Improved Literacy for Children in Zambia

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World Vision Zambia Limited
Child Literacy Technical Approach
Strategic Objective:
“Improved Literacy among Children aged 6-18”
National Office contact: Chikondi Phiri,
Deputy National Director,
World Vision Zambia Limited

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Table of contents
Acknowledgments.........................................................................................................................................4
Acronyms ......................................................................................................................................................5
1.0 Executive Summary.................................................................................................................................7
2.0 Introduction and Background .................................................................................................................9
3.0 Landscape Analysis..................................................................................................................................9
3.1 Access to education..........................................................................................................................10
3.2 Retention and Completion ...............................................................................................................11
3.3 Education Financing...........................................................................................................................11
3.4 Innovation in Education.....................................................................................................................12
3.5 Quality...............................................................................................................................................12
4.0 Root Cause Analysis .............................................................................................................................13
4.1 Education Financing...........................................................................................................................14
4.2 Pupil-book ratios...............................................................................................................................14
4.3 Trained teachers in primary school..................................................................................................14
4.4 Enrolment..........................................................................................................................................15
4.5 Distances to Schools.........................................................................................................................15
4.6 Socio, Cultural and Economic Factors..............................................................................................15
4.7 Illiteracy of parents ...........................................................................................................................16
4.8 Absenteeism Teacher/pupil absenteeism:.........................................................................................16
4.9 Drop outs rates ................................................................................................................................16
5.0 Pathway of Change Framework............................................................................................................17
6.0 Project Models......................................................................................................................................24
6.1 Literacy Boost (LB) ...........................................................................................................................24
6.2 School and Community Accountability for Literacy Enhancement-SCALE- Model.........................24

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6.3 School Infrastructure Development .................................................................................................25
7.0 Local and National Level Advocacy......................................................................................................25
7.1 Literacy Framework..........................................................................................................................25
7.2 Community participation..................................................................................................................26
7.3 Appropriate and adequate reading materials....................................................................................26
8.0 Local and National Partnering ..............................................................................................................26
10.0 Variations of the Approach based on Different Contexts .................................................................31
10.1 Anticipated Geographic Locations......................................................................................................31
11.0 Cross cutting Themes.........................................................................................................................31
12.0 Expected Funding Streams and Investment ........................................................................................33
13.0 Capacity Statement.............................................................................................................................33

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Acknowledgments
The development of the Literate Children Technical Approach would not have been made possible
without the input of various stakeholders and I would like to take this opportunity to thank them for
their input. First and foremost, I would like to thank the Senior Leadership Team of World Vision Zambia
Limited who continually gave guidance to this process. The Core Team led by Rose Zambezi which did a
tremendous job in keeping the momentum. Paulaw Kitheka who patiently reviewed our documents
providing invaluable technical advice and helping to keep us focused. The Ministry of
Education,particularly Principal Planning Officer Mr. Lancelot Mutale, is acknowledged for taking time to
support this process. “Room to Read” provided a listening ear as we shared our plans to focus on
literacy. Collins Sakufiwa and Julie Lwando for the extra hours spent going over the document. This
would have been a more difficult journey without your support.
Lastly I would like to thank the many numerous parties that supported this process internally and
externally especially the various field staff, community members and PTAs that provided the much
needed input into this document.
Luonde Cholwe
Technical Advisor Education

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Acronyms
ADP Area Development Program
ASCD Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development
BTL Break through to Literacy
CAMFED Campaign For Female Education
DFID Department for International Development
EGRA Early Grade Reading Assessment
FAWEZA Forum for African Women Educationists
FLAT Functional Literacy Assessment Tool
FPE Free Primary Education
ICT Information and Communication Technology
ICT4ED Information and Communication Technology for Education
MESVTEE Ministry of Education Science Vocational Training and Early Education
MoE Ministry of Education
NCCTQ National Comprehension Centre for Teacher Quality
PRP Primary Reading Program
PTA Parents Teachers Association
ROCS Reading on Course
RSNDP Revised Sixth National Development Plan
SACMEQ Southern and East African Consortium on monitoring Education Quality
SCPC School Community Partnership Committee.
TA Technical Approach
USAID United States Agency for International Development
WVZL World Vision Zambia Limited

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ZOCS Zambia Open Community Schools

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1.0 Executive Summary
The importance of Education in the social and economic development of individuals and society as a
whole cannot be overemphasised. Development entails the expansion of choices which requires
knowledge. An educated individual has the ability to make informed choices which enables them an
opportunity to control and direct their development. Education is transformational. It is a powerful
driver for development and one of the strongest instruments for reducing poverty and improving health,
gender equity, peace and stability1. . Literacy is a key component of education. Improving literacy skills is
a cornerstone for improving individuals’ capabilities and resilience, and achieving economic growth,
social development and environmental protection. It is the basis for lifelong learning and plays a
foundational role in the creation of sustainable, prosperous and peaceful societies. In the words of Kofi
Annan, “Literacy is a bridge from misery to hope”.2 As a child focused organization, World Vision
Zambia Limited (WVZL) recognizes the significance of literacy in a child’s life and has adopted literacy as
one of its pillars in the attainment of its Child Well Being Outcomes. In the first 30 years of operations
in Zambia ( 1981 – 2011) World Vision had constructed/ rehabilitated 40 schools and sponsored over
10 000 children . As the Zambian Government increasingly focuses on addressing equity and quality of
education as stipulated in the revised Sixth National Development Plan and Vision 2030, WVZL seeks to
compliment these efforts.
Literacy stands out as the major problem that affects school children across the nation. Ministry of
General Education indicates that over 80 % of children are unable to read at age appropriate levels.3 The
use of the Functional Literacy Assessment Tool by WVZL further indicates that even though literacy
levels vary among the various Area Development Programmes they remain low with the highest literacy
levels being recorded at 44%4 . Low functional literacy among school going children constitutes a
learning crisis and WVZL has opted to focus on improving children’s literacy in schools. This is a shift
builds on the previous achievements in the areas of equity and access to education.
Literacy programming is a new concept to the work of World Vision International, especially in Zambia.
However, a partnership with Save the Children has resulted in the promotion of a “Literacy Boost
Model” which is being used in various World Vision National Offices with promising results. Literacy
Boost focuses on reading assessments, teacher training and community action. Evaluations from Malawi
which has been implementing the program since 2011 show the difference that the programme is
making to improve the reading levels of children living in poor rural areas. WVZL seeks to adopt the
Literacy Boost Model as a way of improving literacy levels among children.
WVZL has further identified that in order to bring about change in literacy programming there is need
to support interventions that promote the teaching and learning of literacy. Effective teaching of
literacy, active learner participation and conducive environment both- at school and in the home- will
promote literacy. Effective teaching of literacy is influenced by availability of trained teachers to teach
literacy. WVZL will focus on training teachers on literacy teaching at the start of this program while
lobbying the government to embrace literacy teaching skills in the teacher training colleges. Further, the
organization will make schools print rich by ensuring that necessary teacher reference materials are
available for teachers to use. This will be done through the government supply system and minimal Gift
1
World Bank (2012)
2
https://efareport.wordpress.com/2014/09/08/improving-literacy-for-sustainable-development/
3
Education for All (2015) National Review Report- Zambia
4
World Vision Zambia Limited ( 2014) Child Well Being Report

