Midway to the deadline for the 2030 education targets, the 2024 Gender Report publish on April 25 on Girls in ICT day (25 April) assesses the progress made towards achieving gender parity across all levels of education. While examples of stubborn exclusion remain, the report tells a positive story at the global level for girls’ access and education attainment over the past two decades.

The extent to which girls are encouraged and empowered to build on their mathematics skills in the early years to take them through to science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) studies and ultimately careers is suggested as the key to ensuring that technological design will work for everyone in the future. The report posits that education has a critical role to play in determining whether the future direction that the digital transformation may take us in will be gender-balanced or not.

A companion to the 2023 GEM Report, A tool on whose terms?, this gender edition asks in what circumstances technology is helping with gender equality in education. While in some instances technology can provide a lifeline for girls otherwise altogether excluded from education, there remain gender divides in access to technology and acquisition of digital skills. 

https://www.unesco.org/gem-report/en/2024genderreport

The under-representation of women in scientific fields is an obstacle to reducing pay inequalities between men and women. Numerous research studies have shown that the lack of parity in scientific careers explains a significant proportion of the pay gap observed between men and women with higher education qualifications. Taking an interest in the determinants of girls’ and boys’ career choices is therefore a central issue in public policies aimed at advancing professional equality between women and men.

https://pedagogie.ac-rennes.fr/sites/pedagogie.ac-rennes.fr/IMG/pdf/fg_et_sciences.pdf

In partnership with the Yidan Prize and Mastercard Foundation, the Fellowship program promotes research-based teaching and learning practices in STEM education

PhET Interactive Simulations, a University of Colorado Boulder project, welcomes 35 new Fellows from 27 countries to promote science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education in schools and universities across Latin America and Africa.

This year’s cohort includes 16 Fellows in Latin America and 19 in Africa. From high school math teachers to physics professors, the Fellows are teacher leaders who are committed to transforming STEM education in their respective countries. They join 32 inaugural 2022 Fellows.

This program is part of the PhET Global initiative, supported by the Yidan Prize Foundation as part of the prize project activities of 2020 Laureate Carl Wieman.

A scientific approach to STEM teaching and learning

Education is a fundamental driver of economic growth and social development. The World Economic Forum predicts that inclusive, innovative and future-proof education can add more than $2.5 trillion in increased productivity to global GDP.

It’s essential that we find innovative ways to engage and educate the next generation in STEM subjects. In classrooms today, we have future scientists, engineers and mathematicians who need to build a deep understanding of the world and develop problem-solving skills to tackle the greatest challenges of our time.

Professor Carl Wieman, founder of PhET Interactive Simulations, and 2020 Yidan Prize for Education Research Laureate, said: “I am delighted to welcome this second cohort of PhET Fellows. The Fellows are an outstanding group of educators who are doing so much to extend the use of PhET simulations to improve science and math education in Africa and Latin America.”

Through the PhET Fellowship, Fellows will promote robust teacher communities and advance students’ access to quality STEM education, reaching at least 1,800 teachers across the two continents. Together, they will accelerate the uptake of research-based math and science teaching and learning approaches through PhET simulations and build a community of local STEM experts.

PhET Interactive Simulations give educators and students free access to a collection of over 160 engaging, game-like simulations to support STEM learning. The simulations are designed to encourage discovery and exploration, making invisible science phenomena visible by using interactive visual models.

The simulations can be run online or offline and have been translated into 114 languages, including relevant local languages.

The PhET Fellowship will nurture each Fellow’s teaching skills and leadership growth for 18 months, as they continue in their full-time roles. The program will take place in two phases. First, Fellows will spend 80+ hours of professional learning building skills and knowledge of PhET resources. Then, they will have 70+ hours of leadership practice to support teachers’ use of PhET simulations across their regions.

A growing group of changemakers

Across Latin America and Africa, the PhET Fellowship is building a growing network of STEM ambassadors.

In Uruguay, Álvaro Suárez created a government-approved PhET course for secondary physics teachers. The Ministry of Education and Culture is also collaborating with the PhET Team and recently launched a PhET workshop as part of their professional development program for math and science teachers in the country.

