Work to address this situation depends on how we understand it. Typically, the Global Learning Crisis and efforts to improve primary education are understood in relation to two terms: access and quality. This book is focused on the connection between them.

In a mixed-methods case study of the Global Learning Crisis, this book provides detailed, contextualized analysis of a specific instance of the Crisis: Ugandan primary education. As one of the first countries in Sub-Saharan Africa to enact dramatic and far-reaching primary education policy, Uganda serves as a compelling case study. With data from over 400 Ugandan schools and communities, the book analyzes grade repetition, private primary schools, and school fees, viewing each issue as an illustration of the connection between access to education and education quality. This analysis finds evidence of a potential positive association, challenging a key assumption that there is a tradeoff between efforts to improve access to education and efforts to improve education quality. The book concludes that embracing the complexity of education systems and focusing on dynamics where improvements in access and quality can be mutually reinforcing can be a new approach for improving basic education in contexts around the world.