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In Kind-GIK. Further, reading materials will be developed for learners. Information Communication and
Technology (ICT) will be used to support production and access to appropriate teaching and learning
materials for both teachers and learners. The Shell Book technology will be used to develop locally
appropriate reading materials for learners. Book Banks will be established in schools and at community
reading camps. An important element of this approach to literacy will be to ensure that
parents/caregivers take interest in literacy promotion. It has been shown that caregivers can highly
influence the “reading interest” in learners by asking some simple questions, such as “what did you learn
today”? WVZL will promote the participation of caregivers in literacy programs through local level
social change communication and establishing Community Reading Camps where children can meet and
practice reading. Caregivers will volunteer to be facilitators of these camps. Related to this, schools will
need to be safe for all learners- including those with learning difficulties and disability. Sanitation, safety
against intruders and the conduct of teachers will be improved to ensure that learners are interested in
being in schools. School Management will be improved through training of school managers and the
participation of parents and learners. Use of performance indicators will be entrenched as a measure of
school management by stakeholders. Schools will also be used to promote a value system among
learners that reduces violation of children’s rights.
This change in focus is documented in this document as a Technical Approach (TA) on literacy and will
integrate with other TAs to address the various socio- economic factors that act as barriers to learning
to read. WVZ will further endeavour to broker and/or strengthen partnerships with
organisations that have a proven track record in literacy programming. Human resource such as
trained education personnel will be hired to strengthen literacy programming in the Area
Development Programmes.
At a national level WVZL will advocate for the implementation of the literacy framework to
ensure that literacy is given the due attention, drive and focus required to improve reading
levels in schools. Using a well-established monitoring system in the rural areas, WVZL will
provide information to stakeholders on the levels of literacy. This is expected to strengthen
decision making by partners and the government. The organization will also strengthen social
accountability by building the capacity of parents (rights holders) to demand quality education
from the government (duty bearers) using the highly successful Citizen Voice and Action model.

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2.0 Introduction and Background
This Technical Approach (TA) on “Literacy” is a document aimed at providing guidance to a technical
program that will address the challenge of low age appropriate literacy skills among school going
children in Zambia. The TA recommends evidence based program models to be used in field operations
where WVZL operates.
The development of the Child Literacy Technical Approach is as a result of the transition from LEAP 2.0
to LEAP3.0 and is expected to bring impact and scale in World Vision’s programming. The approach is a
slight shift from the previous one that promoted access to education through infrastructure
development. The paradigm shift is focused on improving the quality of education through literacy
programming so as to improve learning outcomes among children. The specific outcomes being pursued
under this approach and the subsequent programming are:
 Effective Literacy Teaching.
 Active/Effective Learner Participation in Literacy Learning.
 Conducive Learning Environment.
In order to effectively achieve these outcomes, this approach provides guidance on models and
programs that are inter linked with other technical programs from other WVZ technical approaches
such as the Child Survival, Household Livelihood Resilience and Protection and Nurture of Children,
whose programming is critical to the wellbeing and education of children.
The development of this TA has been a robust process to ensure the strategies address the real
problems on the ground. The process included a field assessment in 2013 to identify the key
programming pillars in the education sector. The findings and recommendations of this assessment were
shared and reviewed by the leadership and key sector leads. The first draft Technical Approach
document was then produced based on recommendations from various stakeholders. A technical
assessment workshop followed, which involved ADP staff, Southern Africa Regional staff and Ministry of
Education staff. A core team was then created which consolidated the Technical Approach document
which was then sent to the Project Support Team for Review.
A consultant was engaged to support and guide the process of incorporating comments submitted by all
stakeholders and the Project Support Team as well as develop the final inclusive draft of the TA.
3.0 Landscape Analysis
At least 250 million of the world's 650 million (38%) primary school age children are unable to read,
write or do basic mathematics. An estimated 130 million of these are in primary school but have not
achieved the minimum benchmarks for learning, and almost 120 million have spent little or no time in a
classroom. They include 57 million youngsters who are not attending school. UNESCO estimates that
the cost of 250 million children not learning translates to a $129 billion annual loss for governments
around the world. This global "learning crisis" is mainly caused by a lack of well-trained teachers,
especially in developing countries; inadequate investment in the education sector by governments; low
participation of parents/communities in education and adverse cultural practices/traditions. Other
indicators of education across the world are not better either. The following are some of the global,
regional and local trends, practices, policies and movements in the education sector. (UNESCO/Sarah
Wilkins, 2012)

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3.1 Access to education
Access to education for all children continues to be a challenge world over. An estimated 101 million
children in the world are not in school and more than half are girls5. Strides have been made towards
access to education as 38 million were in school in 2012, owing to policies such as abolition of school
fees, increased expenditure in education, improved quality among other factors, UNESCOPRESS (2014).
Sub-Saharan Africa is home to 21 million out-of-school adolescents. Access to education has improved
with enrolment from 48 per cent to 77 per cent between 1991 and 2015 in the region. During the same
period, boys’ enrolment rose from 59 per cent to 82 per cent. As a result, 93 girls are enrolled in
primary school for every 100 boys (UN MGD Progress Report 2015).
Improvement in access to education underscores previous efforts to promote enrolment for different
learner-groups. Despite this improvement, more effort is required to get disabled learners to school.
Data from Malawi, Namibia, Zambia, and Zimbabwe show that between 9% and 18% of children of age
5 years or older without a disability had never attended school, but between 24% and 39% of children
with a disability had never been enrolled. This shows a clear lack of social inclusion.
In Zambia, improved access to education can be attributed to a number of factors such as increased
community participation in education through the establishment of community schools and support
from various partners.6 Community schools enrolled about 10, 000 pupils into the education system at
primary level in 2014 compared to only 1,000 pupils in 20097. The Government has tried to address
core problems in the education sector by putting in place various policies and initiatives. In 1990 Zambia
became a signatory to the Education for all Policy Framework. In line with this framework, the
Government developed the Basic Education Sub-sector Investment Plan (1999-2002), Fifth National
Development Plan (2005 -2010), Sixth National Development Plan (2012-2016), and the Revised Sixth
National Development Plan (2013 – 2016). Additionally, the Free Primary School Education policy which
abolished school fees and mandatory uniform for children was launched. This was followed by the Re-
entry Policy which allows pregnant school girls to return to school after delivery allowing more children
to access education.
The table below summarizes some of the recent education policies and the core problems they sought
to address.
Policies/Initiatives Core Problem to Address
Introduction of Early Childhood Education Policy
2012
Access to early Education
Annual recruitment of 5000 teachers High Pupil : Teacher Ratio
Rural hardship allowance and mandatory 2 year
service before transfer approvals
High teacher attrition in rural areas
Introduction of a 2 tier education system that
offers academic and skills education Irrelevant curriculum
Introduction of the National Literacy Framework/ Poor literacy levels
5
-UNICEF (2011)
6
such as Department For International Development (DFID), Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), United
States Agency for International Development (USAID), Zambia Open Community Schools (ZOCS), Reformed Open
Community Schools (ROCS).
7
National Symposium on Community Schools (2015)