In Colombia, Diego Fernando Rodríguez González and Paola González Valcárcel are working with the Bogotá Secretariat of Education to offer a government-approved PhET workshop, supplementing the government’s efforts to build up a STEM teacher community of practice.

Godfrey Odhiambo, a physics teacher in Kenya, works with hundreds of special education teachers to incorporate PhET simulations into their lessons. Many PhET simulations have inclusive features, such as alternative input and voicing, allowing him to provide support to teachers at schools for the deaf and the visually impaired.

In The Gambia, Muhammed Chuka Joof is advising the Gambian government via the Committee for Education. He is bringing PhET Interactive Simulations into Gambia College, the country’s leading institution for preparing teachers, which will have a ripple effect for STEM teaching and learning in schools across the country.

PhET Ambassador, Zach Mbasu, said: “These proactive educators are using PhET Interactive Simulations and related pedagogies to change math and science instruction in African classrooms. They skillfully select simulations to enrich their own lessons. Additionally, they help other teachers discover and explore new methods that make their lessons more engaging for students to understand STEM concepts.”

PhET Ambassador, Diana López, said: “The main agents of educational change are the teachers. The PhET Fellows have a great commitment to teaching and are motivated by wanting to positively impact not only their students, but the entire Latin American region. The PhET Fellowship program is often the push they need to work toward their ideals and become educational leaders. They find an international community with which they quickly connect, as they meet other teachers with the same vision, urgency, and call for action to improve education.”

As they start the program, the 2023 Fellows share some of their ambitions. They want to inspire teacher leaders, share skills, and use digital technology to transform the quality and impact of STEM teaching.

Teachers have access to thousands of free lesson plans and homework assignments by registering for a PhET account. They can learn more about webinars, workshops, and programs here.

ABOUT PHET INTERACTIVE SIMULATIONS

PhET Interactive Simulations, developed at University of Colorado Boulder, is a collection of more than 160 free, flexible simulations to help students explore math and science through game-like environments. Since 2002, PhET has developed interactive simulations through research, co-design, and user testing, advancing educational technology design and what is known about how learners make sense of STEM concepts. PhET simulations are a leading STEM resource and have broad adoption by STEM teachers worldwide, with more than 250 million online uses annually.

ABOUT THE MASTERCARD FOUNDATION

The Mastercard Foundation is a Canadian Foundation and one of the world’s largest foundations, with a mission to advance education and financial inclusion. It works with visionary organizations to enable young people in Africa and in Indigenous communities in Canada to access dignified and fulfilling work. The Foundation was established in 2006 through the generosity of Mastercard when it became a public company. The Foundation is an independent organization and separate from the company. Its policies, operations and programs are determined by the Foundation’s Board of Directors and leadership.

For more information on the Foundation, please visit www.mastercardfdn.org.

ABOUT THE YIDAN PRIZE

The Yidan Prize Foundation is a global philanthropic foundation, with a mission of creating a better world through education. Through its prize and network of innovators, the Yidan Prize Foundation supports ideas and practices in educations—specifically, ones with the power to positively change lives and society. The Yidan Prize is an inclusive education accolade that recognizes individuals or teams who have contributed significantly to the theory and practice of education. It consists of two prizes, working in harmony: the Yidan Prize for Education Research and the Yidan Prize for Education Development. They’re designed for impact: laureates receive a project fund of HK$15 million over three years, helping them scale up their work, as well as a gold medal and a cash prize of HK$15 million (shared equally for teams).

The vocationalization of secondary education in Africa has the potential to succeed and achieve the intended outcome because the current vocational education profile in Africa can be corrected. Many people know about vocational education but with limited understanding; consequently, it operates with limited human and material resources. The preparedness for the vocationalization of secondary school education is evident because the footprint of vocationalization of secondary school education is visible across the continent. However, to enhance the potential of preparedness, there is a need to improve the reputation of vocational education at secondary schools through familiarisation with the concept and its strategies. In addition, there is a need to see the fulfilment of the commitments made in public policy documents about vocational education. Finally, there is a need to align funding and investment strategies with the targeted vocational education priorities.

