Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN) is important for education systems seeking to improve early and future learning outcomes for students. While most FLN interventions focus on teacher practice, the role of school leaders is often underleveraged. In this paper, we explore an innovative, evidence-based approach that centers school leaders as key levers for sustainable change.
We explored the impact of adding school leader training to teacher-focused FLN programs through two core research questions: (1) What is the impact of adding school leader support to teacher FLN training? And (2) How does a tech-intensive blended-learning model compare to a workshop-based model in supporting school leaders?
Through a multi-country collaboration, a comprehensive FLN guide for school leaders was converted into video-based modules and physical workbooks tailored for low-resource environments. A Randomized Control Trial (RCT) was conducted across 150 schools in Sierra Leone: 75 schools per model, divided into 3 arms: teacher-only support, teacher plus school leader support, and control. The study assessed implementation fidelity, effectiveness, and scalability to inform the design of future school leadership programs for sustainable FLN gains. Baseline data collection included over 6,000 student assessments and 450 teacher and school leader surveys, ensuring data disaggregation by gender and region.
Although we still await findings from the baseline survey that will be conducted in the coming months, early feedback from school leaders suggests high program uptake and satisfaction. It also shows increased confidence among school leaders in supporting FLN, especially in classroom observation, teacher support, and data use. Importantly, leaders with low digital literacy still accessed and benefited from the content. The use of asynchronous videos, contextual relevance, and implementation fidelity monitoring emerged as key innovations.
This model demonstrates how school leader capacity-building can be embedded in national FLN strategies and teacher education reform efforts. While the initiative is implemented in Sierra Leone, it offers relevant and adaptable lessons to support Kenya’s CBC transformation. The presentation will offer policy and practice implications for scalable, tech-adaptable leadership development tools for integration into in-service training frameworks in Kenya, with attention to equity and resource variation.
Keywords: School leadership, Foundational literacy and numeracy, Teacher education reform