MCEC IIEP Quarterly Report #11 Jul Sep 2014
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Interethnic Integration in Education Project QUARTERLY PROGRAM PERFORMANCE REPORT No. 11 July 1, 2014 – September 30, 2014 Joint student classroom activities in PS “Goce Delcev” from municipality Ilinden Submitted by: Macedonian Civic Education Center (MCEC) under Cooperative Agreement No. AID-165-A-12-00002 Interethnic Integration in Education Project TABLE OF CONTENTS Page 1. Background 2 2. Progress Towards Objectives 3 3. Crosscutting Activities 5 4. Project Activities 4.1. Community Outreach 7 4.2. Capacity Building of School Management and Teachers 10 4.3. Demonstration Schools 15 4.4. Providing Incentives to Schools and Communities 19 5. Lessons learned 29 6. Activities to Increase Participation of People with Disabilities (PWDs) 30 7. Activities in the next reporting period 31 8. List of appendices 33 USAID Interethnic Integration in Education Project QUARTERLY REPORT #11, July 2014 – September 2014 MACEDONIAN CIVIC EDUCATION CENTER (MCEC) USAID INTERETHNIC INTEGRATION IN EDUCATION PROJECT (IIEP) QUARTERLY PROGRAM PERFORMANCE REPORT No. 11 Cooperative Agreement No: AID-165-A-12-00002 Progress Report No: 11 Reporting Period: July 1, 2014 – September 30, 2014 1. BACKGROUND On December 2, 2011, the Macedonian Civic Education Center (MCEC) signed the Cooperative Agreement with USAID agreeing to provide support to USAID’s Interethnic Integration in Education Project (IIEP). IIEP is a four-year, USD 5.2 million initiative targeting all primary and secondary schools in Macedonia. The main objective of IIEP is to build awareness and provide diversity training, technical assistance, and incentives to School Boards, directors, teachers, and administration officials in support of interethnic integration in education. It will build a broad public understanding on the benefits for all citizens as a result from integrating Macedonia’s education system. IIEP will also create the political, social and economic environment needed for Macedonia to achieve sustained interethnic integration in schools, in other educational institutions and eventually all of society. Complementing this, the project team will strengthen the capacity of school staff, students and parents to address issues of diversity and equity in their schools and communities. Project’s approach is comprised of four mutually-supporting and inter-related components. 1. Community Outreach; 2. Capacity Building of School Management and Teachers; 3. Demonstration Schools; and 4. Providing Incentives to Schools and Communities. Students, parents, teachers, administrators and School Board members in all primary and secondary schools across Macedonia will be the primary focus of the project activities. Additionally, BDE advisors and education inspectors at national and regional level will also be central to achieving sustained change and will actively participate in capacity strengthening activities. Achieving success also demands that IIEP actively engages stakeholders in schools, communities and local governments in the integrated mix of project activities. MCEC is implementing IIEP on behalf of USAID in partnership with educational institutions in Macedonia (Bureau for Development of Education, National Examination Center, State Education Inspectorate, Vocational Education and Training Center) and seven local NGOs (Center for Human Rights and Conflict Resolution, Loja, Sumnal, Multimedia, My Career, Macedonian Institute for Media and Youth Educational Forum). 2 USAID Interethnic Integration in Education Project QUARTERLY REPORT #11, July 2014 – September 2014 2. PROGRESS TOWARDS OBJECTIVES During the reporting period the following was accomplished: Crosscutting Activities: . Signing of the Memorandum of Understanding with the National Examination Center postponed; and . Coordination of the partner organizations performed (Summary Partners Quarterly Reports – Appendix 1) Monitoring and Evaluation: . Participation in trainings/seminars/workshops/meeting/presentations (implemented by components in order to monitor them); . Monitoring of Phase 2 schools is on-going; . Sublimated report for the monitoring of demonstration schools for the 2013/2014 school year finalized; . The report for the evaluation of the effects of the IIEP activities in the newly included schools (Phase 2 and Phase 3) schools finalized; . Electronic survey in pilot schools, Phase 2 schools and in demonstration schools finalized; . Cooperation with the Ministry of Education and Science (hereinafter referred to as MoES) about PMP table for interethnic integration in higher education level is on- going; . Midterm evaluation report analyzed and discussed with the project team staff. Component One, Public Outreach: . One (1) informal meeting “Coffee with