Disability and Equity in Education Commons^™

Keeping Girls In Schools To Reduce Child Marriage In Rural Bangladesh: Endline Assessment, Sigma Ainul, Forhana Rahman Noor, Md. Irfan Hossain, Iqbal Ehsan, Mehnaz Manzur, Ubaidur Rob, Sajeda Amin

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

This report describes findings of changes over time attributable to the “Keeping Girls in Schools” study in Bangladesh that implemented skill-building activities for a two-year period in the districts of Chapainawabganj, Kushtia, and Sherpur. The project sought to bring about change in child marriage norms prevalent in the area by offering young girls a safe place to meet after school hours with mentors and teachers and to offer girls tutoring support and life-skills. The project was implemented by the Population Council with the cooperation of secondary schools in the community and was supported by UNICEF under the aegis of the …

Adolescent Girls And Covid-19: Mapping The Evidence On Interventions, Sarah Blake, Miriam Temin, Tara Abularrage, Nihal Said

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

With the COVID-19 crisis continuing to evolve, evidence on the effectiveness of short-term emergency-oriented responses and long-term mitigation strategies is expanding but still limited. There are, and will continue to be, substantial evidence gaps on programming to address risk across outcomes of importance to adolescent girls. More evidence is needed to slow the risks posed by the pandemic for this subpopulation, which can help guide gender- and age-responsive prevention and impact mitigation investments. Evidence from approaches delivered in other unstable contexts may offer important lessons for decision-making in the current context. Recognizing this, the Population Council conducted a structured review …

Girls' Education Roadmap: 2021 Report Summary, Stephanie Psaki, Nicole Haberland, Meredith L. Kozak, Lauren Woyczynski

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

While insufficient to meet the vast needs, billions of dollars are being invested in girls’ education advocacy, program, and policy solutions around the world. At the same time, hundreds of millions are invested in research about what works in education. And yet, the policies and approaches that are pursued often don’t line up with what researchers find is effective. The result is that governments, international organizations, and NGOs are too often investing scarce resources in policies or interventions without knowing whether they work. As noted in this report summary, the Girls’ Education Roadmap shares insights derived from data in the …

Girls' Education Roadmap: 2021 Report, Stephanie Psaki, Nicole Haberland, Meredith L. Kozak, Lauren Woyczynski

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

While insufficient to meet the vast needs, billions of dollars are being invested in girls’ education advocacy, program, and policy solutions around the world. At the same time, hundreds of millions are invested in research about what works in education. And yet, the policies and approaches that are pursued often don’t line up with what researchers find is effective. The result is that governments, international organizations, and NGOs are too often investing scarce resources in policies or interventions without knowing whether they work. In partnership with Echidna Giving, the GIRL Center at the Population Council developed the Evidence for Gender …

Keeping Girls In Schools To Reduce Child Marriage In Rural Bangladesh—Research Brief And Baseline Highlights, Sigma Ainul, Md. Noorunnabi Talukder, Md. Irfan Hossain, Forhana Rahman Noor, Iqbal Ehsan, Sajeda Amin, Ubaidur Rob

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

Bangladesh has made considerable progress in improving access to education at all levels for the last two decades. Despite these impressive gains, Bangladesh continues to face challenges of student dropout at the secondary level. Girls drop out of school earlier than boys because of child marriage. Targeted policies and interventions designed to improve mainstream educational attainment and decrease child marriage may be the effective and sustainable way to address both issues. The Population Council implemented the project “Keeping Girls in Schools to Reduce Child Marriage in Rural Bangladesh.” An intervention research study, the project tests a life-skills and tutoring support …

Keeping Girls In Schools To Reduce Child Marriage In Rural Bangladesh—Program Brief, Population Council

