The School of Education has won a grant of USD 300,000 from USAID to launch Early Grade Reading Instruction Curriculum (EGRIC). The School through the Department of Educational Communication and Technology (COMTECH), was among the 32 finalists selected out of 450 proposals submitted to USAID.

COMTECH which is implementing EGRIC, will develop the capacity of 240 Bachelor of Education in Early Childhood Education (B.Ed, ECE) and pre-service teachers to teach reading in the primary grades (Pre-school to Standard 3) using high quality, culturally relevant, multi-genre and age-appropriate materials in English and Kiswahili. 

The teachers will be taken through various practical courses including reading assessment which will help them diagnose children with reading problems. In addition, throughout the teaching period, the teachers will receive ongoing support from COMTECH lecturers. The teachers are expected to develop video-cases of their teaching to be used for further teacher preparation and professional development.

While officially launching the programme on behalf of the Vice Chancellor, Prof. Isaac Mbeche, Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Student Affairs, said that EGRIC is filling an existing gap in teacher education as teachers will now be able to launch their teaching career with reading at the core of their instruction. He pointed out that teachers must have unlimited access to teaching materials for classroom instruction and learners must have access to learning materials for reading practice. He noted that EGRIC would address both needs and ensure graduating teachers have an edge over other B.Ed (ECE) students from other universities.

Speaking on behalf of USAID, Dr. Teresiah Gathenya congratulated the University for writing a winning idea that was robust, cost-effective and scalable. She observed that EGRIC was unique as it focuses on pre-service teachers. She assured UoN of USAID’s continued support in the successful implementation of EGRIC.

Others who spoke during the launch include Prof. Henry Mutoro, Principal, College of Education and External Studies, Prof. Patrick O. O. Digolo, Chairman, COMTECH and Dr. Hellen Inyega, EGRIC.