Florida State University’s Learning Systems Institute (LSI) is leading a $15.6 million project sponsored by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to improve teacher training in Malawi.

The Strengthening Teacher Education and Practice (STEP) Activity will improve the higher education system that trains primary school teachers in the country as well as the professional development practices that support teachers through their careers.

“We will be impacting every single teacher that teaches primary school in all of Malawi, which means that we will impact every child,” said Dr. Adrienne Barnes-Story, the Primary Investigator on the project. “It’s just mind-blowing that we’re going to have the opportunity to impact the entire primary education system while strengthening the higher education network of institutions necessary to carry this work forward.”

LSI faculty will work with 16 teacher training colleges across the country to improve teacher education programs and develop new training materials related to literacy and numeracy education. Another part of the project will provide support to the Ministry of Education to deliver continuous professional development courses to teachers who are already in classrooms. The STEP project is a landmark investment by USAID to support the institutions of higher education that provide pre-service teacher education.