Education
Primary and Secondary Education
Part-time and Continuing Education: We support ministries of education to deliver part-time and continuing education/non-formal education to out-of-school children and teen mothers, who are part of the millions of young people in Africa who have left the formal school system. As a part of DREAMS programming, we deliver evidence-based Mentor Programs to provide critical supports needed by out-of-school youth to keep them on track and in-school. Mentors lend support to students, liaise and advocate with caregivers and teachers, and support the re-matriculation of youth into the formal school system where possible.
Early Warning Systems: We work with ministries of education to develop, pilot and roll out Early Warning Systems to retain children in school and reduce school drop-out. Based on the core ABC metrics (Attendance, Behavior, Coursework), our EWS model identifies students at risk of dropping out and provides robust Response Protocols at student, school, caregiver and community level to retain children in school. Our Zimbabwe EWS has been adopted and scaled nationally by the Ministry of Education. We are currently developing an innovative mobile-based EWS to identify and support at-risk secondary school students.
HIV Education: We work with ministries of education to develop syllabi and curricula to deliver national, formal HIV prevention education in secondary schools, reaching 100,000 students annually. We support National Curriculum Centers, and in-service teacher training, as well as the Education Management Information System (EMIS) to monitor quality delivery.
Early Childhood Development and Early Childhood Stimulation
Our early childhood development (ECD) programming is fulling aligned with the Nurturing Care Framework launched at the 71st World Health Assembly in 2018. We deliver participatory, learner-centered, responsive and emotionally supportive programming to the hardest to reach, most vulnerable children. With a special focus on families and communities as platforms, we educate and empower communities, local volunteers and caregivers to provide nurturing care. Our ECD model further aligns with emerging best practices relative to place-based education, and our ECD Centers integrate elements of learner-centered, experiential learning, and connect learning to communities through key partnerships.
Brain development is crucial during the first 1,000 days of life; babies born in extreme poverty are at risk of disrupted brain development due to poor nutrition and under-stimulation. We employ an evidence-based program offering a sustainable, community-based, integrated package to HIV-impacted (PMTCT) mothers and babies, as well as teen mothers, who are among the most vulnerable populations in Africa. We provide the requisite skills and knowledge on early childhood stimulation and nutrition (ECS) while empowering vulnerable mothers with economic strengthening and access to nutritional supplementation for babies through savings and loan associations and drought-resistant permaculture gardens. Mobile messaging on ECS reinforces early childhood stimulation trainings and information, delivering a menu of interactive voice response (IVR) messages to mothers.