A 5 point plan to Ensure Every Child Learns
The learning crisis is an urgent global issue, but through coordinated action and political leadership, we can ensure that every child has the opportunity to learn and thrive.
70 percent of ten year old children in low- and middle-income countries cannot read and understand a simple story.
In the world’s poorest countries, the level is as high as 90 percent.
Political leadership is central to turning around the massive and persistent learning crisis.
In advance of International Literacy Day, we have published a 5 point plan to Ensure Every Child Learns:
1. Acknowledge the extent of the challenge
Ensuring every child learns begins with political leaders acknowledging the severity of the learning crisis. A recent survey found that 80% of government officials overestimate literacy proficiency in their countries while underestimating the detrimental impact that low literacy has on national development.
As Former President of Nigeria H.E. Olusegun Obasanjo said, “My friends and fellow leaders have not yet seemed to fully grasp the urgency and severity of the situation. There is an urgent need to accelerate action and deliver it at scale”
2. Mobilise society-wide support for learning
Education is a collective responsibility. Governments, educators, families, businesses, and civil society organisations all play a crucial role in addressing the learning challenge. Ensuring every child learns requires collaboration from all sectors of society.
3. Measure children’s learning
Regularly assessing children's learning is essential to identifying gaps and areas needing immediate action. Accurate data on learning outcomes enables targeted interventions and helps guide resource allocation to where it’s needed most.
4. Set clear and widely understood targets
Once learning data is collected, countries should set specific targets to improve student learning outcomes. These targets should be simple, focusing on both enrollment and learning quality, to generate widespread support across various stakeholders.
5. Fund learning
Political commitment to ensuring every child learns must be backed by adequate funding. Proper financing today, used efficiently and directed towards those with the greatest needs, will result in long-term benefits, including reduced costs from dropouts and enhanced productivity.
The learning crisis is an urgent global issue, but through coordinated action and political leadership, we can ensure that every child has the opportunity to learn and thrive.
By committing to these five actions, our network of MPs can drive the change needed to transform education systems and build a future where no child is left behind.
Together, we can create lasting impact for generations to come and ensure every child learns.
