Improving the Quality of Education

Aimed at actively engaging parents, children, teachers, unions, communities and local civil society organisations in collectively monitoring and improving the quality of public education, Promoting Rights in Schools (PRS) offers a set of practical tools that can be used as a basis for mobilisation, advocacy and campaigning.

PRS is based on 10 clearly stated rights derived from national legal instruments (e.g. the Constitution), international human rights conventions and policy, community and school level efforts.

Each of the rights are gender sensitive. They are also linked to measurable indicators describing what 'good quality education' should look like and the roles of the state and other agencies in achieving this goal in a concrete and sustainable manner.

The PRS initiative is inspired by the 2008 project aimed at Improving Learning Outcomes in Primary Schools (ILOPS) in Burundi, Malawi, Senegal and Uganda.

The project was implemented in partnership with the Institute of Education, University of London with funding from the Quality Education in Developing Countries Initiative of the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation in partnership with Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

It utilised a collaborative research approach, harnessing the knowledge and capacities of children, parents, teachers, community leaders, education coalitions, teachers unions and researchers to document the links between parental participation in schools, with teachers and in their children’s learning and teacher quality on children’s learning outcomes.

Findings from the survey and interviews with 6,500 stakeholders have been shared through country policy and research reports and comparative briefs. These resources provide a platform for civil society to advocate for improved policies, increased resources and programmes, and serve as a monitoring tool for assessing progress and addressing challenges.