Training, inspiring and motivating early grade teachers to strengthen children’s skills in literacy and numeracy (Sierra Leone)

About

UNICEF, together with Sierra Leone's Ministry of Basic and Senior Secondary Education, conducted a national baseline assessment in 2021 to establish the reading and numeracy skills of 4,729 students (2,348 girls) in Grades 2 and 4. The study revealed that nearly a quarter of the 476 teachers surveyed had only a basic education and lacked certified training to become a teacher.

The Government, recognizing that foundational learning cannot happen without skilled teachers, veered attention towards upgrading the skills of in-service and pre-service primary school teachers. Since July 2021, the Ministry, Teaching Service Commission and UNICEF initiated an early grade teacher training programme to improve literacy and numeracy among children in Grades 1-3, helping more than 600,000 students acquire these foundational skills that are essential for further learning, productive employment and civic engagement.