· vi Education for Adolescents UNICEF EAP Strategic Framework Status of adolescents in the region Educating adolescents is a must for …

Education for AdolescentsUNICEF EAP Strategic Framework

Cover photographs (left to right):

(1) © UNICEF/NYHQ2006-1434/Ninfa Bito On 26 August 2006 in the Philippines, (left-right) Cora Buala, 19, assists a girl, who is presenting a drawing she made of an abusive situation she witnessed at school, during a violence-awareness workshop at the Katin-Aran Children’s Center in Roxas City, capital of the central Capiz Province.

(2) Top: © Overclockzone Students from Suthiwararam School visit Overclockzone Exhibition on Science Day, 18 August 2005

(3) Bottom: © UNICEF/NYHQ2006-2573/Giacomo Pirozzi A group of adolescents pore over HIV/AIDS-related reading material at Solomon Islands Parenting As sociation Centre in Honaira, the capital, on Guadalcanal Island.

(4) © UNICEF/NYHQ2009-1834/Susan Markisz An adolescent girl flips through her science notebook during an assembly at La Unión Educational Institute Secondary School in the northern municipality of Lorica in Córdoba Department.

© UNICEF East Asia and Pacific Regional Office, 2010

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CONTENTS

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY iv

I INTRODUCTION 1 II. RATIONALE 3 III. STATUS OF ADOLESCENTS IN THE REGION 6

IV. TARGET GROUPS AND OPPORTUNITY 9 i. PrinciplesoftheStrategicFramework 7 ii. Positivepathways 11 • BuildingStrongFoundation 11 • BeingaResource 12 • MakingItWork 13 • SteppingtoSuccess 14 iii. Typologiesofcountriesintheregion 15

V. PRIORITY AREAS OF INTERVENTION 19 i. Identifyingeducationdisparitiesandfillingknowledgegaps 21 ii. Improvingquality:Buildingontheexistingexperienceinprimary(CFS) 22 iii. Exploringalternativeapproachesandnon-formalmodelsoflearning 25 iv. Promotingadolescentparticipationandactivecitizenry 27 v. Educationforwell-beingandbehaviourchange 28 vi. AreasnotrecommendedforUNICEFsupport 28

VI. ISSUES FOR CONSIDERATION 31 i. UNICEF’supstreamfocus 31 ii. LinkwithotherMTSPpriorities 31 iii. OneUNandsectorwideapproaches 31 iv. Partnerships 32 v. Gender 33 vi. Migration 34

VII. USING THE STRATEGIC FRAMEWORK 36

BIBLIOGRAPHY 37

AcronymsADAP AdolescentDevelopmentandParticipationAED AcademyforEducationDevelopmentCCA CommonCountryAssessmentCCTs ConditionalcashtransfersCFS Child-friendlyschoolDHS DemographicHealthSurveysDRR DisasterriskreductionEALAS EastAsiaLearningAchievementStudyEAP EastAsiaandthePacificEFA EducationforAllEMIS EducationManagementInformationSystemsGMR GlobalMonitoringReportIAWGCP Inter-AgencyWorkingGrouponChildren’sParticipationLA LearningachievementMDA MidDecadeAssessmentMDGs MillenniumDevelopmentGoalsM&E MonitoringandevaluationMTSP Mid-termStrategicPriorityNER NetenrolmentrateNFE Non-formaleducationNGO Non-governmentalorganizationOECD OrganisationforEconomicCo-ordinationandDevelopmentPISA ProgrammeforInternationalStudentAssessmentSEAMEO SoutheastAsiaMinistersofEducationOrganizationSEL SocialandemotionallearningSIPs SchoolimprovementplansSOLO StructureoftheObservedLearningOutcomeSSA SchoolselfassessmentsSSR Sub-RegionalSynthesisReports(UNESCO)TIMMS TrendsinInternationalMathematicsandScienceStudyUNDAF UNDevelopmentAssistanceFrameworkUNGEI UnitedNationsGirls’EducationInitiativeWASH Water,SanitationandHygiene

vEXECUTIVESUMMARY

TheFrameworkisnotaboutrequestingadditionalfundsorcreatingnewprogrammes.Rather,itencouragestheuseofexistingresources,networks,partnershipsandprojectstoensurethatadolescentsnotonlyreceiveaneducation,butaqualityeducation–onewhichnurturestheiroveralldevelopmentandpreparesthemwithadvancedliteracyandlifeskillsforbetterlifestyleandfuturelivelihoodsinaglobaleconomy.

Rationale Theneedforawell-definededucationstrategyforadolescentsarisesinpartfromthesuccessachievedinboostingprimarynetenrolmentratesinEastAsiaandthePacific(EAP)–whereagreaternumberofchildrenthaneverbeforeareenteringandcompletingprimaryschool.GovernmentsintheregionarenowrequestingthatUNICEFallocatemoreresourcestosecondaryeducation,wherecapacitylags,andoneducatingout-of-schoolyouth,wheredisparitiesaregreatest.

EXECUTIVESUMMARY

Humanrightsareakeymotivatingfactorforthestrategy.Simplyput, adolescents have a fundamental right to an education.ThistenetalsoliesatthecoreofUNICEF’snewAdolescentDevelopmentandParticipation(ADAP)strategy,currentlybeingfinalized.ADAPhighlightseducationandgreaterlearningopportunitiesforadolescentsasaprimeareaforUNICEF,reinforcinghowessentialitisforeducationprogrammestobeclearontheprinciplesandprioritiesforadolescentpopulationsinourprogrammes.

ThecriticaltimestorefertotheFrameworkisatthebeginningofpreparationsforanewCountryProgramme,orwhenplanningforaMid-TermReview,whenevaluationsandassessmentsareundertakentoinformtheseprocesses.

The Strategic Framework is intended to help UNICEF country offices in East Asia and the Pacific determine what their focus and priorities will be in addressing adolescent education, an area that merits a whole new level of attention. It offersa road map for engagement, clustering adolescents into four major groups according to educational status, and singling out potential actions that can empower and encourage these groups to keep learning. While providing detailed direction, the new strategy stresses the need for countries to make their decisions – where to put limited money and manpower – based on carefully compiled evidence, analysis and discourse.

©UNICEF/NYHQ2005-0304/JoshEstey

vi EducationforAdolescentsUNICEFEAPStrategicFramework

Status of adolescents in the regionEducatingadolescentsisamustforachievingtheMillenniumDevelopmentGoals(MDGs),inparticularGoal3:PromotingGenderEquality.In2005,11of15programmecountriesintheregionfailedtoreachthismilestoneandintenseeffortswillbeneededtoensureasuccessfulturnaroundby2015.WhiletheMDGsfocusonaccess,theissueofquality,orthelackofit,inbothprimaryandsecondaryschools,isofincreasingconcern.Theprivatesectorandhighereducationinstitutionshavecomplainedabouttheweakliteracyandnumeracyskillsofsecondaryschoolgraduates,makingithardforthemtofindjobs.Whilesomecountryofficeshaveshowninnovationandcreativityintheirresponse,theireffortshavenotnecessarilybeencohesiveorstrategic.

AnotherurgentreasonforUNICEFtoinvestintheeducationofadolescentscentresonthedemographicsoftheregionandtherapidlyshrinkingyouthbulge.EastAsia’sabundantsupplyofyoungpeoplehelpedfuelitsimpressiveeconomicgrowthspanningovertwodecades.Butthefallinbirthratesisreducingthis‘demographicbonus’,leadingtoasmallerlabourforcewherefewerworkers

aresupportinganever-expandingpopulationofelders.Overthecomingyears,thequalityoftheworkforce–itsproductivityandefficiency–mustthereforetakecentrestageoverquantity.Achievingthisshiftwillbecontingentonproducingwell-educatedgraduates(andresearchpointsoutthatthelongeronestaysinschool,thegreaterthereturnintermsofincome).

The strategy is built around the crucial role that quality education – both formal and informal - plays in opening up positive pathways, or opportunities for advancement, for young people.

TheFrameworkdiffersfromtraditionaladolescenteducationprogrammesthatarebasedona‘deficitmodel’,thatis,theystressthefailurestobeaddressed(i.e.non-formaleducationfordropouts).

Target groups and opportunitiesUndertheFramework,adolescentsinthisregionaresplitintofourtargetgroupsbasedoneducationalstatus.Eachgroup,througheducation,canhaveimprovedopportunities,orpositivepathways,forthefuture.

TARGET GROUPS

Educational status Positive pathway

Adolescentswhoneverenrolledordroppedoutbeforecompletingprimaryschool(estimatedtonumber70million).

Building Strong FoundationsPositivepathwaysincludefunctionalliteracy,lifeskillsandnon-formaleducation.

Adolescentsenrolledinprimaryschoolwhoareoverage,attendingirregularlyandnotlearning(estimatedtonumber33million).

Being a ResourcePositivepathwayswouldinvolvewaystotapintotheirpotential.

Adolescentswhoareoutofschool,whodroppedoutoflowersecondaryaftercompletingprimary(estimatedtonumber90million).

Making it WorkPositivepathwaysincluderelevantlifeandlivelihoodskills,non-formalsecondaryequivalence,learningclubs,networksandcomputer-basedlearning.

Adolescentsenrolledinlowersecondaryschoolwhoareoverage,attendingirregularlyandnotlearning(estimatedtonumber36million).

Stepping to SuccessPositivepathwaysincludeamorechild-friendlysecondaryschoolexperience.

viiEXECUTIVESUMMARY

In East Asia and the Pacific there are approximately 345 million adolescents (defined as age 10-19) – a pool that constitutes the next generation of workers and parents. It is these future drivers of economic growth and national development that the new regional education strategy aims to reach.

Usingthesetargetgroupdefinitions,programmecountriesarecategorizedaccordingtothesizeoftheiradolescentpopulationineachgrouporcluster(basedonEducationforAllandothernationalestimates).InChina,forexample,alargerproportionofitsadolescentsareinlowersecondaryschoolbutatriskofdroppingout,whileinLaoPDRacriticalmassofyoutharethoseadolescentswhoareenrolledinprimaryschool,butwhoareoverage,underperformingandatriskofdroppingout.Countriesareurgedtofocusononlytwogroupsforinterventions,asopposedtodabblinginallfour,withaclearrationaleforthesechoicesbasedonevidenceanddiscussionwithpartners.

Togetabetterunderstandingofthescope,sizeandcompositionofeachgroup,countryofficesareencouragedtoconductsurveys,situationalanalyses,otherresearchand,ideally,todrilldownfordisaggregateddata(bygender,urban/rural,ethnicity,socio-economicstatus,etc).Themorefactstheyhaveathand,thebetter-positionedcountryoffices(andultimatelypartnersandgovernments)willbetofinetunetheirresponseandpickthemostappropriatecourseofactiontocreatethedesiredpositivepathways.

Priority Areas of interventionAsameansofguidingcountryofficesinchoosinganappropriatecourseofaction,orinterventions,forthesedifferenttargetgroups,fivePriorityAreashavebeenidentified:

1. Identifyingeducationdisparitiesandfilling knowledgegaps2. Improvingqualityinformalschools,building onexperienceswithChild-FriendlySchools (CFS)3. Supportingalternativeapproachesand non-schoolmodelsoflearning4. Promotingadolescentparticipationand activecitizenry5. Educationforwell-beingandbehaviour change.

Thecoreprinciplesofyouthparticipationandholisticdevelopment(emphasizingsocialandemotionallearning)underpinthechoiceoftheseareas,whichcouldbeusedinspecificwaysbasedonthetargetgroupbeingaddressed.Theotherfactorsplayingadecisiveroleinselectinginterventionsare:theuseofbothformalandnon-formaleducationapproaches;innovativetechnologies,andagreateremphasisonthequalityofupperprimaryschooland/orlowersecondaryschooloveraccess.Thestrategynotablycounselscountryofficesagainsttraditionalvocationaleducationcentres,large-scaleconstructionofsecondaryschools,curriculumrevision,conditionalcashtransfersandincentives,anduppersecondaryandhighereducation.

Issues for considerationCarefulattentionhasbeengiventoincorporatingkeycross-cuttingissues,includinggender,educationinemergenciesandmigration.IntermsofMTSPFocusArea5,theFrameworkgivesprideofplacetobuildingastrongevidence-basethroughresearch,acutting-edgeassetthatcanhelpleverageresourcesfrompartners,provideasophisticatedplatformforadvocacyandultimately,influencepolicyandplanning.

TheneedtolinkadolescenteducationwithotherMTSPpriorities(suchashealthandHIVandAIDS)tomaximizeresultsisfullyembraced.Toguardagainsttheriskofdifferentprogrammesectorsworkingwiththesameadolescentgroupsindisparateandunsustainableprojects,thestrategyemphasizestheneedforclosecoordinationandwherenecessary,jointplanning.

AsregardsUNandsector-wideapproaches,thereisplentyofscopeforcross-fertilization.WorkdonebyUNICEFinadolescenteducationcanbenefitcountriesforwhomyouthareaprioritytargetgroupwhilethecullingofdisaggregateddataonsecondary,non-formal

viii EducationforAdolescentsUNICEFEAPStrategicFramework

andout-of-schoolpopulationsshouldbeaquidproquoforSituationAnalysesandtheCommonCountryAssessmentforUNDAF.TheFrameworkalsorecognizesthepivotalrolesplayedbymanydifferentpartnersandpartnershipsatnational,regionalandlocallevels–rolesthatwillhelpdetermineUNICEF’scomparativeadvantageindecidingwheretobestputitsstrategicfocus.

Successofthenewstrategywillbemeasuredbyhow,andtowhatextent,countriesinthisregionmakeuseofit.TheFrameworkprovidesablueprintforstructuredandcohesiveaction.Itleansheavilyonresearchandanalysistopinpointprioritiesandtargets.Ultimately,itsraison-d’etreistoencouragethedevelopmentofinnovativequalityeducationforadolescentswhoseuntappedpotentialisoneofourregion’sgreatestassets.

1INTRODUCTION

AdolescenceAdolescenceisdefinedbytheUNastheperiodofliferangingfrom10-19yearsofage(includingthefirstyearofadulthood).Educationforadolescents,however,doesnotnecessarilyentailpost-primaryinterventions.Manyadolescentsintheregionhaveneverbeenenrolledinschoolorhavedroppedoutaftersporadicattendanceinpoor-qualityprimaryschoolsforseveralyears.Suchadolescentspossessonlyrudimentaryliteracyandnumeracyskillsandrequirespeciallydesignedopportunitiestolearn.

AdolescentscurrentlyenrolledintheformalschoolsystemcanbefoundanywherefromGrades1and2throughtouppersecondaryschools,universitiesandvocationaleducationcentres.Non-formalandnon-academicchannelsofstudy,includinggovernmentandnon-governmental(NGO)educationcourses,privateschools,governmentextensioncourses,web-basedanddistancelearning,

on-the-jobtraining,professionalnetworksandinformallearningclubs,andinternvolunteerarrangements,areallbeingsupportedthroughouttheregion.Such‘non-formal’coursesandprivatesector-organizedstudyareusuallycarriedoutwithoutregistration,qualityassuranceorcoordinationwithgovernmentauthorities.

Fromasociologicalperspective,theperiodofadolescenceisviewedasatimeoftransitionandrisk.Allteenagersexperiencegrowthspurtsandhormonalsurgesthatpotentiallycontributetoerraticandimpulsivebehaviour.Accidentsandinjuries,oftenquiteavoidable,arethemajorcauseofdeathintheregionforadolescents.Whilecertaintypesofrisk-takingareencouragedaspartofactivelearningintheclassroom,riskybehavioursduringadolescence,suchassmokinganddrugabuse,canhavelife-longandnegativeconsequences,includingunplannedpregnancyandinfectionwithHIV/AIDS.

