The Center for Dissemination and Implementation has awarded $15,000 in Rapid Add-on Funding to the following study, which centers on the impact of a lapse in education to Pakistani and Afghani children during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The RAD funding mechanism enables investigators to rapidly “add-on” measurements or pilot data collection to an existing observational or experimental research study to better understand an aspect of Dissemination and Implementation.
The Impact of the SARS-cov2 Outbreak in Afghanistan and Pakistan on the Education System
Primary Investigator: Jean-Francois Trani, PhD, MA
In March 2020, due to COVID-19-related school closings, millions of students in Pakistan and Afghanistan were found to be at increased risk of child labor or exposure to violent behaviors while missing out on learning. The impact on their physical and mental health, exacerbated by boredom and isolation, was significant. Education departments in both countries were found to be “in dire need” of information about school-aged children and their families, which could lead to innovative solutions to delivering interim education services to the affected children.
To date, investigators have interviewed 15,000 children, their parents and teachers regarding education outcomes, socioeconomic and environmental characteristics resulting from the pandemic. More than 300 action items have been identified and implemented.
Adding on to these current interventions, this project aims to implement a large-scale survey involving more than 400 teachers measuring:
- The prevalence of students who have dropped out and or experienced child labor
- The disruption of the learning process including the proportion of students accessing distance learning
- Teachers, students and parents’ physical and mental well-being
The Washington University research team is currently the only group conducting a large-scale validated survey on the pandemic outbreak and primary education in rural Afghanistan and Pakistan. They aim to leverage survey findings to provide educational policy recommendations on the impact of distance learning programs and the emotional and physical health (violence or malnutrition) of students, teachers and families.
Professor Trani and team also aim to circumvent the lack of school-based resources with suggested new initiatives such as using age-appropriate self-learning and media-based materials linked to curriculum priorities for students and professional development for teachers.
Also receiving RAD funding:
Strategies and Implementation Outcomes related to Bundled Payments for Care Improvement-Advanced (BPCI-A) and Socially High-risk Populations Karen Joynt Maddox, MD, MPH, Primary Investigator
Supplement Funding to AHRQ RO1 Award (study on Antimicrobial Stewardship Programs) Jason Newland, MD, MEd, Primary Investigator