The Good Schools Study: A cluster randomised controlled trial of an intervention to prevent violence against children in Ugandan primary schools

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Violence against children in schools is common practice in many countries, and research into prevention and treatment has been outlined as a priority in the World Report on Violence against Children. In most countries, children spend more time at school than anywhere else besides their family home, and can suffer violence from teachers and other school staff, and other children. Despite this, in most countries evidence is lacking from rigorously conducted studies on the prevalence, epidemiology and consequences of this violence. Existing studies tend to come from North America, where corporal punishment from teachers is far less common.In Uganda, no rigorous, representative prevalence data exist, but one survey indicated more than 80% of children have experienced physical punishments such as caning and slapping by teachers. More research exists on sexual violence in schools suffered by girls in African schools, and qualitative studies indicate girls in Ugandan secondary schools experience sexual violence and harassment from teachers and fellow students but are not able to report it for fear of reprisals.The Good School Toolkit has been developed and refined for 6 years in Uganda by Raising Voices. The Toolkit takes a systemic approach, involving an entire school in a process of change to reduce violence and improve teaching techniques. The Toolkit draws on the Transtheoretical Model and incorporates standard behaviour change techniques such as setting a goal and making an action plan, which are effective in modifying behaviour. This study aims to determine whether use of the Good School Toolkit reduces children's experience of violence by school staff. We will also examine the effects of the Toolkit on children's mental health, well-being, and educational outcomes. The study will include a trial, which will be complemented by a qualitative study, a process evaluation, and an economic evaluation. We will also follow a sub-group of trial participants over time.We will conduct a cluster randomised controlled trial in 42 primary schools in Luwero District, Uganda. Half of the schools will receive the Toolkit, and other half will be put on a waiting list to receive the Toolkit at the end of the study if it is shown to be effective. School staff, and children in Primary 5, 6 and 7 will be surveyed (aged about 11-14 years) at the beginning and the end of the study, and schools which received the Toolkit will be compared with those which did not. A qualitative study will also be conducted to explore mechanisms by which the Toolkit might be affecting violence, mental health and educational outcomes. In-depth work will focus on how school staff and children have experienced the Toolkit intervention, and what aspects of it may be refined to be more effective. The Toolkit is specifically designed to be implemented at very low cost, appropriate for low income settings. An economic evaluation will be performed to explore the economic and financial costs of this intervention, with the aim of informing possible scale-up of the Toolkit.All students in Primary 5 at baseline will be followed longitudinally until follow-up, when most will be in Primary 7. This will enable exploration of trajectories of change in mental health and educational outcomes over time, and how violence experience impacts this. We will also be able to follow school staff over time.The results from this evaluation will be used to brief policy-makers within the Ministry of Education and Sports involved in developing country-wide policy and practice around violence against children in schools.