Evaluation of the Child Friendly School Project in Kosovo

Detailed description of project Back

Since 2001, UNICEF supports the creation in Kosovo of schools that are effective (child-centred, interactive learning), healthy, protective (inclusion of all children, including children with special needs), and with an active involvement of parents and communities in school. Implementation of activities that create such Child Friendly Schools (CFS) has been the responsibility of seven implementing partners (NGO). Project activities included training of school directors and teachers, creation of partnerships to increase participation in educational planning and management, creation of classes for children with special needs in primary schools, and creation of multi-ethnic schools.

The purpose of this evaluation is to review the CFS interventions in pilot and peer schools throughout Kosovo in order to:

• Yield evidence on the impact of CFS on increasing access, improving quality, and on learning outcomes;
• Better define the CFS concept in operational terms;
• Help to gain a full understanding of the operational definition of CFS within a given context and policy development to the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology;
• Provide input to education programming;
• Guide the MEST and other education stakeholders to design programmes that position education activities within the context of child and adolescent rights.

Type of services provided

PROMAN provided the services of an Education Expert who collected information through study of documents, field visits to several project regions and municipalities, school visits and classroom observations; held extensive discussions with Ministry staff, regional educational officers, PTA, PTC, teachers, school principals, children and parents, and with staff from the implementing NGOs.

The expert assessed the progress to date, the relevance, efficiency, effectiveness and sustainability and formulated a set of useful recommendations for each of these criteria as well as recommendations to move from “piloting” to “education development” through partnerships, participation, use of educational information and better planning. A detailed Action Plan for the implementation of these recommendations was proposed.

PROMAN HQ ensured the efficient backstopping of the project.