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Lets Read Campaign
Minimum of 15 years jail term for adults involved
in withdrawing girls from school for early
marriages
High dropout rates of girls
Re-entry policy drafted in 1997 High dropout rates of girls due to teenage
pregnancies
The premise of most of the earlier policy frameworks was access to education. This was in line with the
Millennium Development Goal number 2 on ‘Access to universal primary education for all’. Zambia
recorded a rapid increase in enrolment levels reaching as high as 1.2 million learners since 1999. Net
Enrolment has grown from 74% in 1999 to 94% in 2014, MoE (2015). For a long time children with
special needs have been left out of the education system due to unfriendly and poor infrastructure.
Inclusive education has become part of the mainstream education through organizations such as Sight
Savers and Cheshire Homes. More teacher training colleges are now offering special education courses
to train teachers how to teach children with special needs and help them remain in school and complete
primary education.
3.2 Retention and Completion
Despite the achievements in enrolment rates in Zambia, retention and completion remain a challenge.
Only 65% of girls complete primary education, UNICEF Report on Zambia (2011). More boys than girls
complete school in Zambia. Gender parity is almost at par when children start school but girls drop out
as they get to puberty. Poor of sanitation in most schools forces girls to stay away from school and
eventually dropout. Currently the user-latrine ratio is 124 pupils per latrine against the recommended
ratio for girls of 25 girls per latrine and 40 boys per latrine. Other factors that contribute to girls’
dropout rates and low completion rates include teenage pregnancies, early marriages and long distances
to schools.
Although organisations such as Forum for African Women Educationalists in Zambia (FAWEZA) and
Campaign for Female Education (CAMFED) have been promoting girl’s education through provision of
bursaries to the marginalized, the completion rates still remain low.
3.3 Education Financing
The financing of education globally depends on the specific country education needs and resources. In
Africa education is financed by governments and external aid. For example, in 2008, Mali, Liberia,
Rwanda and Zambia financed more than 50% of their education sector using donor funds, (UNESCO
2011: Inst. of Stat). Zambia’s financing of education is largely from public resources. The poor
performance of Zambia’s economy in the early 1980s resulted in a reduction in investment in social
sectors including education. This contributed to a number of challenges some of which persist today. In
2013, the Ministry of Finance allocated ZMK 5, 626.8 billion to the education sector. In 2014, the
budgetary allocation rose to ZMK8, 607 billion whereas in 2016, the allocation is at ZMK 9,143,215,926.
Although, the Education sector is the highest funded social sector in Zambia8, the funding is still
insufficient to respond to the rising demands for education services in light of the growing population.
8
Budget address by Hon. Alexander B. Chikwanda M.P., Minister of Finance delivered to the National Assembly on
Friday, 9th
October, 2015. P. 16

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The bulk of this budgetary allocation is going towards school infrastructure, university infrastructure
student loans and bursaries for students at the tertiary level.
3.4 Innovation in Education
Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is increasingly becoming an important part of
learning in developing countries. The increase of the use of different ICT Technologies for learning is
presenting various reading and learning materials for children in primary schools. The “One Lap top Per
Child” Initiative was established with the goal of distributing low cost and low power laptop computers.9
This program has been implemented in Kenya and Nigeria through partnerships with the respective
Governments. Innovative learning that promotes the use of local languages is gaining prominence
through various global, regional and national campaigns. One such campaign is the “All Children Reading
campaign”. This is an on-going series of competitions that leverage science and technology to create and
apply scalable solutions to improve literacy skills of early grade learners in developing countries.’10 In
Zambia a locally produced tablet: “ZEDUPAD” is loaded with the Zambian curriculum in the seven main
local languages. This tablet has literacy and other subjects for early grade learners thereby helping fill the
gap created by lack of learning resources. Another ICT innovation is the “Stepping Stone Project” by
“Time to Learn” which uses a mobile phones loaded with teacher training curriculum in seven local
languages. This is meant to improve literacy teaching skills especially in community schools with a larger
number of untrained teachers. This has helped teach children with different impairments and special
education needs.
Television and Radio programming are also an integral part of ICT4D in education in Zambia. About 8%
of pupils in primary schools have access to television education programming (UNESCO: 2015). In 2013,
World Vision Zambia introduced the Video Interactive Learning Project to increase access to
audio/visual education programming by pupils in WVZL programme impact areas. On Average, field
monitoring reports show attendance in early grade classes is improving from about 82% at baseline in
2014 to about 95% as at July 2015. Additionally, teachers are reporting improved reading levels among
the children compared those not exposed to the material
3.5 Quality
Despite enrolment and attendance increasing over the past decade, quality remains a greater challenge
in developing countries and this is evidenced through the low literacy levels among children and the
youth. The achievement of universal participation in education will be fundamentally dependent on the
quality of education available11. Greater emphasis is now being placed on learning so that children can
read and leave the education system literate.
9
http://one.laptop.org/
10
http://allchildrenreading.org/about-us/problem/
11 11
EFA Global Monitoring Report (2005), Understanding Education Quality

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The Functional Literacy Assessments conducted in WVZL programme impact areas in 2014 show that
functional literacy for children in grades 5 to 7 were at 40%, which is relatively low12. Zambia’s Ministry
of Education revised the education curriculum in 2013 to critically address low literacy levels in the
country. Other focus areas of the new curriculum include critical, analytic, strategic and creative
thinking; problem solving; life skills and civic competences. The National literacy framework is based on
the principles that: reading is a foundation skill for all learners, learners learn literacy skills more easily
and successfully through familiar languages, all learners with appropriate support, can read and write,
every learner has the right to quality education and that intellectual ability is something expected of all
learners. The Ministry of Education language policy is that grades 1 to 4 should be taught in a familiar
local language or language of play, while English will be taught as a subject. English will then be used as a
medium of instruction at grade 5. This policy is already being implemented throughout all the districts of
Zambia (Zambia Education for All, 2015, National Report).
4.0 Root Cause Analysis
The problem being addressed through this Technical Approach is low literacy among school children
aged 6 to 18 in the country. The UNESCO Institute of Statistics defines functional literacy as a level of
reading, writing and calculation skills sufficient to function in the particular community in which an
individual lives13. As shown in the landscape analysis, literacy is a worldwide challenge. In Zambia, this is
evident in the number of children who complete primary education and are unable to read, write and
lack basic numeracy. World Vision Zambia’s Technical Approach (TA) on Child Literacy will focus on
children’s ability to read with comprehension at the right age.
Over 80% of children at the end of Grade one are unable to read in Zambia. Various assessment
efforts14 conducted over the past decade show that children are drifting through the school system with
very low mastery of desired learning competencies’15 Compared to other countries in the region,
Zambia’s performance reading and maths is low. The Southern and East African Consortium on
monitoring Education Quality (SACMEQ) study of 2010, ranked Zambia at 10 on Maths Mean scores
and 8 out of 15 on Reading Mean scores for Grade 6 pupils sampled in the regional study16. Zambian
learners scored an average of 434 in Reading and 435 in Mathematics on the SACMEQ Examination, well
below the international mean of 50017.
Furthermore, World Vision Zambia has carried out a number of assessments using the Functional
Literacy Assessment Tool (FLAT). This is an assessment tool used to assess reading and comprehension
levels among pupils in Grades 5 to 7. The Functional Literacy levels range from 11% in Mwamba
(Kasama) to 44% in Choongo (Monze). This confirms that well over half of children in schools are
functionally illiterate.
12
World Vision Zambia (2014), Child Wellbeing Report.
13
www.oxfordbibliographies.com/view/.../obo-9780199756797-0032.xml
14
Primary Reading Programme’s (PRP) ‘Break Through to Literacy’ (BTL), Early Grade Reading Assessments
(EGRA), the Grade Five National Assessment (GFNA) and successive public examinations
15
Examination Performance Review : General Performance Analysis (2013) P. 19
16
SAQMEC Project Results Pupil Achievement Levels in reading and mathematics (2010) P. 15 -23.
17
Zambia Education for All 2015 National Review, P 30