This note proposes a Strategic Framework for UNICEF’s engagement with adolescent education in the East Asia and Pacific region. This Framework was first introduced as a Concept Note in late 2007, with several desk reviews and research papers commissioned and regional meetings organized as part of the process. The Strategic Framework does not attempt to categorize countries according to economic, geographic and socio-cultural typologies. Rather, countries are clustered based upon an analysis of the educational status of their adolescents. Four main target groups and five prioritized areas of action are detailed below to guide country offices in defining their national approach to adolescent education.

I. INTRODUCTION

©UNICEF/NYHQ2006-2575/GiacomoPirozzi

2 EducationforAdolescentsUNICEFEAPStrategicFramework

Concernoverfamilyeconomicsandthefutilityofgraduatingfromschoolwithnoprospectsofemploymentalsoweighsheavilyontoday’syoungpeople(UNICEF,2008).Pervasivemediaandelectroniccommunicationhascompoundedtheriseofcommercialism,buildingaglobalyouthculturebasedonconsumerismandMTVthatvaluescreatestensionsbetweenadolescentsandtheirfamiliesandwiththetraditionalvaluesofsocietyasawhole(UNICEFEAPRO,2005).

Adolescentsareinaperiodoflifealsomarkedbypositiveenergy,idealismandabeliefinthepossibilityofchangingtheworld.Anystrategytodevelopyoungpeoplemustbuildonthesepositivecapacitiesandadolescents’abilitytoengageasactivepartnersintheirowndevelopment(IAWGCP,2008).

Principles of the FrameworkAsakeyprinciple,theFrameworkisinharmonywiththeUNICEFglobalADAPStrategyandthethreeE’s:Educationwithqualityandrelevance;Enablingandprotectiveenvironments;andEngagementthroughparticipationandcivicaction(UNICEFADAP,2009).Morespecifictothenewregionalstrategyarethefollowingfourprinciples:

1. Theessentialnatureofparticipation,andthe foundationalrolethisrightplaysinmaximizing thequalityandeffectivenessofeducation.2. Thepositiveyouthdevelopmentapproach, whichbuildsself-confidence,recognizes strengthsandensuressupportivelearning environments.3. Encouragementofbothformalandnon- formalapproaches,usingalternativelearning systems,appropriatetechnologyand innovativetutoring.4. Thequalityofupperprimaryand/orlower secondaryisofgreaterprioritythanaccess.

3RATIONALE

II. RATIONALE

The need for a Strategic Framework for adolescent education in East Asia and the Pacific is prompted to some degree by the success of Education for All (EFA) and the progress made with primary enrolment rates in countries throughout the region. EAP can boast a primary net enrolment rate of 94 percent. Attention has now shifted from getting young children into school to keeping them there longer and making sure they learn. Increasing numbers of countries in the region have extended their definition of ‘compulsory basic education’ from six years of primary to nine years, including completion of lower secondary education. China, Mongolia, Thailand, Viet Nam, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines are among the countries in the region that have extended basic education to include lower secondary (EFA Global Monitoring Report (GMR), 2008). Governments in the region are requesting that UNICEF country offices place greater attention on post-primary education and out-of-school youth, and while responses to date may be innovative and focused, they are not cohesive nor necessarily of a strategic nature.

UNICEF’snewADAPStrategy,stillindraftform,hasidentifiedthreeE’sastheorganization’scoreapproachforpromotingADAPglobally.Thethree E’sare:i) Educationandlearningopportunitiesof qualityandrelevance;ii) Enablingandprotectiveenvironment–with thefocusongenderandmarginalization;andiii) Engagementthroughparticipationandcivic action.

TheglobalADAPStrategyunderscoreseducationandexpandedlearningopportunitiesasacoreelementintheorganization’sengagementwithadolescents.ThusitisimperativethateducationprogrammesbeclearonprinciplesandprioritiesforaddressingtheeducationalrightsofadolescentsinthecontextofUNICEF’smandateandcomparativeadvantage.

ThecurrentUNICEFEducationStrategy,2006-2015,alsohasthreeprioritythemes(alsocalledthethree E’s),whichare:i) Equal accesstouniversalprimary;ii) Empowermentthroughgirls’education andgendermainstreaming;andiii) Emergenciesandpost-crisiseducation.

ThroughthesethreeE’sruntwocross-cuttingprioritythemes–earlychildhooddevelopmentandenhancingqualityatprimaryandsecondarylevels.TheEducationStrategyemphasizesthroughouttheimportanceofadolescents.Thechild-friendlyschool(CFS)frameworkisusedtoanalysepotentialareasforsupportintermsofqualityatthesecondarylevel,includingprotectiveenvironments,sanitationandhealth,children’sparticipationandthelinksbetweenschoolsandcommunities.TheEducationStrategyalsorecognizesthatbothformaland

©UNICEF/NYHQ2000-0156/ShehzadNoorani


non-formalapproacheswillberequiredtoensurequalityeducationisavailableforchildren(UNICEF,2007).ThisissupportedbytheMTSP,whichstressesthat“reachingadolescentsisimportant,asthisistheagewhenlifeskills-basededucationiscritical.UNICEFwillbegintoacquireexperienceinsecondaryeducation,especiallyforgirls,withaviewtoextendingsuchcooperationinfutureplanperiods”(MTSP2006-2013).

TheMDGs,especiallyindicatorsunderGoal3:PromotingGenderEquality,areexplicitlyfocusedonbothprimaryandsecondaryeducation.Ascanbeseenin

Table1below,formanyEAPcountries,the2005goalofgenderparitywasnotachievedatthesecondarylevel,withincreasinggenderdisparitiesbeingfoundtothedisadvantageofboys.Genderparityandequalityinsecondaryeducationwillnotbeachievedby2015withouturgentandintenseeffortsoverthesixyearsremaining.Outof15programmecountriesintheregion,11didnotachieveMDGGoal3in2005duetolowlevelsofgenderparity.ForGoal2:AchievingUniversalPrimaryEducation,mostcountrieshavereacheduniversalprimaryenrolment(ifuniversalisdefinedas95percent)butfewhaveattainedthe95percentprimarysurvivalrate,andcouldthereforebe

Countries

Goal 2: Achieving Universal Primary Education

Goal 3: Promoting Gender Equality

Primary NER (>95%)

Primary completion rate (>95%)

Achieve 2005 MDG Goal 2

Primary Gender Parity

for gross enrolment

(GPI 0.97-1.03)

Secondary Gender Parity

for gross enrolment

(GPI 0.97-1.03)

Achieve 2005 MDG Goal 3

Cambodia 90 *85 No 0.93 0.79 No

China **107.89 – – 0.99 1.01 Yes

DPRKorea – – – – – –

Indonesia 96 *99 Yes 0.96 1.00 No

Kiribati ***97 *125 Yes 1.01 1.14 No

LaoPDR 84 *77 No 0.89 0.78 No

Malaysia 100 *98 Yes 1.00 1.1 Yes

Mongolia 91 *110 No 1.02 1.12 No

Myanmar 100 70 No 1.01 1.00 Yes

PapuaNewGuinea

– – – 0.84 – –

Philippines 91 *94 No 0.99 1.11 No

Solomon 62 0.96 0.84 No

Thailand 94 *101 No 0.95 1.09 No

Timor-Leste 68 *69 No 0.92 1.00 No

Vanuatu 87 – – 0.97 0.86 No

VietNam ***95 – – 0.94 0.96 No

Table 1: List of countries’ achievements for MDG 2: Achieving Universal Primary Education and MDG 3: Promoting Gender Equality

Sources:GMR2009 * WorldBankdatabase ** EFAMDA *** childinfo.org

5RATIONALE

consideredtohavemissedthe2005Goals.WhiletheMDGsaremorefocusedonaccessthenquality,governmentsinEAPareplacingincreasingimportanceonoutcomes,includingthequalityofgraduatescompletingprimary.Thisismotivatedbycomplaintsfromtheprivatesectorandhighereducationinstitutionsthattheskillsofsecondaryschoolgraduates,withlowlevelsofliteracy,numeracyandcriticalthinking,arenotinlinewithmarketdemands(SEAMEO,2008).

AnotherregionallyspecificrationaleforUNICEFinvestingresourcesintheeducationofadolescentsinvolvesthedemographicsoftheregionandtherapidlydiminishingyouthbulge.The‘demographicbonus’associatedwithincreasingnumbersofproductiveageworkersisproventopayoffintermsofeconomicgrowththroughabiggerworkforceandhigherdomesticsavings.Thisisbasedonefficiencyfactorsofthepopulationandgovernmentpolicies,butithascertainlyworkedwellforEastAsiaoverthepast20years.However,withrapidlydecliningbirthratesandanagingpopulation,countriesarenowfacingashortenedperiodof‘demographicbonus’,withfeweryoungpeoplelefttoearnfortheirelders.Japan,RepublicofKorea,China,Singapore,VietNamandThailandareallfacinganendtotheir‘demographicbonus’andattentionmustshiftfromthequantityoftheirlabourforcetogreaterefficiencyinitsuse.This,inturn,isextremelydependentonyoungpeoplereceivingagoodeducationandopportunitiesforcontinuedlearning.Withthedisappearingyouthbulge,countrieswillrequiregreaterproductivityfromfutureworkforces–anissueofprimeconcerntoeducationandfinanceministersandtheprivatesector(Hozumi,2009).

Therehasbeensignificantresearchontheimportanceofeducationfromaneconomicstandpoint,showing,amongotherresults,thatthelongeronestaysinschool,thegreaterreturnintermsofincome.Whereasprimarycompletionwasawatershedforsocio-economicstatusinthe1980’sandearly1990’s,todayimpactsarefeltforeachyearofsecondaryeducationcompleted(Haversak,2008;WorldBank,2007).Forgirls,thebenefitsofeducationaretremendous.Adirectcorrelationbetweenyearsofschoolingandageofmarriage,riskofHIVinfection,numberofchildrenandthesurvivalandhealthoftheirchildrenhasbeenextensivelydocumented.AEDhascompiledasubstantialbodyofresearchonthebenefitsofsecondaryeducationforgirls,whichalsoincludeselementsofempowerment,socialengagementandvoice,economicstatus,familysize,childhealthandeducationandunwantedpregnancy(AED,2005;UNGEI2007;EFAGMR,2007).

Withlimitedresources,UNICEFCountryProgrammesintheregionmustbeabletostrategicallyengageinpolicyadvocacyandpilotsforupstreamleveragingofresourcesinnon-formalandlowersecondaryeducation.Countryofficesneedtomakestrategicchoicesonwheretofocustheirsupport,realizingthattherewillnotbeadditionalfundsmadeavailablefornewadolescenteducationprogrammes.ThisStrategicFrameworkhasbeenpreparedtoprovideUNICEFcountryofficesinEAPwithabasisforcarryingoutananalysisoftheirowncontextsinordertoprioritizeadolescentpopulationsandareasofintervention–especiallyduringCountryProgrammepreparationandMid-TermReviewprocesses.


Schoolgraduatesshowlowlevelsofmath,literacyandlanguageskillsaswellasweakcriticalthinking,problemsolvingandreasoningskills(GMR2009).Figure1showsresultsoftheProgrammeforInternationalStudentAssessment(PISA)examforage-12students,comparingperformancesinreadingandmath.OnecanfindThailandandIndonesiaontherightwiththeproportionofchildrenscoringwellunderbasiccomprehension,whiletheOECDaverageisthirdfromtherightandthescoresfromOECDcountriesinAsiaandthePacificincludedontheleft(OECDPISA,2006).

Nationalfigures,suchasthoseinFigure1,oftenmasktremendousdifferencesanddisparitiesatsub-nationallevelsandbetweendifferentgroupswithinacountry.Atpresenthowever,PISAandTrendsinInternationalMathematicsandScienceStudy(TIMMS)studiesarenot

structuredtoprovidedisaggregateddataandonlyoffernationalfiguresdisaggregatedbysex,fornationalcomparisons.BetterdisaggregateddataonadolescenteducationcanbefoundintheEducationManagementInformationSystems(EMIS)ofmostcountries,especiallyaroundenrolmentrates.InIndonesia,forexample,therearemajorsub-nationaldisparitiesinsecondaryenrolmentwhichcanbereferredtowhenmakingplansandpolicies.Whilethenationalsecondarygrossenrolmentrate(GER)rateforIndonesiawas102.2percentin2005(GMR2008),wefindratesaslowas60percentinEastNusaTenggaraandEastPapua3,andashighas118.8percentinWestNusaTenggara,wheremanynon-residentchildrenareenrolledinbothpublicandprivateschools.Whensuchfiguresarelinkedtopopulationdata,welearnthattheremaybeuptoninemillionsecondaryschool-agechildren

III. STATUS OF ADOLESCENTS IN THE REGIONThe most recent EFA GMR has estimated that there are 176 million1 primary school-age children aged 6-11 (depending on each country) in East Asia and the Pacific with another 216 million2 aged 12-17. Using these figures as a basis, we estimate that there are approximately 345 million adolescents aged 10-19 years living in East Asia and the Pacific. While the region could boast a primary net enrolment rate of 93 per cent in 2006, only 79 per cent of the primary cohort who enrolled could survive and actually complete the full primary cycle. This means that there are many millions of adolescents in the region whose rights to literacy and a basic education have been denied. For those remaining in school, the quality of what the region’s inefficient and ineffective education systems produce is equally disturbing.

1GlobalMonitoringReport2009,p.30622GlobalMonitoringReport2009,p.3303MoNEandMoRASchoolsDatabase©UNICEF/NYHQ2008-0568/AdamDean

7STATUSOFADOLESCENTSINTHEREGION

100

80

60

40

20

0

-20

-40

-60

-80

-100

18.3

81.773.9 76.3 75.7

66.8 65.8 65.6 67.159.6

703

58.1

69.2

57.157.5

21.9 20.612.7

7.1

26.1 23.7 24.333.234.2 34.432.9

30.4

29.7

41.9

30.8

42.9 42.5

78.1 79.487.3

92.9

Reading Level 3 and Above Reading Level 2 and Below Math Level 3 and Below Math Level 2 and Below

Indonesia

Republicof Korea

Hong Kong,China New Zealand Australia

Japan Macau,China

OECDAverage

ThailandPer

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tag

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f st

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ents

at

each

pro

fici

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leve

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Figure 1: Learning achievement: Proficiency levels for reading and math in the East Asia and Pacific region, 2006

Sources:OECDPISAdatabase2006

Map 1: Gross enrolment ratio in secondary education in Indonesia by province, 2005

Sources:IndonesiaMoNEandMoRASchools

West Nusa Tenggara118.8 East Nusa Tenggara

61.1

East Papua62.6

� EducationforAdolescentsUNICEFEAPStrategicFramework

(13-18years)notenrolledinsecondaryschoolclusteredacrossthearchipelago.Furtheranalysisandreviewofthesub-populationsmakingupthisninemillioncaninfluencedecisionsoneducationbudgetsandstrategicprioritiesatcentralanddecentralizedlevelsofgovernment.

