IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/injoed/v79y2020ics0738059320304478.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Failing adult learners: Why Rwanda’s adult literacy education is not delivering

Author

Listed:
  • Abbott, Pamela
  • Mugisha, Roger
  • Mtika, Peter
  • Nzabalirwa, Wenceslas

Abstract

Having a literate society has been a policy objective of the Rwandan Government for 20 years. However, in practice, it has never been a high priority, although investing in adult literacy education has the potential to contribute to socio-economic transformation. This paper reports on findings from a survey, key informant interviews and focus group discussions. We show that learners rarely benefit from attending literacy classes. Extreme poverty, lack of a ‘culture of reading’ and the poor delivery of literacy classes are the main barriers to student learning. Without more investment in training tutors, infrastructure and learning resources, the policy implementation gap will persist.

Suggested Citation

  • Abbott, Pamela & Mugisha, Roger & Mtika, Peter & Nzabalirwa, Wenceslas, 2020. "Failing adult learners: Why Rwanda’s adult literacy education is not delivering," International Journal of Educational Development, Elsevier, vol. 79(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:injoed:v:79:y:2020:i:c:s0738059320304478
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ijedudev.2020.102288
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0738059320304478
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.ijedudev.2020.102288?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Petra Debusscher & An Ansoms, 2013. "Gender Equality Policies in Rwanda: Public Relations or Real Transformations?," Development and Change, International Institute of Social Studies, vol. 44(5), pages 1111-1134, September.
    2. Niels-Hugo Blunch, 2017. "Adult literacy programs in developing countries," IZA World of Labor, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA), pages 374-374, July.
    3. United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultura [UNESCO], 2015. "Education for All 2000-2015: Achievements and Challenges," Working Papers id:7512, eSocialSciences.
    4. Gizaw, Abiy Menkir & Rogers, Alan & Warkineh, Turuwark Zalalam, 2019. "Leaving the job half done? An analysis of mid-term withdrawals by facilitators in some adult literacy learning programmes," International Journal of Educational Development, Elsevier, vol. 65(C), pages 194-206.
    5. An Ansoms & Donatella Rostagno, 2012. "Rwanda's Vision 2020 halfway through: what the eye does not see," Review of African Political Economy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 39(133), pages 427-450, September.
    6. Charl C. Wolhuter & Nicola Barbieri, 2017. "Is The Ideal Of Universal Adult Literacy In The World By The Year 2030 Statistically Attainable?," Rivista Internazionale di Scienze Sociali, Vita e Pensiero, Pubblicazioni dell'Universita' Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, vol. 135(1), pages 87-102.
    7. Charl C. Wolhuter & Nicola Barbieri, 2017. "Is The Ideal Of Universal Adult Literacy In The World By The Year 2030 Statistically Attainable?," Rivista Internazionale di Scienze Sociali, Vita e Pensiero, Pubblicazioni dell'Universita' Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, vol. 125(1), pages 87-102.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Bayley, Stephen H., 2022. "Learning for adaptation and 21st-century skills: Evidence of pupils’ flexibility in Rwandan primary schools," International Journal of Educational Development, Elsevier, vol. 93(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Debusscher, Petra, 2014. "Gender mainstreaming on the ground? The case of EU development aid towards Rwanda," European Integration online Papers (EIoP), European Community Studies Association Austria (ECSA-A), vol. 18, November.
    2. Independent Evaluation Group, 2016. "Program-for-Results," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 25770.
    3. Mizunoya, Suguru & Mitra, Sophie & Yamasaki, Izumi, 2018. "Disability and school attendance in 15 low- and middle-income countries," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 104(C), pages 388-403.
    4. Devon E.A. Curtis, 2015. "Development assistance and the lasting legacies of rebellion in Burundi and Rwanda," Third World Quarterly, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 36(7), pages 1365-1381, July.
