UNRWA SCHOOLS PARTICIPATE IN THE MONITORING OF LEARNING ACHIEVEMENT (MLA) ASSESSMENT
23 May 2016
Approximately 65,000 students participated in Arabic and math assessments carried out in May across schools from all five fields of operations of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).
The Monitoring of Learning Achievement (MLA) tests were provided to grade 4 and grade 8 students to assess their performance levels, their understanding of content, and the level of their skills and competencies, including higher order thinking skills. The methodology was developed through a rigorous process in collaboration between UNRWA Headquarters and the fields and it is a key indicator of students’ learning outcomes.
The MLA is important in telling the Agency how its education programme is doing, providing insight into its quality and equity. It also helps UNRWA to better understand the nature of the learning that is going on in its classrooms and how this aligns with the aspirations of the Agency’s Education Reform.
The MLA tests are crucial towards measuring the impact of the Agency’s Education Reform and determining the relevant intervention strategies to improve teaching and learning in schools. Central to this will be to embed and build upon the principles of the Education Reform.
The analysis of the results is expected to begin after June 2016, when all tests will have been marked and relevant data has been entered into the systems.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
UNRWA is confronted with an increased demand for services resulting from a growth in the number of registered Palestine refugees, the extent of their vulnerability and their deepening poverty. UNRWA is funded almost entirely by voluntary contributions and financial support has been outpaced by the growth in needs. As a result, the UNRWA Programme Budget, which supports the delivery of core essential services, operates with a large shortfall, projected for 2016 to stand at US$ 81 million. UNRWA emergency programmes and key projects, also operating with large shortfalls, are funded through separate funding portals.
UNRWA is a United Nations agency established by the General Assembly in 1949 and mandated to provide assistance and protection to some 5 million registered Palestine refugees. Its mission is to help Palestine refugees in Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, West Bank and the Gaza Strip achieve their full human development potential, pending a just and lasting solution to their plight. UNRWA services encompass education, health care, relief and social services, camp infrastructure and improvement, protection and microfinance .
For more information, please contact:
Christopher Gunness
Spokesperson, Director of Advocacy & Strategic Communications
Mobile:
+972 (0)54 240 2659
Office:
+972 (0)2 589 0267
Sami Mshasha
Chief of Communications, Arabic Language Spokesperson
Mobile:
+972 (0)54 216 8295
Office:
+972 (0)2 589 0724
Document Sources: United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA)
Subject: Assistance, Education and culture
Publication Date: 23/05/2016