Research Summary: The Schools E-Learning Project: a context-responsive teacher professional development model grounded in a research-practice partnership in remote Papua New Guinea

Research published in Frontiers in Education evaluates the Schools E-Learning Project (SELP), a context-responsive teacher professional development initiative in Papua New Guinea established in 2020 through a research-practice partnership between an international development agency, the Long Term Fund, and a university. Aligned with Papua New Guinea's National Education Plan (2020–2029), the initiative addresses severe infrastructure constraints and geographic remoteness by coupling technology integration with continuous, localised coaching delivered by domestic educational leaders. The model is structured around a program logic framework and wrap-around evaluation architecture.

Why it matters

This initiative matters because it offers an operational blueprint for deploying technology-supported professional development in infrastructure-poor, geographically isolated environments. It demonstrates that digital interventions require localised human coaching and institutional partnerships to overcome systemic delivery bottlenecks. Furthermore, it validates the use of research-practice partnerships to align international development funding with national policy mandates.

Key insights

• Papua New Guinea's National Education Plan (2020–2029) establishes teacher professional development as a central mechanism for educational quality improvement.
• Delivery of professional development faces critical obstacles stemming from remote school locations and limited local infrastructure.
• The Schools E-Learning Project (SELP) operates as a multi-stakeholder research-practice partnership formed in 2020 between an international development agency, the Long Term Fund, and a university.
• The intervention model links technology integration directly with ongoing, localised coaching led by domestic educational leaders to build educator competence and confidence.
• The project design and evaluation framework are grounded in formal program logic and wrap-around evaluation mechanisms.

Source

Frontiers in Education — https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feduc.2026.1920349