Policies

Strengthening Teacher Accountability to Reach All Students (STARS)

Context and Issue

Ghana has seen progress in education, but learning outcomes remain poor, with many students lacking proficiency in English and mathematics. To address this, the government plans to increase targeted instruction in primary schools, focusing on students' individual knowledge levels rather than grade levels. A study will evaluate the impact of enhanced training and supervision on teacher performance and student success.

Solution

STARS, a randomized intervention, aims to assess the expansion of targeted instruction in primary schools across 20 districts in Ghana. The project has three main goals: firstly, to determine if targeted instruction enhances learning outcomes for upper primary students; secondly, to gauge the effectiveness of a management training initiative in promoting the use of targeted instruction within schools; and thirdly, to ascertain whether combining management training with targeted instruction further enhances student learning outcomes.

Impact 

STARS led to improvements in at least two favorable teaching attributes. Initially, instructors showed an approximately 11 percentage point rise in their presence in the classroom throughout the lesson, marking a 15 percent surge compared to the control group's average of 72 percent. Additionally, there was a roughly 10 percentage point increase in teachers' interaction with students, reflecting a 16 percent enhancement over the control group's mean of 64 percent. 

Analysis

A comprehensive monitoring mechanism is required