Abstract
This chapter reflects upon how Literacy Boost, a program based on findings from mainly developed world literature, functions when it is placed in the SSA context. The data come directly from schools in three countries in SSA. We first describe Literacy Boost and outline the research upon which Literacy Boost was designed. We then summarize briefly the research on two of the dimensions of equity which Literacy Boost seeks to address: the achievement gap between the sexes and the poor access to reading resources experienced by children in rural, developing world settings. Using multivariate regression analysis, we find that Literacy Boost overall had significant positive impact on the reading skills of students. However, for groups that are traditionally disadvantaged (e.g., girls or those with poor access to reading resources), we find no differential impact of Literacy Boost. We consider the implications of using developed world research in developing world settings and examine the implications for future practice in literacy programming across the continent. We then turn back to the literature and reflect on how well research findings from the developed world apply to the developing world, as well as how applicable our own findings are across the sub-Saharan region.
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Notes
- 1.
One of the original contributors to the teacher training manual also drew on her experiences in Latin America, working with organizations such as the Amigos del Aprendizaje program in Costa Rica (www.ada.or.cr ), the Un Buen Comienzo (www.unbuencomienzo.cl ) program in Chile and the Escola Que Vale (www.escolaquevale.org.br ) program in Brazil.
- 2.
For example, the largest sample size of 314 students implies only about a 40 percent chance of detecting a 0.3 standard deviation effect size and only about a 60 percent chance of detecting a 0.4 standard deviation effect size.
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Appendix: Multivariate Regression Models by Country and Outcome
Appendix: Multivariate Regression Models by Country and Outcome
Ethiopia: Overall models predicting learning gains
Variables | Concepts about print gain | Letters gain | High-frequency words gain | Fluency gain | Accuracy gain | Reading comp gain |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
LB school | 0.0580* | 0.0669** | 0.207*** | 12.89*** | 0.210*** | −0.00443 |
(0.0247) | (0.0248) | (0.0529) | (3.015) | (0.0579) | (0.156) | |
Sex (1 = Female) | 0.0299 | 0.0343 | 0.0551 | −0.453 | 0.0511 | −0.158 |
(0.0183) | (0.0184) | (0.0393) | (2.242) | (0.0431) | (0.116) | |
Age in years | −0.00370 | −0.00925 | −0.0263* | −1.522* | −0.0248 | 0.0232 |
(0.00622) | (0.00624) | (0.0133) | (0.761) | (0.0146) | (0.0393) | |
Quintile of SES | −0.00480 | −0.00129 | 0.00780 | −0.474 | 0.00696 | 0.0175 |
(0.00666) | (0.00668) | (0.0143) | (0.814) | (0.0156) | (0.0420) | |
Quintile of HLE | −0.00134 | −0.00392 | −0.00461 | 0.971 | −0.000979 | 0.0588 |
(0.00630) | (0.00632) | (0.0135) | (0.767) | (0.0147) | (0.0398) | |
Constant | 0.0603 | 0.120 | 0.306* | 26.00** | 0.355* | 0.0347 |
