Glossary

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  • DEFINITION

    Placing students of similar academic ability in the same class (Dupriez, 2001: 24).

    Dupriez, V. 2001. Methods of grouping learners at school. Fundamentals of Educational Planning 93. Paris: UNESCO-IIEP.

    EXAMPLE OF USE

    Unification of  the  formal  arrangements  for  basic  education  has  also  tended  to  diversify  school  intake  and  to  make  the  task  of  teaching  in  most  schools more complex. In this context, ability grouping in schools may  seem  an  option  based  on  a  fairly  rational  organizational  approach (Gamoran et al., 1995) and on the educational assumption that, by grouping similar students together, it will be easier to ensure that their needs are properly met (Dupriez, 2001: 24).

    Dupriez, V. 2001. Methods of grouping learners at school. Fundamentals of Educational Planning 93. Paris: UNESCO-IIEP.

  • DEFINITION

    Access to education includes: on-schedule  enrolment  and  progression  at  an  appropriate  age, regular  attendance,  learning consistent with national achievement norms, a learning environment that is safe enough to allow learning to take place, and opportunities to learn that are equitably distributed (Lewin, 2015: 29).

    Lewin, Keith M. 2015. Educational access, equity, and development: planning to make rights realities. Fundamentals of Educational Planning 98. Paris: UNESCO-IIEP. 

    EXAMPLE OF USE

    Where the quality of learning and teaching varies widely, and where it is rationed by price or by other factors that constrain access, it is important to ensure that improvements in access to education are equitable and do not increase learning opportunity for some at the expense of others. Enhanced equity is an essential condition of an expanded vision of access (Lewin, 2015: 38).

    Lewin, Keith M. 2015. Educational access, equity, and development: planning to make rights realities. Fundamentals of Educational Planning 98. Paris: UNESCO-IIEP.

     

  • DEFINITION

    Accountability is a process, aimed at helping actors meet responsibilities and reach goals. Individuals or institutions are obliged, on the basis of a legal, political, social or moral justification, to provide an account of how they met clearly defined responsibilities.

    UNESCO. Accountability in education: meeting our commitments; Global education monitoring report, 2017/8. Paris: UNESCO, 2017.

    EXAMPLE OF USE

    Where officers feel a sense of accountability, organizations tend to function better. Efforts to strengthen accountability may be counterproductive, however, if officers feel isolated and unsupported. Unfortunately, few ministries have developed a genuine staff development programme and nor do they incite their staff members to take personal initiative in this regard. De-professionalization and demotivation of the civil service is a real risk, if the strengthening of external accountability is not accompanied by efforts towards professional development (De Grauwe, 2009: 16).

    De Grauwe, Anton. Without capacity, there is no development. Rethinking capacity development. Paris: UNESCO-IIEP, 2009.

  • DEFINITION

    Performance on standardized tests or examinations that measure knowledge or competence in a specific subject area. The term is sometimes used as an indication of education quality within an education system or when comparing a group of schools.

    UNESCO.2008. Education for All by 2015: will we make it? EFA global monitoring report, 2008. Paris: UNESCO.

    EXAMPLE OF USE

    "Differences in average pupil learning achievement between schools and classes are considerable, even after statistically controlling for individual characteristics. They underscore the extent to which strong learning outcomes depend on the availability, use, and management of school-based resources (UNESCO-BREDA, 2007) ", (UNESCO, 2008:68).

    UNESCO.2008. Education for All by 2015: will we make it? EFA global monitoring report, 2008. Paris: UNESCO.

     

  • DEFINITION

    Education specifically targeted at individuals who are regarded as adults by their society to improve their technical or professional qualifications, further develop their abilities, enrich their knowledge with the purpose to complete a level of formal education, or to acquire, refresh or update their knowledge, skills and competencies in a particular field. This also includes what may be referred to as ‘continuing education’, ‘recurrent education’ or ‘second chance education’.

