Building Learning Foundations

Although nearly all Rwandan children are enrolled in primary school, many leave without reaching a decent level of functional literacy and numeracy.  Most classrooms are basic, with limited teaching and learning resources. Many teachers are unqualified, and are often faced with large classes – sometimes with up to 60 pupils – making it difficult for them to engage every child.

Through the Building Learning Foundations (BLF) programme, funded by UK Aid, we are working with schools, teacher training colleges and the Rwandan Government to overcome these challenges and improve basic education for all - ensuring no child is left behind.

The programme is unique in its approach. BLF works with a team of more than 200 Rwandan volunteers working with 35 international volunteers, to provide extensive and intensive technical assistance to every school to embed inclusive strategies into daily practice. Supporting the volunteers are advisors, with expertise in the mainstream curriculum and special educational needs.

BLF is ambitious in its scale and aims. As part of a consortium led by the Education Development Trust, we will reach 4 million children over five years, by engaging with every government-funded primary school in the country.

We’re already impacting children in even the most remote and hard-to-reach regions of Rwanda, where teachers and school leaders are benefiting from regular mentoring and professional development.

We’re prioritising the needs of children who are most often left behind – those with disabilities, learning difficulties, or other factors which make accessing education challenging. Our interventions are informed by a Disability Assessment based on the Washington Group questions, the UN’s standard for identifying people living with disabilities, ensuring that inclusivity remains at the heart of the programme.

Our expert volunteers have developed an inclusive education guide for teachers, equipping them with the tools and understanding they need to identify and meet the needs of children with disabilities or special educational needs. English and Maths toolkits help enable inclusive thinking and action to become part of teachers’ daily practice.

Developing low-cost, sustainable classroom resources

To overcome the inherent challenges posed by a lack of physical resources, an important strand of the programme is the development of low-cost, easy to make teaching materials. Volunteers are showing teachers how to create their own resources, using items readily found in the community – such as rice sacks and bottle tops. 

Mentored by an international volunteer education specialist, national volunteers visit schools and spend a day there, identifying teachers’ specific needs and learning objectives. They can then share ideas of how to use everyday objects in a creative way, empowering teachers to develop their own engaging materials and exercises.