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The Zambian Government has acknowledged that there is need to improve literacy levels across the
country. In January 2014 the Ministry of Education launched a revised curriculum aimed at improving
literacy levels in early grades by the introduction of a literacy program which uses the local languages
familiar to the child. A campaign was also launched by various civil society organisations called “Lets
Read Zambia campaign”. The “Lets Read Zambia” campaign is a three year national mobilization
campaign in support of early grade reading and education management. The campaign is aimed at
increasing public awareness on the importance of early grade education and reading as a key skill for
success. It is additionally aimed at increasing knowledge of the link between education management and
improved reading in early grade reading, among stakeholders.18
The challenge of literacy in Zambia can be attributed to the following factors:
4.1 Education Financing
As illustrated in the landscape analysis, a larger allocation of education financing is towards,
infrastructure development and tertiary education particularly student loans. In 2013, the Ministry of
Finance allocated ZMK 5, 626.8 billion to the education sector. In 2014, the budgetary allocation rose to
ZMK8, 607 billion whereas in 2016, the allocation is at ZMK 9,143,215,92619. According to the
Education for All Report (2015), because school construction has been a priority over the past years
funding for quality education has seemed abstract. Indeed, even school constructions can ultimately be
rationalized in terms of quality arguments. The private sector in Zambia has also not been adequately
tapped education financing in terms of corporate social responsibility. Further, schools generally tend to
spend funds collected from parents as Parent Teacher Association (PTA) on capital projects. PTA funds
are also used to buy buses. These big ticket expenditures, while agreed to by parents, are prioritized
over purchase of books and other teaching and learning materials.
4.2 Pupil-book ratios
According to the Education Statistics (World Bank), May 2015, the average number of pupils per reading
textbook in primary education was 1:82 in 2012 which showed an improvement from 2.38 in 201120.
The fact that pupils do not have reading textbooks on a one to one basis has also maintained the low
literacy levels in Zambia. Cooperating partners, as a way of trying to fill the gap, have donated various
reading books to schools but monitoring data shows that some of these books are not culturally
appropriate.
4.3 Trained teachers in primary school
Trained teachers in primary education are the percentage of primary school teachers who have received
the minimum organized teacher training (pre-service or in-service) required for teaching in their
18
http://www.moe.gov.zm/index.php/component/content/article/60-moenews/160-let-s-read-zambia-
campaign
19
Budget address by Hon. Alexander B. Chikwanda M.P., Minister of Finance delivered to the National Assembly
on Friday, 9th
October, 2015. P. 16
20
http://knoema.com/WBEDS2015Sep/education-statistics-world-bank-september-2015

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country21. UNESCO (2012) data shows that in 2012, Zambia has 92% trained primary school teachers.
There has been a shortage in the output of trained undergraduate as well as qualified graduate teachers.
Consequently, the country relied on untrained teachers in primary schools. A large number of the
untrained teachers are concentrated in rural areas.
4.4 Enrolment
Over the years, the population of Zambia has grown from 4.19million people in the 1970s to 13.2million
people as at 2010 census yet educational infrastructure has remained. Consequently, the Ministry of
Education has been compelled to enrol as many children as qualify to begin school which has led to net
enrolment as high 96.1% in 201222. This has resulted in “overcrowding” in schools resulting in a pupil-
teacher ratio of 70:1 in rural Zambia against the standard 40:1. Although there is an annual teacher
recruitment drive of 5000 teachers, there is still a challenge in deploying teachers in the rural areas. A
snap shot of teachers across World Vision Operational areas reflect that most female teacher shun rural
areas and opt to stay in urban schools contributing to the high pupil teacher ratio.
4.5 Distances to Schools
Unsafe walking distances, keep girls and young children away from attending school. Children are faced
with this challenge because of limited schools and settlement patterns. The highest number of teenage
pregnancies is in the rural areas. Ministry of Education data shows that over a period of 5 years over
80% (15000) reported teenage pregnancies were in the rural areas where girls are often subjected to
unsafe learning environments. Girls that have to temporarily relocate to makeshift boarding houses
because of long distances to schools, fall prey to sexual predators because of poverty, lack of personal
security, and the allure of ‘looking nice’.23Organisations such as World Bicycle Relief have provided
subsidised bicycles to pupils and teachers who live beyond the radius of 2 KMs or more away from the
school with a bias towards girls (who get 60 % and boys get 40 %).24
4.6 Socio, Cultural and Economic Factors
Technical support monitoring trips, site visits, assessments and monthly monitoring reports from World
Vision Zambia ADPs reflect factors that negatively affect children’s ability to participate in school. The
factors identified from the monitoring visits were:
 64% of Zambia’s population live on less than a dollar a day where the larger majority of these
people live in rural areas25. Due to low income levels, some parents opt to send their children
to engage in various economic activities that keep them out of school. The following was
observed in certain areas; boys engaging in fishing (Southern Province), Farming (Southern
Province) cattle herding (East and Southern Province) and mining activities. Selling of food stuffs
in local markets also keeps children, especially boys, out of school. Seasonal economic activities
such as collection of caterpillars for sale as food, usually keeps children away from school as the
21
UNESCO (2012), special data collection for the Education for All Initiative
[http://www.indexmundi.com/facts/zambia/trained-teachers-in-primary-education]
22
http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/zambia_statistics.html
23
Education for All Zambia 2015 National Review, P 28
24
BEEP Evaluation Report 2013
25
http://www.psmag.com/business-economics/zambia-poor-poverty-globalization-mining-corruption-66080

16
children have to relocate to far forests to collect the caterpillars. As such, children are away
from school for extended period of time. Furthermore, some parents tend to place higher
priority on the education of boys. In certain instances, girls are married off and parents collect
dowry which is in monetary or animal form. It was also established from the field monitoring
visits that children from polygamous families were often absent from school as they did not
receive adequate educational support from their parents due to the high number of children in
the household.
 In many parts of Zambia when girls reach puberty, they are taken through initiation ceremonies
which take them away from school. The key content of these initiation ceremonies is usually on
how to take care of their future spouses and homes and this shifts their focus from school to
getting married. In a similar manner boys are also affected by cultural ceremonies (such as the
Nyau and Makishi)26 which keep them out of school for an extended period of time instructing
them on how to behave as men. These cultural practices make children have less value for
education. The fact that these practices are deeply imbedded in culture makes it difficult to
adequately advocate against them.
 Advocacy by different organisations (such as FAWEZA, CAMFED, WVZL, ZOCS) promoting
the education of girls has addressed some of the negative culture practices that affect girls,
thereby, helping more girls stay in school.
4.7 Illiteracy of parents
Adult literacy in Zambia is at at 67.2%27. Illiteracy of parents also contributes to their lack of support to
children going to school and reading in general. WVZL Technical Support (2015) monitoring visits
revealed that in Chikomeni ADP in Lundazi District, for example, School Community Partnership
committee members attributed the low illiteracy levels among parents as a reason why some of them
fail to adequately support their children to attend school and develop good reading habits.
4.8 Absenteeism Teacher/pupil absenteeism:
It is not uncommon for both teachers and pupils to be absent which in turn affects teaching and learning.
Low motivation among teachers caused by a poor working environment such as inadequate housing, lack
of teaching materials, high pupil: teacher ratio and lack of financial motivation. In an effort to address
these problems the Government has provided rural hardship allowances to teachers working in rural
areas. There is also commitment to increase the number of teachers through the annual recruitment of
5000 teachers and infrastructure development as outlined in the Revised Sixth National Development
Plan. As indicated in the landscape Government funding is still insufficient to address these challenges.
4.9 Drop outs rates
According to UNESCO (2005), Zambia has 12% primary school dropouts. The more children are way
from school, the more they miss out on learning.
26
Nyau and Makishi are initiation ceremonies for boys are puberty from boyhood into manhood
27
http://uil.unesco.org/fileadmin/download/en/national-reports/africa2009/Zambia.pdf

