LIGHTING THE WAY:
An Interactive Dialogue on the Importance of Effective Language of Instruction Transitions in Low- and Middle-Income Countries
Introducing SHARE's LITES Study
When: Tuesday, Feb. 27, 2024, 9 - 10:20 am ET
Where: Online (registration required)
Please join us for an event that brings together USAID Missions and Bureaus, policymakers, and literacy experts to discuss Language of Instruction as a critical factor in literacy instruction and development. The webcast will speak to the Research Question that LITES (Language of Instruction Transition in Education Systems) is trying to answer: "How do different LITES policy approaches, system factors, and local-level conditions and practices explain variations in key language and reading outcomes in target languages in primary grades?"
This Webcast is hosted by the University of Notre Dame's Pulte Institute for Global Development. Interested parties can hear more about the study once findings are released at the Comparative International Education Society (CIES) Conference in March and the USAID Global Education Conference (GEC) in April.
Agenda
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Opening Remarks and Introductions |
Tom Purekal
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The Importance of Language of Instruction |
Elena Walls |
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Overview of Language of Instruction Transition and its Role in Literacy Development
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Moderated by |
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LITES and RELM Research Questions and Methodology
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Moderated by |
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Emerging Areas of Focus |
TJ D’Agostino |
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Closing Remarks, |
Tom Purekal |
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Questions, Answers, and Discussion |
Moderated by |
About LITES
LITES (Language of Instruction Transition in Education Systems) is one of SHARE’s premier core-funded studies. The study evaluates factors affecting the ways that countries transition their language of instruction for early-grade learners, considering a host of socio-linguistic and psycho-linguistic areas.
LITES is being carried out in six countries — Kenya, Mozambique, Senegal, Rwanda, Mali, and the Philippines — with the expectation that findings will be transferable to other countries navigating this complex issue. SHARE is also piloting a new module focused on receptive and expressive language that will be included in the new EGRA (Early Grade Reading Assessment) toolkit.
About SHARE
SHARE (Supporting Holistic and Actionable Research in Education) is a five-year cooperative agreement by USAID’s Bureau for Development, Democracy, and Innovation/Center for Education (DDI/EDU) to the University of Notre Dame (UND) that advances global education learning priorities to improve learning outcomes.
This Activity is funded through USAID’s Higher Education Leadership, Innovation, and Exchange (HELIX) Annual Program Statement (APS) under the USAID New Partnership Initiative (NPI). Within UND, this Activity is being led by the Pulte Institute for Global Development alongside UND’s Global Center for the Development of the Whole Child. UND implements SHARE in partnership with higher education and research institutions based in USAID geographic regions worldwide.
Meet the PRESENTERS
Elena Walls, Senior Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning Advisor at USAID
TJ D'Agostino, LITES Study Primary Investigator, Pulte Institute for Global Development Core Faculty, and Assistant Professor of the Practice at the Keough School of Global Affairs, University of Notre Dame
Fernanda Assuncao Soares Jones, Research Technical Advisor at the Institute for Educational Initiatives at the University of Notre Dame
Angella Atukunda, Resilience Director at ResilientAfrica Network (RAN)
Pooja Nakamura, LITES Study Primary Investigator and Principal Researcher and International Education Program Lead at the American Institutes for Research
Tom Purekal, SHARE Program Director, Pulte Institute for Global Development Innovation and Practice Program Director, and Term-Limited Professor of the Practice at the Keough School of Global Affairs, University of Notre Dame