Ifwelookbeyondeducationindicatorssuchasgrossenrolmentaboveandtheimmediateschoolenvironment,weseeaverychallengingregioninwhichadolescentsliveandtrytonegotiatetheirfuture.Over50percentofadolescentdeathsarecausedbyunintentionalinjuries,withtrafficaccidentsanddrowningthetwomostcommoncauses.Boysarefarmoreatriskthangirlsforunintendedinjury,althoughforself-inflictedinjury,girlsareatgreaterriskthanboysintheEAPregion.Infact,forgirlsaged20-24years,theleadingcauseofdeathisintentionalinjury(suicide)(Blum,2009).HIVpositive-relatedillnessisthesecondleadingcauseofadolescentdeathsintheregion,withinfectiousdiseasesandhomicide/waralsofiguringprominently.Adolescentsexualityhasbeenchangingrapidlyintheregion,withtheageoffirstsex(sexualdebut)droppingastheageofmarriageincreases,drasticallyincreasingthelevelsofpremaritalsex.AsBlumhaspointedout,anunintendedoutcomeofeducationisadelayintheageofmarriagebutnotachangeinsexualbehaviours.Asaconsequence,alaterageofmarriagehasresultedinmorepremaritalsexandwithitanincreaseinpre-maritalpregnancy.Forthosein

school,pregnancyoftenputsanendtotheireducationevenwhereillegalabortionbecomesanoption.Andlegalornot,adolescentsaremorelikelytoresorttounsafeabortionproviders.Globally,itisestimatedthatone-thirdofallmaternaldeathsareduetoabortioncomplications(Blum,2009).

Theurban-ruraldivideisgrowing,asmorefamiliesmigrateintourbanareas(oracrossborders)foremploymentoreducationalopportunities.Thoseleftbehindfaceagreaterriskofmarginalization,povertyandadverseeffectsontherightsoftheirchildren.Allcountriesintheregionhaveseentremendousrisesinurbanpopulationsoverthepast15years,withtheimpactonfamilystructuresandsocialnormsdirectlyinfluencingadolescentbehaviours.Howstudentsfeelabouttheirschool,theirschool‘connectedness’,directlycorrelateswithschoolperformance(attendance,completionandlearningachievement),aswellaswithothersocialbehaviours,includingalcoholuse,smoking,premaritalsexandpregnancy(BlumandLibby,2004).WhilethesefindingsarefromstudiesintheUnitedStates,similarresearchhasbeguninEAP,questioninghowstudentsfeelabouttheirpeersandadultsinschool,iftheyfeelsafe,apartofsomething,treatedfairlyandarehappy.ResearchbytheOECDhasfoundthatschoolsinSouthKoreashowthelowestlevelsofstudentconnectednessandlikingforschoolamongstallOECDcountries(Innocenti,2007).

9TARGETGROUPSANDOPPORTUNITIES

i. Principles of the Strategic FrameworkForthepurposesofthisFramework,adolescentsintheregionhavebeenclusteredintofourtargetgroups,basedontheircurrenteducationalstatusanddefinedbythetypeofpositivepathwaysthateducationcanopenupforthem.Thesefourgroupsandtheircorrespondingpathwaysare:

1. Adolescentswhohaveneverattendedprimaryschoolorwhodroppedoutbeforecompletion.Forthisgroup,organizedlearningaroundfunctionalliteracy,lifeskillsandnon-formaleducationwillprovidetheopportunityfor‘Building Strong Foundations’.

2. Adolescentswhoarecurrentlyenrolledinprimaryschool,butwhoareoverage,attendingirregularly,repeatinggradesand/ornotlearning–inotherwords,thosewhosepotentialisbeingleftuntappedbyschool.Thisgroupisreferredtohereas‘Being a Resource’inrecognitionoftheircapacitytocontributepositivelyinschool.

3. Adolescentswhoareoutofschool,havingdroppedoutoflowersecondary.Organizedlearning,includingrelevantlifeandlivelihoodskills,non-formaleducation(NFE)certificationandsecondaryequivalence,learningclubs,networksandcomputer-basedlearningwouldprovidethemwithopportunitiesforimprovedlivelihoods.Fortheseadolescents,educationwouldprovidethebasisfor‘Making It Work’.

4. Adolescentswhoareenrolledinlowersecondaryschoolbutwhoareoverageand/ornotlearninginovercrowdedandunder-resourcedinstitutions.Forthisgroup,amorechild-friendlysecondaryschoolexperiencewouldprovidetheopportunityfor‘Stepping to Success’,completinglowersecondaryandmakingthetransitiontocontinuedlearning.

Traditionaladolescenteducationprogrammestendtohighlightthespecificformofdisadvantageorthetypeoffailuretobe

IV. TARGET GROUPS AND OPPORTUNITIESIn this Framework, we stress the important roles that education plays in opening up positive pathways to learners and the opportunities that both literacy and the participation in quality education can bring to young people.



addressed,basedonso-calleddeficitmodels.Thiswould,forexample,callfornon-formaleducationforilliterateadolescentsanddropouts,‘special’subjecttracksforslowlearners;specialconsiderationsforadolescentswithdisabilities;and/orspecialschoolsforjuveniledelinquents.Ifviewedasapositivepathway,however,educationmustplaceparticipation,andtherightswhichsurroundthisfundamentalprinciple,attheheartoflearning.Thisistruenotonlyregardingadolescentparticipationinclassroompractices,learningmethodologiesandstudent-ledorganizations,butalsotheirparticipationinmanagement,monitoringandtheplanningofschoolsandlearningcentres.Byframingthetargetgroupsaspositivepathways,theopportunitiesthateducationopensupforadolescentsbecomesthefocusofprogrammes,ratherthanfocusingonthefailuresthatneweducationalapproacheshopetoredress.AscanbeseeninFigure2,wehavetakenthesefourtargetgroupsandtriedtoquantifythem,basedondataderivedfromtheEFAGMR2008.

Out of School In school but not learning Students in school and learning well

83 81

70

55

4845 43

35

24

12

Stepping to Success: In lower secondary but at risk of drop out and non-learning = 36 million

Being a Resource: Overage, in primary school and not learning = 33 million

Making It Work: Out of school, completed primary but not lowersecondary education = 90 million

Building Strong Foundation: Never enrolled in school or Primary school drop out = 70 million

Representspercentageof age group enrolled in school

Age in years

Inthegraphabove,thehorizontalaxisistheageofadolescents(10-19years)whiletheverticalaxisisthepercentageenrolledinschool.Thedarklinefallingfrom87percentfor10-year-oldsontheleftto12percentontherightisgradenetenrolment,withthedarkbluesectionaboverepresentingtheout-of-schoolpopulation.Theyellowsectioninthemiddlerepresentsthoseadolescentsinschoolbutoverage,attendingirregularlyand/ornotlearning,whichisestimatedat40percentofallchildrenenrolledinformalschoolsintheregion.BasedonPISA,TIMMSandotherspecializedexamresults,thepercentageofchildrennotlearningwhileinschoolwouldbemuchhigherinmanyEAPcountries.TheEFAGMRreportsthatthereare176millionchildrenaged6-11yearsand216millionaged12-17.Fromthesefigures,wehaveestimatedthatthetotalnumberofadolescentsintheregionis345million,orapproximately34millionperagecohort(higherforyoungerages).DeterminingthescopeofthefourtargetgroupswasalsobasedonprojectionsderivedfromtheEFA

Source:EFAGMRyear

Figure 2: Estimated cohort participation and performance in education, East Asia and Pacific region, NER and participation


Target group Number of adolescents

Building Strong FoundationsAdolescentswhoneverenrolledordroppedoutbeforecompletingprimaryschool

70 million

Being a ResourceAdolescentsenrolledinprimaryschoolwhoareoverage,attendingirregularlyandnotlearning

33 million

Making it WorkAdolescentsoutofschool,whodroppedoutoflowersecondaryaftercompletingprimary

90 million

Stepping to Success Adolescentsenrolledinlowersecondaryschoolwhoareoverage,attendingirregularlyandnotlearning

36 million

GMR,especiallygrade-specificNERandtransitionrates.Certainly,regionalfiguresaregrossestimatesandopentoconsiderabledebateandrecalibrationofformulas,butthereisnodoubtastotherelevanceandutilityofthesecategoriesinconductingsituationalreviewsonadolescenteducation.

Asituationanalysisonadolescenteducationcanhelpmoreclearlydeterminethescope,compositionandcharacteristicsoftheserelativelyunknowngroups.Whilesuchexercisesatthenationallevelwouldbeofgreatinterest,therealtractioncomeswhencountriesbegintodisaggregateandanalysethesegroupsandtheirsub-populationsfurther–drillingdownintoeachbygender,urban/rural,sub-nationalboundaries,ethno-linguisticgroupsandsocio-economicquintiles.Suchanalysisallowsgovernmentsandtheireducationpartnerstobetterunderstandwherethegreatestnumbers,disparitiesandbottleneckslie,andwhereaninformedresponseismostrequired,intermsofpolicies,resourcesandservices.

AgoodexampleofdrillingdowncomesfromUNICEFCambodia,whichwasinterestedinknowingmoreaboutadolescenteducationfortheMid-TermReview.UNICEFCambodia

(usingexistingdata)dividedthefirstgroup,BuildingStrongFoundations,intotwogroups:adolescentswhoneverenrolledinprimaryschoolorwhodroppedoutbeforecompletingthreeyears,andadolescentswhocompletedmorethanthreeyearsbutfailedtocompletethefullcycle.Thissplitacknowledgesanimportantdistinctioninliteracyanddiscourse-relatedskillswhichfouryearsofschool-basedsocializationandlearningprovides.

AscanbeseeninFigure3,theproportionofnever-enrolledadolescents(thebottomlayerinblue)isveryhighforsix-,seven-andeight-year-olds,decreasingsignificantlyamongstupthroughage11,indicatinglate-ageenrolment.Thelargestlayeristhoseenrolledinprimaryschool.However,nearly80percentof13-year-oldsareenrolledinprimaryschool,when,inreality,correct-ageenrolmentfor13-year-oldsislowersecondaryschool,althoughonly3percentof13-year-oldsareactuallyenrolledinlowersecondaryschool.TheCambodiaDHS2008surveyalsoreviewedtrendsinprimaryschooldropout,primarycompletionandentryintosecondary.Basedonthesefindings,wecanestimatethatsome500,000adolescentsinCambodia,or14percentoftheadolescentpopulation,hasneverenrolledinschoolorhas


100%

90%

80%

70%

60%

50%

40%

30%

20%

10%

0%6 yrs 7 yrs 8 yrs 9 yrs 10 yrs 11 yrs 12 yrs 13 yrs 14 yrs 15 yrs 16 yrs 17 yrs 18 yrs 19 yrs

Enrolled in upper secondary school and higherOut of school, have completed upper secondary and higherEnrolled in lower secondary schoolOut of school, have completed lower but not upper secondaryEnrolled in preschool or primary schoolOut of school, with four of more years schooling but not completing lower secondaryOut of school, never enrolled or less than four years of schooling (illiterate or with basic literacy)

Figure 3: Schooling status, ages 6-19 years, Cambodia, 2005

Source:CDHS,2005

100%

90%

80%

70%

60%

50%

40%

30%

20%

10%

0%

28.1

42.7

29.0

37.6

36.1

26.2

32.8

39.5

27.6

Primary

Not in school

Secondary

Male Female Total

Figure 4: Schooling status of children of secondary school age (ages 12-17), Cambodia

Source:CDHS,2005


droppedoutbeforecompletingprimaryschool(BuildingStrongFoundations),andmustrankasakeypriorityforanyrights-basedadolescenteducationstrategy.Another410,000,or12percentofthepopulation,areenrolledinprimaryschoolbutareoverage,notlearningand/oratriskofdroppingout(BeingaResource).Ofthe29percentofthepopulationenrolledinsecondaryschool,basedoncompletionrates,over50percentareathighriskofdroppingoutandnotlearning.

Figure4showsthebreakdownofCambodia’sadolescentpopulationaged12-17,with27.6percentinsecondary,39.5percentstillinprimaryand32.8percentwhohavedroppedoutoftheformalschoolsystem.Deeperanalysisfoundthatthereisnotmuchdifferenceinthegendercompositionofthesetwogroups,butbigdisparitiesexistintermsofsocio-economicstatusandrural/urbanlocation,withhigherlevelsofpoorandruraladolescentsoutofschoolorstillinprimary,overageandnotlearning.

Countriesareencouragedtoundertakesimilarexercisestodeterminethescopeandnatureof

thefourtargetgroupsandtoengageindebateoverwhichgroupandaccompanyingpositivepathwaysrequireprioritization.Forexample,atthenationallevel,ChinawouldfindalargerproportionofadolescentsintheSteppingtoSuccessgroup(thoseinlowersecondaryschoolwhoarenotlearningandareatriskofdroppingout),andinMakingItWork(adolescentswhohavedroppedoutoflowersecondaryschool).InCambodiaandLaoPDR,ontheotherhand,wefindfargreaternumbersofadolescentsinBuildingStrongFoundations(thosethathavedroppedoutorneverenrolledinprimary),andinBeingaResource(inprimarybutoverage,atriskofdroppingoutandnotlearning).Countriesarenotencouragedtodabbleinallfourgroups,buttoseriouslyprioritizebasedonaclearrationaledevelopedthroughdiscussionwithstakeholders.StrategicengagementwithUNCountryTeams,EducationSectorWorkingGroupsandCountryProgrammeprioritieswillcertainlyinfluencetheselection,especiallyifeducationispartofabroaderofficeresponsetotherightsofspecificadolescentsub-groups.Thefollowingsectionprovidesamoredetaileddescriptionofthefourgroupsandtheircorrespondingpathways.

ii. Positive pathwaysBeforedescribingthefourpathwaysinmoredetail,itisimportanttogiveabriefdescriptionoftheprinciplesguidingtheFramework.Ofvitalimportanceispositiveyouth development,inwhichabasictenetis:“young people are resources to be developed, not problems to be solved”(RothandBrooks-Gunn,2003).

Whileeducationisakeycomponentofpositivedevelopment,factorsofhome,communityandsocio-economicstatusarealsoincludedinthebroaderyouthdevelopmentframework.Fiveelementscanbeusedtodefinepositivedevelopment:

1. Caringandcompassion;2. Character;3. Competence(academicandsocial);4. Confidence;and5. Connection.

Theseelementshaveadirectbearingonthefourpositivepathways,whichfollowbelow(Lerner,2009).

Building Strong FoundationsAdolescents who are out of school without completing the primary cycle

Forout-of-schooladolescentswithlessthanaprimaryeducation,relevantandpracticallearningprovidestheopportunitytobuildastrongfoundation.Thereareanestimated70millionchildreninthiscategoryinEastAsiaandthePacific.Alargerproportionofthepopulationinlessdevelopedcountriesandincountrieswithinefficienteducationsystemswouldfallintothisgroup,andasmallerproportioninmiddle-incomecountries.Theseadolescentsarenotnecessarilysittingaroundwithnothing


todo.Theymightbeactiveintheinformaleconomyprovidingincomefortheirfamiliesorbusywithhouseholdchoresrelatedtofamilysubsistence.Freetimeforlearningisnotalwaysavailableandthehabitofcomingtogetherataprescribedtimetolearnisnotestablished.Thisgroupismadeupprimarilyoflowersocio-economicquintilesandhashighlevelsofethnicminoritiesandthoselivinginremoteareasand/orinurbanslums.‘SpeakingOut’(UNICEFEAPRO,2005),asurveyofyoungpeopleaged15-24fromthroughouttheregion,askedrespondentswhytheyleaveschool.Themostcommonreasonsgivenwerelackofmoney(43percent),theneedtohelpathome(23percent)andtheneedtowork,while,moredisturbingly,notlikingschoolandnotwantingtoattendwascitedby19percentofthoseonceenrolledbutnolongerattendingschool.

Thefactorswhichpulledthesechildrenoutofschool,suchaspoverty,fardistancetoalearningcentre,language,boredomandirrelevance,willneedtobeaddressedinanyeducationalapproachtakenontheirbehalf.Thisiscompoundedbythefactthatmanyoftheseadolescentshaveexperiencedfailurewiththeschoolsystem.Negativeexperienceswithschools,includingharassmentandbullyingbypeers,humiliationbyteachers,andfearofdangerwhiletravellingtoandfromclassrooms,willneedtobeovercome.Whetherbyattainingbasicliteracyormasteringspecificskillsthroughnon-formaleducation,positiveexperienceswithlearningprovidethefoundationforself-confidenceandabeliefinpossibilities.Forthisgroup,sustainedmotivationforlearningfollowstwodistincttracks:

• thedesiretocontinueeducationinordertogainliteracyorspecificlivelihoodsskillsthroughspecialcoursesandnon-formallearning;and

• thewishtogainofficialprimaryequivalenceandcertification,eithertocontinuewithlearningatthepost-primarylevelorforotheropportunitiesthatprimarycompletionmayoffer.

