Action research and human-centered design- 2014
First Steps was launched in Ngororero District of Rwanda in 2014 and the first phase was devoted to action research, engaging community members in identifying promoters and inhibitors of high-quality nurturing care among parents of children aged 0–3. Parents and parent trainers also provided feedback on the appropriate materials for training, length of training, home visits, and other program inputs. Initially, two blended curricula, “Child I Care” from Umuhuza and First Read 0–3 from Save the Children were used to pilot and learn what works best in parenting education in this setting. “Child I Care” emphasized social–emotional development while First Read had an emphasis on early learning and stimulation. The two curricula were blended to form a 13-week-long pilot parenting program. The purpose of this phase was to learn from parents and parent facilitators what worked well or did not work in terms of the delivery of parent sessions, materials needed, and relevance of topics to parents’ needs. Volunteer parent facilitators managed by Umuhuza carried out parenting education sessions and home visits weekly and documented their experiences. The facilitators had reflection forms with guiding questions that they had to fill out after every group session and a home visit. In addition, the Save the Children ECD technical lead together with MEAL personnel carried out session observations and led bi-weekly facilitators’ group reflection. Two cohorts of pilot parent group sessions were run with 800 families in two sectors of the Ngororero district. In addition, focus group discussions were held with both parents from the pilot sites and parents from other sectors not yet reached with parenting messages to understand the existing nurturing care practices, gaps in nurturing care among both male and female caregivers, as well as preferred modalities of receiving parenting messages. Both parents and facilitators recommended having one harmonized curriculum and they recommended priority topics based on what they understood to be gaps in their parenting knowledge. They also recommended having visual posters for parent group sessions and printed take-home materials. Through community consultations, the design team also noted the high interest in soap opera radio drama for passing social behavior change messages. Parents noted that they enjoyed an existing popular soap opera called Urunana. Parent facilitators provided feedback on home visits and suggested a reduction of required home visits per family to reduce the burden on volunteers. At the national level, a political economy analysis (PEA) and stakeholder listening session done as part of a larger 0–9 Advancing the Right to Read PEA study conducted by Save the Children, also provided insights into enabling factors that were needed for success including an ECD policy revision with emphasis on the thus far neglected 0–3 age range and challenges of 0–3 ECD front line workforce.Based on this learning and feedback, a holistic parenting education curriculum and training materials including a 17-session radio soap opera program were developed. The radio program served a dual purpose of passing messages to parents while also reducing message dilution that normally comes due to cascade training modalities such as what was being used in the program. In early 2015 the new First Steps “Intera za Mbere” curriculum and materials were tested, refined, and validated. Feedback from the field in Ngororero was combined with feedback from national level stakeholder consultation to refine the program tools for the proof-of-concept phase. Save the Children also began intensive policy and advocacy on investment in parenting education and support for parents of children birth to 6 years. Advocacy and policy materials including a strategy and a parenting education advocacy brief were developed and utilized at all levels of change from local to national level.