Student Enrollment Survey Report 2019: USAID-funded Pakistan Reading Project

The project is implemented by the International Rescue Committee (IRC) and its partners, with funding from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The project focuses on three components: improved classroom learning environment for reading, improved policies and systems for reading, and improved community-based support for reading. PRP targets grade 1 and 2 students, with a two-year intervention cycle. Each year, a new batch of students enters PRP intervention schools in Grade 1 and receives reading interventions from PRP-trained teachers. The project conducts a Student Enrollment Survey on a yearly basis to record grade 1 enrollment from intervention schools. The survey is used to report against two Millennium Development Goal (MDG) indicators: 4.2.2-a "Number of learners reached in reading programs at the primary level" and 4c "Number of learners enrolled in primary, elementary, and secondary USG-assisted schools or equivalent USG-assisted non-school-based settings." The survey methodology involves collecting data from 3,697 PRP intervention schools in all regions, except the Newly Merged Districts (formerly FATA) due to delays in obtaining the No Objection Certificate (NOC) needed to work there. Student enrollment data was collected from school attendance/admission registers during May 2019 on a standard data collection tool developed by the Central M&E and program teams. Regional M&E Coordinators conducted orientation sessions on enrollment data collection methodology with District Program Managers, Reading Quality Associates, and School Support Associates of their respective provinces/regions. The data compilation process involves checking the collected student information for any discrepancies and only complete and valid information is entered into the M&E-IS system at the district level by M&E Assistants. The reliability and accuracy of the data were ascertained by getting the filled-out forms stamped by the head teachers and limiting data collection to school attendance registers. The data entered in M&E-IS was later compiled and analyzed at the central level by M&E team members. The data analysis reveals that the total number of PRP intervention schools is 3,697, with a higher number of 'Boys' schools selected compared to both 'Girls' and 'Mix' schools. The PRP will reach 1,300,000 grade 1 and 2 students, with 675,436 boys and 624,564 girls. The number of target beneficiaries is segregated into two categories: two-year intervention and one-year intervention. The two-year intervention targets 1 million students who are receiving full two-year intervention from a PRP-trained teacher. The student enrollment profiles show that the number of girls enrolled in PRP intervention schools is higher compared to boys in some regions, such as Azad Jammu & Kashmir and Gilgit Baltistan. However, the overall number of boys enrolled is higher compared to girls. The average enrollment per school is 1,000 students, with a range of 500 to 2,000 students per school. The data analysis also reveals that the number of adolescent girls enrolled in PRP schools is 624,564, which is 48% of the total target beneficiaries. The enrollment of adolescent girls in PRP schools is higher compared to other regions, with an average enrollment of 1,500 girls per school. The data analysis provides a comprehensive overview of the student enrollment profiles in PRP intervention schools, which can be used to inform program planning and implementation.