Building system, agency and professional capacities
The health, educational and social effectiveness of school-based and school-linked programs are the product of three factors; the size of the effect of the intervention, the reach of the intervention and the sustainability of the intervention. Capacity-building prolongs the effect of individual intervention, multi-intervention programs and multi-component approaches. Consequently, ensuring that system, agency and professional capacities are adequate and that ongoing capacity building is a priority.
Baseline capacities in the ministries, agencies and front-line entities are required. These include:
References and Resources:
The health, educational and social effectiveness of school-based and school-linked programs are the product of three factors; the size of the effect of the intervention, the reach of the intervention and the sustainability of the intervention. Capacity-building prolongs the effect of individual intervention, multi-intervention programs and multi-component approaches. Consequently, ensuring that system, agency and professional capacities are adequate and that ongoing capacity building is a priority.
Baseline capacities in the ministries, agencies and front-line entities are required. These include:
- minimum staffing levels for front-line delivery and coordination at all
- defined minimum service levels and wait times for health, social, food and other services
- sufficient instructional time being available in the curriculum and in coordinated extra-curricular/co-curricular activities/school routines
- adequate reach and repetitions of professional development programs.
- coordinated ministry, agency/school board policies & school procedures that are actively supported by senior and middle managers;
- assigned staffing and infrastructure to support horizontal and vertical inter-ministry, inter-agency and interprofessional coordination and cooperation at all levels;
- formal and informal mechanisms for inter-ministry, inter-agency and inter-professional coordination;
- ongoing and active knowledge development, transfer and exchange;
- ongoing long-term workforce development and planning of health, social service, police, education and other professionals;
- regular monitoring, reporting, evaluation, analysis that is linked directly with system, agency and & professional Improvement planning;
- early identification and strategic management of emerging issues, trends and joint priorities and
- an explicit sustainability plan and succession planning for key personnel.
References and Resources:
- WHO (2003) Rapid Assessment and Action Planning Process,Geneva, WHO;
- World Bank (nd) School Health SABER Questionnaire, Washington, DC, Author, (Q1.7 and 1.8);
- WHO (2017), Global Accelerated Action for the Health of Adolescents (AA-HA!), Guidance to Support Country Implementation Geneva, WHO, p.105;
- World Bank (nd) World Bank SH SABER Questionnaire (Q 1.20-1.25);
- CASEL (nd) The CASEL Guide to Schoolwide Social and Emotional Learning (See CASEL Resources for continuous Improvement);
- Vince Whitman, C. (2005). Implementing research-based health promotion programmes in schools: Strategies for capacity building. In S. Clift & B.B. Jensen (Eds.) The health promoting school: International advances in theory, evaluation and practice (107-136). Copenhagen, Denmark: Danish University of Education Press;
- McCall D (2007) Operational Capacity & School Health Promotion (Discussion paper prepared for the Health & Learning Knowledge Centre, Canadian Council on Learning, Ottawa, Canada)
- FAO (2019) Theme 7: Systemic Capacity. White Paper on School Food & Nutrition Education (In Progress), Rome, FAO