17
The root cause analysis of factors that affect the delivery of effective learning for pupils of primary
school going age was based on information collected through a desk review of key government
documents; focus group discussions with community groups in World Vision Zambia (WVZ) operation
areas; interviews with key informants in the Ministry of Education and a Strengths, weaknesses,
opportunities and risk analysis done with frontline staff in WVZ operation areas. This information was
triangulated through a verification process at a workshop that brought together more than a 100
participants from different levels of WV staff and partner representatives including government staff.
5.0 Pathway of Change Framework
In order to improve literacy among children in Zambia there is need for a combination of effective
teaching in literacy, active learner participation and a conducive learning environment.
Effective Teaching in Literacy: ASCD (2009) states that defining teacher effectiveness is not about
creating a simplistic simple view of effective teaching rather it is a dramatic conceptual shift from
focusing exclusively on the teacher to focusing on the act of learning. 28For purposes of this Technical
Approach effective teaching or teacher effectiveness will constitute 5 key components as identified by
the National Comprehension Centre for Teacher Quality
 Effective Teachers have high expectations for all students and help them learn, as demonstrated
on value added, test added or alternative measures.
 Effective teachers contribute to positive academic , attitudinal and social outcomes for students
such as regular attendance, on-time promotion to the next grade and graduation, self-efficacy
and cooperative behaviour
 Effective teachers use diverse resources to plan and structure engaging learning opportunities,
monitor student progress formatively, adapting instruction as needed and evaluate learning using
multiple sources of evidence.
 Effective teachers contribute to the development of classrooms and schools that value diversity
and civic mindedness.
 Effective teachers collaborate with other teachers, administrators, parents and education
professionals to ensure students success particularly the success of students with special needs
and those at high risk of failure.
Effective teaching with a specific focus on literacy requires key elements which work together. For
purposes of this Technical approach the focus will be on trained literacy teachers, availability of
appropriate and adequate teaching materials and motivated teachers. According to Medwell et al (1998)
Children need to experience quality teaching of literacy particularly during the primary school phase.
28
Laura Valas (2009) Highly Effective Teachers

18
High quality literacy teaching demands high quality literacy teachers and any education system must
attempt to maximise the expertise of teachers in teaching literacy.29
Motivated teachers need an enabling environment for them to effectively teach literacy. An enabling
environment is one which provides support and systems for the teacher. Monitoring of standards in the
schools ensures that schools are effectively managed and accountable on their delivery of teaching that
will in turn promote literacy. There is need to have duty bearers consistently monitor standards at all
levels to ensure that basic standards are in place to support effective teaching.
According to Wilcox et al (2009) there are a number of factors in a teacher’s work environment which
contribute to effective teaching. When any of these factors are lacking teacher effectiveness is
compromised. These work context factors include working conditions such as class size, discipline
conditions and availability of teaching materials; the quality of the principal’s supervision; and basic
psychological needs such as money, status, and security. Besides the work context there are work-
content factors which are intrinsic to the job itself. They include opportunities for professional
development, recognition, challenging and varied work, increased responsibility, achievement,
empowerment, and authority. Some researchers argue that teachers who do not feel supported in these
are less motivated to do their best work in the classroom.30
In view of the various components required for effective teaching in literacy this Technical Approach will
promote interventions which support effective teaching in literacy.
The TA will support Teacher training in literacy programming by promoting models such as Literacy
Boost which strengthen a teacher’s ability to teach literacy in schools. The TA will also support the
provision of appropriate teaching materials. Localised learning materials will be provided in the schools.
In the early grades teachers, will be supported with learning materials which are in the local language of
play as per the Zambian Government Policy. Partnerships with organisations such as Room to Read and
Ischool that provide resources in the local languages will be important. Literacy Boost will further
support the creation of local reading resources to be used in the classrooms and at home.
In order for effective teaching to take place it is important to support the effective management of
teachers. This will involve interventions which will strengthen the capacity of School Management
Committees to better manage schools and teaching staff. The community will play a critical part in the
management of schools. Communities will be encouraged to take an active role in the management of
their schools. WVZL will therefore use structures such as the School Community Partnerships
Committees which were set up in certain parts of the country by” Read to Succeed” to get the
communities actively involved. Evidence from Chikomeni Area Development Programme in Lundazi
District indicates that the SCPCs are an essential part of community participation in the management of
schools.
29
Medwell et al ( 1998) Effective Teachers of Literacy
http://www.leeds.ac.uk/educol/documents/000000829.htm#ch1
30
Wilcox et al (2009) Motivating teachers to improve instruction.
http://www.osba.org/Resources/Article/Employee_Management/Motivating_Teachers_to_Improve_Instruction.a
spx

19
Active Learner Participation in Literacy: A significant part of learning is highly dependent on a
learner’s participation. In this TA active learning will be defined as a process whereby students engage in
activities, such as reading, writing, discussions, or problem solving that promote analysis, synthesis, and
evaluation of class content31. Active Learner Participation entails a learner being an active participant in
their learning. In order for a learner to actively participate in their learning this TA proposes that there
will be a focus on the following:
 Adequate and appropriate materials: The availability appropriate material is critical for learners
to learn how to read. Learners require materials that are appropriate for their grade and in a
language that they are familiar with in order to learn how to read. In the case of learners with
special education needs, there is need for materials such as Braille that will aid them in learning
how to read. This TA will promote the use of learning materials that are locally contextualised.
Learning materials include the use of innovative technologies such as tablets, computers,
television sets, mobile phones and other forms of media toaid children in learning how to read.
WVZL in partnership with Ischool will promote the Zedupad in schools in the Area Development
Programmes as this is a tablet that is loaded with the revised Zambian Curriculum in all the 7
major languages. These solar powered tablets will provide an opportunity for children in the
rural areas to learn in a local language that is familiar to them. UNESCO promotes the use of
mother tongue based bilingual or multilingual approaches in education as an important factor for
inclusion and quality education.32 UNESCO has further designated an International Mother
Tongue Day to promote the instruction of children in Mother tongue
 A learning centred approach which enables the learner to be at the centre of learning will
further promote active learner participation. Learner-Centred teaching means the student is at
the centre of learning. The student assumes the responsibility for learning while the instructor is
responsible for facilitating the learning. Thus, the power in the classroom shifts to the student.33
It becomes the learner’s responsibility to learn. The TA will promote interventions which build
learner’s esteem and motivate children to aspire such as the use of role models in schools. It
will further integrate with cross cutting themes to promote interventions that encourage and
motivate learners.
 Learners need to actively participate in literacy activities both in the home and in school. This
TA will work towards enabling learners to not only take part in literacy activities at school but
also have an opportunity to do this within their community through the establishment of
community reading camps as part of the School Community Accountability Enhancement
(SCALE) which is essentially part of the Literacy Boost Model with a strong emphasis on
community action. The SCALE will enable the establishment of community reading camps which
are run and facilitated by the communities.
31
www.crlt.umich.edu/tstrategies/tsal
32
www.portal.unesco.org.education
33
pedagogy.merlot.org/LearnerCenteredTeaching.html

