Eighth Quarterly Report: July-September 2012

Technical achievements were notable in rehabilitation and equipment planning and implementation, teacher professionalization, and school improvement planning. In the second round of the Progress Scale training, 28 staff from the Center for Educational Research and Development (CERD) and 65 staff from the Department of Guidance and Counseling (DOPS) were trained on the use of the classroom observation tool. The training was attended by Ministry of Education and Higher Education (MEHE) leadership, who emphasized the importance of the Progress Scale tool and related teacher standards in improving instructional quality in Lebanese public school classrooms. A revised draft of the teacher performance standards was prepared, based on comments from meetings with DOPS, CERD, and the Inspectorate. MEHE requested D-RASATI's support for a national Standards Development Task Force to finalize and prepare the full set of teacher standards for endorsement by the end of December. As of September 30, work in 28 of the 154 schools selected for rehabilitation in the second wave of D-RASATI had been completed, and those schools were ready to be handed over to MEHE. The schools were distributed across various regions, including North Lebanon, Nabatieh, Mount Lebanon, and Beqaa. All 30 schools identified as "at risk" by MEHE had been visited for an initial assessment, and 25 of these schools were identified as needing lab testing, visited, and sampled for testing and analysis. Reports on the structural condition of 9 schools were issued following the lab tests, and the remainder will be completed in the next quarter. MEHE identified public secondary schools as its priority for science lab procurement and endorsed a basic list of science lab equipment required for these schools to be considered effective environments for science teaching and learning. An agreement was reached with MEHE to have school science lab specialists or lab science instructors complete inventory verification forms in those schools, with sampled control by D-RASATI. Lab inventories in 188 schools had been verified by September 30, and a total of 5 bids were received in response to the announcement calling for bids for science laboratory equipment. The Request for Proposal (RFP) for English Language Proficiency courses for teachers who use English as an instructional language was issued on September 5, 2012, and D-RASATI and MEHE held a bidders' conference on September 14 to respond to questions concerning the RFP. RFP responses were due on September 28, 2012, and will be reviewed in early October. The courses are expected to begin in November 2012 and continue until May 2013. D-RASATI submitted Lebanon's final national educational technology strategic plan to MEHE on August 30, 2012. A final, Section 508-compliant file is almost complete and will be available for use on MEHE's website. Two focus groups were held on July 25 and July 31 to obtain principals' input for the School Improvement Program/Community Engagement (SIP/CE) gap analysis and the SIP pilot planning process. A meeting was also held with school principals on September 19, 2012, to discuss the pilot training for the SIP/CE program.