Typical Rondavel (Round Hut) Dwelling in Lesotho

ABOUT LESOTHO: COUNTRY OVERVIEW

Lesotho is a landlocked country of 11, 720 square miles and is completely surrounded by South Africa. Much of Lesotho rises above 1,800 metres and many of its villages can only be reached on foot, on horseback, or by air. The high altitude means that Lesotho has a continental climate with cold winters and hot summers. The average life expectancy for men is 40 years, and for women 44 years. Maseru is the capital city, and this is where the Lesotho College of Education is located. Lesotho has the third highest prevelance rate of HIV/Aids in the world. The economy is Lesotho is based on subsistance agriculture, and there is a strong reliance on work in South Africa. Lesotho also imports around 70 percent of its food. The unemployment rate is also high, with 2009 figures at 27.3 percent.

CGDE’S WORK IN LESOTHO

CGDE works with teacher educators and Ministries of Education in the South (Lesotho and Uganda) to enhance the quality of teaching, learning and educational research in teacher education. CGDE has developed a programme of work in teaching and learning and educational research with the Lesotho College of Education and the Ministry of Education and Training, The Kingdom of Lesotho.

While access to education is important, the quality of that education is crucial (Government of Ireland, 2006: 43). Poor quality of education is one of the factors related to the withdrawal of children from school in developing countries (Shabani, 2005). Improvement in the quality of education is a goal of Education for All (Shabani, 2005) is also a goal for the education systems in Uganda (DCI, 2004) and Lesotho (Government of Lesotho, 2005).

The Education Sector Strategy Plans in Lesotho (2005) emphasise the importance of improving the curricula and pedagogy in teacher education institutions. The link between teacher education and poverty reduction is highlighted in Lesotho‟s Poverty Reduction Strategy.

CGDE is working with Lesotho College of Education and with the Ministry of Education and Training in the achievement of the Government‟s stated priority of developing teachers through training, education and management in the national quest in Education for All, and in the policy objective of improving the quality and effectiveness of pre-service and in-service teacher education (Government of Lesotho, 2005).

The Centre also contributes to the theme of good governance by supporting quality educational management and planning, which is central to the enhancement of civil society, and is also a stated priority of the Education Sector Strategic Plan in Lesotho (Government of Lesotho, 2005). By working with teacher education institutions and with Ministries of Education CGDE‟s work is „strengthening the capacity of national, district and local authorities to plan, implement and monitor public education‟, which is a stated aim of the Government White Paper on Irish Aid (2006: 44).

By increasing the capacity of Northern and Southern institutions to support and develop educational policy and initiatives in partner countries, the Centre is contributing to the achievement of each of Irish Aid‟s educational objectives which are:

• to accelerate progress towards educational access and equity
• to promote significant improvements in the quality of basic education
• to strengthen national-led planning and implementation systems for sustainable education service delivery (Irish Aid, 2007: 14).

The Centre contributes to the themes of gender equality as the education of girls, in particular, is significant in poverty reduction and limiting the spread of HIV/Aids (Government of Ireland, 2006: 44). The activities of the Centre are developed in a gender sensitive manner appropriate to the context in which we are working, e.g., in Lesotho boys‟ enrolment in education is less than girls‟ (DCI, 2005). HIV/Aids severely affects children and teachers in Lesotho. We believe that teacher education has a role to play in the prevention of HIV/Aids not only because „Good quality education… is in itself a powerful weapon in the fight to contain HIV and Aids‟ (Government of Lesotho, 2005: 110) but also because of the role teacher education can play in promoting good health practices at college level and in schools.

Mary Immaculate College where CGDE is located is a health promoting college and, together with its partner institutions, have experience in health education. While the mainstreaming of such activities in a Southern can be difficult (DCI, 2004) the partners in the Centre can usefully engage in dialogue about the role of colleges in health promotion.

To summarise, the Centre is engaged in:

• Collaborative research
• Quality teaching and learning
• Cross-institutional networks
• Development of specialist knowledge and research expertise
• Increased awareness of development and development cooperation

The main activities of the CGDE Programme in Lesotho include:

• Undertaking a Needs Assessment
• Appointing a  Programme Associate Co-Ordinator in the Lesotho College of Education
• Recruitment of PhD students in Lesotho Research Methods training course in TCD
• Design and delivery of professional development Research study and data gathering & Data analysis in Lesotho in research project 1) „Study of Assessment practices in the educational system of Lesotho” 2) “Identification assessment and inclusion for learners with special educational needs: towards a national system for lesotho”.
• Evaluation of teaching, learning and research activities

CGDE appointed Dr James Urwick as Programme Associate Co-Ordinator, from June – November 2008, and Research Fellow from Sept 2009 – February 2011. Dr. Ntalenyane Lesoetsa for December and from Jan 09 – June 09 and Ms. Lineo Lepota from Sept 2000-2011.

This team ensures that arrangements are made locally for the implementation of all work programmes. They act as contact points for the Centre for Global Development through Education between Lesotho and Ireland.

The Lesotho College of Education and the Ministry has one representative (who may also be a Programme Associate) on the Executive Steering Committee for the duration of the programme. The CGDE‟s work programme in Africa has a strong foundation as it has been developed in consultation with the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry for Education and Training in Lesotho have been consulted in the development of this programme

The Centre’s activities will have a long-term impact because they involve collaboration in the delivery of existing education sector plans, e.g., in the delivery of in-service programmes in Lesotho. CGDE collaborates with other civil society organisations to ensure synergies with their work programmes, e.g., the link between Twinning the Kingdoms and Lesotho for instance.

The appointment of programme associates and the representation of Southern partners on the Steering Committee ensures that activities are developed in a sustainable way. Professional development of teacher educators has a sustainable multiplier effect as it enhances the education of teachers, generating change throughout the education system. The development of postgraduate studies in Ireland and in Africa increases the critical mass of researchers who can engage in development cooperation in the future. The Centre‟s development of research clusters and peer mentoring provides a basis for ongoing cooperation between partners.

The 3-year Work Plan will involve staff and PGs from 14 Irish Institutes and two Partner African countries engaging in capacity building and knowledge transfer, the latter co-ordinated by locally based Programme Associate Co-ordinators. 41 staff from Irish Institutes wishing to engage in the Work Plan along with staff of two Colleges and two Government Ministries in Lesotho and Uganda. These staff will travel for purposes of education and outreach, knowledge and information exchange, training and supervision, and educational dissemination among the three partner countries, engaging in Teaching and Learning activities, Research activities and Knowledge Transfer. Each partner Institute is represented on the CDGE Executive Steering Committee.

The Work Plan includes the recruitment of 8 PGs (3 in Lesotho, 3 in Uganda & 2 in Ireland) and funding is given for stipends, fees and appropriate travel and subsistence for these students in their studies and work in achieving project outputs and links with Irish Aid objectives.

CGDE, through MIC ICT expertise, has established a Web Portal to facilitate communications, information flow, knowledge exchange and sharing of educational and organisational materials and resources, enhanced through a reliable internet access in the Lesotho College of Education. It has also organised and facilitated participation in hosted conferences and other international conferences for Irish and African partners for purposes of education and outreach.