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

For the last two decades, Bangladesh has made considerable progress in improving access to education at all levels. Despite these gains, the country continues to face challenges from student dropout at the secondary level. Girls drop out of school earlier than boys because of child marriage. Targeted policies and interventions designed to improve educational attainment and decrease child marriage may be an effective and sustainable way to address both issues. The Population Council implemented an intervention research study to test a life-skills and tutoring support model to reduce school dropout among secondary-school girls and enhance livelihood skills for unmarried girls …

Adolescent Girls' Voices On Enhancing Their Own Productivity In Pakistan: Highlights 2019, Iram Kamran, Tahira Parveen, Rehan M. Niazi

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

Of the 11 million girls aged 15 to 19 years in Pakistan, nearly half (47 percent) are “not in education, employment, or marriage” (NEEM). This brief presents highlights from a qualitative study conducted in Punjab province of Pakistan to probe the lives, perspectives, and aspirations of NEEM girls regarding education and involvement in economic activity and identify locally acceptable ways in which their lives may be positively transformed through access to education and safe and fair work opportunities.

Does Education Improve Health In Low- And Middle Income Countries? Results From A Systematic Review, Stephanie Psaki, Barbara Mensch, Erica Chuang, Andrea J. Melnikas

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

Despite enormous progress in expanding school enrollment globally, improvements in health have not always followed, raising important questions: Does education, in fact, enable women, men and their families to be healthier? And if so, how? To fill this gap in knowledge, the GIRL Center conducted a systematic review of the evidence for the effects of education on health in low- and middle-income countries.

Program Modalidades Flexibles: Integrated Curriculum Guide—Segundo Semestre, Population Council

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

El Population Council se suma a los esfuerzos de la Dirección General de Educación Extraescolar del Ministerio de Educación de Guatemala para acercar el Nivel de Educación Media a las comunidades más vulnerables. Esto se ha logrado al incorporar el programa Modalidades Flexibles para Ciclo Básico como componente clave en la atención a la población joven y más excluida del sistema escolar. Mediante el diseño y elaboración de esta guía de aprendizaje se ofrece un recurso para estudiantes y docentes que están participando en el segundo semestre de la etapa II del Ciclo Básico del programa Modalidades Flexibles. El abordaje …

Adolescent Girls' Voices On Enhancing Their Own Productivity In Pakistan, Iram Kamran, Tahira Parveen, Maqsood Sadiq, Rehan M. Niazi

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

This study was conducted in the Punjab province of Pakistan to examine the lives, aspirations, and perspectives of the largely invisible and marginalized group of older adolescent girls (ages 15–19 years) who are “not in education, employment for pay or profit, nor in marriage” (“NEEM”). The study seeks to identify the reasons for the exclusion of the NEEM girls from education and participation in paid work; explore opportunities and avenues for changing these girls’ existing opportunity structures; and probe the gender norms and behaviors underlying their marginalization to obtain insights into what it would take to change their situation.

Girlsread! Zambia: Dreams Innovation Challenge, Population Council

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

GirlsRead! is an education and empowerment program in Zambia. It includes three interventions: 1) safe space groups for girls, 2) e-readers designed for rural Africa, and 3) community engagement to bolster learning outcomes and reduce the likelihood that girls will leave school early. This brief describes the program, evaluation results, and implications.

Abriendo Oportunidades A La Incidencia Política En Mi Comunidad: Guía Curricular, Population Council

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

La propuesta de Abriendo Oportunidades® a la Incidencia Política en Mi Comunidad enfatiza en la condición ciudadana de las niñas y adolescentes, impulsando su interés por comprometerse con mejoras en su comunidad a través de su participación en el diseño y ejecución de acciones de incidencia política a nivel familiar, escolar, comunitario y municipal. Esta guía es un instrumento para las mentoras comunitarias que apoyan a las niñas y adolescentes participantes en el fortalecimiento de sus habilidades para la vida y en el desarrollo de competencias para realizar incidencia política a nivel comunitario. Siguiendo el modelo educativo de Abriendo Oportunidades, …

