Rakhmatov, T.

This presentation summarizes the achievements, challenges, and recommendations from previous studies conducted as part of the Uzbekistan Education for Excellence Program. These studies focused on teacher professional development (TPD) and the implementation of innovative teaching practices in Uzbekistan's public schools. The Program conducted a multi-phased Status of Instruction Study (SIS) to gain insights into instructional resources and practices. The study collected feedback from teachers on resource usage, lesson planning, available resources in schools and classrooms, instructional techniques, and engagement in school based communities of practice. The findings influenced the customization and development of student textbooks, teacher's guides, and TPD approaches. The study used the Framework for Teaching (FFT) developed by The Danielson Group to guide the research and ensure consistency across subjects (ULA, Math, ICT, and EFL). SIS2, conducted online via Telegram channels shared by the Ministry of Preschool and School Education (MoPSE), employed a descriptive quantitative design considering the impact of COVID-19. In addition, the Program undertook the Teacher Support System Study (TSSS). The TSSS examined the existing teacher support system in Uzbekistan, including self-directed and school-level professional development activities. The study focused on instructional coaching, peer-to-peer support, and training. The studies used a combination of online surveys and in-person training sessions. Data from teachers, school directors, and methodologists were analyzed through descriptive quantitative and qualitative content analysis. The effectiveness of virtual training programs, the teacher support system, and the implementation of student textbooks and teacher guides were examined. Finally, the Program undertook the Teacher Guide Uptake Study (TGUS) augmenting the online SIS and TSSS surveys with classroom observations over a school year. Findings indicated a shift towards student-centered teaching approaches, but highlighted the need for lesson planning support, creative adaptation of teaching materials, and opportunities for instructional coaching and peer support. Recommendations included providing comprehensive teacher guides and online courses, improving assessment guidance, enhancing coaching processes, and utilizing existing collaboration platforms. The studies offer valuable insights into TPD and instructional practices in Uzbekistan's public schools. The presentation highlights lessons learned from combining online with classroom observation data over time.

Uzbekistan’s Ministry of Pre-school and School Education (MoPSE) has embarked upon an ambitious reform agenda to bring the Uzbek public education system in line with twenty-first century international standards and skills that includes participating for the first time in the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) in 2021 and in the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) in 2022. At the onset of UEEP, the teaching culture in many schools in Uzbekistan was still quite teacher-centric, with only a modicum of observable student-centered instructional strategies promoting critical thinking, creativity, communication, and collaboration. Basic reading and mathematics scores were within the international mean, but students struggled with reading comprehension and more complex mathematics. In 2023 UEEP designed and piloted an evidence-based, in-service, continuous TPD (CTPD) cascade approach that sought to improve classroom instruction for Uzbek Language Arts and Mathematics teachers via the effective implementation of TGs and the student-centered strategies therein. The training approach consisted of a three-tiered cascade training model where 80 Tier 1 Master Trainers (MTs) trained and supported 800 Tier 2 trainers, who in turn trained over 8,000 Tier 3 teachers. Training sessions included evidence-based practical instructional techniques such as modeling, role-playing, small group practice, and discussion. The CTPD approach used Methodological Days (MDs) already existing within the Uzbek education system to conduct the monthly sessions rather than one-off, multi-day training events. The Program provided all trainers with facilitator guides, slides, and scripts. The Program implemented the CTPD approach using three concurrent processes of (1) readiness and training, (2) follow-up and quality assurance, and (3) action research. The Program’s ambitious action research agenda determined the degree to which teachers were applying new techniques and whether the cascade CTPD approach was effective. Specifically, the Program designed and implemented a study to assess the effectiveness of the Program’s CTPD cascade approach in terms of teachers’ satisfaction of learning events, their acquisition of knowledge and skills, their shift in self-efficacy, possible changes in teacher beliefs about new teaching approaches, and to what extent teachers received the necessary support at the administrative and school levels. The CTPD effectiveness study used an adapted version of Kirkpatrick’s training evaluation model2 as the guiding framework. In this panel, we will share the findings of this study which suggest minimal dilution effect between levels of training, and discuss some of the critical success factors, namely, the monthly dosage of trainings and the quality assurance ‘feedforward’ loop that led to the effectiveness of the cascade approach.