Catch-Up in Western Province began in 2021 supported by Global Partnership for Education (GPE). Initially in 5 districts, it has been scaled up to 11 districts in 2023 with additional funding from Co-Impact. A joint mentoring and coaching visit was conducted in Mongu and Kaoma districts from 6th to 10th March 2023 to further support the 11 districts. This is the fourth supportive visit conducted in Western Province.
The objectives of the mentoring and coaching activity were to reinforce the skills of teachers on the implementation of the Teaching at the Right Level (TaRL) methodology and further build the skills of in-school mentors, school leaders and District Education Board Secretaries (DEBS) officers on how to support teachers as they implement Catch-Up in schools. A refresher orientation on data guided support was also conducted for school leaders, mentors, Zonal In-Service Coordinators (ZICs), DEBS officers and Provincial Education Officers (PEOs).
The visit was conducted by the Ministry of Education (MoE) Western Province led by the Provincial Education and Standard Officer (PESO), VVOB Western Team and representatives from Teaching at the Right Level Africa (TaRL Africa). A total of 10 schools were visited - Nalwei Primary, Presentation Primary, Mulamatila Combined, Longe Combined, Namaloba Primary, Mayukwayukwa Combined, Lunyati Primary, Mangango Primary, Chilombo Primary and Kaoma Primary.
Discussions with the DEBS team were centered around utilizing the dedicated Catch-Up Web portal to identify districts, zones and schools to prioritize when giving support and the type of support needed. The team found that the visit generated some immediate impact on schools in terms of appreciating the use of data to set performance targets. The visiting team observed that some schools were conducting their reviews and teaching of Catch-Up was on-going.
The team also identified some gaps in implementation that need to be addressed, for example some schools were not moving learners from one group to another, insufficient number of Teachers' Guides which means some teachers were not clear about procedures for literacy and numeracy activities and effective lesson planning. In addressing these gaps, it was recommended the Teachers' Guides be distributed in schools, that refresher trainings be conducted and that a structured monitoring system be put in place in the districts to ensure timely support and ensure that Catch-Up is successfully implemented.
Mentoring and Coaching Visit in Kaoma and Mongu Districts
