 Programme, an initiative designed to improve learning outcomes and){kind=link}
By: Abdullahi Inuwa
Katsina State Governor, Malam Dikko Umaru Radda, has launched the Scaling Access and Learning in Education (SCALE) Programme, an initiative designed to improve learning outcomes and expand educational opportunities for children across the state.
The programme was formally unveiled at the Banquet Hall of the Katsina State Government House, with stakeholders describing it as a significant step towards addressing learning gaps, particularly among children whose education has been disrupted or who have previously been out of school.
A major component of the SCALE Programme is the Teaching at the Right Level (TaRL) approach, which focuses on assessing pupils according to what they actually know and tailoring classroom instruction to their individual learning needs rather than relying solely on their age or grade level.
Speaking at the launch, Governor Radda said the programme would complement the state government’s ongoing efforts to increase access to education, strengthen teachers’ professional capacity and create safer and more inclusive learning environments for children.
He emphasised that improving education requires not only getting children into classrooms but also ensuring that they receive meaningful and effective instruction.
According to him, teachers remain central to the success of any education reform and must therefore receive adequate support, training and professional development to enable them to perform effectively.
Governor Radda said his administration would continue to embrace evidence-based interventions capable of producing measurable improvements in learning outcomes.
He also acknowledged the role of development partners in strengthening the education sector, describing them as strategic partners whose expertise, innovation, knowledge and systems could help provide sustainable solutions to challenges confronting education.
The governor called for deeper collaboration among education authorities, teachers, communities and development partners to ensure that every child in Katsina State has access to quality and meaningful learning opportunities.
Earlier, the representative of the British High Commission in Nigeria, Mr Ian Attfield, explained that Teaching at the Right Level was an evidence-based educational approach designed to help teachers determine what pupils actually understand before providing targeted instruction.
Attfield said the United Kingdom had maintained a long-standing partnership with Nigeria and Katsina State in the education sector, adding that such collaboration remained important in addressing learning challenges and improving educational outcomes.
Also speaking, the Executive Secretary of the Katsina State Development Management Board, Dr Mustapha Shehu, said the TaRL approach had the potential to widen learning opportunities for vulnerable children, particularly those who had previously dropped out of school or whose education had been interrupted.
He said the intervention would help learners rebuild foundational skills while providing facilitators with practical tools to address individual learning gaps.
The SCALE Nigeria innovative partnership is implementing TaRL-enhanced accelerated basic education interventions in Katsina and Zamfara States, with the programme currently targeting more than 3,800 learners across over 50 learning centres, supported by more than 100 facilitators.
The launch marks another effort by the Katsina State Government and its development partners to move beyond school enrolment figures and place greater emphasis on what children actually learn in the classroom.
With the adoption of the TaRL model, stakeholders hope that children who have fallen behind academically will receive targeted support to catch up, while teachers will be better equipped to respond to different levels of learning within their classrooms.
The initiative is therefore expected to contribute to the broader objective of building a stronger and more inclusive basic education system in Katsina, where access to school is matched by improved learning outcomes.
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