The Aga Khan Foundation Canada (AKFC), together with specialized agencies of the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN), is implementing a five-year project titled Strengthening Education Systems in East Africa (SESEA). The project, which has been funded by Global Affairs Canada, is designed to improve and sustain learning outcomes in literacy and numeracy for girls and boys in pre-primary and primary school levels in target areas of Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. To achieve this, SESEA applies a combination of 3 strategies including professional development of educators, institutional strengthening and research. The learning and dialogue strategy is about evidence based policy and practices influence, and in an effort to implement this strategy.
SESEA through its agencies institutions: Aga Khan University, Aga Khan Academy, Aga Khan Foundation, Aga Khan Education Services and Madrasa Early Childhood Education and in collaboration with a variety of partners from government and parastatal institutions including: Shanzu Teachers College, CEMASTEA, Kenya Institute for curriculum development KICD, Ministry of Education, Kilifi, Kwale and Mombasa County and a variety of schools SESEA has initiated educational interventions in Kilifi, Kwale and Mombasa focusing specifically on Early Years. These interventions include: professional development of educators, institutional strengthening and research with a specific focus on early years. These interventions are very much in line with Sustainable Development Goals (United Nations, 2016) which advocate for quality education and a focus on early years education, gender inclusiveness, improved literacy and numeracy and increased supply of qualified teachers.
These interventions have led to significant learning and collection of evidence on best practices of professional development of educators and strengthening of educational institutions in sustainable ways. Furthermore, SESEA has conducted a number of research projects in an effort to generate empirical evidence and knowledge on professional development of educators and institutional strengthening. This conference provides a forum where SESEA partners can disseminate their learning and evidence from SESEA initiatives with stakeholders with the aim of bridging between evidence, practice and policy.
The conference aims at bringing together teachers, academics, practitioners and policy makers to reflect, discuss and share experiences relevant to the SESEA interventions. It is expected that a major impact of the conference will include: creating an awareness of best practice of teacher education at early years, provide a useful benchmark upon which future teacher education initiatives can be measured, help advocate for gender inclusive education and to provide an evidence base for institutional strengthening and provide a networking forum between AKDN institutions and the public sector. A major output target for the conference is to provide an opportunity for possible policy recommendations that could help improve professional development of educators and strengthen educational institutions in the Coastal Region of Kenya. Another envisaged further output will be to publish the session deliberations for wider dissemination.
In line with the understanding of dissemination being “a collaborative knowledge exchange activity” the conference has been designed to focus participants on collaboratively reflecting on and discussing evidence and best practice presented in ways that improve mutual learning and build capacity to implement new knowledge between practitioners, researchers and policy makers. Given the breadth of SESEA interventions and the need for maximizing collaborative learning the conference will have a variety of different sessions ranging from plenary presentations, workshops, poster presentations and a show case of teaching and learning materials aimed at providing different modes of collaboration. These sessions will be across thematic tracks in line with the conference themes.
TITLE
Innovative Interventions for Strengthening Education Systems
THEMES
1. Championing inclusive education
2. Teacher Learning: Improvement, Innovation and Change
3. Early Years in Context
SESEA through its agencies institutions: Aga Khan University, Aga Khan Academy, Aga Khan Foundation, Aga Khan Education Services and Madrasa Early Childhood Education and in collaboration with a variety of partners from government and parastatal institutions including: Shanzu Teachers College, CEMASTEA, Kenya Institute for curriculum development KICD, Ministry of Education, Kilifi, Kwale and Mombasa County and a variety of schools SESEA has initiated educational interventions in Kilifi, Kwale and Mombasa focusing specifically on Early Years. These interventions include: professional development of educators, institutional strengthening and research with a specific focus on early years. These interventions are very much in line with Sustainable Development Goals (United Nations, 2016) which advocate for quality education and a focus on early years education, gender inclusiveness, improved literacy and numeracy and increased supply of qualified teachers.
These interventions have led to significant learning and collection of evidence on best practices of professional development of educators and strengthening of educational institutions in sustainable ways. Furthermore, SESEA has conducted a number of research projects in an effort to generate empirical evidence and knowledge on professional development of educators and institutional strengthening. This conference provides a forum where SESEA partners can disseminate their learning and evidence from SESEA initiatives with stakeholders with the aim of bridging between evidence, practice and policy.
The conference aims at bringing together teachers, academics, practitioners and policy makers to reflect, discuss and share experiences relevant to the SESEA interventions. It is expected that a major impact of the conference will include: creating an awareness of best practice of teacher education at early years, provide a useful benchmark upon which future teacher education initiatives can be measured, help advocate for gender inclusive education and to provide an evidence base for institutional strengthening and provide a networking forum between AKDN institutions and the public sector. A major output target for the conference is to provide an opportunity for possible policy recommendations that could help improve professional development of educators and strengthen educational institutions in the Coastal Region of Kenya. Another envisaged further output will be to publish the session deliberations for wider dissemination.
In line with the understanding of dissemination being “a collaborative knowledge exchange activity” the conference has been designed to focus participants on collaboratively reflecting on and discussing evidence and best practice presented in ways that improve mutual learning and build capacity to implement new knowledge between practitioners, researchers and policy makers. Given the breadth of SESEA interventions and the need for maximizing collaborative learning the conference will have a variety of different sessions ranging from plenary presentations, workshops, poster presentations and a show case of teaching and learning materials aimed at providing different modes of collaboration. These sessions will be across thematic tracks in line with the conference themes.
TITLE
Innovative Interventions for Strengthening Education Systems
THEMES
1. Championing inclusive education
2. Teacher Learning: Improvement, Innovation and Change
3. Early Years in Context