In Zambia, play and learning are often considered as two separate activities by teachers, with play seen as an activity that should take place outside the school compound. Lack of integration of play in learning has contributed to low learning outcomes and increase in school dropouts.
Not only are there limited opportunities for the continuous professional development of early childhood education teachers, but in-service providers also lack the capacity to support teachers to implement LtP pedagogies. Teachers are often expected to integrate components of learning through play in their teaching without much support on how to do it effectively.
As a result of early-grade teachers’ lack of knowledge of LtP pedagogies, they do not integrate play in their literacy lessons. The consequence is that young learners fail to acquire the basic skills in the early grades, ultimately leading to them drop out of school without being able to read or write. The rate of learners dropping out was exacerbated by school closures and government restrictions on public gatherings during the COVID-19 period.
Education stakeholders have strengthened the capacity to integrate LtP pedagogies in grades 1-4, which contributes to the holistic development of 18,769 young children and lays the foundations for lifelong learning.
The project was integrated into the existing structure of the World Vision Zambia Reading for Education and Development (ZREAD) Program. The programme focused on improving the literacy skills of boys and girls in grades 1-4 by addressing the effects of COVID-19 at both school and community level while also nurturing conducive, playful learning environments for all children including girls and children living with disabilities. This was done in alignment with existing structures of the Ministry of Education such as the Directorates of Teacher Education and Specialized Services (TESS), Standards and Assessment, and the directorate of Curriculum Development.
Using LtP pedagogies, the project:
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Co-lead the design process to integrate the LtP framework into World Vision Zambia’s technical programme which includes teacher professional development, caregiver sessions, community facilitator sessions, and more.
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Built World Vision Zambia’s capacity on LtP.
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Worked with World Vision to facilitate teacher training sessions.
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Worked with World Vision to facilitate and provide guidance on strengthening a mentoring/coaching component, ensuring that mentoring activities are defined in partnership with the Curriculum and Standards Directorates.
By the end of the programme: 497 reading camp facilitators, 9,420 parents, 213 local education managers, 347 teachers and 18,769 learners were reached, which led to increased support for LtP and holistic learning by education authorities and stakeholders. The 18,769 learners have benefited from an increased emphasis on their holistic development by creating conducive learning environments, laying the foundations for their lifelong learning.
