1. Regional module for Africa:
Review and updates
Githaiga Monica
Wendy Weng
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
7 November, 2012

2. Overview Review of the module Regional module updates
Context of initiatives
Questionnaire review
Launch and release
Regional module updates
Response rate
Key indicators and common data reporting issues
Key findings in 2012 data collection

3. Review of Africa regional module

4. A partnership with Africa Union
Framework of the 2nd Decade of Education for Africa ( ), the AU has committed to monitoring the status of education and the progress made in implementing the 8 priority areas of their plan of action. (
UIS has committed to providing data to the AU Observatory database, managed by the Association for the Development of Education in Africa (ADEA).
UIS has offered its expertise, infrastructure and technical platforms to collect new data that address AU indicator needs.

5. Regional module questionnaire and policy relevance
Contains 6 tables with items chosen in agreement with regional partners according to well defined criteria:
Relevance to regional monitoring and policy discussion
Identified as high priorities by partners

6. Six items in the regional module Link to AU areas of priority
Questionnaire table
Item designation
Link to AU areas of priority
Table 10.1
Classes and pupils
Quality management
Table 10.2
Availability of manuals and textbooks (reading and mathematics)
Table 10.3
Graduates from pre-service teacher training programmes
Teacher development
Table 10.4
Newly recruited teachers
Table 10.5
Availability of basic services
A key priority identified by regional organizations 
Table 10.6
School census response rates
Education Management Information Systems

7. Item 1: Classes and pupils
Class size and multi-grade teaching
The deployment of teachers in classrooms is a key factor affecting learning outcomes especially where class sizes are very large or cover several grades

8. Item 2: Availability of manuals and textbooks (reading and mathematics)
Textbooks are one of the educational inputs that have the greatest influence on learning achievement in African countries

9. Item 3: Graduates from pre-service teacher training programmes
The teacher is the corner stone of the quality of teaching in Africa.
This item measures the capacity of countries to produce trained teachers
It is important to assess the need of teachers to be trained to achieve UPE and to ensure quality of education

10. Item 4: Newly recruited teachers
Countries need to estimate the demand for teachers and to plan their recruitment on an annual basis
This item can be used to measure:
the level of recruitment in a country
teacher turnover (or attrition)
quality of recruited teachers

11. Item 5: Schools with basic service (toilets, water and electricity)
Availability of sanitation facilities improves the learning environment, improves pupils’ health, boosts attendance and achievement and promotes gender equality
Girls are more likely to attend school where single-sex toilets are available

12. Item 6: School census response rate
Enable the monitoring of data coverage and the efficiency of the data collection system
Early country results show that the coverage is satisfactory

13. Launch and release
First launched in early 2011, administrated in 45 sub-Saharan Africa countries
Results from 2011 data collection are first released in May 2012
Annual data collection, updated in UIS Data Centre and to AU outlook database three times a year

14. Heat on release
In May 2012, the first data collection results were release in UIS and UNESCO web page.

15. An update on
2012 Africa regional data collection

16. How many countries have responded?
Seychelles
18 out of 23 countries in Anglophone Africa region have reported data
All 23 countries in Francophone Africa region and 4 countries in Arab States have reported data
Non response countries

17. Africa Regional Module updates
Classes and pupils
Table 10.1 Classes and pupils in primary education by grade
Primary education (ISCED 1)
Classes
of which:
multigrade classes
Pupils
of which pupils enrolled in: multigrade classes
Grade 1
Grade 2
Grade 3
Grade 4
Grade 5
Grade 6
Grade 7
Not specified
Total
Total number of multigrade classes:
Grade 1 2 1 12 6 1 1 6 6
Grade 2
Grade 1 3 2 18 12 1
Key indicators:
Average class size in primary:
Size of single grade classes:
Size of multi-grade classes:
Percentage of students in multi-grade classes:
Average number of grades in multi-grade classes:
Average single grade class size by grade:
18/(3-2+1)=9
(18-12)/(3-2)=6
12/1=12
12/18*100=67%
2/1=2
Grade 1:(12-6)/(2-1)=12 ; Grade 2: n/a
Although 14 countries reported data in this table, only 8 of them have publishable indicators on class as information in two columns for multigrade classes are missing.

