SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION

EVALUATION, A JOINT USAID/MINISTRY OF EDUCATION (MOE) REVIEW, COVERS THE PERIOD 3/78 TO 9/79 AND IS BASED ON CONVERSATIONS WITH ADMINISTRATORS, TEACHERS AND STUDENTS, AND ON-SITE VISITS. ALL INPUTS HAVE BEEN PROVIDED IN TIMELY FASHION. DUE TO OVEREXTENSION OF LOCAL CONTRACTORS CAUSED BY A RECENT CONSTRUCTION BOOM, ONLY NINE SCHOOLS ARE COMPLETE AND OPERATIONAL. ALL, HOWEVER, ARE EXPECTED TO BE READY FOR THE 1980/81 SCHOOL YEAR. PROJECT PURPOSE AND GOAL ARE BEING ACHIEVED. PROJECT SCHOOLS HAVE LED TO MORE ECONOMICAL EDUCATION BY ALLOWING THE MOE TO REDUCE THE NUMBER OF NON-SCHOOL BUILDINGS ITS MUST RENT FOR SCHOOL USE. SCHOOLS HAVE FOSTERED MORE EFFECTIVE EDUCATION BY INCREASING STUDENT/SPACE AND DECREASING TEACHER/STUDENT RATIOS AND BY REPLACING OVERCROWDED, POORLY LIT SCHOOLS WITH MORE SPACIOUS BUILDINGS SPECIFICALLY DESIGNED FOR TEACHING. THE PROJECT HAS HAD A POSITIVE IMPACT AT THE COMMUNITY LEVEL. PARENTS ARE MORE WILLING TO SEND THEIR CHILDREN TO THE NEW SCHOOLS AND THE SCHOOLS HAVE BEEN USED FOR COMMUNITY PURPOSES SUCH AS ADULT EDUCATION. SCHOOLS ARE LOCATED IN POORER AND CONGESTED AREAS, ALTHOUGH LARGELY (CONTRARY TO WHAT WAS PLANNED) IN URBAN AREAS DUE TO RAPID STUDENT POPULATION GROWTH IN THOSE AREAS. NOT ALL SCHOOLS HAVE BEEN USED FOR THE COMPULSORY BASIC EDUCATION CYCLE AS PLANNED: 60% ARE BEING USED FOR SECONDARY EDUCATION. MOREOVER, OVERCROWDING HAS FORCED THE MOE TO INSTITUTE DOUBLE-SHIFTING IN THE NEW SCHOOLS, A SITUATION IT HOPES TO ELIMINATE WITHIN TWO YEARS THROUGH ADDITIONAL CONSTRUCTION. HALF OF THE NEW SCHOOLS HAVE BEEN ALLOTTED FOR USE BY GIRLS. SCHOOLS ARE GENERALLY WELL DESIGNED AND WELL MAINTAINED. THE PROJECT HAS TAUGHT THAT, GIVEN JORDAN"S EDUCATIONAL ENVIRONMENT, PROJECT SCHOOLS CANNOT BE RESTRICTED TO EITHER PRIMARY OR SECONDARY EDUCATION AND THAT BUILDINGS ARE SOMEWHAT MORE COMPLEX AND COSTLY THAN NEED BE. USAID AND MOE WILL REVIEW SUGGESTIONS MADE BY HEADMASTERS AND TEACHERS FOR MAKING SCHOOL DESIGN MORE FUNCTIONAL.