Nairobi, August 2021: The Global e-Schools and Communities Initiative (GESCI) as the Lead Organization, Makerere University’s College of Education and External Studies (CEES) and The University of Notre Dame’s Global Center for the Development of the Whole Child (GC-DWC) are set to implement the Adapting assessment into policy and learning (ADAPT) : Adolescent 21st Century Skills Project in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania.
ADAPT is a research initiative seeking to promote acquisition of 21st century skills for adolescents by strengthening utilization of data from learning assessments in curriculum design, adaptation, and delivery and is expected to build up on learning from the Assessment of Values and Life Skills in East Africa (ALiVE) initiative.
The research project will work towards achieving the following objectives:
- Generate lessons from past and present national and regional learning assessments and initiatives to enhance national data-driven decision making.
- Build capacity of a dynamic learning community to integrate and assess 21st century skills and support utilization of learning assessments at the school and sub-national levels.
- Mobilise policy uptake on the utilization of learning assessments in the education plans, curriculum frameworks and teacher development.
Partners
The Regional Education Learning Initiative (RELI) : This is collaborative peer learning network of about 70 organizations who work on improving learning outcomes in East Africa. Founded in 2017, RELI is a member-driven initiative. Its goal is to empower members--policy makers, civil society, non-governmental organizations- to become effective, influential organizations through peer-to-peer collaboration, learning, and joint policy engagement.
Assessment of Lifeskills and Values in East Africa (ALiVE) : ALiVE focuses on the long-term goal of helping education systems and non-state partners focus on and equip learners with critical 21st Century Skills using assessment data. ALiVE is implemented through a co-creation and collaborative development of a contextualized 21st Century Skills assessment, driven by civil society leaders. Currently ALiVE is working to develop and validate the assessment with adolescents (13-17 years) in school and non-formal education settings in Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda.
The State University of Zanzibar (SUZA): GESCI will work with the faculty of the School of Education in the implementation of the project in Tanzania.
The ADAPT Project is supported by the Global Partnership for Education, Knowledge and Innovation Exchange (GPE – KIX) and is funded by the International Research Development Centre (IDRC).