Education Sector Responses to HIV and AIDS

Produced by the Commonwealth Secretariat, this 112-page report summarises key issues regarding HIV/AIDS and the education sector. It is based on a review of published literature and the findings of a regional workshop organised by the Commonwealth Secretariat and the Association for the Development of Education in Africa (ADEA), and hosted by the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC), held September 12-14 2006 in Johannesburg, South Africa. The workshop, attended by 40 delegates, focused on "Good Practices in Education Sector Responses to HIV/AIDS in Africa." It aimed to provide a forum for the sharing, presentation, and review of HIV/AIDS good practice education sector responses in Africa. Speakers included technical experts and government officials, and presentations varied from overall education sector responses to specific country and programme experiences.

From the Executive Summary:

"Section 1 of this report briefly reviews HIV and AIDS and the need for an accelerated response. Sub-Saharan Africa remains the worst-affected region in the world, with the highest prevalence in Southern African (between 15–35%). Across the region, the rate of new HIV infections peaked in the late 1990s and some countries have shown declines, notably Kenya, Zimbabwe, Uganda and urban areas of Burkina Faso. Women have become the face of the epidemic in Africa, and around 59% of all adults living with HIV in sub-Saharan Africa are women...

Section 2 focuses on HIV and AIDS and education sector responses. HIV and AIDS represent a direct threat to achieving the goal of 'Education for All.' The epidemic affects the supply and demand for primary and secondary schooling, especially in high HIV prevalence countries. At the same time, education remains one of the most effective interventions against the epidemic, leading to some describing education as a 'social vaccine against HIV/AIDS.'...

Section 3 highlights the evidence on mass campaigns for HIV/AIDS prevention, education and advocacy. Mass media campaigns have been conducted in most sub-Saharan African countries, but many have not been formally evaluated. Evaluations of the mass campaigns have yielded mixed results, because of the diversity of interventions and populations studied. It is difficult to ascertain whether positive effects associated with the interventions are directly attributable to the interventions, as those who participate in interventions are sometimes self-selected and may differ in important ways from those who do not participate.

Section 4 summarises the evidence on girls, gender and education. Educating girls and women is critical in turning around the AIDS epidemic in Africa, leading to the assertion that education is key to building 'girl power.'....Strategies for expanding girls' access to education are highlighted, and include the inclusion of gender and power dynamics in comprehensive sex health education; fostering gender equality; promoting positive role models and challenging negative gender stereotyping; expansion of the fast track initiative (FTI); and the removal of bottlenecks and macroeconomic constraints in order to expand access to primary and secondary schooling.

Section 5 focuses on HIV and AIDS education in schools.  School-based programmes are important in reaching the great majority of children and young people, while also having an impact at community level. These programmes are able to influence attitudes and beliefs at an early stage of life. School programmes also have the benefits of equipping staff with teaching and learning tools. As teachers are often role models for their communities, schools may be the only place where adolescents can obtain accurate information on reproductive health...

Section 6 reviews programmes for out-of-school young people, as school based programmes provide a partial response to the problem and do not reach out-of-school youth. A recent World Development Report suggests that developing countries which invest in better education, healthcare and job training for their young people between the ages of 12 and 24 years of age could produce surging economic growth and sharply reduced poverty....Experiences shared by workshop participants on youth out-of-school initiatives are presented, as are the proposed World Health Organization (WHO) and partners' "Go" interventions that are proposed for widespread implementation.

Section 7 focuses on teachers who are infected or affected by HIV and AIDS....The challenges teachers face in sub-Saharan Africa include increasing workloads caused by absenteeism, sick leave and the deaths of colleagues, the need to take care of sick relatives and the provision of assistance to infected and affected pupils. Most education ministries have paid less attention to teachers' programmes on HIV/AIDS. Most have policies, but do not have action plans or resources to implement them in supporting infected and affected educators...

