Measuring Progress with Tests of Learning: Pros and Cons for "Cash on Delivery Aid" in Education

This paper reviews, in non-technical terms, the case for and against using tests of learning for measuring annual educational progress within programs of “progressbased aid.” It addresses three questions about testing in developing countries. One, are valid and reliable measures of student learning currently available in developing countries? Two, are existing tests used in developing countries capable of registering the changes in educational results called for under “progress-based aid”? And three, do developing countries have the technical and administrative capacity to undertake annual assessments of learning? The paper includes a brief description of existing national, regional and international testing activities in developing and transition countries, a discussion of some technical topics related to testing and assessment, and various options for using learning assessments in the context of “progress-based aid.”foreign aid, international education, international development

Social exclusion and the gender gap in education

Despite a sharp increase in the share of girls who enroll in, attend, and complete various levels of schooling, an educational gender gap remains in some countries. This paper argues that one explanation for this gender gap is the degree of social exclusion within these countries, as indicated by ethno-linguistic heterogeneity, which triggers both economic and psycho-social mechanisms to limit girls'schooling. Ethno-linguistic heterogeneity initially was applied to explaining lagging economic growth, but has emerged in the literature more recently to explain both civil conflict and public goods. This paper is a first application of the concept to explain gender gaps in education. The paper discusses the importance of female education for economic and social development, reviews the evidence regarding gender and ethnic differences in schooling, reviews the theoretical perspectives of various social science disciplines that seek to explain such differences, and tests the relevance of ethnic and linguistic heterogeneity in explaining cross-country differences in school attainment and learning. The study indicates that within-country ethnic and linguistic heterogeneity partly explains both national female primary school completion rates and gender differences in these rates, but only explains average national learning outcomes when national income measures are excluded.Primary Education,Education For All,Gender and Education,Population Policies,Disability

School effects on student achievement in Nigeria and Swaziland

This paper provides evidence regarding the effects of schools, teachers and teaching processes on enhancing eighth grade mathematics achievement in Nigeria and Swaziland. A principal conclusion is that the achievement of students in both countries was significantly affected by the school/classroom in which they were enrolled, once effects of family characteristics were controlled. However, the specific school and classroom level variables accounting for these differences were not the same in both countries. Explanations for these between country differences could be both methodological or substantive. The study does, however, show that differences in achievement not attributable to student family background are largely due to differences in teaching quality (the teacher's use of time for lecturing, testing etc.). Teacher effectiveness depends upon finding the appropriate mix of alternative uses of instructional time. Since this seems to differ according to locale, more local research on teaching quality is needed.Teaching and Learning,Gender and Education,Primary Education,Educational Sciences,Health Monitoring&Evaluation

School effects on achievement in secondary mathematics and Portuguese in Brazil

The authors use a multilevel modeling procedure to explore 1) the percentage of variance in secondary school achievement in Brazil that could be attributed to the types of school attended, 2) differences between schools in students'achievement in mathematics and Portuguese, and 3) differences between schools in reducing achievement differences based on students'socioeconomic status. The authors identified the following : students in Brazil's federal technical schools outperformed students in other schools in both mathematics and Portuguese. Important factors were class size (achievement was higher in larger classes), the number of hours math was taught (the more the better), the school's organizational complexity, average family social class background, and the number of hours students spent working.Teaching and Learning,Gender and Education,Primary Education,Health Monitoring&Evaluation,Educational Sciences

The empty opportunity : local control of secondary schools and student achievement in the Philippines

Decentralization policies are at the heart of education reform efforts in many countries internationally. Two important types of policies are those that: (a) remove barriers to private education; and (b) devolve authority and responsibility for schools from central level administrations to intermediate level organizations and ultimately to schools, relying more on local communities for financing, with an overall goal of improving effectiveness. While both types of policies are largely uninformed by empirical evidence regarding their impact on such education outcomes as student learning, in developing countries the evidence regarding the effects of local control is much weaker than that regarding private schools. This paper extends the literature on the impact of private education on achievement, while providing the first evidence on the impact of local control on achievement in a developing county. It analyzes data from 214 secondary schools in the Philippines to answer questions regarding: (a) the relative effectiveness of local, government and private secondary schools; and (b) the factors that account for observed differences.Education Reform and Management,Teaching and Learning,Gender and Education,Health Monitoring&Evaluation,Primary Education