    UIS. 2012. International Standard Classification of Education, ISCED 2011. Montreal: UIS.

    EXAMPLE OF USE

    Latin America and the Caribbean was one of the first regions to introduce the category of young people into the concept of adult education in the 1980s, due to their growing presence in educational programmes designed for adults. Youth and adult education continues to be the most representative conceptual classification covering what is principally second-chance or compensatory schooling, including literacy. (UIL, 2017: 27)

    UIL. 2017. CONFINTEA VI Mid-Term Review 2017: progress, challenges, and opportunities; the status of adult learning and education; summary of the regional reports. Hamburg: UIL.

  • DEFINITION

    The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is an inter-governmental commitment and “a plan of action for people, planet and prosperity”. It comprises 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that are “integrated and indivisible and balance the three dimensions of sustainable development: the economic, social and environmental (UNESCO, 2016: 4).

    UNESCO. 2016. Unpacking Sustainable Development Goal 4: Education 2030; guide. 2nd ed. Paris: UNESCO

    EXAMPLE OF USE

    Sustainable Development Goal 4: Education is central to the realization of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Within the comprehensive 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, education is essentially articulated as a stand-alone goal (SDG4) with its 7 outcome targets and 3 means of implementation (UNESCO, 2016: 4).

    UNESCO. 2016. Unpacking Sustainable Development Goal 4: Education 2030; guide. 2nd ed. Paris: UNESCO.

  • DEFINITION

    Basic learning needs refer to the knowledge, skills, attitudes and values necessary for people to survive, to improve the quality of their lives, and to continue learning.

    UNDO, UNESCO, UNICEF, WORLD BANK. 1990. Meeting Basic Learning Needs: A Vision for the 1990s; Background Document. USAUNICEF.

    EXAMPLE OF USE

    Important conceptual clarifications were made during this period, in conjunction with the International Literacy Year (1990) and the World Declaration on Education for All adopted in Jomtien, Thailand (1990). For example, UNESCO distinguished between literacy as a skill and literacy as a set of culturally and socially determined practices, and later endorsed efforts to promote the acquisition of literacy – newly conceived as ‘basic learning needs’ – on a continuum including formal and non-formal education, extended to people of all ages (UNESCO, 2004b) (UNESCO, 2005: 154).

    UNESCO. 2006. Education for All: Literacy for Life; EFA Global Monitoring Report, 2006. PARIS: UNESCO.

  • DEFINITION

    Usually refers to some minimum competence in reading, writing and calculating (using numbers). The term is synonymous with basic learning needs.

    UNESCO. 2006. Education for all: literacy for life; EFA global monitoring report, 2006. Paris: UNESCO. 

    EXAMPLE OF USE

    Very poor levels of learning in lower primary grades are resulting in millions of children leaving education before acquiring basic skills. Children who do not learn to read a text or do basic calculations in the lower grades are likely to struggle throughout their school careers, their commitment to education is likely to diminish and they are more likely to drop out (UNESCO, 2015: 192).

    UNESCO. 2006. Education for all: literacy for life; EFA global monitoring report, 2006. Paris: UNESCO. 

  • DEFINITION

    Implies the enhancement of capabilities of people and institutions to improve their competence and problem solving capacities in a sustainable manner.

    UNESCO Thesaurus

    EXAMPLE OF USE

    Where a programme is financed by external agencies, the fifth option may also involve the issue of ownership and control: should the local agency – whether governmental or non-governmental – be responsible for the samples, or should the financier accept them? Currently, the general policy is to encourage local ownership and control in the interests of promoting capacity-building, although external specialists are often imported to help with the design and analysis (Oxenham, 2008: 112).

    Oxenham, J. 2008. Effective literacy programmes: options for policy-makers. Fundamentals of Educational Planning 91. Paris: UNESCO-IIEP.

