1 Education for All: Facing the challenge Toronto, April 26, 2005 Éducation pour tous : Relever le défi

2 Chart progress towards the six Dakar goals adopted in 2000 Hold the global community to account for its commitments Highlight effective policies and strategies Monitor international aid flows Draw attention to emerging challenges An international project funded by five bilateral donors An independent annual report, an advocacy and reference tool to: Introducing the report

3 The world is not on track to achieve the six EFA goals and the two Millennium Development Goals on education Investing in education is a key to poverty reduction More children are going to school than ever before but many drop out before grade 5 or graduate without mastering basic cognitive skills National policy change supported by more resources from the international community are required to reach the goals 2005 is a year of “make or break” opportunities (G-8 Summit on Africa, UN Millennium Summit) Education for All THE QUALITY IMPERATIVE

4 Education for All Dakar goals and Millennium Development Goals EFA GoalsMDGs 1. Expanding early childhood care and education 2. Universal primary education by Equitable access to learning and life skills programmes for young people and adults 4. 50% improvement in adult literacy rates by Gender parity by 2005 and gender equality by Improving quality of education Goal 2: Achieve Universal primary education (Target 3: Completion of full primary schooling by all children by 2015) Goal 3. Promote gender equality and empower women (Target 4: eliminate gender disparity preferably by 2005 and no later than 2015)

5 Progress towards universal primary education NET ENROLMENT RATIOS IN PRIMARY EDUCATION 81.7% in 1990, 84% in 2001 Pace of change too slow to reach UPE by 2015 Net enrolment ratio: 85% in 2005, 87% in million out-of-school children in 2001 Out-of-school children by region (in millions), 2001

6 Girls’ enrolment lags behind boys’ in 40% of countries at primary level Disparities more extreme at secondary and tertiary levels 57% of out of school children are girls, 60% countries not on track to meet 2005 gender parity target Gender parity Gender parity in 2005?

7 Stark regional inequalities: a child in Africa spends five to six fewer years in school than one in Western Europe Drop-out: in 30 out of 91 countries with data, less than 75% of children reach grade 5 International assessments (SACMEQ, PASEC) point to weak performance in reading and mathematics, PISA points to poor literacy skills in middle and low-income OECD countries Large classrooms: pupil-teacher ratios on the rise in countries where education has expanded rapidly. Lack of teacher training and poor conditions of service hinder learning in many low-income countries. In many low-income countries more than one third of children have limited reading skills even after four to six years in school Quality deficits

8 Slow global progress: in the majority of countries, GER in pre-primary education is still below 50% Children from disadvantaged backgrounds more likely to be excluded Attendance rates considerably higher for urban children than those living in rural areas A strong influence on future school performance, a positive impact on girls’ enrolment in primary Progress towards ECCE

9 64% of adult illiterates are women Gender parity GPI (F/M) in adult literacy, million adults without literacy, 70% live in nine countries Literacy and adult learning

10 Overall progress Countries far from meeting the goals, including 22 in sub-Saharan Africa, plus population giants – Bangladesh, India and Pakistan The EFA Development Index covers 127 countries and incorporates the four most “quantifiable” EFA goals EDI less than 0.80 Countries have achieved the goals or are close to doing so Countries in intermediate position. In about half, quality of education lags behind other goals

11 Reaching all learners: poverty, conflict, HIV/AIDS and disabilities keep millions of children away from school Strategies to close the gender gap in education Recognize links between access and quality and impact of literacy and early childhood care on schooling Improve quality: investing in teachers, training, classrooms, learning materials and school management Increased aid to basic education and better harmonization of external assistance Setting priorities

12 Incentives to reduce child labour and encourage schooling: school meals, stipends to families, scholarships Gender sensitive teacher training, curriculum and teaching methods to overcome prejudice and stereotyping Making HIV/AIDS and sexual and reproductive health education a priority in all school programmes Safe schools close to home, adequate sanitation facilities Legislative and policy reform to create enabling environment Removing gender gaps in education should have first priority in all programmes of school expansion and quality improvement Gendered strategies for EFA

13 Only one-third of students reach last grade of primary education where pupil/teacher ratios are high Primary education: pupil/teacher ratios and survival to the last grade, 2001 In the classroom: investing in teachers

14 Earnings: In Africa, teacher earnings were lower in real terms in 2000 than they were in Recruitment: more flexible pathways Training: priority to school-based models and ongoing professional support Pedagogical renewal: structured teaching is an option in low-income settings. Teacher presents material in small steps, checks student understanding and encourages interaction Effective teachers

15 Curriculum: relevant, gender sensitive, balanced with carefully defined aims Instructional time: few countries reach recommended ,000 hours/year Learning materials: strong impact on learning but small percentage of education spending goes to textbooks Language: Successful models start in mother tongue and make gradual transition to second or foreign language School environment: safety, health, sanitation for girls and boys, access for disabled Other essentials that make the difference

16 6% of GNP recommended on education spending not reached in majority of countries Education spending higher in rich countries (5.1% of GNP) than in systems where access and quality remain a top challenge (under 4% in Africa and East Asia/Pacific) Spending increases in East Asia and Pacific and Latin American and Caribbean in late 1990s, but -24% in Philippines; -8% in Indonesia In low income countries, increasing spending has a positive impact on learners’ cognitive achievement National resources: finance and quality

17 Students in countries that invest more in education tend to have better literacy skills. In high-income states, the impact of additional resources is less clear National resources: finance and quality

18 The Dakar Pledge : No country seriously committed to education will be thwarted by lack of resources International commitments: the need for sustained investment US$7 billion / year Required to reach UPE US$1.5 billion / year Current aid to basic education US$3.2 billion / year New pledges US$5.5 billion / year Resource gap Fast Track Initiative : In the first ten countries endorsed, a financing gap of US$200 million remains

19  23.5% of total Canadian aid goes to education, a significant increase observed in past 5 years. DAC average: 10%.  Basic education accounts for 61% of total Canadian aid to education; up from 43% in DAC average: 29%  41.5% of Canadian education aid goes to Sub-Saharan Africa; 20.5% to South and West Asia  Fragmentation: donors disburse aid to an average 63 countries. Canada provides aid to an average 53 countries Canada’s rising investment in education Canada ranks 6 th among the 21 DAC bilateral donors to education ( 2003 DAC figures) Canada’s ratio of official development assistance to GNI is 0.24%, below the recommended 0.7%

20  New resources mobilized to achieve the six EFA goals, especially for countries with national EFA plans? Are these resources consistent with the scale required?  A global store of knowledge about policies that strongly help to improve equitable access to an education of good quality?  International aid better harmonized, aligned and used effectively to support sound, nationally owned education- sector policies?  EFA fully integrated in wider international discourse and action in support of the MDGs and poverty reduction? Assessing success Imagine a retrospective evaluation on international coordination in Key judgements to be made:

21 EFA Global Monitoring Report c/o UNESCO 7, place de Fontenoy Paris 07 SP, France EFA Global Monitoring Report Launch of 2006 Report: 9 November 2005