Caribbean education development : UWI/USAID primary curriculum subproject

PES covers the period 7/81-6/82 and is based on an attached special evaluation (XD-AAM-187-A). Excellent progress has been made. Both the quantity and quality of teacher and administrator training have improved. During the past year, the project initiated training for 2,008 students, 94 teachers, and 25 principals and supervisors, bringing the total numbers trained to 6,124, 282, and 255, respectively. As a result of 2 regional, 18 country, and about 95 local workshops, high-quality curricula outlines, teachers" manuals, and teaching aids were developed for 9-10 year-olds in language, social science, math, and science, augmenting curricula previously developed for younger children. Teachers continue to be enthusiastic about the curricula. UWI has expanded its services to participating countries; 13 UWI staff have served as resource persons at regional and country workshops. Good progress has also been made toward developing national curriculum development capabilities, but little has been done with regard to regional educational planning. The project has developed and administered student performance tests, but has not yet either developed ways to assess overall project impact on student achievement or analyzed baseline data. Despite its substantial spread effects (e.g., development of special reading materials by participating countries, use of project materials in teachers" colleges and by nonproject primary educators), the project has yet to devise a formal plan for disseminating project materials beyond the 45 pilot schools. Attention should also be given to expanding the target group to include the 5-7 and 12-15 age groups. Recommendations are to: complete plans for regional educational planning; fill the vacant position of evaluation specialist; recruit an additional staff member; procure technical assistance in preparing graded readers and formulating a dissemination plan; collect data on pupil achievement; train teachers, principals, and project staff in evaluation procedures; and resolve the problem of UWI per diems.