20
 A learner needs to participate in literacy activities through their consistent attendance of school.
Consistent attendance of school will enable the learner to actively take part in all literacy
lessons and activities. This TA will support interventions that address factors that keep children
out of school. This will require integrating with other TAs to address the socio- economic
issues that keep children away from school. A child that does not go to school is not likely to
learn how to read or write.
The environment in which a learner learns is important as it needs to be conducive for learning to take
place. Key proponents of the learning process are teachers and learners as such their freedom of
interaction, safety and respect should be equally guaranteed within the physical and emotive
environment they find themselves in34. For purposes of this TA the Conducive Learning Environment
will focus on the school, parents/caregivers and community that surround a learner.
 .This TA will integrate with the Chid Nurture and Protection TA to ensure that interventions
are in place to protect learners within and outside the school. It is important for a learner to
feel safe to learn how to read.
 This TA will support the establishment of reading camps under Literacy Boost. These reading
camps offer an opportunity for children to take part in literacy activities outside of school.
Community volunteers will be identified in the various ADPs to support reading camps and will
be trained as Reading Camp Facilitators. The community will also participate in the creation of
local learning materials which can be used in the reading camps. The advantage is that children
have an opportunity to use materials which are contextualised.
 Caregiver/Parental support will help a child learn how to read. The evidence of the benefits of
parents being involved in their children’s education in general and their children’s literacy is
overwhelming.35 When Caregivers/ parents provide support reading activities and initiatives, a
child is in a better placed position to learn how to read. Parental involvement in their child’s
literacy practices is a more powerful force than other family background variables such as social
class, family size, and level of parental education, while reading enjoyment is more important for
children’s educational success than their family’s socio – economic status.36 It is therefore
important that understand and appreciate the value of reading and education as a whole. Limited
or lack of value for education can cause children to stay away from school and other activities
that promote literacy.. This TA will therefore support interventions which raise awareness on
the importance of parental involvement. It will further integrate with economic development to
help address the low economic status of parents.
Enablers to this pathway of change will be:
34
Elliot Ziwira (2015) Creating a Conducive Environment
35
Christina Clark ( 2007) Why it is important to involve parents in their children’s literacy development
36
Christina Clark ( 2007) Why it is important to involve parents in their children’s literacy development

21
 Continued government funding to the education sector will ensure that there are sufficient
resources for supporting effective teaching, active learner participation, effective learning
environment and effective management of education. Investment in the sector is cardinal to
ensure that these core components are adequately addressed.
 There are resources and structures in the community which enable effective teaching, active
learner participation, effective learning environment and effective management of education.
There is need to tap into these resources and structures to ensure sustainability through a
sense of ownership by the communities.
 Policy frameworks that provide guidelines on key aspects of education delivery will provide
structure to education which encompasses literacy. Deliberate guidelines on effective school
management, teacher discipline and conduct, teacher continuous professional development, and
remuneration will help ensure that schools are effectively managing and delivering on education
and in turn literacy.

23
Ministry Goal
Child wellbeing aspiration
Strategic Objective
Outcomes
Outputs
Enablers
ActionLearning
By 2020 WV Zambia Limited will contribute to the measurable and sustainable improvement in the wellbeing of 670,000 vulnerable children
Children Enjoy Good
Health
Children Are Educated For
Life
Experience Love of God and
Their Neighbours
Children are cared for protected and
participating
Improved literacy among children (6-18)
Community participation
Trained
literacy
teachers
Reading camps
and clubs
established in
schools and
communities
Conducive learning environmentEffective teaching of literacy
Safe
Learning
Environment
EDUCATED CHILDREN TECHNICAL APPROACH PATHWAY OF CHANGE
Learner participation in
literacy learning
ADVOCACY
Appropriate
and adequate
teaching
materials
Effective
management
of education
school
Appropriate
and adequate
learning
materials
Learners participate
in literacy activities
Community
participation
in reading
activities
Learner
participation
school
management
Funding by government
Community
participation
in education
management
Literacy Curriculum

24 | World Vision Zambia Limited’s Technical Approach to Literacy.
6.0 Project Models
In order to realize improved age appropriate literacy among children, this Technical Approach
recommends the use of approved and tested project models. The Literacy Boost (LB) Model, School
Community Accountability For Literacy Enhancement (SCALE) Model, Savings Groups (SG) Model,
Community Voice Action (CVA) Model, Channels of Hope for Child Protection (CoH-CP) Model, Child
Protection and Advocacy (CPA) Model, School Health Services (SHS) Model, WASH practices and Child
to Child Disaster Risk Reduction (CCDRR) Model will facilitate the attainment of some of the issues in
all the four streams.
6.1 Literacy Boost (LB)
Literacy boost is an innovative, evidence-based approach to improving literacy learning outcomes. It is
comprised of three key components, namely: reading assessment -which involves evaluation of children’s
concepts related to print, their ability to identify letters, reading and understanding text; teacher
training, and community action. The second part is reading assessments, which provides an outline of
literacy learning needs and programming scope. Teacher Training is the last part of the model which
involves regular capacity-building sessions designed to equip teachers with skills to focus on instruction
and formative assessment on the five core reading skills within the framework of the government’s
prescribed curriculum. Community action is an integral part of the model as involves mobilising parents
and other community members to support children as they learn to read. This is done through ‘fun’
out-of-school literacy activities and the creation of an abundance of locally relevant reading materials
that are appropriate for grades 1-3. The materials are produced in mother tongue. Literacy Boost Model
is one of the models that the approach recommends because it incorporates or brings together
concerted efforts of key players in child literacy and does not exclude the child in the process. The
model is also easy to roll out. This model is being used for literacy enhancement in different parts of the
world by Save the Children and World Vision. End Line studies conducted by Save the Children have
indicated that the model yields a three-fold positive impact on children engaged in LB schools. In Africa,
Malawi, Rwanda, Mozambique Ethiopia and Zimbabwe use this model. Other countries include Nepal,
Bangladesh and Pakistan. The Literacy Boost model will encourage the development of localized literacy
learning materials. Literacy materials have been challenge in Zambian primary schools and through this
model, materials will be developed by the locals for use in schools.
6.2 School and Community Accountability for Literacy Enhancement-SCALE- Model
This model though similar to the Literacy Boost Model, it has distinct features that make it a tool
through which literacy can is enhanced by the creation of a stimulating environment at home and school.
SCALE involves creating both voice and accountability for parents in poor and underserved
communities, enabling them to influence school and local government planning processes in ways that
improve reading outcomes for their children. Participation of parents extends to the furthest corners of
school catchment areas, beginning with increasing their understanding of reading issues and the options
they have for addressing them. At the same time, parents learn what they can do right there at the
hamlet or neighbourhood level to help improve child reading outcomes. The approach gives special
attention to drawing in the parents of those children who need more face to face time to acquire
reading skills at age appropriate levels. Reading camps are then created after various training of

