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Table 4. Educational attainment and teachers’ academic and professional training
COMMUNITY AND THE SCHOOL
> Introduce accountability measures that enforce regular, direct communication between the school (teacher) and caregivers.
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> Enhance the capacity of school councils to further improve communication between schools and communities.
> Provide further pedagogical attention and support to girls, especially those in the 11–13 age group, i.e. who are entering puberty, in order to ensure that they continue to be on track with grade progression.
> Provide information to school practitioners and guidance to adolescent girls, especially those entering puberty, on good menstrual hygiene management (MHM) to ensure that they have practical knowledge and feel understood and supported within the school environment.
> Ensure that boys and girls feel safe and protected in schools by reinforcing universal values of respect (including gender-based respect), non-violence and responsibility by providing relevant training and raising awareness among them and the teachers. Following the principles of child’s confidentiality and protection, establish a transparent mechanism of school response to pupils’ complaints.
SCHOOL FINANCING
> Introduce a fair resource allocation formula that supports the schools that are most in need of resources, particularly those in rural areas and northern provinces in order to ensure that children who are at the highest risk of falling behind have equal access to adequate school conditions.
> Ensure that resources are also allocated for basic school materials for every child for home and school use (i.e.text books, pencils, notebooks, etc.) to improve the quality of instruction as well as homework motivation.
> Allocate more funds for the Apoio Directo às Escolas (ADE, Direct Support to Schools) and school feeding programmes based on geographical targeting – i.e. the provinces identified by ALDE as lagging severely behind in education attainment and pupils’ attendance.
> Accelerate the construction or rehabilitation of resilient classrooms with adequate equipment as well as water and sanitation facilities (WASH) that ensure privacy (separate facilities for boys and girls with doors and locks in place).
> Expand pre-school education, especially by scaling up the accelerated school readiness programme pilots, to areas with the lowest level of attendance and educational attainment.
These measures, together with many others that the MINEDH engaged in as a part of the ten-year Education Sector Strategic Plan, are realistic and concrete steps to give every child in Mozambique an equal chance at completing primary school. ALDE offers a unique opportunity to monitor changes and provide feedback on progress.
