RTI International

This infographic provides key statistics related to public versus private school in Nigeria, based on the NEDS 2015 data set.

USAID/Nepal is interested in developing a program to help improve reading outcomes in the early grades of basic education. To inform the program design, a rapid education sector assessment was conducted to better understand past, current, and planned policies, practices, programs, innovations, and initiatives targeted towards early grade reading. This assessment aimed to identify strengths, weaknesses, and key leverage points to improve children’s reading outcomes within the institutional context of Nepal’s education system. The assessment was conducted over a two-month period by a team of researchers and staff from RTI International, including Mr. Joseph DeStefano, Senior Researcher; Dr. Frank Healey, Senior Researcher; Ms. Sharon Loza, Project Management Specialist; and Dr. Wendi Ralaingita, Education Researcher. Significant support was also provided by Dr. Vishnu Karki, Consultant; Dr. Yogendra Yadava, Local Language Expert; Jayanti Subba, Education Specialist, USAID/Nepal; and Mitch Kirby, USAID, Senior Education Advisor. The assessment was carried out by desk study and a two-week field visit from May 7 to May 19, 2012. This report reflects findings from the assessment.

Nepal Early Grade Reading Assessment, Education Management Efficiency Study, and Teacher Observation Study This is the final report for the Nepal Early Grade Reading Assessment, Education Management Efficiency Study, and Teacher Observation Study in 2014. The report provides findings related to the research questions of the study regarding the following topics: Education Leadership, Management, Practices, and Attitudes; Knowledge and Practices Related to the Teaching of Reading; Availability of Teaching and Learning Materials; Opportunities for Mother-Tongue-Based Multi-Lingual Education; Capacity and Readiness of Existing Teacher Professional Development System; and Teacher Motivation and Participation. The activity takes place under the EdData Task Order 15: Data for Education Programming in Asia and Middle East (DEP/AME)

This final report for USAID/Haiti Tout Timoun Ap Li (ToTAL – All Children Reading) Applied Research Activity describes the activities and accomplishments of the program from start-up in August 2012 to completion in December 2014. It documents ToTAL’s accomplishments in curriculum development, teacher training, classroom coaching, and applied research, particularly quantifiable improvements that ToTAL made in the reading abilities of treatment students, as well as challenges that were encountered.

The attached survey instruments were used to analyze various learning materials as part of the Survey of Children's Reading Materials in African Languages in Eleven Countries (part of the DERP program).

This toolkit is the product of ongoing collaboration among a large community of scholars, practitioners, government officials, and education development professionals to advance the cause of early reading assessment and acquisition among primary school children in low-income countries. In the interest of consolidating diverse experiences and developing a reasonably standardized approach to assessing children’s early reading acquisition, this “toolkit,” or user manual, serves as a guide for countries beginning to work with EGRA in such areas as local adaptation of the instrument, fieldwork, and analysis of results. This toolkit is intended for use by Ministry or Department of Education staff, donor staff, practitioners, and professionals in the field of education development. The document, in 12 sections, seeks to summarize a large body of research in an accessible manner. The procedures described in this toolkit are to be used in all USAID-funded administrations of EGRA and, it is hoped, in all other EGRA administrations as well. -- Suggested citation: RTI International. (2016). Early Grade Reading Assessment (EGRA) Toolkit, Second Edition. Washington, DC: United States Agency for International Development. --

A two day workshop on November 12 and 13, 2014 brought together 26 education stakeholders, including representatives of the Department for Inspection and Advisory Services, The Department of Basic Education, the Department for Teacher Education and Development, the Malawi Institute for Education, Domasi College of Education, Teacher Training Colleges, and the Centre for Education, Research and Training. Staff from the USAID Malawi Early Grade Reading Activity also participated as did representatives of USAID/Malawi.

Day-by-day teacher’s guide (180 pages, low-resolution PDF). Companion to Kiswahili Kitabu cha Mwanafunzi, 2 [Kiswahili Pupil’s Book, 2]. Prepared with funding from the USAID and DFID Tusome Early Grade Reading Activity, implemented by MoEST with technical assistance from RTI International, 2014–2018. Tusome is a national-scale program for improving the reading skills of learners in grades 1 and 2.

This brief discusses an intervention in Jordan which was developed following the 2012 EGRA and EGMA revealed that Jordanian children in the early grades were not reading with comprehension or doing mathematics with understanding. As a result, the MoE Curriculum Team and the Senior Reading and Mathematics Supervisors, to develop an intervention pilot research program that would support teachers in providing deliberate, structured, and developmentally appropriate daily practice in foundational skills for reading and mathematics.

EdData II, sponsored by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), provided survey expertise to help national and local governments as well as the donor community assess education status in low income countries. The period of performance for EdData II Task Order 7, Learning Outcomes Research and Assessment-Related Projects, was October 2009–October 2013. Its purpose was to build on the measurement instruments developed and piloted under other EdData II task orders and to coordinate data, analysis, and reporting on learning outcomes with specific attention to early grade reading proficiency, early grade numeracy, and conditions of learning as indicated by school management effectiveness measures in a number of priority countries. This report summary gives a history of the effort in each country, including its purpose, various challenges encountered, and in-country reactions to the study findings.