Understandingthelearningdesires,interestsandrealtiesoftheseadolescentsisessentialtoprovidingapositiveeducationalpathway.

Obstaclestoorganizedlearningcanbeovercomeinavarietyofways,andresearcharoundpossiblesolutionsdeservesUNICEFresources.Thereisaneedtolinkorganizedlearningwithotherenticementstomotivateadolescentstocometogether.Researchontheprovisionofvariousincentivesandrewardsforadolescentsinthisgrouptoattendandcompleteacourseofstudy,eitherschool-basedorthroughotherapproaches,wouldalsobewelcome.Forout-of-schoolpopulations,providingteamsportsactivitiestoencourageadolescentstolearnhasalsoproveneffective,asdemonstratedby‘RightToPlay’effortsinsouthernThailand.Whileindependentstudyanddistancelearningmaybeattractiveforthisgroup,educationdesignersmustrecognizethatmanyoftheseadolescentswillhaverudimentaryreading,writingandmathskills.Theprovisionoffunctionalliteracyisaprioritythatcannotbeignoredwhenaddressingtheireducationalrights.Alternativeapproachestolearning–forexampleusingcassettetapes,videos,DVDs,peereducation,ordiscussiongroupswithposters–candeliverspecificcontentandeducationalopportunities.Theneedtoadaptmaterialslocallytoreflecttheinterestsandsometimesthelanguagesofthespecifictargetgroupswillrequirethetrainingofteachersandlocalofficialsinparticipatoryapproaches.

Being a ResourceAdolescents enrolled in primary schools who are overage, attending irregularly, repeating grades and/or not learning

TheneedsofolderchildreninprimaryschoolaredifferenttothoseofyoungchildreninGrade1.Notably,theirengagementwiththeCFSsystemneedsspecialattention.Theterm‘BeingaResource’referstothegreatandtypicallyuntappedpotentialthatolderstudentsinprimaryschoolsrepresent.Consciouseffortsbyteachersandschooladministrativestaffto


recognizethepositivevalueandpotentialresourcesoftheseolderstudentscandomuchtotransformtheirschoolexperience.Greaterfocusshouldbeplacedoncooperativelearningandcollaborativeapproacheswithintheclassroomthatallowextendedgroupactivities,withdifferentagerangesandcapacitiesclusteredtogetherandtheuseofpeerteachingandteamtechniques.ParticipationasleadersinSchoolSelfAssessments(SSA),asmembersofstudentcouncils,assafetywardenstohelpotherstoandfromschool,andasmonitorsofschoolpoliciesandmissionstatementscanallbeareaswhereolderstudentsareactiveandtheircontributionsvalued,whichinturncanincreasetheirconnectivitytoandpositiveexpectationsofschool.Extra-curricularclubsandgroupsthatprovideopportunitiestoacquirelivelihoodskillsmayinvolvetheneedtoadaptmaterialstoreflectlocalcontext,opportunitiesanddemands.Recognizingthatolderstudentsmaynotnecessarilybethemostadvancedintermsofknowledge,peertutorialsandtheexchangeofskillsfromyoungertoolderstudentsprovidesanotherforumforcollaborativelearning.Thisallrequiresthatteachersandschoolstaffworkwithanopenheartandmind–treatingstudentsastruestakeholdersandengagingwiththemaspartnerswithinaholisticCFSframework.

InEastAsiaandthePacific,thisgroupof35millionchildrenisrelativelyoverlookedintermsofUNICEF’seducationprogrammes.Thepriorityhasbeentogetchildrenintoschool,usingtheCFSsystem,withspecialfocusontheearlygradeswhereratesofdropoutandrepetitionarehighest.Thetransitionthroughschoolandthedifficultiesfacedbyolderchildreningrades4-5hasgarneredmuchlessattention.Theregionalprofileoftheseoverageprimaryschoolstudentshasseveraldistinctcharacteristics.Mostcommonly,wefindadolescentswhoenrolledinprimaryschoolayearortwolate,andwhohaverepeatedgradesduetopoorattendanceand/orunsatisfactoryresults–whichareinturnmostdirectlyaffectedbythelanguagespokenathome,the

distancetoschool,theneedtohelpthefamily,andthepresenceofillness(worms,diarrheal,fever).Researchalsoshowsthatalackofwaterandsanitationfacilitiesisamajorbarrierforadolescentgirls,inparticulartotheircontinuingontohigherprimaryschoolgrades.Inremoteareaswithsmallpopulations,wefindincompleteschoolsofferingonlythefirstfewgradesoftheprimarycycle,wherelearnersmustrepeatthehighestgradeaslongastheyremainenrolledinthelocalschool.

Thelongerolderstudentscontinuetostudyinprimaryschoolwithoutgraduating,thegreaterthelikelihoodthattheywillfaceviolence,abuseandharassmentfromteachersandotherstudents.TheSpeakingOutsurveyalsoaskedyoungpeopleintheregionabouttheirexperiencesasstudentsintheformalschoolsystem.Amajorityfounditdifficulttotalktotheirteachersabouttheirproblemsatschool,sayingteachersoftenyellatthem(16percent),thattheydon’tlistentoortreatstudentswell(13percent)andthattheyusephysicalpunishment(8percent).TherecentMongoliastudyonviolenceinschools,whichusedabroadmeasureofverbalabuseandhumiliationasformsofviolence,foundthat97percentofsecondaryschoolstudentshadexperiencedviolenceinschools(Mongolia,2005).Extensiveresearchinrecentyearsispointingtotheimportanceofthesocialandemotionalenvironmentofschools,andthedirectlinkbetweenstudents’feelingsof‘connectedness’andtheirleveloflearningachievementandpositiveperformanceonawiderangeofindicators(Greenberg,2003;Mohamed,2001).InarecentmajornationalstudyofadolescentlearnersintheUnitedStates,adolescents’feelingsofengagementandconnectivitytoschools(asmeasuredbyfeelingclosetopeopleatschool,feelingapartoftheschool,feelingtreatedfairlybyteachersandfeelingsafe),weredirectlycorrelatedtosuccesswithlearning,schoolperformance(attendance,completion,etc),andhigh-risksocialbehaviour(smoking,alcohol,earlysex,pregnancy)(Blum,etc,UNICEFEAPRO,2009).


Making It WorkAdolescents who are out of school, who dropped out before completing lower secondary

Forthisgroupofout-of-schooladolescents,continuededucationmustbepurposeful,withpracticalapplicationsorgate-keepingfunctionsthatrelatedirectlytoimprovedlivelihoodsorgreaterjobopportunities.Assuch,educationandorganizedlearningmustpresentpracticalopportunitiesforMaking It Work.ThisisthelargestofthefourgroupsinEastAsiaandthePacific,withover90millionadolescentswhofinishedprimarybutleftlowersecondary.Regionally,thisisaverydiversegroup,featuringallsocio-economicclassesandsub-nationalgroupings.Insomecountries,suchasLaoPDRorPapuaNewGuinea,thisgroupmaybequitesmallandconsideredadvantagedwhencomparedtothevastnumbersofadolescentswhohaveneverenrolledinprimary.Therearemanyreasonswhychildrendonotmakethetransitionthroughlowertouppersecondaryschool,includingproximitytohome,feesandothercostbarriers,lackofinterest,fear,abuse,andtheperceivedlowvalue-addedofstayinginschool.Thepressuretocontributetofamilyincomealsoresultsinmanyadolescentsleavinglowersecondarybeforecompletionandsecond-chanceopportunitiesforlearningmustprovidetheseadolescentswithtangibleandpracticaloutcomes.

Adolescentsinthisgroupshouldhavedevelopedliteracyskillsandcantakeadvantageofself-learningopportunitiesandindependentstudythatadvancetheircapacitytofindworkorimprovestheirexistingmeansoflivelihood.Educationoptionsforthisclustermightincludepeereducation,computer-basedtutorialsandmodularlessonswithhomeworkassignments.Withinthisgroup,therearetwodistinctstrands.Someoftheseadolescentswillbeinterestedinre-enteringtheformalschoolsystemtoachieveequivalencycertificatesandsecondaryschooldiplomas.Othermembers,whileperhapskeenonfinishinglowersecondary,aremoreinterestedingainingspecificskills,informationorqualificationsthat

canpavethewayforhigher-payingjobsandimprovingtheirchancesforasecureandmoresustainablelivelihood.Furtherlearningforyoungpeoplewhofallintothiscategorymuststressmarketableskillsthatwillboosttheirchancesoffindingwork,oratleastofferthemanimprovedqualityoflife.

Educationandtrainingprogrammesthatengagewiththeprivatesectorallowtheseadolescentstomeetwithpotentialemployersandnetworkbeyondtheirpeergroupsandimmediatecommunities.Lifeskillsandsocialandemotionallearning(SEL)competenciesthatequipyoungpeoplefornetworking,fortakingastrategicapproachtoselfdevelopment,andfornegotiatingandcommunicatingarealsokeyelementsoftenmissingintheeducationalopportunitiesavailableforthisgroup.Talentacademies,whichprovidelearnerswiththeopportunitytofocustheirstudiesonareasinwhichtheyexcel(i.e.,art,sports,mechanics)buildself-confidenceandesteeminwaysthatpromotefurtherlearningandpersonaldevelopment.

Stepping to SuccessAdolescents currently enrolled in lower secondary but at risk of dropping out, who have repeated grades, attend irregularly, and/or are not learning

Thereareapproximately90millionadolescentscurrentlyenrolledinlowersecondaryschoolsinEastAsiaandthePacific,andwehaveestimatedthatapproximately40percent,or36million,areatriskofdroppingoutand/ornotlearning.Fromarightsperspective,theseadolescentsmaynotbeconsideredapriorityforUNICEFsupport.IncountriessuchasCambodia,Kiribati,theSolomonIslandsorTimor-Leste,withlowersecondaryenrolmentratesbelow30percent,itcanbearguedthatthisgroupisalreadyconsiderablyadvantaged.Forsomesectorsofsociety,however,suchasethnicminorities,thoselivinginremoteareasorchildrenwithdisabilities,thelevelofdisadvantageissogreatthatfromarightsperspectiveredressingthisimbalancebecomesapriority.Themainreasonswhystudentsdropoutorfailtolearnareirrelevantandoutdated


curricula,poorlearningconditionsandscarceresources,keepinginmindthatmanyfacecompetingdemandsfortheirtimeandshowlittlesenseofconnectednesstotheirschools.Tokeepstudentsinlowersecondary,moremustbedonetoimproveschoolqualityandtolinklearningwithreallifeneeds–inotherwords,tomakelearninganopportunityforlearnerstoStepToSuccess.Thisincludeslinkingschoolsmorecloselytothecommunityandsocietyatlarge,toemphasizethebridgebetweenlearningandearningandtobuildconfidenceandself-esteemthroughpositivelearningexperiences.

Thereisabigmismatchbetweenwhatistaughtatschoolandtheskillsneededbytheprivatesector.Inmanycountries,studentsinrurallowersecondaryschoolshaveonlythesmallestchanceofpassingexamstogainapreciousseatinuppersecondary,sothatlowersecondaryisessentiallytheendoftheirformalschooling.Inthiscontext,whencomparingtherelativeimportanceofregularschoolattendanceagainsttheopportunitytocontributetofamilyincomeandhouseholdwell-being,schoollosesout.Thisisespeciallytrueifschoolsarenotlinkedtothelocaleconomyanddonotprovideskillsandcontactsthatleadtodesiredjobs.Livelihoodskillscanbeincorporatedintosecondaryschooleducationthroughspecial

subjectcourses,extra-curricularclubsandafter-schoolprojectsthatarelinkedtolocalemployersandtheprivatesector.

Ministersofeducationintheregionareacutelyawareofthechallengesfacingadolescents.AttheSoutheastAsiaMinistersofEducationOrganization(SEAMEO)annualConsultationofMinistersinKualaLumpurin2008,majorconcernswereraisedaboutthequalityofsecondaryeducationandthepoorviewthatstudentshaveoftheirschools.Theministersspokefranklyaboutthelegionsofdisillusionedsecondarystudentswhoareboredandtunedout,andthedirectlinkthishastopoorlearningoutcomesandlowcompletionrates(SEAMEO,2008).InthePacific,therecentForumofMinistersofEducationalsohighlightedtheimportanceofadolescents,educationandemploymentopportunities,andthecriticalrolequalityplaysinretentionandstudentengagement(PacificForum,2008,Fiji).Improvingthesocialandemotionalenvironmentinsecondaryschoolswouldaddressmanyoftheshortcomingsthatputadolescentsofflearning.Forthisreason,expansionoftheCFSformat(especiallyasregardsparticipationandprotection)tosecondaryschoolsisakeyfeatureoftheFramework.

iii. Typologies of countries in the regionForthepurposesoftheregionalstrategyandinordertoadvancethenotionofcountrytypologies,wehaveclusteredcountriesaccordingtotheproportionofadolescentsbelongingtoeachofthefourtargetgroups,calculatedatnationallevels.Ananalysisoftheeducationalstatusofadolescentsallowsustobuildatypologybasedontheprioritizationofthetwolargesttargetgroups.Thisdoesnotmeanthatcountryofficesmustlimittheirengagementinadolescenteducationtojustthesetwogroups,butthateffortsinotherareasmustbefocused,strategicandoflimitedscope.Countryofficesareencouragedtocarryoutmoreextensiveanalysisanddiscussionsatnationallevelontheimportanceofthesefour

targetgroupsandtofinalizetheirprioritiesaccordingly.TheirrelativesizeisnotnecessarilywhatmattersmostintermsofUNICEF’scomparativeadvantageandtherights-basedapproachthatguidesourprogrammefocus.Foreachcountry,thetoptwoprioritygroupshavebeenidentifiedinthefollowingtable.