    5. Altinok, Nadir & Aydemir, Abdurrahman, 2017. "Does one size fit all? The impact of cognitive skills on economic growth," Journal of Macroeconomics, Elsevier, vol. 53(C), pages 176-190.
    6. Dr. RWABUTOGO ZOGEYE Marcel (PhD) & Dr. Benard Nuwatuhaire (PhD), 2020. "Effect of Performance contract “Imihigo†on Socio-Economic Development in Rwanda. Gakenke District," International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science, International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS), vol. 4(6), pages 717-723, June.
    7. UNESCO Publishing, 2015. "The Economic Cost of Out-of-School Children in Southeast Asia," Working Papers id:7651, eSocialSciences.
    8. Langsten, Ray & Hassan, Tahra, 2018. "Primary education completion in Egypt: Trends and determinants," International Journal of Educational Development, Elsevier, vol. 59(C), pages 136-145.
    9. Thomas,Michael Stephen Charles & Knowland, Victoria C. P. & Rogers, Cathy, 2020. "The Science of Adult Literacy," Policy Research Working Paper Series 145579, The World Bank.
    10. Kilburn, Kelly & Handa, Sudhanshu & Angeles, Gustavo & Mvula, Peter & Tsoka, Maxton, 2017. "Short-term impacts of an unconditional cash transfer program on child schooling: Experimental evidence from Malawi," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 59(C), pages 63-80.
    11. Simplice A. Asongu & Jacinta C. Nwachukwu & Chris Pyke, 2019. "The Comparative Economics of ICT, Environmental Degradation and Inclusive Human Development in Sub-Saharan Africa," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 143(3), pages 1271-1297, June.
    12. Pritish Behuria & Tom Goodfellow, 2016. "The political settlement and ‘deals environment’ in Rwanda: Unpacking two decades of economic growth," Global Development Institute Working Paper Series esid-057-16, GDI, The University of Manchester.
    13. Vani K. Borooah, 2017. "Measuring Inequality of Access to Higher Education in India," Journal of Quantitative Economics, Springer;The Indian Econometric Society (TIES), vol. 15(2), pages 241-263, June.
    14. Sandrine A. Koissy-Kpein, 2015. "Gender-based violence and gender bias in schooling decision: Evidence from sub-Saharan Africa," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2015-107, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    15. Irina V. Zastrozhnikova & Nadiia V. Datsii & Nelya M. Filyanina & Petro S. Oleshko & Nataliia M. Shkvorchenko & Liliia A. Martynets, 2020. "Financial and Economic Support of the Organization of the Educational Process," International Journal of Economics & Business Administration (IJEBA), International Journal of Economics & Business Administration (IJEBA), vol. 0(Special 1), pages 299-309.
    16. Karolin Andersson & Katarina Pettersson & Johanna Bergman Lodin, 2022. "Window dressing inequalities and constructing women farmers as problematic—gender in Rwanda’s agriculture policy," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 39(4), pages 1245-1261, December.
    17. Ernestina Coast & Marie Merci Mwali & Roberte Isimbi & Ernest Ngabonzima & Paola Pereznieto & Serafina Buzby & Rebecca Dutton & Sarah Baird, 2021. "‘If She’s Pregnant, then that Means that Her Dreams Fade Away’: Exploring Experiences of Adolescent Pregnancy and Motherhood in Rwanda," The European Journal of Development Research, Palgrave Macmillan;European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI), vol. 33(5), pages 1274-1302, October.
    18. Sandrine A. Koissy-Kpein, 2015. "Gender-based violence and gender bias in schooling decision: Evidence from sub-Saharan Africa," WIDER Working Paper Series 107, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    19. Simplice A. Asongu & Nicholas M. Odhiambo & Mushfiqur Rahman, 2024. "Information Technology, Inequality, and Adult Literacy in Developing Countries," Journal of the Knowledge Economy, Springer;Portland International Center for Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), vol. 15(1), pages 3927-3945, March.
    20. Josef Kuo-Hsun Ma & Todd E. Vachon & Simon Cheng, 2019. "National Income, Political Freedom, and Investments in R&D and Education: A Comparative Analysis of the Second Digital Divide Among 15-Year-Old Students," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 144(1), pages 133-166, July.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:injoed:v:79:y:2020:i:c:s0738059320304478. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.journals.elsevier.com/international-journal-of-educational-development .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.