Project Evaluation Report: Quality Education Through Teachers' Magazine

Background  
In partnership with Himal Association, Save the Children developed the concept of creating a teacher’s magazine to improve the quality of education in schools. In mid-2007 Save the Children conducted a consultation with experts and stakeholders in both the education and media sector.  A small team of professionals determined the basic quality and content for a monthly magazine and titled the project Shikshak.  The first issue of the magazine was released in January 2008.  Since then, it has been released on a regular monthly basis in almost all 75 districts of Nepal. Save the Children made its initial investment in the venture with the understanding that the magazine would be self-sustainable in three to five years.   
Purpose/objective  
There were seven guiding objectives for the evaluation:
1. To assess overall distribution and selling copies of Shikshak magazine
2. To assess the content of the magazine as per the objectives of the project
3. The assess the utilization of the magazine by teachers
4. To assess how the magazine contributed in project specific objectives
5. To assess the teachers responses on the objectives and performance of the project
6. To find out the key achievements and areas to be improved, including other emerging issues and lessons learned
7. Suggest possible ways to make the publication self-sustained
  
Methodology  
 The evaluation design utilizes both qualitative and quantitative methods to gather information.  The seven objectives (listen above) require a variety of information. Primary information was collected from school teacher and educator subscribers through interviews and focus group discussions.  Secondary information was collected by reviewing documents and circulation data available from the Shikshak office.  63 school teachers from 21 schools in 7 sample districts were included in the evaluation sample. 14 bookstores, regional distributors, district education officers, educationists and other stakeholders were also interviewed.  

Key findings  
Shikshak magazine has reached all 75 districts however the number of copies within each district varies greatly between 2 and 2,100.  The interaction with school teachers, educators and distributors in the field has revealed higher demand for Shikshak magazine in the district. Gradual improvements in the number of returned copies over the past few years suggest that the market for Shikshak is growing. However the availability of Shikshak magazine was found to be confined to district centers, and teachers in remote areas have rarely seen the magazine.  The content is reported to be slightly imbalanced, with disproportionately high coverage of policy and Kathmandu related issues. In terms of use, schoolteachers sensed that the magazine cannot be fully utilized as a teaching and learning material. However, it is the only known magazine dedicated to teachers and education – and therefore essential to continue. Enhancing intellectual capacity among readers and increasing respect towards the teaching profession are a few areas where the impact of Shikshak is clearly discernible. 

Recommendations  
- Circulation to remote and rural areas needs to be improved. Creating district chapters to encourage the involvement of school teachers, educators and distributors would substantially improve the magazine’s objective and sustainability.
- The content of the magazine ought to be better balanced between regions and themes to make it more informative, explorative and interactive.
- To sustain the magazine, there is a need to invest the initial capital to reach at par with break-even.  There also needs to be initial investment in marketing.  Education related advertisements about publication and the availability of teaching/learning materials can be included.
- Coordination with government and non-governmental stakeholders will improve the magazines sustainability.  Promotion of recognition of the publication from the MOE and DEO would greatly help.
  
Comments and follow-up from the organisation, if any