Itshouldbenotedthatwholethesecategorizationsandtargetgroupsarebasedonthecurrentsituationfacingthecountriesintheregionin2009.Ifwelooktothefuture,evenfiveyearsfromnow,wecanexpecttoseesomesignificantshiftsinthecompositionofthesefourtargetgroups.Inalllikelihood,wewouldseethenumberofadolescentsin

1� EducationforAdolescentsUNICEFEAPStrategicFramework

Building a Strong Foundation Outofschoolwithoutcompletingprimary

Making It Work OutofschoolaftercompletingprimaryLowersecondarydropouts

• LaoPDR(2) • Myanmar(2) • PapuaNewGuinea(2) • SolomonIslands(2) • Vanuatu(2)

• China(2) • Malaysia(2) • Mongolia(2) • VietNam(2)

Being a ResourceEnrolledinprimaryschool,overageandnotlearning

Stepping to SuccessEnrolledinlowersecondaryschool,overageandnotlearning

• Cambodia(1) • DPRKorea(2) • Indonesia(1) • LaoPDR(1) • Myanmar(1) • PapuaNewGuinea(1) • Philippines(1) • SolomonIslands,VanuatuandKiribati(1) • Thailand(2)

• Cambodia(2) • China(1) • DPRKorea(1) • Indonesia(2) • Kiribati(2) • Malaysia(1) • Mongolia(1) • Philippines(2) • Thailand(1) • VietNam(1)

primaryschoolswhoarenotlearningandlikelytodropouttobegreatlyreduced.Thiswillbetheresultofacombinationofimprovedqualityintheformalsystemandexpandedaccesstoearlychildhoodprogrammes,aswellasimplementationofpoliciesrelatedtoautomaticpromotion.Teachersareoftenthestrongestopponentsofautomaticpromotionpolicies,statingthatitmakesamockeryofteachingandlearningandwillallowstudentstopassthroughtheeducationsystemwithoutberequiredtoacquirebasicliteracy,numeracyorgeneralknowledge.Certainlyautomaticpromotionpolicieswillmakethepracticeofspecialtuitionclassesafterschoolsredundant,andwillgreatlyreducetheopportunitiesforpublicschoolteacherstomakeadditionalincomethroughcoachingclassesandspecialafterschoolcramsessions.Whilerisksareinvolved,automaticpromotionwillgreatlyreducelevelsofprimaryschooldrop-out(andrepetition)andallowforadditionalresourcestobeallocatedtoquality

improvementsinschools.AsaresultwecanexpectfarfewerchildrentobeincludedinthetargetgroupBuildingaStrongFoundationintheyearstocome.Ontheotherhand,wecanexpectlargernumberofadolescentstobefoundinthetargetgroupMakingItWorkoutofschoolaftercompletingtheirprimaryeducation.Asaresult,infuture,moreattentionandresourceswillberequiredforalternativelearningopportunities,includingon-linelearning,non-formalequivalencycourses,partnershipswithprivatesectorandup-streampolicysupport.BuildingaStrongFoundation,thegroupcomprisedofprimaryschooldropouts,willtakesometimetoreduce,butinthelongerterm,10yearsormore,wecanexpecttoseeimprovementstotheprimarysystemtopayoff,withfewerandfewerchildrendroppingout,andthoseadolescentswhohavedroppedoutinthepastmaturingintoadulthoodandoutofthetargetfocusofthisstrategy.

Note:(1)and(2)indicateeachcountry’stwoprioritygroups.

19PRIORITYAREASOFINTERVENTION

V. Priority areas of intervention

Five Priority Areas have been identified as a means of guiding country offices in their strategic choice of interventions for creating positive pathways for adolescent education. A matrix, with specific examples of interventions for the four target groups and their pathways, is provided below. The Priority Areas are:

i. Identifying education disparities and filling knowledge gaps ii. Improving quality in formal schools, building on experiences with CFS iii. Supporting alternative approaches and non-school models of learning iv. Promoting adolescent participation and active citizenry v. Education for well-being and behaviour change

BylimitingUNICEF’sengagementtothesePriorityAreas,theregionalofficeisstrategicallyplacingparametersoncountryofficesupporttothesecondaryandnon-formalsub-sectors.ThereisstilltoomuchunfinishedbusinessinensuringtherighttoqualityprimaryeducationforUNICEFtoplacedisproportionateattentiononsecondary,althoughaddressingtheneedformorepathwaystoqualitylowersecondarywillmakeprimarycompletionmoreattractivetolearners.ThematrixbelowattemptstosummarizeexamplesofUNICEF-supportedactivitiesundereachPriorityAreainrelationto

eachofthefourtargetgroups.Ascanbeseen,notallPriorityAreasarerelevanttoallgroups.ThecommentarythatfollowsthematrixexplainsthelinksbetweenthePriorityAreasandthepositivepathwaysandgivesexamplesofthetypeofinterventionsthatUNICEFcountryofficesshouldconsidersupporting.Theseexamplesareneitherexhaustive,nornecessarilyrelevanttoeachcountryacrosstheregion,butattempttoprovideUNICEFanditspartnerssomepracticalguidanceandoptionstoconsiderwhenapplyingtheFramework.



Building Strong Foundations Outofschoolwithoutcompletingprimary

Being a ResourceOlderchildreninprimaryschools

Stepping to SuccessOutofschoolwithoutcompletinglowersecondary

Making It WorkStudentsenrolledinlowersecondary

i. Identifying education disparities and filling knowledge gaps

•Improvequality,analysis anduseofEMISforNFE, privatesector,NGO systems•Knowledgegenerationand surveysonout-of-school populationsinrelationto educationandschooling

•Surveysandqualitative researchonattitudes, expectationsand environmentstoshape policyandpractice•Capacitybuildingin analysis–linkingdataon disparitiestodecision- making

•Improvequality,analysis anduseofEMISsystems foradolescents•Knowledgegenerationand surveysonout-of-school populationsinrelationto educationandschooling•Learningachievement– technicalsupportto strengthenNFequivalence examinationsand certificationstandards

•Improvequality,analysis anduseofEMISsystems foradolescents•Learningachievement– technicalsupport,baseline andimpactsurveysfor pilotprojects,useLAto influencecurriculum reviews,teachertraining andexamreform

ii. Improving quality in formal schools, building on experiences with CFS

•ExpandedCFSframeworks andstandardsfor secondaryandboarding schoolfacilities•Pre-serviceandin-service teachertraining– cooperativelearning•Schoolmanagement– Student-ledorganizations, activeengagement

•QualityCFSstandards withnationalframeworks•Schoolmanagement practices•Pre-serviceandin-service teachertraining•Examreform•School-basedWASH– watersanitationfacilities andpractice

iii. Supporting alternative approaches and non-formal models of learning

•Networkmechanismsand coordinationsupport•Non-formalequivalence policy,innovationand capacitydevelopment•NFEcourses–functional literacyandlifeskills

•Networkmechanismsand coordinationsupport– Public-privatepartnerships•Non-formalequivalence policy,innovationand capacitydevelopment•Non-formallivelihoodsand lifeskillscoursesand alternativelearningmodels

iv. Promoting adolescent participation and active citizenry

•Mainstreamtheuseof activelearning–learner- centredmethods•Child-to-child–studentsas agentsofchange

•Mainstreamactivelearning– learner-centredmethods•Studentrolesinschool managementand decision-making•Child-to-child– students asagentsofchange

•Mainstreamtheuseof activelearning–learner- centredmethods•Child-to-child–studentsas agentsofchange•RightToPlay–organized clubsandteamsport

•Mainstreamactivelearning– learner-centredmethods•Studentrolesinschool managementand decision-making•Learnersasagentsof change•Communitiesinvolvedin schools

v. Education for well-being and behaviour change

•Canvassingandclassroom- basedadvocacy•Independentlearning modulesonkeymessage areasusingvariousmedia

•Canvassingand classroom-based advocacy•Schoolhealth/WASH– LaoPDR•Disasterriskreduction– environmentandclimate change

•Canvassingandclassroom- basedadvocacy•Independentlearning modulesonkeymessage areasusingvariousmedia•Engageadolescentto developindependent learningmodulesonkey messageareas

•Canvassingandclassroom advocacy•Lifeskillsandsocialand emotionallearning•Disasterriskreduction– environmentaleducation


Therearetremendousdatagapsthatneedtobefilledintermsofthestatusofadolescenteducationintheregion,andthisPriorityAreaisappropriateforallfourtargetgroups.Withintheformalsector,educationdataareavailableinmostcountriesthroughEMISforprimaryeducation–asignificantoutcomeoftheEFAmovement.Therearemajordatagaps,however,forpost-primaryeducation,withsecondaryNERdataavailableforjustafewcountriesintheregion(2009EFAGMR).Disaggregatedsecondary,vocationalandpost-secondarydatawasveryweakinmostcountryreportsoftheEFAMidDecadeAssessment(MDA)process,andthereisnoEMISreportingonagebygradebreakdownsforsecondary.Therearealsosignificantcapacitygapsintheanalysisanduseofdatabydecisionmakersandstakeholdersatalllevelsoftheeducationsystem,somethingthatcanbeaddressedunderthisFramework.Themostglaringknowledgegaps,however,pertaintothoseadolescentsnolongerenrolledintheschoolsystem.Inthiscontext,thefollowingthreeareasaresuggestedforintervention:strengtheningtheuseofpost-primaryEMIS;investinginsurveysandqualitativeresearch;andmeasuringlearningachievementsandstudentoutcomes.

Strengthening monitoring and evaluation (M&E) and EMIS LargedatagapsappearwiththeexistingEMISsystemsatsecondaryandpost-secondarylevels.Thepaucityofdataexistsforalladolescentagegroups,asevidencedbytheEFAGMRdatatablesandtheUNESCOSub-RegionalSynthesisReportsoftheEFAMDA(UNESCOSSR.2009).Technicalresourcesupporttoincreaseschooldatacollectionmaybenecessaryinonlyafewcases.Areviewofpoliciesandpracticesrelatedtomonitoringperformancecanincludelookingatinspectoratedatacollectiontools,creatingstrongerM&Elinkswithnon-stateprovidersofeducation,strengtheningstakeholdercapacityfordata

i. Identifyingeducationdisparitiesandfilling knowledge gaps

analysisandimprovingtheuseofdatafordecision-making.Withbetteranalysis,counterpartsatcentralanddecentralizedlevelscanpinpointwherethegreatestdisparitieslieandwhereresourcesaremostrequired.UNICEFcanplayakeyroletosupportimprovedqualityanduseofEMISandM&Esystemsforformalpost-primarylevels,NFEcourses,andprivatesector-certifiedcourses.Thiswillrequirebudgetdiscussionsandtheprioritizationofresourcesinpolicyplanning.ExcellentexamplesofsuchengagementatupperprimaryandsecondarylevelscanbefoundinMongolia,CambodiaandTimor-Leste.

Surveys and research Dataonadolescentsandyoungpeoplewhoarenotenrolledinschoolisalmostnon-existent,restrictedtojustafewsurveys.Childrenarenotfeaturedinthehealthsystemaftertheyhavecompletedtheirimmunizationsatagefive.Ineducation,oncechildrenstopshowingupforservicesandofficiallydropout,thechildisusuallynolongermonitoredorrecordedbyEMIS.Householdsurveys,qualitativestudiesandactionresearchcanprovideexcellentdataonadolescentsandeducation.TheVietNamstudyonEthnicMinorityGirls’TransitiontoLowerSecondarySchoolisanexcellentexampleofresearchthatcouldintroduceinnovativeparticipatorydatacollectiontechniques.Thefindingshadadirectimpactoneducationpolicyandgovernmentprogrammesforethnicminoritygirls’educationintheNorthernprovinces.Asituationanalysisofadolescenteducationcanalsoincludemappingexerciseswherethemyriadofpartnersandagenciesinvolvedareidentified,withthepotentialforsynergyandcollaborationspelledout.Studiesorpublishedresearchontheeffectivenessofvarioustargetedbudgetsupportschemesamongstspecificgroups,includingincentives,waiversandscholarshipsforsecondaryschools,wouldbeavaluablecontributiontothesector.Qualitativeresearchcanalsobeinitiatedlookingatthehopes,fears


includingsupporttocountriesthathaveyettointroducetheseexamstoassistwiththeskills,samplingdesignandtoolsneededtoundertakeastudy.In2005,theEastAsiaLearningAchievementStudy(EALAS)wasintroducedinsevencountriesinEAPRO,focusingontheprimarylevel.TheinnovationsofEALAS,whichcouldeasilybeappliedatthesecondarylevel,weretheuseoftheStructureoftheObservedLearningOutcome(SOLO)taxonomyinitemdesign,theuseofquestionnairestoobtaindataonschoolsandlearners,andtheuseofRaschModellingintheanalysisofthefindings.Researchthatcanshedlightonthelinkbetweenvariousqualityinterventions,suchasteachertraining,orSELconnectivity,andlearningachievementcanhavearealimpactonpolicyformulationandsectordiscussions,aswellascurriculumreform,teachertrainingandschoolmanagementguidelines.Continuedresearchonlearningachievementcanalsocontributetooursupportforexamreform,detailedbelow.

andaspirationsofadolescents,thetransitiontoandsuccessinpost-primary,andexperienceswithprivatesectoreducationamongstvarioustargetgroups.Surveysonspecificsub-groupswithinthefourtargetgroups,includingeducationsurveyswithethnicminorityadolescents,adolescentsinpoorfamiliesandremoteplacesandthosewithdisabilities,arealsoencouraged.Intheregion,VietNam,China,ThailandandTimor-Lesteareexamplesofcountriesthathavecarriedoutexcellentsurveyandresearchworkonadolescenteducation.

Learning achievementAthirdareaofstrategicimportancewhereUNICEFcanprovidesupportisresearchandanalysisonlearningachievementintermsofstudentperformanceinvariouseducationalsettings.Suchresearchandanalysiscanhighlightdisparitiesinlearningachievementsbetweenvariousmembersofsociety,regionsofacountry,typeofschooland/orlearningenvironment.CloseralliancescanbemadewithongoingPISAandTIMMSinitiatives,

ii. Improving quality in formal schools, building on experiences with CFSThisPriorityAreaismostappropriateforadolescentsingroupstwoandfour,studentsenrolledinupperprimaryorlowersecondaryschoolswhoareoverage,repeatersand/orlateenrollerswithpoorattendance,atriskofdroppingoutandnotlearning.IncountriesinEastAsiaandthePacific,thesetwopopulationsarequitelarge.Whenappliedinpractice,qualityshouldbeconceivedfromaholisticperspective,inlinewiththeprinciplesofexistingnationalCFSframeworks.Withinthisarea,fivespecificinterventionshavebeenidentifiedforUNICEFcountrylevelsupport:

Expanding CFS standards TheCFSholisticframeworkprovidesarights-basedlearningenvironment.Todatethefocushasbeenmainlyonprimaryeducation.However,someinitialworkhasbegunonthesecondarylevel.ThePhilippinesandVietNam

haveappliedtheCFSapproachinschoolmanagementpractices,includingschoolself-assessments,schoolimprovementplans,headmaster/teachertrainingandcommunityorientations.UNICEFanditspartnersneedtoconsiderhowtheCFSframeworkcanbeimplementedinupperprimaryandlowersecondary.CFSstandardsandprocessesatthesecondarylevelwillincludemuchlargerdimensionsforparticipation,inclusionandprotection–andthenecessityforinformationandknowledgeaboutreproductivehealth.UNICEFcanusepilotactivitiesandresearchtoidentifybestpracticesandinnovativemodelstoimprovethequalityandequityofeducationatthesecondarylevel.Assecondaryschoolsintheregionoftenhavedormitories,theapplicationofCFSprinciples,holisticstandardsandmanagementprocessestotheseplaceswillbeimportant.


Somecountryofficesarealsoworkingwithgovernmentstodevelopstandardstoguidetherehabilitation,constructionandmaintenanceoflowersecondaryschoolfacilities,eitheraspartofanemergencyresponse,orinapplyingCFSprinciplestolearningspaces.CountryofficesmusttakecarethatsupporttostandardsettingdoesnotcommitUNICEFtosupportinglarge-scaleschoolconstructionschemes.UNICEF’ssupporttoconstructionshouldbelimitedtointroducinginnovativenewdesigns(e.g.,forremotemultigradeschools,forwater/sanitationsystems)ortonewconstructionapproaches(e.g.,increasingcommunityorpublic-privatepartnerships,traininglocalyouthtobuildandmaintainschools).InChina,thedevelopmentofaNationalCFSFrameworkandStandardsresultedinsurveysbeingconductedtoreviewthestatusofspecificdimensions.In2009,thegovernmentinitiatedanationalreviewofthesafetyandprotectiondimensionoftheCFSframework,whichwilllookatschoolenvironmentsandthehealthandphysicalsafetyofstudents,includingtheSELenvironment,usingtoolsdevelopedwithUNICEFsupport.