established committees in schools and communities. This model is through activities prescribed under it,
will also contributing to school management practices that promote literacy among children in schools.
This model has being piloted in Lesotho and Zambia in one ADP. This model contributes to the out of
having community participation in literacy activities in that through various committees created though
model activities, parents will no send their to school for attendance purposes but to have acquire skills
in reading and writing.
6.3 School Infrastructure Development
As discussed elsewhere in this document, WVZL is changing focus from what it has done for over 30
years: infrastructure development. This Technical Approach recognizes that classrooms and teacher’s
offices will continue to be required in rural Zambia. Further, the TA appreciates that there are specific
donors whose funding priority is school infrastructure. To this end, the TA proposes:
i) Scale down investment in infrastructure development and invest significant resources in literacy
programming;
ii) All infrastructure development is outsourced to a more competent entity to enhance efficiency
while also helping WVZL focus on the learning outcome of learners in schools. This is likely
to enhance impact and scale as available resources will be stretched to reach more
beneficiaries. Even when outsourced to a third party, WVZL will ensure quantifiable
community contribution to all infrastructure development. Further, only essential school
infrastructure will be developed. Teachers’ houses, though important to education are not
essential. Private sector participation in the construction of teachers houses shall be
promoted using the Savings Groups where WVZL works.
iii) Donor communication is initiated to educate them to finance learning outcomes as part of
infrastructure funding.
7.0 Local and National Level Advocacy
There are number of issues which require behavioural and attitudinal change in order to promote
literacy.
7.1 Literacy Framework
As illustrated in the landscape analysis, implementation of the Literacy Framework introduced by the
Ministry of Education in Zambia, in 2013, is on-going in all districts. The Ministry of Education language
policy is that grades 1 to 4 should be taught in a familiar local language or language of play, while English
will be taught as a subject. English will then be used as a medium of instruction at grade 5. On the other
hand, the financing of education is heavily skewed towards infrastructure development as such limited
resources are channelled towards the implementation of the literacy framework. WVZ field monitoring
data reviews that the challenge that teachers are facing implementing this framework is the lack of
adequate textbooks in local languages. In this regard, there is therefore need for the Ministry of
Education and all its cooperating partners to work together to address this gap in order for the new

literacy framework to work. This will require both national and local level advocacy yet more strongly at
the national level.
7.2 Community participation
The Technical Approach will promote the use of local level advocacy targeted at enhancing community
involvement and support in the education of their children. The problem analysis shows that poor
parental support or participation negatively affects children’s learning ability in school and ultimately
their ability to read.
7.3 Appropriate and adequate reading materials
The TA will advocate for the provision of adequate and appropriate reading materials in all schools in
order address the gap in reading materials for primary school children. As shown in the Root Cause
Analysis section, the average number of pupils per reading textbook in primary education was 1.82.
Advocacy efforts at the National level will be directed towards reducing that ratio so that each child has
an opportunity to have books to read. Access to materials that are relevant and in languages in which a
child can understand will help children learn to read (in line with the literacy framework Zambia has
adopted).
8.0 Local and National Partnering
WVZ will work with partners at national and local level to achieve the strategic objectives of the Child
Literacy technical approach.
PARTNER LEVEL OF PARTNERSHIP/
STAKEHOLDER
AREA OF SUPPORT
Ischool Zambia Ltd Local and national level provision of IPADs loaded with the Zambian
Education Curriculum from grades 1 to 7
Room to Read Local and National The provision of local reading materials
Read to Succeed Local The use of the School Community Partnership
Committee models
UNICEF Local and national level School WASH Programming. UNICEF conduct
WASH education in school as well
construction of Ventilated improved pit
latrines for pupil and menstrual facilities for
girls
World Bicycle Relief Local and national level provision of bicycles to school going children
to increase access to education
GOVERNMENT
Ministry of Education Stakeholder Planning, technical support, implementation,
monitoring and evaluation.
Ministry of Community
Development Mother and
Stakeholder School Health Programming where children
are de wormed and immunized against

Child Health contagious disease outbreaks such as measles.
Ministry of Chiefs and
Traditional Leaders
Stakeholder For community based interventions that
require the support of Chiefs and traditional
leaders in promoting Education
COMMUNITY
Parents Local Support the learning needs of their school
going children and participation in literacy and
other educational activities
Children Local Regular attendance of school, participating in
literacy activities and reading

9.0 Key
Indicators
Indicator Indicator Definition Data Source Measurement Frequency of
Measurement
Goal:
Literate
Children
Proportion of children 6-18
who are functionally literate
Percent of children in school in the
programme impact areas who can
read with comprehension at functional
levels by the appropriate ages.
Annual Survey Reports (Lot
Quality Assurance Survey),
Baseline and Evaluation
Surveys Reports
The total number of
children who are able to
read and understand / total
number of children aged 6-
18 attending school
Annually
Effective
Literacy
Teaching
Proportion of teachers who
understand literacy learning
Understanding of literacy learning
means the teacher has a deep
understanding of the complexities and
cumulative processes of reading and
writing As well as the developmental
nature of literacy learning.
Education Standard Officer's
Monitoring Reports, Annual
Survey Reports (Lot Quality
Assurance Survey), Baseline
and Evaluation Surveys
Reports
The total number of
teachers who understand
literacy/ total number of
teachers in schools in
programme impact
area)*100
Annually
know the standards of teaching
literacy
Standards refer to instructional
guidelines set by the Ministry of
Education for literacy teaching. The
teachers are expected to know and
adhere to the standards
Reports
Total number of teachers
who know the standards of
teaching literacy/over total
number of literacy teachers
in schools in programme
impact area
Annually
use a flexible range of teaching
strategies
A range of teaching strategies refers
to instructional practices to meet the
diverse needs of the students in any
class.
Assurance Survey, Baseline
Reports
(Total number of literacy
teachers who employ a
range of flexible teaching
strategies/over total
number of literacy teachers
in schools in programme
impact area)*100
Annually
Active
Learner
Participation
Proportion of boys and girls
who have completed primary
education
Percent of children age 12-18 years
old who have completed at least seven
years of primary schooling in a
structured learning environment.
Annual Survey Reports (Lot
Quality Assurance Survey,
Baseline and Evaluation
Surveys Reports
(Children 12-18 who have
complete seven years of
primary school in
structured learning
environment/population of
children 12-18 in
programme impact
area)*100
Annually

Proportion of girls and boys
(6-18) who attend school
regularly.
Percent of boys and girls (6-18)
enrolled in a structured learning
environment who have attended
school on the most recent school day
Attendance registers, Annual
Survey Reports, Baseline and
Evaluation Survey Reports
(children (6-18) who
attend school on the most
recent school day/ total
children 6-18, enrolled in a
structured learning
environment)*100. The
indicator will be
disaggregated by gender
Quarterly
Proportion of girls and boys
(6-18) regularly attending after-
school literacy activities.
percent of boys and girls in
programme impact areas who attend
after-school literacy activities (such as
reading camps, reading clubs, reading
circles, e.t.c) on the most recent
literacy activity day
Monthly monitoring reports,
Club/camp attendance
registers, Quarterly
monitoring reports, Semi-
annual reports
Children who attend after-
school literacy activities on
the most recent literacy
activity day/total population
of children 6-18 in
programme impact areas)
*100. The indicator will be
disaggregated by gender
Quarterly
Conducive
Learning
Environment
Proportion of primary school
children who have access to
appropriate reading materials
Percent of children in primary school
in programme impact areas who
report having access to reading
materials relevant to their grade
School book stock records.
Records Annual Survey
Reports (Lot Quality
Reports
(children in primary school
who report having access
to reading materials
relevant to their grade/total
children enrolled in school
in that specific grade)*100
Quarterly,
Annually
Proportion of
parents/guardians who actively
support their children's literacy
activities.
Percent of parents in programme
impact area that support their
children's literacy activities. Where
support refers to parents readily
providing necessary aid for the literacy
activities
(Parents who actively
support their children's
literacy activities/parents in
programme impact
area)*100
Quarterly,
Annually

