Measuring Quality Beyond Test Scores: The Impact of Regional Context on Curriculum Implementation (in Northern Uganda)

Abstract Although global initiatives have brought attention to the lack of quality in education systems worldwide; the question remains, how do we implement quality education? Teachers, a vital component of the education process, are not usually included in these global conversations; this results in government initiatives missing key obstacles faced by teachers daily. In this article, we used a rights-based approach to examine the Quality Educators Initiative, specifically its curricular component, as it tries to assist teachers in northern Uganda, an area whose schools and communities are vastly under-resourced and dealing with post-conflict effects. Using a mixed-methods approach, we highlight teachers' experiences with the National Thematic Curriculum and reveal through our findings that regional contextual factors, and teachers' voices and changing roles due to these factors, must be taken into consideration when rolling out new education policies.