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Child-related Policies in the First Year of the COVID-19 Pandemic in 40 Countries uses evidence to present a broad-ranging analysis of the child-related policies and activities undertaken by the 40 European Union (EU) and Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries. This working paper focuses on six policy fields: education, early childhood education and care (ECEC), parental leave, income support, food support and health-related provision. It concludes that: Child and family policy was active during the COVID-19 pandemic Developments tended to focus on protecting adults from risks rather than children. Child-related measures took time to evolve and were, as a result, reactive in manner There was a wide variety of measures adopted across countries. This working paper was partially funded by the University of Oxford and UNICEF Innocenti – Global Office of Research and Foresight.

AUTHOR(S)

Mary Daly; Sunwoo Ryu; Ertuğrul Polat
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This evidence-to-policy brief is based on a rapid evidence assessment of the effectiveness of social and behaviour change (SBC)-informed interventions to reduce both violence against children and intimate partner violence in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). It is intended as a user-friendly overview for anyone with an interest in learning about the broad possibilities of addressing violence provided by SBC-informed parenting initiatives. The assessment aims to: • Appraise the available evidence on the effectiveness of SBC-informed interventions that target parents and caregivers in reducing violence against children in the home • Assess the impact of parenting interventions on reducing co-occurring intimate partner violence • Identify the theories underpinning SBC-informed interventions and the settings in which SBC interventions work and for whom • Evaluate the costs and cost-effectiveness of SBC-informed parenting interventions • Identify relevant contextual factors, including population groups, intervention characteristics and the implementation considerations required for successfully delivering SBC-informed parenting interventions. The findings indicate that: • There is a robust evidence base demonstrating that parenting programmes informed by SBC can be effective in reducing violence perpetrated against children by parents in LMICs, provided the programmes are implemented by trained facilitators • Co-occurrence of intimate partner violence can also be reduced through SBC-informed parenting programmes • Local resources and personnel can help keep programme costs low • SBC-informed parenting programmes may be transferable to different contexts, populations and settings in LMICs. Some studies suggested programmes were successfully implemented in humanitarian settings and for parents of children of various ages. Implementation in new settings, however, should be accompanied by quality monitoring and evaluation.

AUTHOR(S)

Anil Thota; Floriza Gennari; Alessandra Guedes
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The ‘What Works in Pre-Primary Education Provision’ report is based on an evidence review of 56 studies from 29 low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). It synthesizes the available evidence on pre-primary education interventions or programmes that aimed to improve access, in addition to learning and development outcomes for children aged three up to the start of primary school in LMICs. Moderating factors affecting the successful implementation of these programmes are also identified. Key recommendations to improve programme design and implementation at scale are provided across five areas: planning and budgeting, curriculum, workforce development, family and community engagement, and quality assurance. By addressing these recommendations, education stakeholders can strengthen pre-primary education provision and maximize its benefits for all children.
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Tra il 2014 e il 2020 più di 700.000 richiedenti asilo e migranti sono arrivati in Italia. Fornire competenze di lingua italiana a bambini con un background migratorio, come i bambini rifugiati e migranti, è riconosciuta come una priorità nazionale, in quanto è essenziale per garantire a questi bambini il diritto all’istruzione e per facilitare la loro inclusione e partecipazione nella società italiana. Per rispondere a questa esigenza, la piattaforma per l’apprendimento digitale Akelius è stata introdotta a Bologna e Roma per l'apprendimento dell'italiano e dell'inglese nell'anno scolastico 2021/22. Questo rapporto presenta i risultati del primo anno di implementazione della piattaforma digitale Akelius in Italia. I risultati mostrano che l'uso della piattaforma digitale ha accelerato l'apprendimento autonomo, ha aumentato la motivazione degli studenti ed è stata particolarmente vantaggiosa per i bambini appena arrivati e per i bambini con disabilità. L’obiettivo del rapporto è costruire evidenze sull’efficacia della piattaforma digitale, oltre alle relative sfide e buone pratiche, in diversi contesti scolastici, in modo da informare i piani di scalabilità per l’apprendimento digitale in Italia e non solo.
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In 2019, the President of the European Commission announced the creation of the European Child Guarantee, an initiative that aimed to combat child poverty by making sure that every child who lives in poverty has access to free healthcare, free education, free childcare, decent housing and adequate nutrition. With Delivering the EU Child Guarantee: Practical lessons for effective interventions, UNICEF Innocenti provides a synthesis of findings of operational research on 15 pilot models of intervention for children and families in Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece and Italy. The goal of the report is to learn from the experiences in these four countries to inform the rollout of the Child Guarantee programme throughout Europe. The study provides lessons learned in three themes: laying the foundations for the Child Guarantee work at the national level; developing interventions at the local level; supporting the Child Guarantee at the EU level.

