Document Abstract
Published:
1 Sep 2007
'Formal' versus 'non-formal' basic education: prioritising alternative approaches in fragile states
Piloting education models in Somaliland
The education system in Somaliland is in the process of being re-established and developed following the destruction of the civil war. Partly because of the nomadic lifestyle, enrolment rates are very low and with its current resources Somaliland will not achieve the Millennium Development Goal of universal primary education by 2015. This short paper reports on an evaluation in 2006 of two Alternative Basic Education (ABE) pilot projects in Somaliland. The evaluation reviewed the curriculum, teaching, community participation, institutional embedding and project management.
The projects outlined in this report address the very low enrolment rates in 'formal' primary education in Somaliland by piloting five different modes of delivery, four of which use an accelerated curriculum developed by the Ministry of Education. These target the disadvantaged children who would not otherwise have access to schooling and offer a number of advantages over 'formal' schools: attendance is initially free, they are closer to the communities and in the case of mobile schools the school moves with the population; and teaching takes place at a time which suits the community.
The author highlights how although too early to assess the likely full impact of the pilot projects it is clear that they were making a significant difference to the communities and Regional Education Offices with which they were working. The document highlights how the projects had a very positive impact on the communities, which had a strong sense of ownership of the schools. Local sustainability had been well addressed and project support for the schools reduced gradually. Even the poorest communities were finding the necessary funds and seemed committed to keeping the sites going after the pilots had finished.
The projects outlined in this report address the very low enrolment rates in 'formal' primary education in Somaliland by piloting five different modes of delivery, four of which use an accelerated curriculum developed by the Ministry of Education. These target the disadvantaged children who would not otherwise have access to schooling and offer a number of advantages over 'formal' schools: attendance is initially free, they are closer to the communities and in the case of mobile schools the school moves with the population; and teaching takes place at a time which suits the community.
The author highlights how although too early to assess the likely full impact of the pilot projects it is clear that they were making a significant difference to the communities and Regional Education Offices with which they were working. The document highlights how the projects had a very positive impact on the communities, which had a strong sense of ownership of the schools. Local sustainability had been well addressed and project support for the schools reduced gradually. Even the poorest communities were finding the necessary funds and seemed committed to keeping the sites going after the pilots had finished.
