With post-pandemic learning poverty reaching levels as high as 70% in low-income countries, efforts to provide quality education are crucial.
The quality of teaching and the training of teachers are key factors in improving student learning. However, not all students have access to teachers who can offer the necessary pedagogical support.
While there’s been increased attention to and investment in teacher professional development, delivery models with limited efficacy persist. They often include short courses delivered outside of schools where teachers normally work, one-off conferences or workshops and cascade training.
These “one-size fits all”, facilitator-centered models impose strategies and provide resources without enabling teachers to actively build skills or reflect on learning.
Research indicates that such models have limited effectiveness and minimal influence on teachers' openness to altering their practices, which in turn limits improvements in student learning.
How GPE KIX supports effective teacher professional development models
Between 2020–24, GPE’s Knowledge and Innovation Exchange (KIX) – a joint endeavor with Canada’s International Development Research Centre – has funded nine research projects in support of scaling the impact of promising or proven innovations in teacher professional development:
- Adapting and Scaling Teacher Professional Development Approaches in Ghana, Honduras and Uzbekistan
- Teaching at the Right Level: Learning how to Improve Teacher Support through Mentoring and Monitoring in Côte d’Ivoire, Nigeria and Zambia
- Connected Learning for Teacher Capacity Building in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) in Bhutan, Nigeria and Tanzania
- Adapting and Scaling Peer Tutoring for Teachers and School Leaders for Equitable Rural Education in Honduras and Nicaragua
- Strengthening Teachers' and School Principals' Capacity for Scaling Innovation from the Bottom Up in the Education System in the Caribbean in Haiti and St. Lucia
- Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Teacher and Student Education for Primary Schools in Benin, Cameroon and Democratic Republic of Congo
- Improving Community Teacher Development in the Digital Era in Cameroon, Chad and Central African Republic
- A Multi-modal Approach to Teacher Professional Development in Low Resource Settings in Afghanistan, Maldives and Nepal
- Strengthening School-based In-service Teacher Mentorship and Support in Kenya, Tanzania and Zambia.