(0.0722) | (0.0724) | (0.155) | (8.845) | (0.170) | (0.456) | |
Observations | 317 | 317 | 315 | 314 | 314 | 317 |
Adjusted R 2 | 0.0122 | 0.0275 | 0.0577 | 0.0609 | 0.0462 | 0.00109 |
Malawi: Overall models predicting learning gains, grade 2
Variables | Concepts about print gain | Chichewa high-frequency words gain | English high-frequency words gain | Chichewa fluency gain | English fluency gain | Chichewa accuracy gain | English accuracy gain | Chichewa reading comp gain | English reading comp gain | Chichewa writing gain | English writing gain |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
LB school | 0.171 | 12.75*** | 7.117*** | 2.387*** | 0.676 | 9.884*** | 3.446* | 0.621*** | 0.0539 | 2.190*** | 0.402** |
(0.320) | (2.876) | (2.002) | (0.712) | (0.437) | (2.715) | (1.509) | (0.130) | (0.0404) | (0.407) | (0.147) | |
Sex (1 = Female) | −0.0828 | 2.874 | 0.702 | −0.696 | 0.109 | −2.922 | −0.614 | −0.104 | −0.0674 | −0.165 | −0.227 |
(0.321) | (2.875) | (2.001) | (0.712) | (0.437) | (2.714) | (1.508) | (0.130) | (0.0404) | (0.407) | (0.147) | |
Age in years | 0.0682 | 0.400 | 0.280 | 0.101 | 0.0734 | 0.243 | 0.424 | 0.00969 | 0.0112 | 0.0812 | 0.0488 |
(0.0716) | (0.651) | (0.453) | (0.161) | (0.0989) | (0.614) | (0.341) | (0.0294) | (0.00915) | (0.0921) | (0.0333) | |
Quintiles of SES | −0.0517 | 1.784 | 0.508 | 0.217 | 0.114 | 1.736 | −0.252 | 0.0681 | 0.0207 | 0.142 | 0.0637 |
(0.108) | (0.962) | (0.670) | (0.238) | (0.146) | (0.909) | (0.505) | (0.0435) | (0.0135) | (0.136) | (0.0492) | |
Quintiles of HLE | 0.349 | 0.785 | 4.486** | −0.0917 | −0.0588 | −0.222 | 1.583 | −0.00307 | −0.0384 | −0.135 | −0.220 |
(0.251) | (2.273) | (1.583) | (0.563) | (0.346) | (2.146) | (1.193) | (0.103) | (0.0320) | (0.322) | (0.116) | |
Constant | 1.088 | −5.336 | −7.124 | −0.772 | −0.844 | −4.086 | −3.806 | −0.167 | −0.112 | −0.495 | −0.360 |
(0.815) | (7.445) | (5.183) | (1.844) | (1.132) | (7.029) | (3.907) | (0.336) | (0.105) | (1.054) | (0.381) | |
Observations | 213 | 231 | 231 | 231 | 231 | 231 | 231 | 231 | 231 | 231 | 231 |
Adjusted R 2 | −0.00498 | 0.0807 | 0.0753 | 0.0326 | −0.00607 | 0.0498 | 0.0187 | 0.0798 | 0.0152 | 0.0997 | 0.0426 |
Malawi: Overall models predicting learning gains, grade 4
Variables | Chichewa high-frequency words gain | English high-frequency words gain | Chichewa fluency gain | English fluency gain | Chichewa accuracy gain | English accuracy gain | Chichewa reading comp gain | English reading comp gain | Chichewa writing gain | English writing gain |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
LB school | 4.309 | 6.602 | 0.0702 | 5.194 | −0.826 | 11.53* | 0.649* | 0.221 | 1.288 | 0.510 |
(4.132) | (3.452) | (2.764) | (2.731) | (4.443) | (4.537) | (0.260) | (0.157) | (0.868) | (0.514) | |
Sex (1 = Female) | 5.064 | 2.407 | −3.305 | −0.289 | 7.714 | 3.869 | 0.129 | −0.195 | 0.129 | −0.209 |
(4.034) | (3.370) | (2.699) | (2.667) | (4.338) | (4.430) | (0.254) | (0.153) | (0.847) | (0.502) | |
Age in years | −0.440 | 0.0327 | −0.175 | −0.288 | −0.620 | −0.527 | −0.0332 | −0.0358 | 0.155 | −0.0595 |
(1.087) | (0.908) | (0.727) | (0.718) | (1.169) | (1.193) | (0.0685) | (0.0411) | (0.228) | (0.135) | |
