DOCUMENT RESUME ED 464 871 SO 033 815 TITLE A Transnational View of Basic Education: Issues of Access, Quality, and Community Participation in West and Central Africa. INSTITUTION Academy for Educational Development, Washington, DC. SPONS AGENCY Agency for International Development (IDCA), Washington, DC. Bureau for Africa. PUB DATE 2002-01-06 NOTE 229p.; Prepared by Support for Analysis and Research in Africa project with subcontractors Tulane University, JHPIEGO, Morehouse School of Medicine, and Population Reference Bureau. This document is a synthesis of studies by Educational Research Network for West and Central Africa. CONTRACT AOT-C-00-99-00237-00 AVAILABLE FROM SARA Project, AED, 1825 Connecticut Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20009. Tel: 202-884-8069; Fax: 202-884-8447; Web site: http://www.aed.org/. PUB TYPE Collected Works General (020) Information Analyses (070) EDRS PRICE MF01/PC10 Plus Postage. DESCRIPTORS *Access to Education; *Community Involvement; Comparative Education; *Educational Quality; Educational Research; Elementary Secondary Education; Foreign Countries; *Geographic Regions; Literature Reviews; *School Holding Power IDENTIFIERS Africa (Central); Africa (West); Basic Education; Development Education; Educational Issues; Research Synthesis ABSTRACT Most African countries_have devoted considerable attention to educating the generations of people born since the independence era. Despite their efforts, however, African governments continue to face rising illiteracy, grade-repetition, and drop-out rates, as well as growing numbers of expulsions. This report presents a synthesis of the main findings of transnational studies produced between 1995 and 1999 regarding basic education in West and Central Africa. The report states that researchers gathered information concerning the opinions, experience, and achievements of the main actors and beneficiaries of education, addressing the following themes in two sections:(1) the factors associated with access to schooling and the retention of students within the primary sector (Cote d'Ivoire and Gambia); and (2) the relationships between community participation and access to and .quality_of education (Benin, Cameroon, Ghana, Mali, and Togo). Following an introduction, each chapter of the report is devoted to statistics and opinions (with references) regarding these seven African countries. Recommendations for improving educational access, retention, and quality are included in the report. (BT) Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. A Transnational View of Basic Education: Issues of Access, Quality and Community Participation in West and Central Africa tr) 00 PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE AND U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION DISSEMINATE THIS MATERIAL HAS Office of Educational Research and Improvement BEEN GRANTED BY EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATIOI, rr) CENTER (ERIC), This docurnent has been reproduced as Cr) received from the person or organization . Vod er . originating it. o Minor changes have been made to improve reproduction quality. TO THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC) Points of view or opinions stated in this 1 document do not necessarily represent C/I) official OERI position or .oli Educational Research Network for West and Central Africa rAMMM CSEST-COPY AVAILABLE 4( USAID .U.S. Agency for International Development, Bureau for Africa, Office of Sustainable Development A Transnational View of Basic Education: Issues of Access, Quality, and Community Participation in West and Central Africa January 2002 Educational Research Network for West and Central Africa (ERNWACA) United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Support for Analysis and Research in Africa (SARA) Project 3 A Transnational View of Basic Education This publication was prepared by the Support for Analysis and Research in Africa (SARA) project. SARA is operated by the Academy for Educational Development with subcontractors Tulane University, JHPIEGO, Morehouse School of Medicine, and Population Reference Bureau. SARA is funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development through the Bureau for Africa, Office of Sustainable Development (AFR/SD/HRD) under Contract AOT-C-00-99-00237-00. Support for Analysis and Research in Africa (SARA) Academy for Educational Development 1825 Connecticut Ave., NW Washington, DC 20009 USA Tel : 202-884-8000 Fax : 202-884-8447 E-mail : [email protected] Educational Research Network for West and Central Africa (ERNWACA) BP E1854 Bamako, Mali Tel : 223-21-16-12 Fax : 223-21-21-15 E-mail : [email protected] 4 Table of Contents Acknowledgements Acronyms and abreviations vii Chapter 1: Introduction 1 Access and retention of students in