Education Systems in Eastern Africa: Creating Life-Long Learners for Development

It is now widely accepted that the Eastern African region is experiencing a crisis in learning. Despite impressive and sustained improvements in enrolment, it remains unclear how much students are actually learning in the classroom. This crisis in learning is multi-dimensional, and extends from the primary level to post-secondary education. Despite decades of efforts to improve outcomes in the education sector, patterns of teacher absenteeism, poor parental involvement, outdated examination methods, and highly siloed disciplinary teaching persist. As a result of these challenges, a growing number of private sector employers are expressing concerns that graduates from the region are not well-prepared to participate productively in the workforce.