School management practicesThisiscloselylinkedtoCFSstandards,thedistinctionherebeingthatthefocusisontransformingtherolesthatteachersandlearnersplayintheclassroomandschoolmanagement.Themostconsistentwaythisisbeingdoneinformalschoolsisthroughschoolselfassessmentprocessesthatinvolvelocalstakeholdersindevelopingschoolimprovementplans(SIPs).Theseprocessesarecommoninmanychild-friendlyprimaryschools,andhavebeenmodifiedinseveralcountriesforuseinlowersecondary(Thailand,thePhilippinesandVietNam).Oncestudentsseethattheiropinionsandviewsarevaluedandtakenintoconsideration,theirrelationshipandengagementwithschoolstartstochange.Certainlysuchchangesrequirecleardirectivesandguidancefromseniorministryofficials,circulateddirectlytoschoolsandlocalgovernment.Theyalsorequireinvestmentsin

headmastertraining,bringingtogetherschoolmanagementcommitteesandparentsgroupsaswellascivilsociety,faith-basedandprivatesectorgroupsifrelevant.Grantinggreaterflexibilitytoheadmastersandteachers,especiallyiftheyaretakinginitiativesandmakinglearningrelevanttotheirlearners,isaniterativeprocessthatleadstostrongerschools.Itmayalsobepossibletoaddresspoliciesthatkeepgirlsoutofschoolaftertheyhavehadchildren,ortoliftrestrictionsonolderchildrenwhowouldliketotryacceleratedlearningandskipgradeswhereappropriate,asjusttwoexamples.

Foradolescentsingroupstwoandfour,teachersandschoolmanagementshoulddomoretoemphasizeandutilizetheirpotential.Overageadolescentscanassumemanyleadershiprolesinschool,suchasbeingresponsibleforvariousclassroomandmanagementfunctions,asplaygroundmonitorsandsportsgroupleaders,andbeinginchargeofwalkingyoungchildrentoandfromschool.Thesearrangementsrequireattentionduringpre-serviceandin-serviceteachertraining,andarecloselylinkedtotheeffortsdescribedbelowunderlifeskills.InThailand,theNGORighttoPlayworkedwithgovernmentschoolstostrengthenstudents’leadership,teambuildingandcommunicationskillsthroughgamesandorganizedteamactivities.Introducingtheseconceptsandpracticaltechniquestoheadmasters,teachersandstudentscanlaythegroundforexpandingsuchpracticesnationally.

Exam reformAcrosstheregion,nationalsecondaryschoolexamsareoneofthebiggestobstaclestointroducingqualityinitiativesintotheclassroom.Forhistoricalandculturalreasons,mostnationalexamstestrotememorization,rewardingthosestudentsandschoolsthatareabletoregurgitatevasttractsoftextandrememberexamplesfrompracticeexams.Introducingchild-centredmethodsandotherqualityinitiativesinsuchacontextcanresultinstudentsactuallyperformingworseon


traditionalexams,aswasevidencedinaCFSImpactStudyconductedinCambodiain2005.Examsthatmeasuretheabilitytomemorizetextbooksarenotrelevanttothedemandsoftheprivatesectorortheneedsofadolescentsintoday’sworld.Revisingthemisaquidproquoforqualityreformatprimaryandsecondarylevels.

UNICEF’sworkintheregionattheprimarylevelunderEALAScanbeabasisforengagementinexamreformatthesecondarylevel.Learningachievementstudiescanplacegreateremphasisonquestionnairesthatexamineadolescents’connectivitytoschoolsandtheirfamiliesandothersocialandcontextualinfluences.AsinEALAS,supportforsecondaryexamreformcanincludetheuseofSOLOtaxonomytoclassifyitems,withRaschmodellingusedtolinkexamresultstospecificcurriculumobjectives,theschoolenvironmentandothersocial/familyfactors.Withoutexamreform,effortstomaketheclassroommorestudent-centredandparticipatoryatthesecondarylevelriskbeingineffective.Thisisalong-termendeavourandshouldbeundertakeninpartnershipwithotherdonors,especiallytheWorldBank,AusAIDandtheEuropeanUnion.

Examreformalsoneedstobeextendedtonon-formaleducationequivalencecoursesthatofferaccreditationandcertificationtoout-of-schooladolescents.Technicalsupporttoensurecomparabilitybetweenthevariousexamsandcurriculaexpectationswillhelpensurequality.InIndonesia,non-formalequivalenceexamsforloweranduppersecondaryareavailableandofferedonspecificdates,althoughonly30percentofNFEstudentsareabletopassonaverage(NFEDeskReview,UNICEFEAPRO,2009).

Water and sanitation hygiene (WASH) in schools WASHinschoolscombinesinstructionalmaterials,advocacyandawareness–theso-calledsoftware–withhardwaresupportin

termsoftoiletfacilitiesandwatersupplies.Experiencehasshownthatsupportinglessonsonsanitationandhygienewithoutprovidingaccesstotoiletsandwater,orprovidinghardwarewithoutofferinglessonsormaterialsonsanitationisfarlesseffectivethanacombinationofthetwo.UNICEFshouldconsiderWASHsupportforbothprimaryandsecondaryschools,incorporatingbothsoftwareandhardwareelements,andallowingcommunitiesandstudentstoparticipateinthedesignandconstructionofnewfacilities.Lackoftoiletsinsecondaryschoolsisakeyreasonforthelowattendanceofgirlsandisoff-puttingforadolescentsingeneral.LinkingWASHinschoolstohomeandcommunity-basedoutreachbystudentshasproveneffectiveatprimarylevels,andthereisanevengreaterpotentialatthesecondarylevelforlearnerstobringlessonshomeandtostarttheprocessofbehaviourchangeinthecommunity.WASHmessagesandindicatorscanalsobeincorporatedintoSSAandSIPexercises.

Pre-service and in-service teacher trainingTeachertrainingiskeytoanyefforttoimprovethequalityofeducation.Foradolescents,therearecurrentlyveryfewdevelopmentagenciesinEAPthatsupportteachertrainingforsecondaryeducation.UNICEFmustbecareful,therefore,nottogetoverlycommittedtosupportsecondaryteachertrainingwithoutaclearexitstrategy.Whileinnovativeapproachestoin-servicetrainingcanprovidemodels,unlessthereisaclearplanforhandingthesemodelsover,itwillbedifficultforUNICEFtoextricateitselffromwhatcanbecomeaboutiquepilot.Thereisgreaterpotentialwithpre-servicetrainingtoputeffectivemodelsinplacewhichcanbemainstreamedthroughexistingteachertraininginstitutesandpre-servicetrainingcentres.Beforetheytakeupdutiesintheclassroom,teacherscanbetrainedonCFSprinciples,onsocialemotionallearning,onstudentparticipationoronknowledgeforwellbeing.


ThisPriorityAreaisprimarilyintendedforadolescentsintargetgroupsoneandthree-thosewhoarecurrentlyoutofschool.Theseadolescentshavealotofpotentialandcontinuetolearnafterleavingschool.InEAPcountries,governmentshavealonghistoryofimplementingNFE,bothintermsofmassliteracycampaigns,andskills-basededucationprogrammesforyoungpeople.Throughouttheentireeducationsector,thegreatestpartnershipsandmostactiveengagementwithcivilsocietypartners,NGOs,people’sunionsandcommunitygroupsareusuallyfoundinNFEdepartmentsandprogrammes.Whiledistinctintermsofmodesofdeliveryandlevelsofflexibility,formalandnon-formaleducationsystemsarequitesimilarintheelementsthatinfluencetheirquality.TherecentNFEDeskReview(UNICEFEAPRO,2009)wascommissionedtohelpdeterminethescopeandcomparativeadvantageofUNICEF’sengagementinNFEequivalenceintheregion.TheDeskReviewanalyzedexistingNFEequivalenceprogrammesintheregionunderthreedomains:organization,contextandgoals(UNICEFEAPRO,2009).ThereviewhelpedtoidentifythekeyactivitiesbelowrecommendedforthisPriorityArea.

Network coordination Asmentionedabove,awiderangeofNGOs,civilsocietyandcross-sectoralpartnersareinvolvedinnon-formalandalternativemodesofeducation.Regrettably,therearefewcoordinationmechanismsinplaceandverylittlesynergybetweenpotentialpartners.InCambodia,anexceptionexistsintheformofKAPE,anNGOumbrellaorganizationthatissupportedbyUNICEFtoprovideacommonplatformfornon-government,civilsocietyandfaith-basedorganizationsthatareactiveintheeducationsector.InadditiontocoordinatingtheeffortsofvariousNGOs,KAPEplaysaproactiveroleasamemberoftheEducationSectorWorkingGroup,shapingpolicythroughadvocacyandwell-documentedpilotprojects.WithoutcommittedresourcesforoverheadexpensesKAPEcouldnotexist,andthecivilsocietypartnerswouldremainadisparatebunch

iii. Supporting alternative approaches and non-formal models of learning

devoidoffocusandthepowerofnumbers.Tohelpadolescentsastheyapproachadulthood,bettercoordinationmechanismsareneededwithcommunitydevelopmentefforts,includingeducationextensionprogrammesbyothersectors,suchashealth,agriculture,publicworksandlocaldevelopment.ThroughmoreformalizedNGOcoordination,strongerlinkscanalsobefosteredwiththegovernmentmonitoringandevaluationsystem.

Otherlevelsofnetworkingandrepresentationcanbeconsideredintermsofassistingyouthorganizationstogetregistered.Itisonethingtoorganizeonbehalfofadolescents,quiteanothertoallowthemtoorganizethemselves,toregisterasgroupsandtobeofficiallyrecognized.Suchpolicyengagementrequiresastrategicvisionandcommitmentovertimetoproduceresults.Whileitisrelativelyeasytosupportadolescentswhoareinschool,relativelyfewcountryofficesprovidesupporttostudentgovernmentsandcouncilsandtonationaleffortstobringtogetherrepresentativesofthesegroupstomeetwithseniorgovernmentofficials.Evenfewercountries(Myanmar,VietNam)havemanagedtoengagewithgroupsofout-of-schooladolescents,providingthemwithlocalsupportandadviceonhowtheycanbestmaketheirvoicesheardbygovernment.

Non-formal equivalence: Policy, innovation and capacity developmentTherecentNFEDeskReviewfoundthatmanycountriesintheregiondonothaveestablishedcurricula,deliverysystemsandcertificationprocessestoprovideaccreditednon-formalequivalencycoursesattheprimary,loweroruppersecondarylevels.TheexceptionsareIndonesia,ThailandandthePhilippineswhichhaveextensivenon-formalequivalencyprogrammes,withnationalequivalenceexamsandaccreditationsystemsinplaceupthroughuppersecondary.Theriskremainsthatnon-formaleducationisconsidered‘second-chance’,aparallelbutinferiorsystemofcertification.


TheDeskReviewalsohighlightedtheweakperformanceofstudentsinNFEequivalencyprogrammes,withexampassrateswellunder40percentformostcountriesofferingNFEequivalenceintheregion(CIE-UNICEFEAPRO,2008).Follow-upresearchontheimpactofsuchcourses,theirutilityforgraduates,aswellasthesocialvalueplacedonsuchprogrammescouldshapefuturepolicydirections,curriculacontentandadvocacyinitiatives.UndertheFramework,supportcouldbechannelledtorevisingtheNFEcurriculum,textbooksandtheexaminationsystem,increasingtherelevance,aswellasthecomparability,totheformalcurriculum.

GuidelinesthatgovernteachertrainingandprofessionalsupportcanalsobeshapedwithUNICEFhelp.Atpresent,thereislittletonorolefortheprivatesectortoplayinprovidingaccreditednon-formalcoursesandthisisanareaforfuturepolicyengagement,asistheroleofweb-basedplatformsforprovidingNFEequivalencylessonsandmodules.Issuesrelatedtoqualityassurance,suchastherolesoftheprivatesectorandNGOsinservicedelivery,improvedM&Esupport,EMISlinkagesandanalysisofbarrierstoreintegrationintotheformalsystemallneedtobeassessedaspartoftheoverallcommitmenttoadolescenteducation.

CountrieswithNFEequivalencehavenotedtheneedforsocialmarketingtoraisethepublicrecognitionandvalueofthecertificateandtoovercomenegativeopinions.Suchpublicopinionissuesneedtoberecognizedandreviewedthroughresearch,withsupportforappropriaterevisiontoNFEequivalencypoliciesandguidelinesforimplementation.Thereisanincreasingnumberofnewoptionsfornon-formaleducation–linkageswithtalentacademies,withsocialmarketingandadvocacy,withICTandnetworksofsociallearningandwiththeprivatesector.Allthesebuildonthepotentialthatadolescentsbringwiththemtolearning.Flexibleschedulingandvenues,recruitmentoflocalteachersandstrongerlinkstolivelihoodsareallimportantconsiderations.

Non-formal functional literacy, livelihoods and life skills educationUNICEFcountryofficesshouldbeabletoprioritizesupportforNFEcourses,includingspecificallyfunctionalliteracyandspecificlivelihoodskills.NFEandalternativelearningapproachescanbeofferedbyNGOs,faith-basedgroups,privatesectororgovernmentpartnersusingface-to-facesessions,independentlearning,internetandDVD-basedlessons.Inworkingwithadolescentswhohavenotyetcompletedprimaryschool,emphasisshouldbeplacedonstrengtheningbasicliteracyandnumeracyskillswhileprovidingcontentthatisrelevanttolivelihoodsskills.Innovationisneededtocreatestimulatingandusefulliteracyandnumeracylessonstomotivateyoungpeopletostayinclass.Foradolescentswhohavedroppedoutoflowersecondaryschool,non-formalcoursescouldfocusmoreonlivelihoodskills.Alternativeapproachesthatnurturedecision-making,leadership,negotiationandcriticalthinkingabilitiescanbeusefulforclubsandsportsteamsandforadolescentslearningaspecificskill.TalentAcademies,whichareskills-basedratherthancertificate-awarding,buildontalentsandskillsthatadolescentsbringwiththemandarelinkedwiththebroadercommunitycontext.Aswithotherpriorityareas,decisionsregardingwhichNFEactivitiestosupportshouldbegroundedinbaselinestudies,impactassessmentsandotherdocumentation.

Insomecountries,anincreasingnumberofyoungpeoplewhohavedroppedoutoflowersecondary,arenotinterestedinobtainingaequivalencycertificate.Rather,theyareinterestedinnon-accreditedlearningwhichopensupopportunitiestosharpentheirmarketableskillsandjob-earningpotential.Moderntechnologiesallowforawiderangeofoptionstoreachsuchadolescents–includingdistanceeducationthroughradioandself-study,andthroughCDsandDVDs.UNICEFsupportcanalsofocusonbuildingpartnershipswiththeprivatesector,includingwithprivatesectorassociationsandfoundations.Suchpartnerships,basedoncorporatesocialresponsibility,orevenonprivatesectorneedsfornewstaff,canhelpbridgelearningwithearning.


ThisPriorityAreaisdirectlyrelevanttoallfourgroups,applicabletoadolescentsbothinandoutofschool,althoughitisfareasiertoimplementactivitieswiththeformer.Thefocushereisonthreeareas:

i) Activelearningandstudent-centred methodsofinstruction;ii) Studentdecision-makingandresponsibility inschoolmanagement;andiii) Studentsasagentsofchange.

