Emerging Practices in Design, Monitoring, and Evaluation of Education for Peacebuilding Programming

"The cross-section between education and peacebuilding programs remains a largely uncharted territory....The nexus between the two sectors requires both new knowledge and evidence about the ways in which education and peacebuilding can contribute to one another, and intentional discussion and dissemination of lessons learned and tools used between the two fields."
From the Search for Common Ground, this practical guide seeks to contribute to learning and growth of education for peacebuilding by focusing on key elements of programme design, monitoring, and evaluation (DM&E) for education interventions with peacebuilding aims in fragile and conflict-affected environments. Presenting information, practical tips, resources, and tools for all stages in programme cycles, as well as emerging practices and lessons learned from the field (including those arising from the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF)'s Learning for Peace programme), the guide addresses key questions such as: What should practitioners consider when designing programmes and accompanying M&E systems that contribute to education for peacebuilding programming? What are unique and specific considerations for conducting outcome-oriented M&E planning within complex, conflict-sensitive contexts? What are some relevant M&E tools and resources for education for peacebuilding programming?

The resource begins with working definitions of key terms and concepts used in education for peacebuilding programming and throughout the guide (Chapter 1). For instance, education for peacebuilding is defined as utilising quality education and peacebuilding programming (whether formal, non-formal, or extracurricular) as a medium to engage children, youth, Ministry officials, school administrators, teachers, and parents in activities that build social cohesion and applied learning of peacebuilding competencies. It looks at how the beneficiaries of the entire education system interact at the macro, meso, and micro levels. Education for peacebuilding supports the development of the knowledge, attitudes, and skills and enabling environment needed for children and youth to become peacebuilders in their society. It is essential for education for peacebuilding to be driven and informed by current conflict-affected contexts and based on input from partners and beneficiaries on the ground.

The following chapters highlight considerations and lessons learned specific to designing and planning for an education for peacebuilding programme, including design, conflict analysis, and theories of change (Chapter 2), monitoring considerations and tools (Chapter 3), and evaluation approaches (Chapter 4). For instance, the latter chapter outlines some evaluation considerations for education for peacebuilding programmes:

1. Evaluators should involve both education specialists and peacebuilding specialists to ensure holistic and balanced assessment of both aspects of the programme.
2. The baseline may not always be reliable due to shifting contexts, security concerns in originally evaluated areas, and compounding programme changes. However, alternatives exist, such as multipurpose conflict scans and development evaluations, which are expanded upon in this chapter.
3. Both education- and peacebuilding-specific lines of inquiry will need to be developed and utilised.
4. Evaluation tools and approaches may be less useful due to the type of programming and context. For example, questions may be limited due to managing political relations or ensuring safety for participants where it is not possible to ask questions related to specific identities.

Each chapter offers concrete examples from previous or ongoing education for peacebuilding programmes, vetted resources, and a list of Do's and Don'ts for practitioners. The guide finishes with a summary of the guidance provided and how practitioners can move forward with implementing rigorous and well-thought-out education for peacebuilding programming (Chapter 5). For instance, some of the overarching principles include:

1. The importance of participation in process, design, and even implementation to ensure reflective programming with opportunities for ownership leading to sustainability;
2. The need for conflict-sensitive processes, programming, implementation, and monitoring - applying "Do No Harm" practically throughout all aspects of an intervention;
3. The need to remain flexible in order to respond to fluctuating contexts and building relations;
4. Implementation of improved feedback loops to monitor incremental progress towards outcomes, effectiveness of the intervention at achieving change towards the outcomes, and for use in helping refine and evolve theories of change; and
5. The need for collaboration between education specialists, peacebuilding specialists, and the broader development field in a systems thinking approach to achieving sustainable, long-term change.

The guide concludes with a reminder that there is a heightened need for conflict-sensitive approaches and peace dividends from development programming, as is demonstrated by Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 16, which supports the achievement of most other SDG goals, including SDG 4: "ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all." To that end: "A culture of learning and evidence-based decision making needs to be fostered throughout sectors in order to ensure more rigorous data collection, its analysis, and timely application to programming. Such a culture would also enhance cross-learning, leveraging lessons learned and best practices not only from similar organizations but also across sectors - a necessary step toward collaborative action."