18. Africa Regional Module updates
How crowded are the classes in Africa primary schools?
OECD countries
The average class size ranges from 26 pupils in Cape Verde to 94 in Malawi.
In half of countries reporting data there are more than 50 pupils per class.
In Chad, over 68 pupils per class where nearly 48% of pupils are taught in multi-grade classes.
Central Africa Rep. has substantially large single-grade classes with 99 pupils per class on average.
Eight countries (Botswana, Burundi, Malawi, Mauritius, Rwanda, Swaziland, Tanzania and Uganda) report having no multi-grade classes.

19. Africa Regional Module updates
Which grades are the most crowded?
Malawi
130
In nearly all countries reporting data, most critical early grades are most crowded.
Grade 1 classes in 2/3 countries exceed 50 pupils. 86
Chad
Uganda 63 64
Togo 56 55
In Malawi, Chad, Uganda and Togo, more than 20 additional pupils than in the final grade of primary.
In Mauritius and Namibia, classes at all grades have about 30 pupils.
Mauritius
Namibia 30 33 32
Large difference in class sizes over first and last grade tend to be associated with low survival rate to the last grade:
Uganda
Malawi
Togo
Mauritius
Chad 98 28 32 53 59

20. Textbooks owned by schools National norms for textbooks
Reading and mathematics textbooks
Table 10.2 Textbooks, pupils and national norms in primary education by grade
Primary education
(ISCED 1)
Textbooks owned by schools
Pupils covered
National norms for textbooks
Reading
Mathematics
Grade 1
Grade 2
Grade 3
Grade 4
Grade 5
Grade 6
Grade 7
Not specified
Total
Key indicator:
Pupil/textbook ratio in reading
Pupil/textbook ratio in mathematics
The data reported should only include textbooks owned or kept in schools for instruction use in classroom.
The reading textbooks should include all languages of instruction, e.g. English, French and another local language.
The count of textbooks can include books in stock but not currently in use by pupils.
The count of pupils should not include pupils where information on textbooks is missing.

21. Most pupils have to share textbooks
About 32% of countries reporting data, there are two or more pupils per reading book. While the availability of mathematics textbooks is even worse in most of these countries.
In Cameroon, only 1 reading book for 11 pupils and only 1 mathematics textbook for 13 pupils.
In Cape Verde and Mauritius however, government give new textbooks for free to all grades in primary every year.
In Namibia, only 30% of pupils have textbooks in lower primary grades. In rural village schools, only teachers have textbooks for teaching.
Pupil per reading textbook
Pupil per mathematics textbook
As we can see from the reporting data, the supply of textbooks in public primary schools in Africa is not sufficient.
One out of three countries reporting data, there are two or more pupils per reading book. While the availability of mathematics textbooks is even worse in most of these countries.
In Cameroon, only 1 reading book for 11 pupils and only 1 mathematics textbook for 13 pupils.
In Cape Verde and Mauritius on the other hand, government give new textbooks for free to all grades in primary every year.
We also need to keep in mind the national level data may hid sub-national disparities. In Namibia, only 30% of pupils have textbooks in lower primary grades. In rural village schools, only teachers have textbooks for teaching.
Moreover, as mentioned before, the survey do not assess the quality of the textbooks available that may sometimes be very old or used.