  • DEFINITION

    The catchment area is the geographical area served by  a school. (In order to delineate it, pinpoint pupils' homes and outline the smallest area covering all of them).

    Hallak, J. 1977. Planning the location of schools: an instrument of educational policy. Paris: UNESCO-IIEP.

    EXAMPLE OF USE

    There  is very  little difficulty in interpreting  the objective of opening schools in such a way that all children enjoy equal opportunity of access to them.  Indeed it seems to be a basic element of all policies to reduce disparities.  Generally, though, accessibility is defined  solely in terms of  physical  accessibility.  To measure  this we would have to take into account distance, relief, communications, and  the time taken to travel between school and home, bearing  in mind available means of transport.  The problem therefore consists  in determining  the catchment areas of existing schools  in order to identify, on the one hand, the population that lies outside  these catchment areas and is therefore deprived of any education service  for reasons of physical accessibility, and, on the other hand, to estimate, inside the catchment areas  (i.e. in the areas reached by the school system) the proportion of school-age  children  actually managing to find places in the schools (Caillods, et al: 118).

    Caillods, F.; Casselli, J. Ta Ngoc Châu; Porte, G. 1983. School mapping and micro-planning in education. Training materials in educational planning, administration and facilities. Paris: UNESCO-IIEP.

  • DEFINITION

    The child-friendly school model is based on the simple premise that schools can and should operate in the best interests of the child. Educational environments must be safe, healthy and protective, staffed with trained teachers, equipped with adequate resources and offering conditions appropriate for learning.

    UNICEF. 2009. Quality education and child-friendly schools. Actions for children Issue 5.

    EXAMPLE OF USE

    If education systems are fully inclusive, quality education can be extended to all groups as a matter of routine. Bringing this about requires systems-level interventions. Instead of just ‘doing’ child-friendly schools in local communities, CFS models are ‘sold’ as good practice for the entire education system (UNICEF, 2009: 6).

    UNICEF. 2009. Child-friendly schools manual. New York: UNICEF.

  • DEFINITION

    Techniques used in the classroom or in any other educational setting to create propitious learning conditions; includes discipline, management, sitting arrangement.

    UNESCO Thesaurus

    EXAMPLE OF USE

    Governments should take active steps to strengthen teaching in early grades. Teacher education systems need to be reinvigorated to assure the success of such interventions. Pre-service training programmes appear to be paying insufficient attention to the teaching of reading. Courses need to increase the emphasis on effective classroom techniques. In-service training programmes engaging teachers in an interactive way can ensure that knowledge is converted into better classroom practice. Benefits are likely to be most noticeable where training is combined with other interventions, such as improved instructional materials (UNESCO, 2012: 135).

    UNESCO. 2012. Youth and Skills: Putting Education to Work, EFA Global Monitoring Report, 2012. Paris: UNESCO.

  • DEFINITION

    The ideal number of pupil-years required for a cohort to complete a level or cycle of education (e.g. the primary level) should there be no repetition nor drop-out, divided by the total number of pupil-years actually spent by the same cohort.

    UNESCO. 2001. Latin America and the Caribbean (Spanish and Portuguese-Speaking Countries): Statistics and Indicators on Education, 1998/99; Regional Report. Paris: UNESCO.

    EXAMPLE OF USE

    The third variable, the coefficient of efficiency, is obtained by dividing the number of pupil-years normally required to complete the primary cycle by the number of pupil-years actually spent. Thus, higher coefficients indicate greater efficiency, pupils spending on average less time to complete the primary education cycle. Although these data do not show the disparities between urban and rural areas, there appears to be a weak inverse correlation between the efficiency factors and the rurality of a country. In any case, the data do illustrate how pervasive the problem of primary schooling ‘wastage’ is, rural pupils typically spending far too much time in primary education (IIEP and FAO, 2003: 88).

    IIEP and FAO. 2003. Education for rural development: towards new policy responses. Paris: UNESCO-IIEP.