IREAD Study (iREAD 2)

Ghana iREAD Study 2012-2014 (iREAD 2)

Final Evaluation November 2014

Table of Contents

Acronyms ...3 Acknowledgements ...4 1. Executive Summary ...5 2. Background and Context ...10

2.1 Early Grade Literacy in the Developing World & Ghana ...10 2.2 iREAD Ghana Study 2012-2014 (iREAD 2) ...12 2.3 Details on Program Activities ...13

3. Evaluation Objectives and Research Design ...18

3.1 Research Design & Methodology ...18 3.2 Data Collection and Analysis ...20 3.3 Limitations ...22

4. Findings and Analysis ...23

4.1 Changes in literacy skills ...24

4.1.1 Effects on Oral Reading Fluency ...25 4.1.2 Effects on Reading Comprehension ...28 4.1.3 Treatment Effects by Performance Group ...29 4.1.4 Student Behaviors Affecting Literacy Gains ...31

4.1.5 Gender-effects ...32

4.2 Reading Habits & Building a Reading Culture ...33

4.2.1 Student Survey on reading habits ...33 4.2.2 Findings from Parent Survey ...34 4.2.3 Observations on Content ...35

4.3 Observations of E-Reader Classrooms ...36

5. Challenges ...38 6. Recommendations for Scaling ...42

6.1 Government Adoption of Digital Books in Classrooms ...42 6.2 Further exploration of digital vs. paper book costs ...42 6.3 Generate Additional Evidence for Digital Reading in Classrooms through a phased roll-out ...43

6.4 Explore Alternative Digital Reading Models for Classrooms ...44

7. Lessons Learned and Conclusions ...46

7.1 Lessons Learned and Recommendations ...46 7.2 Conclusions ...48

Works Cited ...50 Appendices ...51

Acronyms

AusAID Australian Agency for International Development BECE Basic Education Certificate Education CSR Corporate Social Responsibility CWPM Correct Words per Minute EGRA Early Grade Reading Assessment GES Ghana Education Service ICT4D Information and Communication Technologies for Development ICT4E Information and Communication Technologies for Education MDGs Millennium Development Goals MoE Ministry of Education NALAP National Literacy Acceleration Program NEA Ghana's 2013 National Education Assessment NGO Non-Governmental Organization iREAD 1 Ghana iREAD Study (2011-2012 ) iREAD 2 Ghana iREAD Study (2013 - 2014) SMC School Management Committee USAID US Agency for International Development

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Acknowledgements

The principal author of the report was Sarah Jaffe, Senior Manager of Research at Worldreader. Zev Lowe and Farah Mahesri of Worldreader served as co-authors. Additional input was provided by Beatrice Ani Asamoah, Eunice Yolanda Dsane, Clara Miralles Codorniu, David Risher, and Tina Tam of Worldreader.

The report-writing team would like to thank Dr. Han Eiw Chew of the Singapore Internet Research Centre for guidance on data analysis and reporting; Erin Williams, Grants Officer - ACR (Round 1) at World Vision for comments and input; Rachel Mai Tran (consultant); and Augustina Juliana Ortsin, Robert Gyenin and Doris Ashrifie for their help conducting student assessments.

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1. Executive Summary

Background: Literacy is a foundational skill that sets up children for lifelong success. Unfortunately, few children in sub-Saharan Africa have access to even the most basic tools they need to learn to read, including contextually and linguistically relevant books and reading materials. At the same time, advances in technology have unlocked solutions to battle resource scarcity and inequity in ways that were unimaginable even a decade ago.

To support global efforts to fight illiteracy the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAid) and World Vision partnered to issue a Grand Challenge to the global development community: find a way to help kids read better using sustainable, affordable and innovative solutions that can be rolled out quickly, to prevent another generation from being stuck in a cycle of illiteracy.

Worldreader accepted this challenge with the iREAD Ghana Study 2012-2014 (iREAD 2), designed to tackle the lack of reading materials and low levels of literacy among Ghana's early primary school students. The intervention addressed these issues with the provision of relevant (culturally and age appropriate) reading materials via e-readers, the implementation of effective teaching practices, and activity-based learning opportunities.

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