Côte d'Ivoire and the Gambia 2 Relationships between community participation, access and quality in Benin, Cameroon, Ghana, Mali, and Togo 3 Recommendations for improving access, retention, and quality 6 Section I Access and retention of students in Côte d'Ivoire and the Gambia Chapter 2: Côte d'Ivoire 11 1.Context of the study 11 2.Issues 12 3.Studies on access and retention in Africa 13 4.Methodology 14 S.Results 16 6.Analysis of results 26 7.Conclusions and recommendations 29 References 31 Chapter 3: Gambia 33 1.Background 33 2.Statement of the problem 34 3.Review of relevant literature 37 4.Research methodology 39 5.Findings 44 6.Discussion and recommendations 54 References 56 Section II The relationship between community participation, access and quality in Benin, Cameroon, Ghana, Mali, and Togo Chapter 4: Benin 61 1.Context of the study 61 2.Issues 62 A Transnational View of Basic Education 3.Conceptual framework 63 4.Methodological approach 67 S.Results 74 6.Analysis of results 84 7.Conclusions and recommendations 89 References 91 Annex: Detailed tables 93 Chapter 5: Cameroon 101 1.Context of the study 101 2.Issues 101 3.Conceptual framework 103 4.Methodology 105 5.Results 108 6.Analysis of results 121 7.Conclusions and recommendations 123 References 126 Chapter 6: Ghana 129 1.Introduction 129 2.Statement of the problem 129 3.Conceptual framework 130 4.Research methodology 136 5.Findings 141 6.Discussion of results 152 7.Conclusions and recommendations 158 References 160 Chapter 7: Mali 163 1.Context of the study 163 2.Issues 163 3.Conceptual framework 164 4.Methodology 167 5.Results 169 6.Analysis of results 180 7.Conclusions and recommendations 182 References 184 Chapter 8: Togo 187 1.Context of the study 187 2.Questions / study objective 188 3.Methodology 189 4.Results 197 5.Conclusions and recommendations 218 References 220 iv 6 Acknowledgements The ERNWACA transnational studies were initiated on the basis of the Member countries priority educational issues identified at the start of Phase II of ERNWACA in Bamako in Septem- ber 1993. The studies were conducted and published thanks to the financial stipport of USAID made possible by the combined efforts of Julie Rea of USAID/AFR/SD and Suzanne Prysor-Jones, Director of the SARA Project; they have the Network's profound gratitude. We would also like to thank the members of the review committee, composed of Professor William Rideout of the University of Southern California, Dr. Ash Hartwell of ihe University of Massachusetts, Dr. Yves Benett of the University of Huddersfield, Yorkshire, England, Hamidou Boukary, Association for the Development of Education in Africa, and Dr.' Yolande Miller- Grandvaux, USAID/AFR/SD-AED, who, throughout the studies, aided the ERNWACA research- ers methodologically. Our thanks also goes to all the people who worked so hard on the production and publica- tion of these studies and syntheses, especially Renuka Bery and Karla Yoder whose diligent efforts made this publication possible. The syntheses were finalized by Luc Gilbert and the summary of the syntheses written by Dr. Brehima Tounkara, National Coordinator of ERNWACA/Mali, and Luc Gilbert, with coor- dination and good advice from Yolande Miller-Grandvaux. They also receive the sincere thanks of the Network. Finally, none of these studies could have been carried out without the volunteer coordina- tion and careful steering of the national coordinators of the Network's member countries. ERN WA CA. 7 Acronyms and abreviations ADEA Association for the Development of Education in Africa APE Association de parents d'éleves (Students' Parents Association) CE Cours élémentaire (Elementary grades (1 and 2)) CEP Certificat d'études primaires (Certificate of Primary Education) CFA Communauté financiale Africaine (francs) (African financial community) CM Cours moyen (1 and 2) (Middle grades) CP Cours préparatoire (1 and 2) (Preparatory grades) EFA Education for All EIP Equity Improvement Program ENI/ENIA Ecole Norma le d'Instituteurs et d'Instituteurs Adjoints (Institute of Teachers and Assistant Teachers) ERNWACA Educational Research Network for West and Central Africa FAWE Forum for African Women Educationalists FGD Focus group discussions GCE- A Level General Certificate of Education Advanced Level GCE- 0 LevelGeneral Certificate of Education Ordinary Level GES Ghana Education Service GNP Gross national product IIEP International Institute for Educational Planning INFRE Institut national pour la formation et la recherche en education (National Institute for Training and Research in Education) INSAE Institut national de statistiques et d'analyse économique (National institute of statistics and economic analysis) INSE Institut national des sciences de l'éducation (National institute for educational sciences) vii A Transnational