Rural Families in Guatemala Take Part in Quality of Education

Amidst disappointing data on reading proficiency among children in Guatemala, USAID constituted the Education Reform in the Classroom Project (2009-2014). Among other things, the project aimed to increase effectiveness of teaching practices, improve the classroom learning environment, foster the effective acquisition of reading skills, and promote mechanisms that encourage parents, communities, and leaders to take part of quality of education. The latter objective was scantily explored in Guatemala. The aim was to inform and raise awareness among parents from rural areas about the importance of quality of education in the classroom, in particular in the learning to read process. However, the most challenging objective was providing parents skills that enabled them to get involved with their children in literacy acquisition. 

In order to attain these objectives, all of the strategies, tactics, and tools were based on a communication for development approach. This approach encourages stakeholders to participate in their own process of change (“bottom-up”) and contributes to sustainability.

This case study was submitted as part of USAID's CLA Case Competition, held in August 2015. Taken together, this collection of submissions illustrates the diversity of ways collaborating, learning, and adapting approaches are being operationalized in the field. Stringent judging criteria was used to determine official CLA Case Competition winners, so not all submissions should be considered an official USAID endorsement of best practice. To view all entries, visit the CLA Case Competition page.