Section 8 reviews community responses, care and support...OVC [orphans and vulnerable children] are at higher risk of HIV infection, as they face numerous material, emotional and social problems. Data from 20 sub-Saharan African countries show that children aged 10 to 14 years who have lost one or both parents are less likely to be in school than their non-orphaned peers: hence orphanhood has a negative impact on education. Female OVC are more at risk than boys. Comprehensive programmes in the ministries of education are only available in 29% of countries and school feeding seems to be the most frequent programme response to the problem of OVC.

Section 9 summarises the inputs, deliberations and discussions at the three-day workshop.

...The review and workshop...highlighted the apparent numerous overlapping initiatives from international organisations. The analysis shows that there is no scope for complacency and that programme implementation must be geared to achieve maximum impact. Much work still needs to be done, particularly in scaling up effective programmes, in caring for infected and affected teachers and in recognising the duality between the education sector and communities affected by the epidemic. The conclusion highlights the overall key issues emerging from the review and workshop...."

Recommendations from the Executive Summary:

"Recommendations emanating from the workshop represent the consensus view of delegates and are summarised below.

Teaching and Learning Materials

• ADEA and the Commonwealth Secretariat should facilitate and encourage the sharing of teaching and learning materials that already exist in different regions in Africa.
• Countries should be encouraged to learn from one another and be proactive in seeking or providing existing materials as well as learning about practices in Africa and elsewhere.

 Approach to curriculum development

• The curriculum should be based on a broader country approach/framework which includes inter alia an emphasis on human rights, empowerment and sustainable development; social support, focusing on the most vulnerable groups; a protective and safe environment; and a teaching and learning environment for HIV and AIDS impact mitigation.
•  There is a need to recognise and draw on existing frameworks and/or initiatives, e.g. Decade of Education for Sustainable Development documents and other relevant materials.

Training of teachers

• Where relevant, countries should immediately review their teacher development programmes so as to incorporate life skills and HIV and AIDS, and commence training without delay.
• Every teacher should be competent in life skills and HIV and AIDS education by 2015.
• Life skills and HIV and AIDS must be integrated into the pre-service teacher development programmes.
• Implement comprehensive programmes of in-service training and support by 2010.
• Review and/or evaluate approaches to training of teachers.
• Ensure dissemination of information on good practices to all countries.
• Capacity building of all education sector staff.
• Countries are encouraged to draw on existing good practices, e.g teachers caring for teachers and support groups such as the South African teaching unions and the Kenya Network of Positive Teachers (KENEPOTE).
• Advocacy and lobbying: trade unions and organisations representing teachers’ interests (e.g. those living with HIV) need to be part of all strategic planning, meetings and implementation.
• ADEA is encouraged to share its research expertise and make it available and accessible to all levels of the education sector.
• Support for teachers to reach Education for All goals by 2015.

 Role of education sector with regard to young people out of school

• It is important for the education sector to identify vulnerable young people before they “drop out” and to take remedial steps.
• There must be improved collaboration and/or coordination of the Ministry of Education and relevant ministries and other organisations or partners that deal with youth programmes (e.g. youth and health).
• Work with partners/stakeholders in the identification and re-integration of out-of-school young people.
• Provide approaches which include content and methodology for out-of-school young people to improve information, skills and access to services.

Community responses and orphans and vulnerable children

• There is a need to advocate for increased public sector funding for OVC.
• Sensitisation and involvement of parents, communities and teachers.
• The use of existing mechanisms to lobby and intensify advocacy for in-country public (ministries) and civil society (including private sector) co-operation and co-ordination, so that there is improved protection, access and retention of OVC in the education system.

General recommendations relate to monitoring and evaluation, and to sustainability and other education sector issues that need to be taken forward. The latter include conditions of employment and appropriate incentives both for training and working in rural areas; pre-school, higher education and other education sector staff HIV/AIDS initiatives; addressing stigma and discrimination; and improved coordination and collaboration across ministries with community-based organisations (CBOs), non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and faith-based organisations (FBOs)."