Proportion of primary schools
with Disaster reduction
initiatives
Percent of primary school in
programme impact areas that have
disaster management plans
(Schools with disaster
management plans/ total
schools in programme
impact area)* 100
Annually

10.0 Variations of the Approach based on Different Contexts
10.1 Anticipated Geographic Locations
It is highly recommended that all ADPs adopt this Technical Approach (TA) as literacy is critical in
attaining child wellbeing. However, ADPs transitioning in the next 2 years may not need to take it up
models such as Literacy Boost Model which will be used to address literacy. The approach will work
well in a context where the literacy levels are low as this approach is meant to help children with low
literacy levels.
11.0 Cross cutting Themes
This Approach is integrated and addresses the cross cutting issues as shown below:
11.1 Gender
The proposed project models are inclusive and provide equal opportunity to both boys and girls to learn
to read. The Technical approach has also demonstrated current gender inequalities in school enrolment
and retention. Community mobilization will be undertaken to ensure that caregivers value girl education.
The TA proposes mobilizing community participation in school management with a view to ensuring that
it is safe for young children and girls. WVZL will lobby the development and enforcement of a code of
conduct for teachers so as to reduce Sexual and Gender based Violence against perpetrated by
teachers. The TA will also work with the Child Nurture and Protection TA to strengthen the character
of children so as to build resilience necessary to resist violence and abuse. Schools will also have
appropriate sanitation facilities for menstrual hygiene.
11.2 Child Protection
This Technical Approach is founded on the desire to ensure that children have and enjoy the right to
education. At its core is community mobilization and strategic advocacy to ensure duty bearers
safeguard this right. The conducive learning environment envisaged in the approach is aimed at delivering
child protection. Local level advocacy using the Citizen Voice and Action-CVA- model will be aimed ad
sustaining social accountability for the right to education. Building community awareness to ensure
communities understand the issues on child protection in schools and homes and are motivated to take
action even on service provision. Establishing and/or strengthening of reporting and referral mechanisms
within communities ensures children and families know how to get help when there are incidences of
abuse, neglect, and exploitation in schools and homes. Lastly there is building of life skills and resilience
in children and empowering of children and youth to play a role in their protection and the protection
of others.

11.3 Disability
This TA advances the need to ensure the education system is inclusive. WVZL will conduct behavior
change communication to educate communities on the rights of people living with disabilities. WVZL will
ensure children with disability and special learning needs are supported to participate in literacy
programs. School infrastructure will be responsive to the needs of children with disability. Reading
materials in braille will be sourced for children with vision impairment.
11.4 Most Vulnerable Children-MVC
Children living with disability, orphans and girls are particularly targeted to benefit from this Technical
Approach. The Technical Approach recommends working through the already established standards for
vulnerability as used in Child Registration under the Sponsorship Program. Monitoring data will show
the disaggregation of children benefiting from WVZL operations by their nature of vulnerability.
11.5 Disaster Risk Reduction
Child to Child Disaster Risk Reduction model will be used to prepare communities for disaster in areas
that are prone. These disasters have potential of interrupting literacy activities such as reading camps in
communities. Reading materials can be burnt or destroyed due to perennial rains. This model will
improve preparedness of communities to mitigate effects of disasters that disrupt learning and reading
activities at school and home.
11.6 Christian Commitments
The TA aims at ensuring that children can celebrate who they are and become who they were created
to be with the love, respect and help of their parents and communities. The TA will integrate with the
Child Nurture and Protection to ensure that Good News Clubs are established both in schools and in
communities. Using the “Celebrating Families” model, WVZL will ensure that families are strong social
units for both protection and growth of children.
11.7 Child Participation
This TA recognizes that children are participants in development decisions. It is for this reason that the
process of developing the TA consulted grassroot stakeholders including schools. Children have limited
space for participation in decision making both at school and at home. This TA recommends structured
participation of children in decision making in schools. WVZL will influence establishment of student
councils.
11.8 Sponsorship
This TA is not restricted to sponsored children only but forms the broad programming framework in all
the areas where WVZL will work in the next 5 years. Sponsored children will however benefit from the
benefits envisaged in this TA. WVZL will monitor the literacy and well-being status of registered
children as a proxy of other children impacted by the TA.

12.0 Expected Funding Streams and Investment
The Child Literacy Technical Approach will be funded through Area Program sponsorship funds, Private
Non Sponsorship Funds, Gifts in Kind and Grants. The Approach will require that sponsorship funds
should place a priority on literacy in order to improve literacy in the Area Programs. In terms of
infrastructure development funds will be sourced through partnerships with organisations that promote
infrastructure development in education. There will be clear guidelines on how Area Programs will
apportion their funds. Gifts in Kind will continue to undergo intense scrutiny to ensure that learning
materials are appropriate and relevant for the schools to use as supplementary and reference materials.
13.0 Capacity Statement
13.1 Keys staff roles, competencies
The sector will be led by the Education Technical Programme Manager, who will be the technical lead,
providing strategic direction to the sector. The sector will have a Design, Monitoring and Evaluation
Specialist who will provide technical support in the design, monitoring and evaluation of education
programmes in the AP. At the cluster level, there will be a specialised Development Facilitator for
Education. This position will require the provision of technical support to the education Community
Development Facilitators. The Community Education Development Facilitators (CDF) will be the
frontline staff living and working in the community. All education personnel will be required to have an
education background. At the level of CDF, a minimum of an education certificate will be required. The
Education DF at the cluster level will be required to have at minimum an advanced diploma in education.
There will be need to have specialised education staff to implement the TA.

14.0 Bibliography
Clark, C (2007) “Why it is important to involve parents in their children’s literacy development”
National Literacy Trust January 2007
National Symposium on Community Schools (2015)
MOE (2015)
World Bank (2015), Education Statistics
Education for All Monitoring Report (2005), Understanding Education Quality
National Review Report (2015), Education for All (2015) National Review Report- Zambia
Varlas, L (2009) “Highly Effective Teachers: Defining, Rewarding, Supporting and Expanding Their Roles”,
Highly Effective Teaching. Vol 15. No. 1.
UNESCO (2011) Institute of Statistics
UNESCO (2015), Quality Education in Developing Countries
UNESCO/Sarah Wilkins (2012), EFA Global Monitoring Report, Education for All, Youth Skills: Putting
Education to work, Library of Congress Cataloguing in Publication, France
UNESCOPRESS (2014)
UNICEF (2011), UNICEF Report on Zambia
UN MGD Progress Report 2015)
World Vision Zambia Limited (2014) Child Well Being Report
Ziwira E (2009), “Creating a Conducive Environment”, The Herald 28th November, 2015

Improved Literacy for Children in Zambia

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