The relative effectiveness of single-sex and coeducational schools in Thailand

This paper provides evidence regarding the relative effects of single-sex and coeducational school in enhancing eighth grade mathematics achievement in Thailand. It uses pre and post eighth grade test scores to estimate value added equations for single-sex and coeducational schools. The preliminary conclusions are the following. First, girls in single-sex schools do significantly better than their coeducational school counterparts, while boys in coeducational schools do better. Thus there is not a unique single-sex/coeducational school effect on enhancing achievement, but this effect interacts strongly according to the sex of the student. Second, it is expected that selection biases are mitigated in"value added"formulations of achievement functions (as opposed to"level"formulations), and they are still significant in Thailand. Third, even after measured inputs and school practices are held constant, a single sex school advantage for females and a coeducational school advantage for males persist. Finally, peer"quality"effects in single-sex and coeducational schools appear to account for most of the difference between the two types of schools and their relative effectiveness for male and female students.Gender and Education,Teaching and Learning,Adolescent Health,Health Monitoring&Evaluation,Primary Education

A multi level model of school effectiveness in a developing country

What makes one school more effective than another - particularly which inputs and management practices most efficiently enhance student achievement - has become the center of lively debate in the literature. Which method to use to compare school effects particularly concerns analysts. The model developed by the authors is able to explain most variance between schools but significantly less within schools. Only one variable slope is observed: the relationship between educational aspirations and achievement. The authors apply multi level techniques to longitudinal data recently collected by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement in Thailand. One question they try to answer is : how do estimates obtained from the new multi level techniques compare with those obtained from ordinary regression models?Teaching and Learning,Gender and Education,Health Monitoring&Evaluation,Statistical&Mathematical Sciences,Educational Sciences

The effects of single-sex schooling on student achievement and attitudes in Nigeria

This study of Form Three (ninth grade) students in Nigeria indicates that single sex schools improve girls'achievement in mathematics and engender less stereotypic ideas about mathematics. But Nigerian males experience lower achievement and hold a more stereotypic view of mathematics under single sex schooling. Why are there different responses? In part, differences between the types of students attending single-sex and coeducational schools may be responsible. Girls'schools also differed from boys schools in several important ways. While these and other differences beween students and schools were found to contribute to differences in student achievement, a statistically significant residual effect for single-sex schools remained after adjustments were made, suggesting that other organizational or student background factors may account for the observed differences in effects.Adolescent Health,Primary Education,Gender and Education,Health Monitoring&Evaluation,Teaching and Learning

World Bank lending for education research, 1982-89

As a follow up to the earlier review of research in education projects, this study inventories research in education projects, 1982 to 1989, and traces the completion status of studies that were incomplete before 1982. Data were collected on research volume, cost and the conditions under which research components yield accessible and useful information. This paper describes the strategy employed to identify the research components and studies. It presents findings with respect to: (i) the volume of studies and compares these results with the earlier study; (ii) the type of studies reported; and (iii) the budgeted cost of the studies. It also examines preconditions of study completion, using data from Staff Appraisal Reports (SARs) and interviews with selected Project Officers. The final section discusses the findings and draws conclusions.Teaching and Learning,Health Monitoring&Evaluation,ICT Policy and Strategies,Agricultural Knowledge&Information Systems,Poverty Monitoring&Analysis

The relative efficiency of public schools in developing countries

With the demand for schooling expected to increase and the tightening of fiscal constraints, changes will be necessary in order to meet ambitious educational targets. Instead of charging fees for public schools, a more cost-effective option is to rely on private schools to handle the growing demand for education. Private school students generally out perform public school students on standardized math and language tests. This finding takes into account that private school students usually come from slightly more advantaged backgrounds than their public school counterparts. In addition, school expenditure data show that unit costs for private schools are dramatically lower than those of public schools. The comparative advantage of private schools has important policy implications for public schools. Some efficiency gains can come from replicating the input mix of private schools. Also effective would be to mimic the organizational incentive structures of private schools.Teaching and Learning,Health Monitoring&Evaluation,Gender and Education,Primary Education,Education Reform and Management