The Key Role of Data in Mobilizing Better Learning Outcomes

• In Event: Presidential Invited Session: Why is learning poverty high and persistent in low and middle-income countries?

Proposal

Can we improve learning outcomes without knowing where they currently stand? Mary Goretti Nakabugo will speak to the role of household-based assessments (like Uwezo in East Africa, ASER in South Asia) in diagnosing the extent of the learning crisis, as well as the important role having good data on learning plays in addressing the crisis and providing solutions. Household-based assessments have distinct advantages in their data collection (such as coverage of children and youth who are not in school) and disadvantages (such as a focus collecting data on exclusively basic skills), and these will be discussed in this panel. Dr. Nakabugo will map out the future of these assessments in efforts to provide learning for every child, even the most vulnerable. She will also share her experiences from Uganda, particularly the data that showed that while some improvement was made in the pace of children’s progress, in the upper primary grades, towards foundational reading and numeracy competence, there was noticeable delay in younger children’s progress as a result of 2 years of school closures.

Author

• Mary Goretti Nakabugo, Uwezo Uganda