Trabajando En Incidencia Política Hacia Una Mejor Vida Para Las Niñas, Jóvenes Y Mujeres En Mi Comunidad, Population Council

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

Las guías de trabajo para la incidencia política comunitaria se hacen con el objetivo de enfatizar la condición ciudadana de las niñas y adolescentes e impulsar su interés por comprometerse a mejoras en su comunidad a través de su participación política. El Population Council ha desarrollado estas herramientas para apoyar el trabajo de jóvenes lideresas en el diseño y ejecución de acciones de incidencia a nivel familiar, escolar, comunitario y municipal. El contenido abordado en este material se enfoca especialmente en temas relativos a la prevención de la violencia y garantía de derechos a mujeres, niñez y juventud, y pueblos …

Program Modalidades Flexibles: Integrated Curriculum Guide—Primer Semestre, Population Council

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

Guatemala ha enfrentado grandes desafíos para garantizar a sus habitantes el acceso a la educación secundaria, especialmente a las mujeres jóvenes que enfrentan mayores retos para continuar su vida escolar. Ante esta realidad, el Population Council se suma a los esfuerzos de la Dirección General de Educación Extraescolar del Ministerio de Educación de Guatemala para acercar el Nivel de Educación Media a las comunidades más vulnerables. Esto se ha logrado al incorporar el programa Modalidades Flexibles para Ciclo Básico como componente clave en la atención a la población joven y más excluida del sistema escolar. Mediante el diseño y elaboración …

Guía De Participación Política Adolescente Para La Movilización E Incidencia Política A Nivel Municipal, Population Council

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

El programa Abriendo Oportunidades motiva a las jóvenes a tener iniciativas y desarrollar sus capacidades personales, así como a explorar las posibilidades de liderazgo a nivel comunitario y municipal. Para que sean lideresas capaces de incidir a nivel municipal, es necesario trabajar temas y habilidades enfocados en política, administración estatal, legislación nacional y derechos humanos. Esta guía se ofrece para apoyar el trabajo con jóvenes mujeres que buscan tener incidencia, especialmente en temas relativos a la prevención de la violencia y garantía de derechos a mujeres, niñez y juventud, y pueblos indígenas. Cada sesión está diseñada usando metodología participativa y …

Abriendo Oportunidades: Material Didáctico Para Sesiones De Trabajo, Population Council

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

Este documento es parte de los materiales de enseñanza para mentores en el programa Abriendo Oportunidades. La hoja informativa presenta los derechos de las niñas, adolescentes y mujeres indígenas. Incluye un mapa de los 22 departamentos administrativos de Guatemala.

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This document is part of the teaching materials for mentors in the Abriendo Oportunidades program. The fact sheet outlines the rights of indigenous girls, adolescents, and women. It includes a map of Guatemala's 22 administrative departments.

Herramientas Para La Formación Y El Acompañamiento A Mentoras Del Programa Abriendo Oportunidades®, Cecilia Garcés, Alejandra Munguia

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

Este compendio reúne herramientas de utilidad práctica para la implementación del programa Abriendo Oportunidades® del Population Council. Está dirigido a quienes facilitan el proceso de formación docente para mentoras comunitarias, así como a las mentoras monitoras. El mismo contiene dos tipos de herramientas: herramientas para la formación de mentoras comunitarias y herramientas para la implementación de sesiones. El Population Council pone este compendio de herramientas a disposición de quienes están implementando el programa Abriendo Oportunidades® en Guatemala y otros similares en la región, que se enfocan en las necesidades de las niñas y adolescentes.

