Adriaan Verspoor
Published: 1989
Total Pages: 214
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The World Bank has supported a broad spectrum of educational reform programs. The outcomes of many of these programs have been mixed. A review of Bank experience found that the most successful programs have a different profile than the less successful programs. The former aimed at comprehensive change, encompassing a wide range of objectives that include administrative and management training and the provision of educational materials as well as the usual curriculum and teacher training components. Most importantly, they adopted an implementation strategy that was congruent with political and economic factors and with the program's objectives. Three interventions were found especially critical for successfully putting programs into practice in classrooms and schools. First, successful programs paid significant attention to strengthening institutions and organizational structure, including developing a capacity for innovative management. Second, successful programs included significant in-service teacher training components. Third, successful programs included strategies to garner the commitment of implementors, external agencies, and government authorities.