JM Education and Research Centre (JMERC)

Did you know?
The Independent (2021) reported in December 2021 that Uganda's teenage pregnancy rate was five times higher than the rate of positive Covid-19 cases at that time. The Ugandan Government documented a rate of roughly 32,000 teenage pregnancies per month over the course of the pandemic (Uganda Government National Campaign, Protect the girl, Save the nation, p. 2); a phenomenon now, unsurprisingly, being described as a national crisis (United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Uganda, 2022). We have observed the need for urgent post-Covid-19 intervention if girls are to continue and complete the education cycle.

Our response:
We want to create a generation of girls who are lifelong learners, self-aware, resilient and able to transform their lives, families and communities. To achieve this goal, we have designed a school-wide ecosystem program to amplify girls' Socio-emotional skills and support the teachers and school leaders to create classroom and school environments in which girls feel safe and supported to learn, achieve and thrive. The program also supports family and community engagements so that families and communities are supportive of girls' education and well-being.

Our impact:
• Since January February 2023, we have trained over 1,000 adolescent girls in socio-emotional skills – Self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, responsible decision-making skills and leadership skills.
• We have supported over 100 teachers through training and mentorship on how to create a classroom climate that is learner-centred and considers the psychosocial needs of all the learners, especially the girls.

You can be part of this transformative journey by helping us to:

1. Support up to 3,000 adolescent girls with Socio-emotional skills so that they have an increased awareness of their strengths, discover new learning strategies, take initiative and make learning and professional goals.
2. Deliver training and mentorship support to 3,000 adolescent girls on Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) so that they have an increased ability to make informed decisions about their sexual and reproductive health.
3. Deliver training and mentorship support to up to 300 teachers on Critical Pedagogy and Gender-responsive pedagogy so that have an increased ability to use learner-centred and gender-responsive and transformative teaching and learning approaches.
4. Deliver training and mentorship to 30 school leaders on Adaptive Leadership so that there is increased school leaders' awareness of how to create school structures and systems that support learning, gender transformation and the well-being of girls.
5. Conduct parental and community engagement so that there is increased Caregivers' awareness and ability to enhance their children's learning at home and social and emotional wellbeing