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This compendium collects practical tools …

Measuring Gender Equality In Education: Lessons From 43 Countries, Stephanie Psaki, Katharine Mccarthy, Barbara Mensch

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

Through the 2015 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), governments committed to achieving universal secondary school completion, including eliminating gender disparities, by 2030. The period from 1997 to 2014 saw considerable progress in closing gender gaps in school enrollment and attainment in many, but not all, low- and middle-income countries. However, as this research brief explains, claims that gender parity in primary education now exists are premature, especially in the poorest countries and new gender gaps, or gender-related challenges, may emerge as attainment increases. Moreover, the extremely low levels of secondary school enrollment—and even moreso completion—demonstrate that the SDG target of universal …

School Related Violence, Sanitation Facilities At School, And Menstrual Hygiene Management: What Is The Evidence For Their Effect On School Attendance And Learning, And How Might Population Scientists Advance This Research Agenda?, Barbara Mensch

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

No abstract provided.

Guía Curricular De Abriendo Oportunidades: Para Niños De 8 A 12 Años, Population Council

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

El programa Abriendo Oportunidades® en Guatemala tiene diez años de experiencia en el proceso de educación no formal enfocado en niñas y jóvenes indígenas en el área rural del país, especialmente en comunidades que viven en condiciones de exclusión económica y social. La guía curricular se ha enriquecido con las observaciones e insumos obtenidos durante este proceso, para incluir temas relevantes, objetivos centrales, ejercicios y actividades, así como materiales de referencia y apoyo. Por su estructura, es posible adaptar esta guía a diferentes entornos y contextos, manteniendo siempre como esencial el desarrollo de habilidades de liderazgo comunitario, relacionamiento social, de …

Engaging Parents To Promote Girls' Transition To Secondary Education: Evidence From A Cluster Randomised Trial In Rural Gujarat, India, K.G. Santhya, A.J. Francis Zavier, Pallavi Patel, Neeta Shah

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

The Population Council and partners, with the support of the Human Dignity Foundation and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, implemented a pilot intervention in India─Project Sankalp─to assess the acceptability and feasibility of engaging parents and communities to promote girls’ secondary education. The project's aim was to measure its effectiveness in improving adolescent girls’ transition to secondary education, their attendance at school, and learning outcomes. Findings show that the effect of Project Sankalp on creating an enabling environment for girls to pursue secondary education was mixed. On the positive side, the project showed success in raising girls’ educational …

Abriendo Oportunidades: Sesión—Mi Plan De Vida, Population Council

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

El programa Abriendo Oportunidades nació en 2004 como un proyecto de programación centrada en niñas adolescentes, con el propósito de fortalecer una transición segura hacia la adolescencia e incrementar su promoción y retención escolar. Con base en evidencia, el Population Council diseñó guías curriculares que contienen herramientas y ejercicios para las sesiones con niñas y mentoras basados en tres ejes transversales: derechos humanos, perspectiva de género, e interculturalidad y pertinencia. Este documento es la guía de los mentores para la sesión sobre el Fortalecimiento de capacidades para mujeres adolescentes, orientado al desarrollo de Plan de Vida y Habilidades para la …

Abriendo Oportunidades: Guía Curricular Plan De Vida 2016—Cuadernillo Q’Eqchi, Population Council

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

El programa Abriendo Oportunidades nació en 2004 como un proyecto de programación centrada en niñas adolescentes, con el propósito de fortalecer una transición segura hacia la adolescencia e incrementar su promoción y retención escolar. Con base en evidencia, el Population Council diseñó guías curriculares que contienen herramientas y ejercicios para las sesiones con niñas y mentoras basados en tres ejes transversales: derechos humanos, perspectiva de género, e interculturalidad y pertinencia. Este documento contiene la hoja de trabajo del Plan de Vida para los participantes en el taller. Más de una década de trabajo demuestra que las niñas adolescentes participantes de …

Abriendo Oportunidades: Guía Curricular Plan De Vida 2016—Cuadernillo Español, Population Council

