Participants Full Text Version and Ordering Other Links Country Presentations Sessions Executive Summary Representatives of 10 of the 12 national basic education reforms in Africa met from July 22-25 at the Dikhololo game preserve in rural South Africa to share experiences and discuss current issues and approaches to the reform in their respective countries. Relatively new programs in Uganda and Ethiopia are off to promising starts, having profited from the experience of earlier programs in design and implementation. The programs in Botswana , Lesotho , and Swaziland are now phasing out, leaving behind strong basic education systems and schools and students that have benefited notably from the Agency's long-term support. A growing recognition of the critical need to educate girls has prompted numerous initiatives, large and small, to increase the number of girls who enter school and complete their basic education. We know now how to help those who want reform to find support through political negotiations from within and outside of the system.
Successful reform depends on communication and cooperation between every level of the system.
We have discovered how to enhance and sustain this kind of communication. In a few countries, ministries of health and education are beginning to work together to treat hunger, malnutrition, and disease of children at school. We have begun to share information about these initiatives. Traditional models of pre-service teacher training are not sufficient to augment the depleted ranks of competent teachers. New methods of in-service training and teacher support are appearing, including a model that makes the teacher an active participant in curriculum design and the development of teaching methods and materials.