En Mauritanie, de nombreux élèves rencontrent des difficultés dans la maitrise du français, l'une des langues officielles d'enseignement à l'école. Cette barrière linguistique entrave la progression des élèves dans le programme, augmentant ainsi les risques d'abandon scolaire. Ce risque touche en particulier les adolescentes en raison de normes sociales discriminatoires qui compromettent la poursuite de leurs études, même dans des zones urbaines de la capitale, Nouakchott. Pour relever ces défis, l'UNICEF, en collaboration avec la Fondation Akelius et des partenaires nationaux, a lancé un cours hybride visant à améliorer la maîtrise du français pour les filles vivant dans un quartier défavorisé de Nouakchott. Ce cours hybride, qui se déroule dans un centre communautaire l'après-midi, intègre un enseignement traditionnel avec l'utilisation hors ligne de l'application d’apprentissage digital Akelius. Cette note de recherche présente les résultats que le cous hybride a contribué à atteindre en termes l'apprentissage et de compétences socio-émotionnelles. Elle met en lumière les enseignements tirés dans la mise en œuvre de l'apprentissage numérique dans des environnements aux ressources limitées, notamment en s'appuyant sur des solutions hors ligne et en concevant conjointement le contenu numérique avec les enseignants.

AUTHOR(S)

Thomas Dreesen; Marco Valenza; Binta Alassane Gadio; Elisa Despréaux
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In Mauritania, many learners struggle with French, one of the official languages of instruction at school. This language barrier hinders student progress with the curriculum, increasing the chances of leaving school. This risk disproportionately affects adolescent girls due to discriminatory social norms undermining their continued education, even in urban areas of the capital, Nouakchott. To address these challenges, UNICEF Mauritania, in collaboration with the Akelius Foundation and national partners, has initiated a blended course to improve French proficiency for girls in a disadvantaged neighbourhood of Nouakchott. The blended course, which takes place at a community-based facility during afternoons, integrates regular teaching with the offline use of the Akelius Digital Learning app. This research brief presents evidence on how the blended course supported vulnerable girls’ learning and other socio-emotional skills. It highlights lessons learnt for practitioners in implementing digital learning in resource-constrained environments, including the reliance on offline solutions and the co-design of digital content with the teachers.

AUTHOR(S)

Marco Valenza; Thomas Dreesen; Binta Alassane Gadio; Elisa Despréaux
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Task Force 6: Accelerating SDGs: Exploring New Pathways to the 2030 Agenda The G20 aims to promote global cooperation, inclusive development, economic stability, and sustainable growth. This presents an opportunity to leverage its leadership to ensure foundational investments in gender-equitable family well-being globally. Family policies, such as childcare services and parental leave, can reduce poverty, promote decent jobs for women, support more equal intra-familial relationships, and secure child well-being and development outcomes, thereby benefitting societies and economies. To achieve this, family policies need to be designed in a gender-equitable way, and be integrated, coordinated, and financed through sustainable domestic resources. This policy brief proposes an agenda and recommendations to G20 countries to invest in gender-equitable family policies that can deliver optimally for child well-being, gender equality, and sustainable development.

AUTHOR(S)

Elena Camilletti; Ramya Subrahmanian; Dominic Richardson; A K Shiva Kumar; Rosario Esteinou; Lauren Whitehead
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Niger has developed an Economic and Social Development Plan (PDES) aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), in particular target 4.1 which aims, by 2030, to ensure that all girls and boys attend, on an equal footing, a full cycle of free, quality primary and secondary education, leading to truly useful learning. What resources and contextual factors are associated with good school performances in Niger? By merging and analyzing existing administrative datasets in Niger, this report helps to identify positive deviant schools – those that outperform other schools despite sharing similar contexts and resources. Data Must Speak – a global initiative implemented since 2014 – aims to address the evidence gaps to mitigate the learning crisis using existing data. The DMS Positive Deviance research is co-created and co-implemented with Ministries of Education and key partners. DMS research relies on mixed methods and innovative approaches (i.e., positive deviance approach, behavioural sciences, implementation research and scaling science) to generate knowledge and practical lessons about ‘what works’, ‘why’ and ‘how’ to scale grassroots solutions for national policymakers and the broader international community of education stakeholders. DMS research is currently implemented in 14 countries: Brazil, Burkina Faso, Chad, Cote d'Ivoire, Ethiopia, Ghana, the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Madagascar, Mali, Nepal, Niger, the United Republic of Tanzania, Togo and Zambia.

AUTHOR(S)

Komlan Nouwokpo Samati; Alexis Le Nestour; Renaud Comba
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1302 items found