The global crisis in education needs a “dramatic shift” to shape a more peaceful, sustainable, and just world, the UN Secretary-General said. António Guterres was taking part in a Special Event on Transforming Education – part of the ongoing High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) and looking ahead to the upcoming Summit of the Future in September. The event was a call to action, with the UN chief calling on all countries to make a concerted effort to establish genuine learning environments that will provide learning opportunities from childhood to adult stages. The UN Sec Gen remarks called for national and global actions leading up to the UN Summit on the Future in September and the UNESCO Global Meeting on Education in October. Go to the concept note/agenda for the special forum on education,.
UN chief calls for ‘dramatic shift’ to transform education worldwide at High Level Political Forum7/24/2024
0 Comments
Do unprecedented drops in student performance (PISA results) signal a global education crisis?7/24/2024 Despite significant aid disbursements for education, the sector has apparently not fully recovered from the negative effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. The latest OECD-run survey – the PISA study – has revealed significant results, one being the ‘unprecedented drop’ in maths and reading performance. The closure of educational institutions and the transition to online or hybrid learning have had a negative impact on academic performance. The report also showed a widening gap between high-performing and low-performing countries. In this context, there is an urgent need for education systems to adapt and transform in order to prepare students for the future. Let’s look at these results through the lens of international education experts. Go to article.
Global childhood immunization coverage stalled in 2023, leaving 2.7 million additional children un- and under-vaccinated compared to pre-pandemic levels in 2019, according to World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF data. The latest WHO and UNICEF estimates of national immunization coverage (WUENIC) – which provide the world’s largest and most comprehensive dataset on immunization trends for vaccinations against 14 diseases – underscore the need for ongoing catch-up, recovery, and system-strengthening efforts. Go to story.
Top UN officials called for urgent reforms to the international financial system to boost efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030. Addressing the preparatory committee (PrepComm) for the fourth International Conference on Financing for Development, UN Secretary-General António Guterres and Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed highlighted the persistent challenges developing nations face and the imperative for ambitious global financial reforms. Go to story.
Environmental shocks and long-term climate shifts impact children's wellbeing, yet our understanding of how education systems interact with these events is limited. South Asia in particular is susceptible to such shocks, and governments frequently mandate school closures in response to extreme heat and inclement weather. In this blog we examine past trends of educational responses to such events in the region. Go to blog post.
Overall, 80 articles reporting on 71 original research studies describing a total of 48 antibullying interventions met the inclusion criteria for this review. Two schoolwide interventions received a high-evidence rating: the KiVa (Kiusaamista Vastaan) Antibullying Program and the Friendly Schools program. Multilevel interventions with components at the levels of school, classroom, and individual student most consistently showed strong evidence for reducing bullying behavior in elementary and middle school grades. Four interventions yielded positive effects in reducing bullying and victimization among diverse samples of students. Go to the review.
After screening and reviewing the retrieved articles, 20 studies were included in the systematic review and six eligible studies were selected for meta-analysis. The computed effect size of school-based oral health education in low- and middle-income countries showed improved knowledge, behavior, oral hygiene, and gingival health from the selected studies. However, most of the interventions took place for less than one year, and long-term evidence is still lacking. As repetition and reinforcement are critical in maintaining long-term effects, both country context and sustainability should be considered in school-based oral health education. Go to the review
In January 2023, the Leading Through Learning Global Platform published a series of case studies, two of which featured promising practices in how education systems across the world responded during and after the COVID-19 pandemic: Promising Practices in Implementing Accelerated and Remedial Education in COVID-19 Response and Promising Practices in Providing Psychosocial Support, Social and Emotional Learning, and Access to Protection Service in COVID-19 Response. The practices identified in the two case studies highlighted the ability for teachers, students, communities, and systems to be resilient in the face of a crisis. The promising practices from these two reports are combined in this policy brief.
This report from the UN High Commission on Refugees explores how primary education for refugees can be improved in terms of access, quality, finance and policy and assesses the successes achieved. Go to the report
WHO has launched an Investment Round program in an effort to mobilize funding for its operations over the next four years. The idea for seeking new investors was conceived in January of this year as the WHO shifts from being primarily an advisory and record-keeping agency to an organization more focused on strengthening global governance and taking a leading role in determining responses to health emergencies.In previous years, the WHO’s funding came primarily from voluntary contributions from Germany and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, but after the COVID-19 pandemic put the WHO in the spotlight, it began looking for additional income sources in order to ensure a more reliable and predictable budgetary process. When the WHO was initially founded in 1948, it relied solely on contributions from UN member states to fund its work. Today, however, UN member states only contribute 20% of the WHO’s budget with the rest coming entirely from donors. In 2019, the WHO’s operating budget, composed of both assessed contributions and donated funds, amounted to just around $2 billion. This year, that number rose to $6.7 billion, and the WHO is hoping that its new Investment Round will add an additional $7.1 billion in voluntary funding to their operating budget over the next four years. In a white paper entitled “All for Health, Health for All,” the WHO lays out its case for why the private sector should invest in the agency’s 2025-2028 program. Go to the WHO White Paper
In its latest investment plan, if fully funded, could protect 500 million children in its next five-year strategic period, saving over 8 million lives. The announced targets mean that while Gavi vaccinated one billion children between 2000 and 2020, it is aiming to reach the next billion children in half the time. This acceleration through 2030 is critical at a time when countries combat the increasing risks of climate change, fragility, and economic instability – and in the last push towards the Sustainable Development Goals.Go to the GAVI plan
A June 2024 Lancet article summarizes data from from 507 surveys across 163 countries and territories. The study defined insufficient physical activity as not doing 150 minutes of moderate-intensity activity, 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity
activity, or an equivalent combination per week. The global age-standardised prevalence of insufficient physical activity was 31·3% in 2022, an increase from 23·4% in 2000 and 26·4% in 2010. Go to the report Inspired by the recommendations from the study, Peace Education in Northeast Asia: A Situational Analysis (APCEIU, 2021), APCEIU coordinated a project to develop a common curriculum for peace education in Northeast Asia. Go to the guide.
