Project Title: 
Parenting (pilot) Initiative to strengthen the Parent-School partnership in 60 Schools located within Regions 1, 4 and 6 in order to improve Literacy outcomes

Project Overview:
Country: Jamaica
Duration: December 7, 2012 – March 31, 2014

Contractor(s)/Grantee(s):
World Learning

Objective:
The Parenting Initiative is a pilot activity to strengthen the parent school partnerships in 60 schools located within the Ministry of Education’s (MOE) regions 1, 4 and 6. The USAID Jamaica Education Portfolio supports Grades 1 to 3 at the primary level and includes a parenting component.  The parenting engagement falls under Result 1.3 of the USAID Global Education Strategy, 2011.   In addition, this activity is a new type of arrangement with the Ministry of Education under the Government to Government (G2G) Activity, whereby Country Partner Systems are identified at the National and Regional Levels and is used for project implementation and monitoring.  The project focuses on Grade 1 teachers and their parents and also provides general benefits to parent-school partnerships as well.  The design of the project includes an evaluation component that will seek to quantify literacy gains of impacted grade 1 students and compare them to those gains of grade 1 students not included in the pilot project.  This evaluation will assist USAID and the MOE in future interventions to improve literacy. 

Program Targets:

1. Project basis and baseline established
2. Assess/strengthen/Establish PTAs in participating Schools
3. Initial and follow-up Teacher and Principal Trainings in each Region (two trainings per region).  A final training/workshop to be held for principals and grade one Teachers in each region. 
4. Initial Parent Engagement Activity (early grade reading and school governance participation) explaining the benefits of parent involvement within the 60 schools for all grade one parents and establish libraries in each grade classroom.  A follow-up and final activity discussing the literacy benefits of parent involvement
5. Establish a Parent’s Place in each of the 60 selected schools.
6. Present a final evaluation report to USAID