Theimportanceofclassroomdynamicsandhowstudentsfeelabouttheirlearningenvironmentindeterminingacademicandnon-academicoutcomesisdrawingincreasingattentionfromeducationministriesandacademicsacrosstheregion.UNICEFregionalsupportforSELenvironmentsurveysin2008helpedtofocusattentionandguidepolicydebateonlowersecondarystudentsandtheirfeelingsofconnectednesstoschool(UNICEFEAPROSEL,2009).Akeyelementinaddressingsocialconnectivitytoschoolsistousestudent-centredlearningapproachesandtoemphasizestudents’participatoryroleinschoolmanagement.Whilecurriculaandtextbooksareinfluential,teachertrainingandsupportiveschoolmanagementpracticesarethetwokeyelementsbehindlearner-centredinstruction(OECD,2004).UNICEFcountryofficesshouldconsidersupportforpre-andin-serviceteachertrainingandheadmasterguidanceinthisrespect.Effortstoincreaseparticipatorylearningarepossibleforbothformalandnon-formaleducation.TheExtendedandContinuousEducationandLearning(EXCEL)programmeinMyanmarisanexcellentexampleofthechild-centredapproachbeingappliedtonon-formallifeskills-basededucation.EXCELviewsstudentsasactivelearners,usingteamworkactivities,ensuringrelevanceoflessonstodailylife,offeringleadershiprolestostudents,andencouragingproblemsolvingaspartofitscoursework.

iv. Promoting adolescent participation and active citizenry

Adolescentstudentscanbeidealconduitsforpassingoninformationthathelpstoimprovetheirown,andtheircommunity’s,environment.Asanexample,thegovernmentsofLaoPDRandVietNamsupportadvocacycampaignswherebystudentsknockonindividualdoorstoencourageallchildreninthecommunitytoenrolinschool.Communitymappingexercises,wherestudentspreparedetailedmapsofthecommunityandidentifyhouseholdswithout-of-schoolchildrenandthebarrierstotheirenrolmenthavealsobeenpilotedinsomecountries(i.e.,Thailand,thePhilippines).Adolescentshavebeeneffectivelyusedtomonitorfee-freepoliciesandreportpracticesthatkeeppoorerfamiliesfromsendingtheirchildrentoschool.Attentionshouldalsobeplacedonservicedlearningschemes.Inthese,studentsinpost-primaryarelinkedtopublicserviceinstitutions,servingasinternsorvolunteersinhealth,education,earlychildhood,conservationandsocialwelfaresectorsofgovernment,andinmiddle-incomecountries,withtheprivatesector.Engagementwithadolescentsaspartnersrequireschangingtheperspectivesofandtrainingteachers,schooladministratorsandmanagers/plannersatdifferentmanagementlevels(IAWGCP,2007).Theseeffortscanalsoincludeinitiativesinpeaceeducationandconflictresolutioninrecognitionoftheroleyoungpeoplewillplayinbuildingapeacefulandsustainablefutureforusall.

Amongthemanychangesthatchildrenexperienceastheyheadintoadolescenceisagreaterawarenessofandinterestintheworldaroundthem.Unfortunately,theenergy,idealismandcreativityofyoungpeopleoftenremainuntapped,especiallybythoseinstitutionssetupasbasicserviceproviders,especiallyschools.Enhancingchildren’srolesasactivecitizenscanbedonewithinabroadframeworkofyouthparticipation,butitshould


v. Education for well-being and behaviour change

notbetakenthatadolescentsarebeingmadeaccountableforimprovingeducationsystems.Rather,whatisbeingproposedisthatadolescents,especiallyolderstudentsinprimaryschool,bekeyplayersinmakingschoolsbetter.Supportforprimaryschoolstudentcouncils,forschoolself-assessmentsandplanningandforsports,clubsandextra-curriculargroups–allinvolvingactivecitizenry–canmeaningfullyengagestudentsatriskofdroppingoutorlosinginterestintheirstudies.

UNICEFcountryofficeshaveavarietyofexperiencesinsupportingextra-curricularactivitiesandstudentcouncils.InMongolia,supportandtrainingforstudentcouncilsresultedinanationwide‘MyPassport’campaign.Studentcouncilsinschoolswereusedtosupportyoungjournalists,reportersandphotographers,andtoproducedocumentationonchildrightsthatwas

exchangedbetweenschools.InVietNam,UNICEFsupportedtheorganizationofstudentclubsforbothin-schoolandout-of-schooladolescents,organizingtheirmeetingsaroundkeyissues.Thisledtothecreationofanationalforumwhereclubrepresentativescometogethertomeetwitheducationpolicy-makerstodiscusseducationpolicy,budgetsandtheirownexperiences.Supportforschoolcouncils,clubs,studentgovernments,andextra-curricularactivitiescanbuildonawiderangeofexistingpartnershipsandstakeholders.ExcellentworkhasbeendoneinThailandwiththeNGORighttoPlay,usingsportsandgamestobuildself-confidenceandteamworkandinculcatetheprinciplesoffairplayforadolescentsinandoutofschool.Itisimportanttonotethatadvocacywitheducationministriesisneededsothatbudgetscanbeallocatedforstudentcouncilsandextra-curricularactivities.

ThisPriorityAreaappliestoallfouradolescentgroups.TheFrameworkalsoacknowledgestheimportanceofyoungchildsurvivalanddevelopment,andtherelevanceoftheRegionalStrategyonMaternalMortalitytoadolescenteducation(SavetheChildren,2007,SCFUK2007,UNICEFEAPRO,2006).

Education for well beingItisconsideredfundamentaltotheFrameworkthatalladolescentsunderstandhow,ataminimum,influenza,malaria,pneumonia,HIV,andsexuallytransmitteddiseasesaretransmittedandhowtheycanbeprevented.InEAPtoday,evenwiththeadvancesinprimaryschoolenrolment,thelevelofknowledgeaboutbasichealthandhygienepracticesandHIVpreventionisstillextremelylow.Arecentstudyaskedyoungwomenaged15-24yearstonamethreewaysthatHIVcanbetransmittedandprevented.Correctanswersrangedfromunder10percentinIndonesiatojustover40percentinVietNam(UNICEFEAPRO,2005;WorldBank,2005).Whilewerecognizethatknowledgealonedoesnotchangebehaviour,a

fundamentalroleofeducationistoensurethatallcitizenshavebasicknowledgeaboutreproductivehealthandthatclearinformationisavailable.Studiesprovideevidenceontheimpactandefficacyofvariouscommunicationmodes(posters,peer-to-peer,modularizedlessons,etc)andcanhelpshedlightonthemosteffectivemeansofraisinglevelsofawarenessandunderstandingrelatedtoyoungchildsurvivalanddevelopmentandthepreventionofHIV,swineflu,avianinfluenza,etc.SucheffortsshouldbecarriedoutwithourUN,civilsocietyandbilateralpartnerswhereverpossible.

Social and emotional learningBlumandothershavefoundadirectcorrelationbetweentheSELenvironmentandadolescentsocialbehaviour,learningachievementandsuccessinvariousdevelopmentalindicators.Governmentswithintheregionarepayinggreaterattentiontothenotionof‘connectivity’andtherelationshipbetweensecondaryschoolstudentsandtheirschools(SEAMEOBruneiandKualaLumpur).AdolescentsinAsiareport


thattheydonotfeelclosetotheirteachersorotherstudents,thatlargenumbersexperiencefearandabuseinschool,andthatharassment,discriminationandbullyingareimpedingtheirabilitytolearn(UNICEF,SpeakingOut,2005).Students’interestsin,andhowwelltheydoatschool(bothacademicallyandnon-academically)aredirectlylinkedtotheSELclimate.Surveysusedobservation,questionnairesandfocusgroupdiscussiontomeasureSELclimatesinwaysthatcanbelinkedtootherdata,includingattendance,completionandlearningachievement.Thusfar,UNICEFofficesinfivecountrieshaveprovidedinitialsupporttosuchsurveys.InthecaseofChina,theinitialSELpilotallowedresearchersandeducationministrystafftocollectdatafromseveralschools,wheretheyfoundsignificantdifferencesinlevelsofSEL,whichcorrelatedwithothermeasuresofqualityintheseschools.

TwomainareasofSELfollow-upwereidentifiedduringaUNICEFregionalworkshopin2009.Firstisforcountryofficestodomoretomainstreamlifeskillsandchild-centredprocessesandmethodologiesintoallsubjectsoflearningandschoolmanagementpractices.Thismeans,forexample,thatamathlessoncanbetaughtinamannerthatreinforceslifeskillsprinciples,suchasnegotiation,effectivecommunicationorproblemsolving.ThisintegrationrequiresUNICEFinvolvementinteachertraining(bothpre-andin-service),alongwithschoolmanagementreform(toencouragenewschoolpracticesandnewrelationshipswithstudents),andcurriculumandmaterialsdevelopment.

Second,countrieswerekeentocontinuerefiningmethodstoassessSELenvironments,usingclimatesurveysorothertools.Dataonhowstudentsfeelabouttheirschoolenvironmentandhowthisrelatestootherindicatorscanprovideabasisforadvocacyandinputintopolicyformulation.StudiesonpositivedeviancethatidentifyschoolsindifficultcircumstancesbutwithgoodSELclimatesandotherpositiveeducationaloutcomescanhelppinpointkeyfactorsinfluencingschoolperformance.Helpingstudent-ledorganizationssetactionplansand

monitortheirschoolenvironmenthasproveneffectiveinsomecontexts.Supportforexpandedprotectionnetworksinschoolsandincreasingawarenessofthevulnerabilitiesandsocial-emotionalneedsofstudentsrequiresthebackingofschoolmanagement.Theseapproachescanbeintegratedand/ormainstreamedintobothformalandnon-formaleducationthroughcurriculumandteachertraining,studentcouncilsandextra-curricularactivities.

Emergency preparedness and disaster risk reductionImprovingemergencypreparednessanddisasterriskreduction(DRR)foradolescentsisanareainneedofgreaterattention.Currently,theimmediateresponseisfocusedonprimaryeducation,withverylittleattentiongiventoensuringsecondarylearningcontinues.Almostnoattentionispaidtoeducationalrights,astheseyoungpeoplearetoooldtojoinovercrowdedtemporaryprimaryschoolsandthereisnoprovisionfornon-formaleducation.Thisisaseriousgapthatneedstobeaddressed.Weneedtodevelopaproactiveapproachtogetalldisplacedchildrenintolearningprogrammes,bothformalandnon-formal–includingolderchildren.Thetriedandtestedschool-in-a-boxapproachcouldeasilybeadaptedtolowersecondaryanduppersecondarylevels.Olderchildrencouldalsobemotivatedtoserveas‘assistantteachers’forprimaryclasses,whilestillhavinganopportunitytostudyatthesecondarylevel,withaccesstotextbookmaterials.

Theintroductionofbasicandfunctionalliteracyandlivelihoodskillstrainingthroughnon-formalapproaches,andknowledgeforbehaviourchangeareofdirectrelevancetoeducationinemergencyandpreparednessplanning.Inaddition,secondaryschoolstudentssuffertremendousstressifemergencieseruptandcausedisplacementortheclosureofschoolsduringnationalexams.Aspartofoverallemergencyreadiness,educationsystemsshouldhavepoliciesinplacethatallowthosestudentswhoexamsaredisruptedtohavespecialprovisionsmadeontheirbehalf.


vi. Areas not recommended for UNICEF support

ThereisalsoagooddealofworkthatcanbedonearoundDRR,especiallywhenlinkedtoadolescentsasactivecitizens,asmentionedabove.Schoolreadinessplans–includingdrillsandgeneralawarenessaboutpreparedness–needtobeabsorbedintoschoolmanagement.ExperienceswithDRRintheregionhavehighlightedtheimportanceofworkingdirectlywithstudentsatthesecondarylevel,bothsotheyarepreparedincaseofemergenciesandalsotomitigatetheeffectoftheseemergenciesontheirlivesandcommunities.Excellentworkhasalreadybeendoneintheregioninthisrespect,especiallyintheaftermathoftheAsiantsunamiemergency.Environmentalawareness,linkedtoclimatechangeandDRR,helpsto

focuseducationonsustainabledevelopmentandtherealitiesofthecommunity.Schoolscanbecomelesswastefulofenergy,withlesslitteringandwastearoundtheschoolcompound.Studentsandschoolmanagementcanuserecycling,energy-efficientideas,hygienicandwater-efficientsanitationsystemsandotherinnovationsaspartoftheirclassprojectsandasstudentmanagementresponsibilities.SavetheChildren’spublicationonchild-leddisasterriskreductionisanexcellentreferenceonworkingwithyoungpeopleasaresource.LinkingDRRwiththeworkingwithCFSframeworkforpost-primarysettingsisanotherareaforfutureresearchandadvocacy(SCFUK2007,UNICEF2006).

TherearefivemajorareasofadolescenteducationthattheFrameworkwouldnotrecommendcountryofficessupport:

• Vocationaleducationcentres• Large-scaleconstructionofsecondaryschools• Curriculumrevisionorboutiqueextra- curricularmaterials• Conditionalcashtransfersandincentives• Uppersecondaryandhighereducation

TheFrameworkdoesnotencourageUNICEFengagementwithtraditionalvocationaleducationcentresandadvancedskillstraining.Rather,itfavoursengagementinbasiclivelihoods,lifeskillsandpracticalvocationaleducationforadolescentswhohavenotcompletedlowersecondary.Italsoisnotforlarge-scaleconstructionofsecondaryschoolswhichisnotUNICEF’scomparativeadvantage(evenafteremergencies).However,constructionintermsofmodellingnewschooldesignsandsettingstandardsisencouraged,asisbuildingwaterandtoiletinfrastructureforsecondaryschools.

Countryofficesarediscouragedfromleadingnationalsecondarycurriculumrevision,whichis

alsonotUNICEF’scomparativeadvantage.Buttheymaysupportspecificaspectsofnationalcurriculumrevisionandreform,suchassettingstandards,providinggenderandrightsaudits,orsupportinglifeskillsorknowledgeforwell-beingwithinthecurriculum.Withconditionalcashtransfers(CCTs)long-termcommitmentsarerequiredforimpact,andsecuredfundingfor5-10yearsisnotsomethingUNICEFprogrammesareinapositiontooffer.FindingthebalancebetweenthetargetingandmanagementaspectsofCCTswitharightsperspectiveisimportantandisanareathatUNICEFcansupportthroughresearchandassessmentratherthanthroughdirectprovision.Jointprogramming,whereUNICEFsupportsthesoftwarecomponentsofschoolmanagementorthetargetingprocess,andotherpartnersprovideincentivesorcashareencouraged.

Lastly,countryofficesarediscouragedfromengagingatuppersecondaryandhighereducationlevels.Otherprogrammesectorsmaybeactivewiththisgroup,butoutsideofpre-serviceeducation,thisisnotaneducationalpriority.

31ISSUESFORCONSIDERATION

Vi. Issues for consideration

i. UNICEF’s upstream focusWorkingtogetherwithotherdevelopmentpartnerstoleverageresourcesandinfluencenationalprogrammesandpoliciesstrengthenstheeffectivenessofsuchefforts.Asanexample,UNICEFVietNaminpartnershipwithUNESCOledaresearchstudyonthetransitionofethnicminoritygirlsintolowersecondaryschool.WhileneitherUNICEFnorUNESCOweresupportingspecificactivitiesforsecondaryeducation,researchinthisareawasencouragedbythegovernmentandotherdonorsasameansofsheddinglightonpossiblesolutionstotheinequitiesrelatedtoethnicminoritygirls’education.Thisresearch,boththroughitsapproachandfindings,ishavingadirectinfluenceonspecific

governmentpoliciesandresourceallocationbyothereducationpartners.