Global Citizenship Education: A Handbook for Parents, Community and Learners in Asia-Pacific7/17/2024 This handbook aspires to engage and involve parents, caregivers and the community to join the mission of developing every learner into a global citizen. To achieve this, parents, caregivers and the community will need to be empowered with the necessary GCED knowledge and skills too. In this handbook, GCED related concepts are introduced, alongside adaptable step-by-step action plans and best practices collected across the Asia-Pacific region to support parents and the community to take action in developing GCED competences in learners. Go to the handbook.
Education Cannot Wait (ECW) has launched its Multi-Year Resilience Programme (MYRP) Manual, a comprehensive toolkit to guide the development and implementation of ECW MYRPs around the world. While the MYRP is initiated in crisis contexts, its aim is ultimately to ensure that emergency education provision is integrated into development strategies and national education plans. In this way, MYRPs can have an impact across the humanitarian-development nexus to address immediate needs, while also strengthening education systems and capacities to achieve sustainable impact and transformation.
The Multi-Year Resilience Programme Manual is a practical tool that provides a step-by-step guide to developing and implementing ECW’s MYRPs. The Manual is particularly relevant to those engaged in any part of the MYRP lifecycle at the country level or at headquarters. Go to the Manual. As the International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction (IDDRR) 2024 celebrates the protection and empowerment of children and youth to become disaster resilient, UNDRR has created an Activation Toolkit with resources for educators to introduce their students to disaster risk reduction. The toolkit offers a variety of resources for teachers, ranging from links to comic books and short videos, to a link to our Stop Disasters video game, which can engage a whole classroom. Go to the Toolkit
Report: Progress on drinking water, sanitation and hygiene in schools 2015-2023 (WHO, UNICEF)7/17/2024 This May 2024 report from the WHO-UNICEF Joint Monitoring Program on WASH presents updated national, regional and global estimates for WASH in schools for the period 2015 to 2023 and has a special focus on menstrual health. This update assesses progress on WASH in schools between 2015 and 2023, which represents the mid-point of the SDG period. It shows that the world is not on track to achieve universal access (>99%) to basic WASH services in schools by 2030. Achieving universal coverage will require a twofold increase in the current rate of progress on basic drinking water, a twofold increase in progress on basic sanitation, and a fourfold increase in progress on basic hygiene services. Based on current trajectories, only 86% of schools will have a basic water service, 87% will have a basic sanitation service, and 74% will have a basic hygiene service in 2030.. Go to Report.
The UNESCO Global Education Monitoring (GEM) Report is introducing a new series to advance dialogue on the interrelationships of education with the other Sustainable Development Goals. The first paper in the series focuses on climate change and is written in partnership with the Monitoring and Evaluating Climate Change Communication and Education (MECCE) project. Released on June 5, World Environment Day, Learning to act for people and planet, takes a comprehensive approach to review the various links between education and climate change in formal, non-formal and informal settings. The report also proposes a new indicator measuring countries’ green education content. The indicator assesses national curriculum frameworks and syllabi in primary and secondary education. Read the report.
UNICEF EAPRO developed the Nutrition Environment Assessment Toolkit for Schools (NEAT-S) in East Asia and the Pacific to provide data for policymakers and individual schools on the status of school nutrition environments. This aids in setting priorities and developing effective policies.
The toolkit includes:
The World Health Organization (WHO) is releasing the second edition of its biennial report, “Working for a brighter, healthier future: how WHO improves health and promotes well-being for the world’s adolescents”. The document captures WHO’s response across the three levels – headquarters, regional and country offices – to meet the multifaceted needs of the estimated 1.3 billion adolescents (aged 10 –19 years) worldwide. Read the report.
This report explores the concept, considering how it is addressed at international and national levels. Internationally, there are common calls for the proactive integration of safety measures into digital products and services, as well as for transparent, accountable and child-friendly service delivery. National laws prescribe practical tools and measures such as age assurance and accessible complaint mechanisms. Focusing on actions for digital service providers, the report suggests eight key components for digital safety. Read the paper.
This report highlights the substantial impact of commercial determinants on noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) in the WHO European Region. Nearly 7500 deaths per day in the Region are attributed to commercial determinants, such as tobacco, alcohol,processed food, fossil fuels and occupational practices. These commercial products and practices contribute to 25% of all deaths in the Region. Read the report.
The World Health Organization (WHO) and STOP, a global tobacco industry watchdog, are launching today “Hooking the next generation,” a report highlighting how the tobacco and nicotine industry designs products, implements marketing campaigns and works to shape policy environments to help them addict the world’s youth. Read the report.
his paper traces the evolution of school meals programs globally, examines the empirical evidence underpinning them, reviews select implementation practices with an emphasis on South Asia, and provides one of the first estimates of World Bank’s investments in school meals. Read the report.
Education can be the key to ending poverty in a livable planet, but governments must act now to protect it. Climate change is increasing the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events such as cyclones, floods, droughts, heatwaves and wildfires. These extreme weather events are in turn disrupting schooling; precipitating learning losses, dropouts, and long-term impacts. Even if the most drastic climate mitigation strategies were implemented, extreme weather events will continue to have detrimental impacts on education outcomes. Read the report
|
Welcome to our
|
RSS Feed