Promotion of innovative distance-education approaches to reduce inequalities and improve access to quality education in schools

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has increased the pre-existing gaps in educational opportunities for school children in the Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, and Mongolia. Children who already face inequalities in educational access due to gender disparities, living in remote and rural communities, and belonging to ethnic minorities are likely to be the most affected. While distance education has the potential to be an effective way to provide continuity of education during such disruptions, more attention needs to be paid to accessibility, quality, and equity issues, which are currently under-addressed. This project will study the experiences of the three countries in using distance education to understand what works and what more needs to be done. The study will include desk reviews to identify effective distance-education models and strategies to reduce inequality and improve quality. Accordingly, it will review existing distance-learning interventions in the three countries and opportunities for their enhancement and scalability. The study will carry out surveys, interviews, focus group discussions, and observations involving all key stakeholders to determine the effectiveness and scalability of selected interventions. This project is funded through the Global Partnership for Education Knowledge and Innovation Exchange call for proposals in Europe, Asia, and the Pacific region entitled "Generating and mobilizing innovative knowledge for regional education challenges".