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

El programa Abriendo Oportunidades nació en 2004 como un proyecto de programación centrada en niñas adolescentes, con el propósito de fortalecer una transición segura hacia la adolescencia e incrementar su promoción y retención escolar. Con base en evidencia, el Population Council diseñó guías curriculares que contienen herramientas y ejercicios para las sesiones con niñas y mentoras basados en tres ejes transversales: derechos humanos, perspectiva de género, e interculturalidad y pertinencia. Este documento contiene la hoja de trabajo del Plan de Vida para los participantes en el taller. Más de una década de trabajo demuestra que las niñas adolescentes participantes de …

Adolescent Girls Initiative-Kenya: Health And Life Skills Curriculum, Kibera, Population Council

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

The Adolescent Girls Initiative–Kenya builds the social, health, and economic assets of adolescent girls in urban slums and Northeastern Kenya. This collection of learning sessions was designed to increase adolescent girls’ knowledge of reproductive health and sexuality; reinforce and promote attitudes and behaviors that will lead to a better quality of life; and instill skills among adolescents to enable them to overcome the challenges of growing up and becoming responsible adults including communication skills, decision-making, assertiveness, setting goals and resisting peer pressure. The sessions were developed to be delivered without a lot of resources or materials, with limited time available …

Abriendo Oportunidades Program: Integrated Curriculum Guide (8 To 17 Years Old)—Two-Year Cycle, Cecilia Garcés, Paola Broll

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

The Abriendo Oportunidades program aims to support indigenous girls in Guatemala to reach their maximum potential and overcome the cycle of poverty. The program created safe spaces for girls at the community level, reaching adolescent girls with an asset-based curriculum implemented by community mentors. This is the third version of the curriculum. It was designed to foster reflection and dialogue, sisterhood, and critical thinking among adolescent girls. The first two versions focused on reproductive health, nutrition, hygiene, communication skills, and financial education. Several of the initial topics, as well as some activities from these previous versions, are included in the …

Education, Numeracy, And Literacy: Baseline Findings, Population Council

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

The Adolescent Girls Empowerment Program (AGEP) is a program for girls ages 10–19 in rural and urban Zambia that aims to find the best ways to improve their social, health, and economic resources. The program involves over 10,000 girls participating in weekly girls’ group meetings, receiving health vouchers, and opening savings accounts. Over 5,000 girls, unmarried at baseline, are enrolled in a randomized, controlled trial and are being followed over four years—including the two years of the program and two years after. This brief describes the characteristics of these girls at baseline. Of the girls who are currently in school, …

Adolescent Girls Initiative-Kenya: Financial Education Curriculum, Kibera, Population Council

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

The Adolescent Girls Initiative–Kenya builds the social, health, and economic assets of adolescent girls in urban slums and Northeastern Kenya. This collection of learning sessions was designed to prepare adolescent girls for the financial responsibilities of adulthood. The sessions were developed to be delivered without a lot of resources or materials, with limited time available for training. The guide contains step-by-step descriptions of the learning activities as well as background information.

Adolescent Girls Initiative-Kenya: Financial Education Curriculum, Wajir, Population Council

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

The Adolescent Girls Initiative–Kenya builds the social, health, and economic assets of adolescent girls in urban slums and Northeastern Kenya. This collection of learning sessions was designed to prepare adolescent girls for the financial responsibilities of adulthood. The sessions were developed to be delivered without a lot of resources or materials, with limited time available for training. The guide contains step-by-step descriptions of the learning activities as well as background information.

Adolescent Girls Initiative-Kenya: Health And Life Skills Curriculum, Wajir, Population Council

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

The Adolescent Girls Initiative–Kenya builds the social, health, and economic assets of adolescent girls in urban slums and Northeastern Kenya. This collection of learning sessions was designed to increase adolescent girls’ knowledge of reproductive health and sexuality; reinforce and promote attitudes and behaviors that will lead to a better quality of life; and instill skills among adolescents to enable them to overcome the challenges of growing up and becoming responsible adults including communication skills, decision-making, assertiveness, setting goals and resisting peer pressure. The sessions were developed to be delivered without a lot of resources or materials, with limited time available …