Newsroom Leaders” (journalists and editors in-chief) from the media, that report in the area of education, organized; . IIEP Web site and other web-based communication resources updated; . IIEP Public appearances in the media; . Information materials for IIE developed and disseminated; . Collection of chronicles of the best practices from the creative workshops recorded; . Regular meetings for coordination of activities with partner organizations Macedonian Institute for Media, PAC Multimedia and Youth Educational Forum (YEF) held; . Regular coverage of other components’ activities; . One (1) promotional event of the case study for career development in multicultural environments held; . One (1) final presentation and promotion of outcomes from the implemented creative workshops held; . Three (3) workshops for Effective public presentations for representatives of the School Integration Teams (hereinafter referred to as SITs) held; . One (1) ribbon cutting ceremony to mark the successful end of the renovation process in the schools held; . One (1) Forum Theatre workshop for teachers from primary and secondary schools, participants in the training for SIT’s in Phase 3 held. 3 USAID Interethnic Integration in Education Project QUARTERLY REPORT #11, July 2014 – September 2014 Component Two, Capacity Building of School Management and Teachers: . Manual for the IIE certification procedure prepared; . Dissemination of interethnic integration trainings in the schools from Phase 3 delivered; . Support for SITs from the schools from pilot phase and Phase 2 provided; . Advanced training for school trainers for interethnic integration in education for schools with two/three languages of instruction provided; . Capacity building of teacher training faculties’ staff - manual for the teacher training faculties preparation continued; . First event of joint students activities implemented; . Joint students activities in partnership with My Career implemented; . Review of the existing school performance quality indicators continued; . Training for the School Boards and professional service staff in making changes towards IIE on school level for the schools from Phase 3 completed. Component Three, Demonstration Schools: . Five (5) one-day trainings for teachers for cooperative work in ethnically mixed teams held; . Three (3) one-day trainings for teachers to work on joint student activities in mixed teams with ethnically/language mixed groups of students organized; . One (1) one-day training for teachers for joint curricular activities held; . One (1) two-day training for civic education teachers for a teaching methodology for raising awareness about stereotypes held; . One (1) two-day training for teachers from primary schools for implementing language acquisition workshops held; . One (1) school manifestation organized; . One (1) three-day training for professional service staff in constructive conflict resolution techniques held; . In all six (6) demonstration schools elections of student bodies at a class level held; . Twelve (12) workshops for language acquisition with first grade students created. Component Four, Providing Incentives to Schools and Communities: . Engineering field reports and final approval of school renovation projects prepared; . Annexes to the joint Environmental Mitigation Monitoring Plans (EMMPs) prepared; . Memornadums of Understanding (MoUs) with schools and municipalities signed; . Tenders for selection of construction companies announced; . Consulting companies for supervision selected; . Preconstruction meetings in the schools organized; . Technical acceptance of the school renovation projects organized; . Access forpeople with disabilities in the renovated schools secured; . Follow up in-school meetings in eleven (11) schools from Phase 2organized; . Mentoring sessions for Module 1 in thirteen (13) schools from Phase 3 organized; . School maintenance toolboxes procured; . Cost – share collected and documented; . Documents on Overseas Humanitarian Assistance Shared Information System (OHASIS) uploaded. 4 USAID Interethnic Integration in Education Project QUARTERLY REPORT #11, July 2014 – September 2014 3. CROSSCUTTING ACTIVITIES 3.1. Subcontracts/Partners 3.1.1. Postponed signing of the Memorandum of Understanding with the National Examination Center (NEC) The signing of the Memorandum of Understanding between MCEC/IIEP and National Examination Center is postponed for the next quarter due to the probable organizational changes within the institution. Whether the existing director will remain or NEC will get new one, the MOU will be signed in the next quarter. 3.1.2. Coordination of the partners performed Coordination with the partner organizations included monthly reporting, regular e-mail communication and coordinative meetings. For amore detailed