Foundation Newsletter

Making Mastery the Goal

One key to emerging from poverty is education. This is particularly true in the developing world, where those who can read, calculate, and think critically have better economic opportunities, higher agricultural productivity, healthier children, and better reproductive health and rights. But mere presence in the classroom doesn’t mean mastery of curricula, which is why the Hewlett Foundation launched its quality education initiative. The initiative – which currently is active in in Ghana, Kenya, Mali, Senegal, Tanzania, Uganda, and India – tracks mastery of course work, raises parental involvement, and improves instruction.

Our lead story looks at how that work is unfolding target countries and the lessons the funders have learned along the way. The Q&A with Global Development and Population Program Officer Chloe O’Gara takes a deeper look at how the work has evolved and its prospects for the future.