 Study Report on the Preparedness for the Vocationalization of Secondary Education

https://www.adeanet.org/en/publications/study-report-preparedness-vocationalization-secondary-education-africa

This study, commissioned by the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) and the African Development Bank (AfDB), aims to assess the status and capacities of 34 African member countries of the IsDB and AfDB on the use of Information & Communication Technologies (ICT) in education and remote learning during the crisis and the required investment in digital transformation. Anchoring the process will be the review of the state of preparation of the study countries in support of ICT use in education. The target countries are at different levels, including political and strategic (the policy and legal environment), pedagogical (curriculum reforms, teacher training and continuing professional development), organizational (structure and governance, ICT, and digital transformation), and ICT expenditure levels. The study covers basic and secondary education, technical and vocational education, and training (TVET), and higher education, providing insights into the investments required to harness the potentials of digital technologies in enhancing learning continuity and to addressing the digital divide of the selected countries in Africa.

 Synthesis Report on the use of ICT in Education

https://www.adeanet.org/en/publications/synthesis-report-use-ict-education-remote-learning-during-crises

PAL Network has continuously promoted the salience of Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN) in the Global South. The Policy Dialogue on Evidence for Learning in Nairobi between March 28-29, 2023 is part of our ongoing attempt of involving multiple stakeholders in discussions and ideation sessions to support children’s foundational learning in the SSA region. This project and event were supported by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF).

The event included participatory workshops for regional and national stakeholders. Activities around thematic discussions, and best practice exchanges fostered policy dialogues. Participants also got the chance to interact with children, teachers, parents, and community leaders in a field visit where participants got to observe the citizen led assessment and had a first-hand practical experience in assessment of children’s FLN, using Citizen Led Assessment tools.

 Event Report

https://www.adeanet.org/en/knowledge-and-resources/policy-dialogue-evidence-learning-sub-saharan-africa-development-highlights

One in five primary school-age children in sub-Saharan Africa are out of school; their number is nearly as high as it was in 1990. Only two in three children in the region complete primary school by age 15. Among those who do, only 3 in 10 achieve the minimum proficiency level in reading, meaning that barely one in five children do so overall.

The Spotlight series is a new partnership between the Global Education Monitoring Report, the Association for the Development of Education in Africa (ADEA), hosted by the African Development Bank (AfDB), and the African Union.

The first report, Born to Learn, synthesizes evidence on completion rates and levels of minimum learning proficiency in the continent, informing the debate on national SDG 4 / CESA benchmarks.

It draws on five country reports covering the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ghana, Mozambique, Rwanda and Senegal and a series of case studies from all African regions, which will also be published on 20 October.

The second report due out in 2023 will draw on country reports from Angola, Mauritania, Niger, South Africa, Uganda and Zambia.

The Spotlight Reports aim to present good practices so as to improve foundational learning and offers recommendations on key actions to support policy dialogue through established African Union peer learning mechanisms.

Download the report: English

https://www.adeanet.org/en/publications/spotlight-basic-education-completion-foundational-learning-africa

Africa is faced with myriad challenges including adverse impact of climate change, manifested in frequent droughts, biodiversity and ecosystem loss, desertification, and food insecurity (Serdeczny, Adams, Baarsch, & et al, 2017). Furthermore, the population in Africa is rapidly increasing, currently estimated at 1.2 billion people, and among them are 400 million or one in every three persons living in extreme poverty (UN Economic Commission for Africa, 2012). One in every five persons or 20% of the population in Africa are youth aged 15-24 years, who are largely unemployed and are forecasted to reach 42% of the population or two in every five persons by 2030 (The World Bank, 2020).Every year, 11 million youth in Africa are joining the labour market and many are not prepared for the demands of the existing jobs  (International Labour Organization, 2020). Meanwhile, the COVID-19 pandemic will lead to the contraction of the Real GDP in Africa by 3.4 percent, down 7.3 percentage points from the growth projected before the outbreak of COVID-19 with dire economic consequences in the years to come (African Development Bank, 2020). 

https://www.adeanet.org/sites/default/files/publications/adea_icqn_mse_policy_brief_no1.pdf