LSI received an award from Creative Associates International as a subcontractor on the Northern Education Initiative + for Nigeria.  The five year project has the goal of improving early reading and math skills in three states in the north of Nigeria that have struggled with educational quality as well as regional instability.  FSU’s main work will be with preservice teacher training institutes, working with State and Local Government Education Areas (LGEA) systems for in-service training to teachers in public, IQTE, and NFLC classrooms in the use of the evidence-based reading materials improved and  implemented

FSU will collaborate with the National Council of Colleges of Education  (NCCE) and Colleges of Education (COEs) to develop pre-service early grade reading syllabi and instruction courses for teacher trainees.  FSU will be charged with NEI+ leadership in pre-service teacher training and curriculum development in Hausa and English reading instruction, as grounded in the latest research and best practices.  The NEI+ team will work with NCCE and COEs to build pre-service training, including syllabi and EGR course content. The team will work with NCCE, COEs, and agencies to improve and expand the use of teaching practicums to shift the emphasis to practical learning in pre-service training and ensure that COEs in all states are in possession of the materials needed to integrate reading coursework into pre-service teacher preparation.

NEI+  will involve pre-service instructors and personnel in the Teacher Training Working Group (TWG), along with the Materials Development Working Group TWG, to ensure that materials for teachers’ classroom use, in-service training and modules, and pre-service EGR instruction support, are aligned. We will ensure that successive cohorts of teacher trainees begin their careers equipped with a full set of instructional skills that will have a direct, positive impact on students’ EGR outcomes.

The initial EGR pre-service courses will be delivered in Year 2, so newly hired graduates (about 250 per state usually) can apply the knowledge gained in primary schools in Years 3, 4 and 5. We estimate that in Years 3, 4 and 5, 2,250 teachers will have completed the NEI+ pre-service EGR program in three states and will reach 225,000 students in grades 1-3 with best practices in EGR instruction, resulting in improved student reading outcomes.

In addition, because FSU faculty have experience in working with Islamic schools, FSU will advise and consult on the following two activity areas:

• The adaptation of a core curriculum in reading for use in non-formal schools (specifically Integrated Quranic or Tsangya educational schools).
• The support of a core curriculum policy for IQTE schools, including the development of awareness of and support for core curriculum integration and improved school environment in IQTEs.

Finally, FSU experts will contribute research on such topics as integrated Qur’anic schools, community and culture roles, and best practices in early grade reading in the northern Nigerian context; likewise, FSU will test the effectiveness of different schoolroom and supplemental materials, feeding into learning materials development, particularly for developing materials on conflict resolution and well-being.