameworks Objectives • To examine global, African and regional policy and regulatory frameworks with provisions relating to care and support for teaching and learning • To synthesize the mandate of Education Ministries i. r. o. care and support for teaching and learning • To explore the concept of a package of essential services for vulnerable children and youth • To consider means to monitor and measure care and support for teaching and learning CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Instruments Protecting Education Rights Provisions in: • UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, 1989 • African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child, 1990 • Millennium Development Goals, 2000 • Education for All, 1990 • In Member State–Constitution, National Development Plan • In sectors–relevant laws and policies CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

SADC’s Regional Indicative Strategic Development Plan Improved education central to the realization of the Region’s economic and social development objectives CSTL is therefore a coordinating mechanism through which Member States can give effect to the realization of the goals, objectives, targets and commitments in the global, continental, regional and national instruments to which they are signatories CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Mandate for CSTL • Increasing numbers of vulnerable children and youth • Opportunities for care and support through schools • So change–not in core functions of education–but change in how teaching and learning takes place CSTL presents both an opportunity and challenge to Ministries and their partners to embrace different ways of working that will access care and support for vulnerable learners, and, as a direct result of that, improve learning outcomes CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Discussion Topic In your Member State, what are the key provisions in laws and policies that provide the mandate for care and support for teaching and learning? Think about: • Basic human rights and education rights • National goals and targets that successful CSTL initiatives will contribute to • Provisions for protecting children and youth, especially those who are vulnerable or marginalized CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Essential Care and Support Services CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Discussion Topic • If you have a national CSTL model and package of essential services, in your Member State, what are the services for vulnerable children and youth in that package? • If you do not yet have a national CSTL model in your Member State, what services for vulnerable children and youth should be included in a package of essential services? CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Monitoring Care and Support for Teaching and Learning Monitoring, Evaluation and Reporting (MER) Framework for CSTL is premised on theory that: • If education, care and support for vulnerable children is mainstreamed into the following aspects of the education system —policy, planning and budgeting, human resources, human resource development, curriculum, infrastructure, M&E • And if a national conceptual framework, model and package of school-based care and support programmes and services are developed and partnerships are developed with government departments, UN agencies, NGOs and other stakeholders to implement the framework, model and package • Then rates of school enrolment, retention and performance will improve and CSTL will contribute towards realizing the EFA targets and MDG. CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Development of the CSTL MER Framework CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Examples of Indicators Material and #(%) of schools providing/facilitating access to welfare bursaries to assist with education related costs Water and sanitation #(%) of schools with sufficient sanitary toilet facilities to meet the needs of teachers and learners #(%) of schools with safe water to meet the needs of teachers and learners Nutrition #(%) of schools providing a daily meal to vulnerable learners Data is collected at regional-, national- and school-levels. CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Discussion Topic • In the MER system and EMIS in your Member State, identify examples of indicators that relate to care and support for teaching and learning. • Select examples from both school-level and national-level. CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Session Four: Mainstreaming Care and Support for Teaching and Learning Objectives • To introduce the concept of and processes for mainstreaming care and support into education • To present the mainstreaming resources developed to support CSTL Programmes in Member States • To illustrate care and support mainstreaming with examples from selected Member States CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Mainstreaming–Key Concepts • Mainstreaming is a management practice • Mainstreaming has evolved into a recognized discipline • Mainstreaming refers to a developmental approach that a sector, like education, can adopt to manage a range of risks • Mainstreaming requires an understanding of the causes and consequences of identified risks and how they impact on a sector’s goals and targets • Then mainstreaming provides the means to address them • Mainstreaming implies change; but change that is always consistent with the core functions of the sector, utilizing the so-called comparative advantages of the sector CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Mainstreaming in the CSTL Context Mainstreaming care and support for teaching and learning at all levels and across all divisions and disciplines within education will address barriers to children and youth accessing education, remaining at school and achieving at school CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

CSTL Mainstreaming Resources The Regional Support Pack (RSP)—developed in 2009 • Guides and supports Member States in the processes and practical steps to mainstream care and support in teaching and learning • Tested with all 15 Member States • Used in intensive training (initially with: the DRC, Mozambique, South Africa, Swaziland Zambia) CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

CSTL Mainstreaming Resources (cont. ) The CSTL Road Map • Used with the RSP • Used to visually create a CSTL journey, sequencing the mainstreaming Action Steps in an optimal way for individual Member States • Used as a planning tool CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

CSTL Mainstreaming Resources (cont. ) CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Discussion Topic • What is your knowledge of and experience with the RSP? • Has the process of customizing the RSP been done in your Ministry? CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Mainstreaming Illustrated Three examples 1. Swaziland–A national model and package of essential care and support services 2. South Africa–A national policy to standardize procedures for identifying and assessing vulnerable learners 3. Zambia–A national programme to build a cadre of staff with skills to deliver counselling and guidance services to vulnerable children and youth at school CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Swaziland: INQABA Based on an in-depth understanding of the vulnerabilities faced by its children and youth The pillars are: • Protection and safety • Psychosocial support • Food security • Health • Water, sanitation and hygiene • HIV&AIDS, gender and life skills • Quality teaching and learning CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Swaziland: INQABA (cont. ) Delivery mechanisms In order to effectively mainstream these pillars into all aspects of education, partnerships to deliver key services have been created, with relevant ministries, implementing partners, NGOs and others CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

South Africa—SIAS (Screening, Identification, Assessment and Support) policy adopted in 2014 Four steps in the SIAS policy: • Screen all learners for learning and development breakdown • Identify the barriers to learning and development (facing the learner) • Assess the learner’s support needs (what support is needed; from whom; how often? ) • Facilitate the necessary support to meet all the learner’s needs Then develop plans of action–for the at risk learner, for the school and for the district CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

South Africa—SIAS (cont. ) Additional aspects • Identifies sources of information on the learner • Gives guidance to education sector stakeholders on how to plan, budget and provide programme support at all levels of the education system • Regulates the composition and operations of key coordinating structures required for the implementation of an inclusive education system –the “SBSTs” and “DBSTs” CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Zambia–Counselling and Guidance Services • Mo. E’s decision that counselling and guidance are important aspects of the education system • So have integrated these services into schools Particularly relevant in the current phase of CSTL, which emphasizes support for vulnerable and marginalized children and youth, who can benefit greatly from access to counselling and guidance services CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Zambia–Counselling and Guidance Services (cont. ) Skills Development Programme • Six-module practical diploma course launched in August 2013 by the Ministry in conjunction with REPSSI • Course aims to change the way teachers interact with each other and with learners as well as how a school interacts with its school community • Guidelines developed on the administration and management of guidance and counselling in the education system Result: psychosocial support mainstreamed into education, at school level CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

In Summary … • Examples show Mo. Es are changing, expanding and strengthening, in order to improve on their mandates of learner access, retention and progression • At the same time meeting the CSTL goal of enabling children and youth to realize their rights to education, to safety and protection and to care and support CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Discussion Topic Describe an initiative in your Member State that advances the CSTL goal of an expanded and strengthened education response that enables children and youth to realize their rights to education, to safety and protection and to care and support. CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Conclusion • CSTL is a unique collective response to the education challenges facing the SADC Region • CSTL builds on the strength of regional collaboration and the sharing of experiences and knowledge, including both policy development and school level implementation, towards the common goal of achieving access, retention and performance in school for all children and youth, especially those who are vulnerable CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Questions and Comments CARE AND SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING