Pivoting to a systems approach to education research

What can education systems research learn from health systems This paper is a review of some of the existing health system frameworks and thinking through what elements of these would be applicable to education, including how... [ view full abstract ]

What can education systems research learn from health systems
This paper is a review of some of the existing health system frameworks and thinking through what elements of these would be applicable to education, including how "system performance" is conceptualized and measured. Also, this research looks at some of the common challenges and reviews what has been learned in health that might be relevant for education: e.g., the role of the private sector and regulation, which presumably is an issue in places where private education systems are expanding and potentially competing for inputs (teachers) with the public sector; challenges in retaining teachers in rural areas; and developing systems of accountability for performance.

Escaping a low-level equilibrium of educational quality Access to free basic education has become part of the social contract in many developing countries and enrolments have increased dramatically since the early 1990s,... [ view full abstract ]

Escaping a low-level equilibrium of educational quality
Access to free basic education has become part of the social contract in many developing countries and enrolments have increased dramatically since the early 1990s, following large-scale universal basic education programs. It is, however, much less clear that ‘massification’ has extended equally to the delivery of adequate learning outcomes. Educational quality is characterized in many contexts by a ‘low-level equilibrium’ whereby pupils’ learning levels are poor, their trajectories are shallow and improvements in outcomes over time are weak. Available evidence suggests that only a relatively small proportion of the difference between learning outcomes across countries may be accounted for by pupils’ home backgrounds and exposure to schooling. System-level factors provide important explanations for patterns of learning outcomes. This paper reviews and synthesizes evidence for the Young Lives countries, including analyses from the Young Lives study, to explore the features of education systems which may be linked to the persistence of a ‘low-level equilibrium’ and which, conversely, may enable sustained improvement, in comparative perspective.

A practical approach to in-country systems research The paper explores what it means to design something as complex as a system reform, in the context of what is desired for the RISE (research on improving systems in... [ view full abstract ]

A practical approach to in-country systems research
The paper explores what it means to design something as complex as a system reform, in the context of what is desired for the RISE (research on improving systems in education) Programme. The paper deals with the issue of how to design a programme that has a chance of succeeding within a reasonable time frame, and is evaluable. The paper makes four key suggestions. First, that the natural field of research is with systems that are complex enough to be called a true system, but simple enough to be “graspable” and “doable” relatively quickly. This suggests a system of entities and relationships that is capable of setting numeric quality goals, is capable of monitoring and helping local levels monitor to those goals, and is capable of supporting and holding accountable units that do not. This sounds simple, but it still evades many education systems. Second, the paper notes that there will be political-economic issues in working with countries to get these things done, suggests what they are, and ways to cope with them. Thirdly, the paper suggests that one adopt a very incrementalist approach to design, given the complexity. But to make such an approach evaluable, a very dense and careful documentation of every single point in the decision-tree of programme design and modifications. Lastly, the paper suggests how one can “borrow” from other disciplines to evaluate an experience that, by definition, has a sample size of 1 and no control group.

The Education for All and Millennium Development Goals have proven to be a powerful vehicle for focusing education policies and strategies over the past 15 years. As a consequence of these efforts, the number of out of school... [ view full abstract ]

The Education for All and Millennium Development Goals have proven to be a powerful vehicle for focusing education policies and strategies over the past 15 years. As a consequence of these efforts, the number of out of school children has significantly decreased, and there are significantly more schools, trained teachers, and teaching and learning materials than ever before. However, despite these advances, many students do not possess the basic numeracy and literacy skills needed for more advanced learning. This severe learning crisis requires massive efforts to improve learning outcomes, but the existing evidence base does not adequately guide developing countries on how to achieve these goals. There is limited evidence about how and why education systems perform the way they do, what the critical constraints are, what policies or interventions have potential to unblock these constraints, and what the impacts of large scale systemic reforms are on learning. This symposium will talk about how systems research is vital to building an evidence base to address the learning crisis, and what lessons from other fields can be valuable in building the growing field of education systems research.