UNICEFhasdecadesofexperienceinconductinginnovativepilots,especiallyinresponsetotheeducationalneedsofdisadvantagedgroups.However,givenhumanresourceandbudgetconstraints,careisneededtoensurethatpilotsdonotbecomeboutiqueprojectswithalimitedimpactandnoexitstrategy.Arigorouspilotregimen,withgovernmentownership,stakeholderinterest,aclearbaselineandassessmentofresultsandastrategicapproachforadvocacyandtheuseofthefindings,areallnecessarytoensureanupstreamimpact.

ii. Link with other MTSP prioritiesAdolescentsarebothakeytargetgroupofandakeypartnerinachievingallthegoalsofthefiveMTSPFocusAreas.TheStrategicFrameworkforadolescenteducationmustbeabletoaccommodatethediverseexpectations

ofotherprogrammeareasandsectors.Essentialmessages,knowledgeandskills,asidentifiedbycolleaguesintheprotection,HIV/AIDSandyoungchildsurvivalanddevelopmentsectorsneedtobeintegratedintoformaland

To make the most of the limited resources available to invest in adolescent education, it is important to align the new EAP strategy with MTSP Focus Area 5 and its approach to policy advocacy. Research, standard-setting and public advocacy can have an impact far beyond what UNICEF resources alone can achieve. Building a strong evidence-base, filling in knowledge gaps, and utilizing data to inform policies and plans is an important contribution that UNICEF can make to adolescent education.



protectionissuesorsafetyagainstpandemics.Collectively,countryofficescanensurethatadolescentsaregivenadequateopportunitiestoabsorbkeymessages(suchashandwashing)andinformationthroughtheireducationexperience.Itwouldbeunfortunateifdifferentsectorsusedtheformalschoolsystem–eithertodisseminateinformationorforbroaderparticipationandadvocacycampaigns–withoutclosecollaborationandconsultationwithUNICEFeducationcolleagues.Nationaleducationstrategiesandsectorplansmayhavesetclearlydefinedpriorityareasforadolescentswhichcolleaguesfromothersectorsmaynotbeawareof.EnsuringthatcollectiveeffortstoachieveMDGsthroughtheeducationsystemandschoolsrequireclosecoordinationwith,ifnotleadershipby,educationcolleagues.

iii. One UN and sector-wide approachesAdolescentsarebothakeytargetgroupofandakeypartnerinachievingallthegoalsofthefiveMTSPFocusAreas.TheStrategicFrameworkforadolescenteducationmustbeabletoaccommodatethediverseexpectationsofotherprogrammeareasandsectors.Essentialmessages,knowledgeandskills,asidentifiedbycolleaguesintheprotection,HIV/AIDSandyoungchildsurvivalanddevelopmentsectorsneedtobeintegratedintoformalandnon-formalprogrammesinacoordinatedmannerthatdoesnotovercrowdthecurriculumandoverwhelmstudents.Educationprofessionalsneedtosupporttheircross-sectorcolleaguesindesigningcurricula,information/communicationmaterialsandlessonsthatareappropriate,effectiveandencourageactivelearningwithdefinableoutcomes.EducationstaffinUNICEFcountryofficesneedstobeproactiveincoordinatingoffice-wideeducationeffortsforadolescents,orweruntheriskofhavingdisparatepilotactivitiesforsimilartargetgroupsthatareproject-based,unsustainableandineffective.

AdolescenteducationmayormaynotfeatureprominentlyintheCommonCountryAssessment(CCA)andtheUNDevelopment

AssistanceFramework(UNDAF).Incountrieswhereyouthandadolescentsareaprioritytargetgroup,notablyinthePacificaswellasinseveralmiddle-incomecountries,wecanexpectgreaterattentiontobeplacedonadolescentsandyouthintheseplans.UNICEFshouldensurethatthedataprovidedfortheSituationAnalysisandCCAfortheUNDAFincludedisaggregatedandqualitativedataonsecondary,non-formalandout-of-schooladolescentpopulations.ThefouradolescentgroupsarticulatedforthisFrameworkareofferedasabasisforinitialanalysiswhiledetaileddatacanhelpinformjointdiscussionsonhowtoaddressglaringdisparities.Certainly,themorethatadolescenteducationissuesareraisedinUNandsector-widediscussions,thegreaterthechanceofpartnershipandachievingsustainableresults.TheFrameworkrecognizesthevaluedrolethatotherpartnersplay,withUNESCOaleadagencyinnon-formalandvocationaleducationandadultliteracy.Inthisregion,theAsianDevelopmentBank,theWorldBank,theEU,theUKDepartmentforInternationalDevelopment,AusAID,USAID,theSwedishInternationalDevelopmentAgency,theJapanInternationalCooperationAgency,SavetheChildren,PlanInternational,

non-formalprogrammesinacoordinatedmannerthatdoesnotovercrowdthecurriculumandoverwhelmstudents.Educationprofessionalsneedtosupporttheircross-sectorcolleaguesindesigningcurricula,information/communicationmaterialsandlessonsthatareappropriate,effectiveandencourageactivelearningwithdefinableoutcomes.EducationstaffinUNICEFcountryofficesneedstobeproactiveincoordinatingoffice-wideeducationeffortsforadolescents,orweruntheriskofhavingdisparatepilotactivitiesforsimilartargetgroupsthatareproject-based,unsustainableandineffective.

CountryManagementTeamsneedtoidentifythemostvitalareasofimportancetoadolescents,whethertheyarerelatedtoaccidentsandinjuries,HIVprevention,


iv. PartnershipsUNICEFplacesgreatimportanceonbuildingeffectivepartnershipsineducationintheEAPregion.TheEastAsiaandPacificRegionalOfficeisakeymemberoftheRegionalEFAThematicWorkingGroup(TWG)formedunderESCAP,co-chairedwithUNESCOandembracing15UN,internationalNGO,foundationandcivilsocietymemberorganizations.TheEFATWGwasresponsibleforoverseeingtheEFAMid-DecadeAssessmentprocess,withthethemeof‘reachingtheunreached’andafocusonsub-nationaldata.GenderequalityineducationisbeingadvancedthroughtheregionalUNGirls’EducationInitiative(UNGEI)partnership,whichEAPROco-chairsjointlywithUNESCOBangkok.

Atthecountrylevel,variouspartnershipsexist,includingclustercoordinationforemergencyresponseandsectorcoordinationthroughEducationSectorWorkingGroups.Intermsofregionalpartners,significantmentionmustbemadeofUNESCOBangkok,andthebiggerroleitcouldpotentiallyplayinmanyareas,suchasNFE,secondaryschoolpolicyandeducationforsustainabledevelopment.WeshouldbelookingatworkinginamoresystematicwaywithUNESCOasregardsadolescents,providingsupportwhenitcantaketheleadorforspecifictasks.OtherkeypartnersintheregionincludetheAsianDevelopmentBank,whichisveryactiveinpost-primaryeducation,andtheEUandWorldBankwhicharealsoactiveinpost-primaryandhighereducation.TheNGOcommunity,inparticularSavetheChildrenFund,Plan,WorldEducationandCare,arealsoactiveinnon-formaleducation,andincreasingly,secondaryschooleducationfordisadvantagedgroupsasarebilaterals,includingAusAID,JICA,SIDAandUSAID.Nationalmappingexercisesofpartnersandthe

rolesthatvariousstakeholdersplayinadolescenteducationisavaluablecontributionUNICEFcanmaketothesector.

Therearefewnationalnetworksorcoalitionsforsecondaryeducationsuchasthosebetweenprivateandpublicschools,faith-basedgroups,NGOs,privateandcommunitycharterschoolsandeducationministries.Networkscanbecreatedthroughpartnershipsandmightinvolvethemutualsharingofexpertisebetweenthegovernmentandgroupsatthenationalandlocallevel.Collaborationwithteacherunionsandprofessionalassociationscanalsobefosteredwithaneyetoself-regulation,theintegrationofprotectionissuesintotheteachingprofessionandthestrengtheningofreferral/responsemechanisms.Workwiththeprivatesectormightrevolvearoundfosteringanethosofcorporateresponsibility,withbusinessesadoptingschoolsforlife-longlearningorsupportingcommunitiesforearlychildhooddevelopmentcentres.Theprivatesectorisaconsumerofwhattheeducationsystemprovides,andpartnershipswiththebusinesscommunitythatsupporttheemploymentofyoungpeople,forexample,shouldbeonthelistofoptions.Evenwithsupportivepolicyenvironments,agreaterpushisneededtoexpandservicelearningopportunitiesandcommunityserviceprogrammeswithlinkstotheprivatesectorandlocalgovernmentagencies.UNICEFshouldnotbeshyaboutprovidingsupporttotheprivatesectortoaddresstheeducationalrightsofdisadvantagedadolescentsandleveragingitsresources,creativityandneedsforaskilledandeducatedlabourforce.

CareandWorldVisionareallactiveinsupportingeducationforadolescents.Therolestheseorganizationsplayiscriticalforprioritizing

targetgroups,fordeterminingUNICEF’scomparativeadvantageandfordevelopingstrategicinterventions.


v. GenderThroughouttheregion,thegapbetweenboysandgirlsatthesecondarylevelismuchlargerthaninprimary.Asmentionedpreviously,disparitiesingenderparityexistforbothboysandgirlsandinmanycountrieswithnationalgenderparity,considerablegapsexistatsub-nationallevels.ForsecondaryenrolmentinMyanmar,forexample,girlsareatgreaterdisadvantageinthewestofthecountry,whilefarfewerboysattendsecondaryschoolsintheeasternregions.InMyanmar,andinmanyotherEAPcountries,wefindthatsocio-economicstatus,notgender,isthemostinfluentialfactorineducationperformanceintheareawherethehighestdisparitiesexist.Thegraphbelowshowsthelevelsofdisparityfavouringboysandgirlsintheregion.Itisthroughsub-nationalanalysisthattheimportanceofarefinedpolicyapproachbecomesclear.Governmentsneedatargetedapproachtoaddressinggenderamongstadolescents,onethatisbasedonevidenceandconsidersthespecificcontextsofdiversepopulations.

Itisimportanttokeepinmindthatgenderequalityisfarmoresignificantthangenderparity.Equalenrolmentratesdonottranslate

intoequalcompletionratesorequalityinthenumbersadvancingtohigherlevelsofeducation.Similarly,genderparitysaysnothingabouttheeducationexperience,includingthegenderbiasesincurriculaandtextbooks,ortheoverallclassroomexperience.Withtheirburgeoningsexuality,girlsareparticularlyvulnerabletoharassmentandsexualabuse,althoughboysarebynomeanssafefromsuchabusebyteachers,classmatesandtheschoolatlarge.Genderauditsofschoolcurriculaandtextbookmaterialshavebeenconductedinjustafewcountriesintheregionandveryfewgovernmentshaveundertakensubstantialgenderreviewsoftextbooks.Theselectionofeducationprofessionalsisalsoextremelybiasedalonggenderlines,withwomenmakinguptheranksofpre-schoolandprimaryschoolteachers,whilemengenerallydominateinsecondary,post-secondaryandeducationmanagementpositions.Classroomandschoolmanagementpracticesareoftensteepedinsocialnormsthatreinforcegendertypecasting,withgirlssweepingandcleaningtoiletsatschoolandboyslefttoenjoysportsactivities.UNICEFcountryofficesareencouragedtocarryoutgender-basedresearchandpolicyadvocacyasakeyelementoftheiradolescenteducationefforts.

Cambodia

Lao PDR

Papua new Gunea

Myanmar

Indonesia

Singapore

Vanuatu

Republic of Korea

Japan

Malaysia

Philippines

Mongolia

Higher enrolment of girlsHigher enrolment of boys

Percent14 12 10 8 6 4 2 20 4 6 8 10 12 14 16

Figure 4: Gender gaps in secondary enrolment

Source:UNESCO.EFAGlobalMonitoringReport2005,TheWorldBank.YouthinNumbersSeries,EastAsiaandthePacific(Draft),November2004


vi. MigrationThisregionismarkedbysignificantlevelsofmigration,mostwhichisinternal,butallofwhichcanleadtoadisruptionineducation,oratleasttodistractionsinschoolinterestandchangesinaccesstoschool.InChinaalone,55millionchildrenhavebeenleftathomebyparentswhohavemigratedforwork,while27millionhavemigratedwiththeirparents.Childrenwhofollowtheirparentsinmigratingtourbancentresandareasofeconomicopportunityfacedifferentenrolmentpolicies,aswellasalackofsupportivelearningenvironments,especiallyinovercrowdedclasseswithscarceresources.Childrenleftbehindbymigratingparentshavetheirownchallengestoovercome,intermsofdisruptiontohomeenvironment,thelackoffamilysupportandpotentialriskstofamilyincome.Whilethereisnodoubtthatlarge-scalemigrationofpopulationshasadirectimpactonschoolingandchildren’scapacitytolearn,weknowlittleaboutthisarea.Moreresearchisrequiredontheimpactsofmigrationonchildren’seducation,includingschoolperformance,feelingsofconfidenceandconnectedness,andhopesforthefuture.

Thereisalsoadditionalworktobedone,fromarightsperspective,oncross-bordermigrationrelatedtoeducation,andtherolethatsub-regionaleducationpolicycanplayintermsofrecognizingneighbouringcountries’accreditationandcertificationprocesses,especiallyatpost-primarylevels.Investigatingwaystoprovidecross-bordereducationalopportunitiesforuppersecondaryandtertiaryeducationaswellasforspecificvocationaltradesandskillsrequireslong-termvisionandthecommitmentofgovernmentsandotherpartners.InthePacific,considerableworkhasbeendonetoensurethatsecondaryschoolcertificationinonecountrycanleadtoacceptanceinhighereducationinanother.InASEANcountries,throughtheSEAMEOnetwork,educationministersareseekingtoaddresstheeducationalneedsandrightsoftheiradolescentswhohavemigratedtoothercountries.UNICEFhasaroletoplay,intermsofpolicy,advocacyandresearchthatcanprovideabasisforcrossbordercollaboration.


AnidealtimetousethisFrameworkisduringCountryProgrammepreparation,orwhenplanningforaMid-TermReview.Bothoftheseprocessesoffertheopportunitytocollectspecificinformationonadolescenteducation.Suchresearchcouldhighlightcurrentattitudes,howstudentsfeelabouttheirschools,theirbehaviour,orcouldfocusoncost-effectiveinnovationorgoodpractices.Forasituationanalysis,itisessentialthattheeducationsectiontakestheleadinreviewingalleducationsupportforadolescents.However,itmaybepossibletoestablishacredibleinter-sectoralteamortaskforcetohelpprocuredata.

TheFrameworkwillnodoubtsparkdebate,whichinfactiswhatitaimstodo.AnargumentstilllingersoverUNICEF’scomparativeadvantageinsupportingbasicliteracy

programmes.Thenewstrategy’srecommendationnottobackvocationaleducation,forexample,willcertainlystimulatereactioninsomequarters.TheFrameworkwillfeedintotheglobalADAPStrategy,whichshouldbefinalizedinearly2010andaConceptNotefromtheAdolescentEducationTaskforce,setupbytheEducationClusterinNewYork.

Thenewstrategy’ssuccesswillbemeasuredbyitsrelevanceto,anduseby,countryoffices.Asitunfurls,astructuredreviewprocesswillbeputintoplacetoprovidefeedbackthatwillbereflectedinanyfuturerefinement.TheFrameworkaimstotakeadolescenteducationoffthebackburnerandgiveitamuch-deservedhigherprofile.Inessence,itisaboutunleashingcreativityandinnovationtoproperlyeducateagenerationinwhosehandsourfuturelies.

Vii. Using the Strategic FrameworkThe ultimate purpose of the Framework is to help UNICEF country offices devise a strategic approach for addressing the educational rights of adolescents. If the analysis they undertake as part of the process is of interest to governments and the wider donor community, the Framework may also have an influence on national policy and sector plans. It should, at the very least, help country offices set priorities and coordinate the disparate education-related activities for adolescents that different sectoral programmes might be supporting.

©UNICEF/NYHQ1999-0920/RogerLeMoyn

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UNICEF East Asia and Pacific Regional Office19 Phra Atit RoadBangkok 10200, ThailandTel: (66 2) 356-9499Fax: (66 2) 280-7056E-mail: [email protected]/eapro

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· vi Education for Adolescents UNICEF EAP Strategic Framework Status of adolescents in the region Educating adolescents is a must for …