Towards an education system that produces graduates with the skills to succeed.
ACTIVITY OVERVIEW
The Government of Uzbekistan’s Ministry of Public Education is committed to an ambitious program of comprehensive, systematic education reforms. Uzbekistan is working to create an education system that produces graduates with the critical thinking and problem-solving skills that they need to succeed. The Ministry’s reform agenda includes transforming instructional practices to move away from a focus on rote learning and toward enhancing students’ ability to apply skills and knowledge.
To support the Ministry of Public Education in achieving its reform agenda, USAID initiated the four-year, $29.5 million Uzbekistan Education for Excellence Program in December 2019. The program aims to achieve and sustain four overarching results:
- Improved learning outcomes in Uzbek Language Arts;
- Improved learning outcomes in Mathematics;
- Enhanced information and communications technology (ICT) instruction; and
- Improved English as a Foreign Language (EFL) instruction.
Cross-cutting themes emphasized in all program phases include capacity building, gender equality and social inclusion, transparency, local ownership, and sustainability.
The Uzbekistan Education for Excellence Program is implemented by a consortium of implementing partners including RTI International as the lead organization, as well as Florida State University, and Mississippi State University.
To achieve these results, the Uzbekistan Education for Excellence Program utilizes two approaches to building capacity, both including core teams of change agents from across Uzbekistan. USAID integrates capacity enhancement principles and practices within all activities, and we also provide targeted professional development for specific individuals and groups.
EXPECTED RESULTS
Grade 1-11 students in approximately 1,000 schools and 13,000 primary and secondary school teachers, school administrators, and instructional coaches will benefit from the Uzbekistan Education for Excellence Program at the school level. At the national level, the program will work with key stakeholders to produce student learning standards, textbook scope and sequence prototypes, and student textbooks and teacher guides for Uzbek Language Arts and Mathematics. The program will procure and customize textbooks and teacher guides from international publishing companies for ICT and EFL. The Uzbekistan Education for Excellence Program has already introduced and supports a digital platform to store materials and engage education personnel virtually.
ACCOMPLISHMENTS
Since 2019, USAID’s Uzbekistan Education for Excellence Program, in collaboration with key stakeholders at the national and regional levels, has:
- Produced student learning standards and student textbook scope and sequencing for all four subjects;
- Developed textbooks and teacher’s guides for Uzbek Language Arts and Mathematics for Grades 1 to 4;
- Procured, customized and piloted textbooks and teacher’s guides from international publishing companies for ICT and EFL in 213 public schools;
- Developed and implemented an in-service teacher professional development and support model for over 1,000 ICT and EFL teachers;
- Introduced a digital platform to increase teacher access to new teaching and learning materials; and
- Conducted program monitoring, evaluation, and learning activities, including: the Teacher System Support Study, the Status of Instruction Study, the Teacher Guide Uptake Study, the Early Grade Reading and Mathematics Baseline Assessment, and the ICT Learning Assessment.