Cost effectiveness analysis for sustainable education policy

Group Submission Type: Formal Panel Session

Proposal

Several tools exist to help policymakers and funders understand the cost effectiveness of their interventions, but few are widely, consistently, and correctly applied to improve the overall impact of investments. In this session, two leading international research and policy NGOs will partner with researchers and large-scale implementers to discuss Cost-Effectiveness Analysis (CEA). Integrating CEA into impact evaluations can help governments, donors, program implementers, and researchers to choose between different programs that aim to achieve the same outcome, and help to draw out general lessons about what kinds of programs are most promising. As more and more governments and funders of education programs are leveraging the results of CEAs to improve the sustainability of their investments, it is increasingly important for these stakeholders to understand the nuances of CEAs, from accurately capturing data at the project level to using CEAs responsibly to make programming decisions. Panelists will discuss CEAs in education from the perspective of academia; implementation; funding; and analysis.

The first presentation will discuss a methodology for conducting comparative CEAs, and how to apply the methodology consistently in order to ensure that results are comparable across diverse contexts. It will also highlight results from a CEA comparing fifteen different programs in eight countries, presenting what we can learn from integrating program costs and rigorous research on the most sustainable ways to keep children in school and increase their learning. The second presentation will present strategies for integrating CEAs into research projects, discussing challenges typically faced in collecting cost data, sensitivity to various assumptions and cost components, and approaches for sharing CEAs with partners to make the information accessible and actionable. The third presentation will focus on an example of a CEA conducted by researchers and implementers, the Quality Preschool for Ghana (QP4G) program. It will present their approach to collecting and analyzing the cost data for the program, discuss results from the CEA compared to those conducted for other early childhood education programs, and discuss how partners are leveraging the results of the CEA into programming decisions. The final presentation will discuss how to leverage CEAs in education policymaking, funding decision-making and implementation, and how they incorporate CEAs into project design to ensure the sustainability of their investments.

Sub Unit

• SIG: Economics and Finance of Education

Chair

• Annie Duflo, Innovations for Poverty Action

Individual Presentations

• Comparative cost-effectiveness analysis: What works to increase student attendance around the world? - Robert Rogers, Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL)

• How an international research and policy nonprofit translates CEA methodology to fieldwork around the world - Bethany Park, Innovations for Poverty Action

• Measuring the cost-effectiveness of the Quality Preschool for Ghana (QP4G) program - Edward Tsinigo, Innovations for Poverty Action; Sharon Wolf, University of Pennsylvania

• Cost-effectiveness analyses: A funders’/implementers’ perspective - Elena Walls, US Agency for International Development (USAID)

• The Relationship among Type Of Education, Creative Thinking and Social Competence of children: A Cost-Effectiveness Analysis for Homeschooling in Israel. - Michal Unger madar, Bar Ilan University, Israel

Discussant

• Cynthia Bosumtwi-Sam, Ghana Education Service