Quintiles of SES | 0.355 | −0.349 | −1.067 | −0.900 | 0.000480 | −2.298 | −0.152 | −0.0785 | −0.172 | 0.173 |
(1.399) | (1.169) | (0.936) | (0.925) | (1.505) | (1.537) | (0.0883) | (0.0530) | (0.294) | (0.174) | |
Quintiles of HLE | −1.739 | 3.775 | −0.343 | 1.382 | −2.239 | 0.140 | 0.00751 | −0.0875 | 0.0109 | −0.265 |
(2.854) | (2.385) | (1.910) | (1.887) | (3.069) | (3.134) | (0.179) | (0.109) | (0.599) | (0.355) | |
Constant | 14.40 | 12.06 | 20.78* | 16.68 | 19.39 | 25.84 | 1.621 | 1.047* | −0.231 | 1.669 |
(13.65) | (11.41) | (9.135) | (9.025) | (14.68) | (14.99) | (0.859) | (0.515) | (2.867) | (1.699) | |
Observations | 211 | 211 | 211 | 211 | 211 | 211 | 210 | 209 | 211 | 211 |
Adjusted R 2 | −0.00655 | 0.00632 | −0.00937 | 0.00020 | −0.00547 | 0.0242 | 0.0246 | 0.0168 | −0.0102 | −0.00780 |
Zimbabwe: Overall models predicting learning gains
Variables | Concepts about print gain | Letters gain | Shona high-frequency words | English high-frequency words | Shona fluency | English fluency | Shona accuracy | English accuracy | Shona reading comp gain | English reading comp gain |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
LB school | 0.0496 | 5.393** | 0.321 | 2.800* | 10.04*** | 11.70*** | 0.149* | 0.146* | 0.0601 | 0.0220 |
(0.0464) | (1.891) | (1.355) | (1.120) | (2.676) | (3.017) | (0.0748) | (0.0665) | (0.0521) | (0.0499) | |
Sex (1 = Female) | 0.000701 | 0.273 | 0.00458 | 0.606 | 1.754 | 1.090 | 0.0664 | 0.0519 | −0.00173 | −0.0233 |
(0.0425) | (1.741) | (1.248) | (1.031) | (2.383) | (2.758) | (0.0666) | (0.0608) | (0.0480) | (0.0459) | |
Age in years | 0.00516 | 0.109 | −0.0931 | 0.168 | −0.142 | −0.698 | 0.0169 | 0.00566 | −0.00485 | 0.0186 |
(0.0176) | (0.716) | (0.513) | (0.424) | (0.982) | (1.142) | (0.0274) | (0.0252) | (0.0197) | (0.0189) | |
Quintiles of SES | 0.000196 | −0.387 | −0.602 | 0.0691 | 0.523 | 2.084* | 0.000327 | −0.0110 | −0.00455 | −0.00231 |
(0.0152) | (0.619) | (0.444) | (0.367) | (0.846) | (0.980) | (0.0236) | (0.0216) | (0.0171) | (0.0163) | |
Quintiles of HLE | −0.0410* | −1.071 | 0.111 | −0.415 | 2.062* | 0.907 | −0.0171 | −0.000832 | 0.00284 | 0.0113 |
(0.0159) | (0.655) | (0.470) | (0.388) | (0.915) | (1.037) | (0.0256) | (0.0229) | (0.0181) | (0.0173) | |
Constant | 0.0126 | 7.349 | 6.550 | 1.463 | −7.261 | 2.158 | −0.00451 | 0.117 | 0.0827 | −0.156 |
(0.182) | (7.369) | (5.282) | (4.364) | (10.18) | (11.77) | (0.284) | (0.260) | (0.203) | (0.194) | |
Observations | 147 | 149 | 149 | 149 | 143 | 148 | 143 | 148 | 149 | 149 |
Adjusted R 2 | 0.0273 | 0.0524 | −0.0208 | 0.0207 | 0.111 | 0.116 | 0.00374 | 0.00704 | −0.0236 | −0.0229 |
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Friedlander, E., Dowd, A.J., Guajardo, J., Pisani, L. (2017). Education for All or Literacy for All? Evaluating Student Outcomes from Save the Children’s Literacy Boost Program in Sub-Saharan Africa. In: Abubakar, A., van de Vijver, F. (eds) Handbook of Applied Developmental Science in Sub-Saharan Africa. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-7328-6_19
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