22. Newly recruited teachers and new teacher graduates
Key indicators:
Ratio of new graduates from pre-service teacher training programmes: Gt÷Tt*100
Percentage of newly recruited teachers: Nt÷Tt*100
Percentage of newly recruited teachers that are trained:
NTt÷Nt*100
Recruitment rate: Nt÷Tt-1*100
Attrition rate: (Tt-1+ Nt- Tt) ÷ Tt-1*100
Attrition is defined as the number of teachers leaving the system or the level due to retirement, transfer to private schools or other levels of education, mortality, migration or other reasons.
Table 10.3 Graduates of teacher training programmes by gender and teaching level
Teaching level of education
Graduate from accredited pre-service teacher training programmes
Both sexes
Female
Primary (ISCED 1)
Lower secondary (ISCED 2)
Upper secondary (ISCED 3)
Not specified
Total Gt
Table 10.4 Newly recruited teachers by gender and level of education taught
Level of education taught
Newly recruited teachers
of which: trained
Both sexes
Female
Primary (ISCED 1)
Lower secondary (ISCED 2)
Upper secondary (ISCED 3)
Not specified
Total Nt
NTt
Table 2.1 Pupils, teachers and institutions by level of education, public institutions Tt

23. Africa Regional Module updates
Do we produce enough or do we hire enough? 8 14 15 21 10 2 5 12 21
Less graduates than newly recruited
More graduates than newly recruited 3 8 4 16 10 6 11 17 2
Ratio of new graduates from teacher training programmes
Percentage of newly recruited teachers
In Lesotho, newly graduates represent only 2% of teachers currently in service; while in Burundi nearly one graduate for every five active teachers
In Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Namibia and Angola, new teacher graduates is far below new teachers recruited.
However, in Cape Verde, Mauritius and Madagascar, newly recruited teachers represents less than half of new graduates. In Burundi, there are only 4 newly recruited teachers from every 7 graduates.

24. How much does the teacher force grow?
Recruitment rate compensating for leaving teachers
Recruitment rate 2 4 7 8 10 5 9 11 12 13 14 15 16 18 22
Recruitment rate contributing to expansion of teacher force
Recruitment rate still needed to compensate for attrition 3 1 4 7 5 10 9 8 6
1.4 1 3 4 2 7 5 3 6 10 17

25. How many newly recruited teachers are trained?
Percentage of recruited teachers that are trained
Recruitment rate
In Angola, Malawi and Mali, less than one-half of newly recruited teachers are trained. Angola and Malawi are also among the countries with highest level of teacher attrition.
Niger and Tanzania have relatively moderate levels of attrition, but have succeeded in hiring relatively large proportions of qualified teachers (80% to 90%). 2 4 7 8 10 5 9 11 12 13 14 15 16 18 22
82%
100%
86%
95%
80%
89%
46%
45%

26. Lower secondary (ISCED 2)
Basic services in schools
Basic services
Schools
Primary (ISCED 1)
Lower secondary (ISCED 2)
without toilets
with toilets
of which with single-sex toilets
with no information on toilets
without potable water
with potable water
of which pipe-borne
with no information on potable water
without electricity
with electricity
with no information on electricity
Toilets can include a pit latrine, an improved pit latrine, a flush toilet, a pour-flush toilet or a composting toilet.
Some countries reporting number of toilets rather than number of schools
Percentage of schools with no information should be minimum.

27. Africa Regional Module updates
Critical shortage of toilets in Africa primary schools
Niger
Chad
75%
74%
Guinea-Bissau
80%
60%
Cameroon
60%
Ethiopia
54%
58%
Côte d'Ivoire
66%
51%
Togo
Equatorial Guinea
Congo

28. Africa Regional Module updates
Percentage of primary schools with no potable water
Percentage of primary schools with no electricity 56 63 65 67 70 73 77 78 85 86 64 65 66 67 68 70 71 73 74 75 80 83 85 87 90 91 92 94 95 97
100 5 9 12 13 18 28 29 38 43 44 49 50 2 3 4 17 20 33 41 47 51

29. School census response rate
No available data
79%
100%

30. UIS regional data collection web page:
More resources:
UIS fact sheets:
“School and teaching resources in sub-Saharan Africa”
“The global demand for primary teachers”
UIS regional data collection web page:
The smallest deed done are better than great deeds planned.
-- Peter marshall