10 Things to Know About Foundational Learning and Numeracy in Senegal
1. A recent report has placed the spotlight on foundational learning and numeracy in Senegal.
2. The gross enrollment rate in primary education has been stagnant since 2015 at just above 80%.
3. Currently, 51% of children are completing primary school ‘on time’ (by age 15).
4. 34% of students at the end of primary school have reached the minimum proficiency level in mathematics and 13% in French.
5. The research for the report included small-scale fieldwork visiting 22 schools, interviews with school authorities, and focus groups with teachers and communities.
6. Senegal has organized effective bridge classes or second-chance schools to integrate children who have never been to school or left prematurely.
7. Remedial lessons are also offered to help students overcome difficulties and prevent the accumulation of such obstacles from jeopardizing future learning.
8. The report identifies two positive case studies that Senegal should share with its peers.
9. Five recommendations have been drawn from the diagnosis and discussions with basic education stakeholders.
10. These include increasing teacher skills, allowing widespread use of national languages in the early years of primary education, developing a national policy for assessment of learning in basic education, shifting the allocation of public education spending in favour of basic education, and investing in school infrastructure.
Summary from world-education-blog.org
