| The COPE Programme benefits people on a wide range of levels. These include: At the Micro Level:
At the Meso Level:
At the Macro Level:
COPE has directly targeted poorer and socially disadvantaged children by locating schools in un-served or under-served areas, offering flexible timetabling, ensuring quality inputs and providing qualified local women teachers. The programme has benefited local unemployed School Leaving Certificate (SLC)-pass women, who have been trained and employed as teachers. The programme has benefited local communities by providing a sustainable primary school system, improving equitable access to quality education for their children. The participation of parents and communities in management and ownership of schools has ensured a greater client-orientation. It has also built their confidence in identifying ways to improve their schools and in seeking accountability from school managers and teachers. The community organisation (CO) members have gained experience and expertise in localized school planning, management and monitoring. Community leadership in the primary school system has started to emerge. The programme has benefited local government bodies (VDCs and DDCs) in terms of strengthening the participatory planning approach they practice, and by involving COs in setting up and managing schools. The success of this pilot initiative can have far-reaching effects on the education system at large, with DDCs demonstrating to the Ministry of Education and Sports (MOES) the benefits of participatory planning through community involvement and ownership. At the national level, the staff of MLD, MOES, the National Centre
for Educational Development (NCED), Primary Teaching Training
Centres (PTTCs) and other partnering agencies gain further exposure,
experience and expertise in community owned school planning, management,
operation and monitoring. The expansion and improvement of quality
primary schooling under the COPE programme are also supportive
to His Majesty’s Government of Nepal in attaining the goal
of poverty reduction and raising the levels of economic and social
development in backward areas. |
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