Dear All
Greetings from Jakarta.
I just wanted to share with you some new information that I have come across, from a UNESCO report, 'Financing the Quality of Education in Sub-Saharan Africa', which was published recently by the UNESCO Institute for Statistics in Montreal.
The report quotes (on p 86) from a World Bank study carried out in Togo in 2003 which looked at 1) the impact on exam scores, 2) the actual cost and 3) the cost effectiveness in terms of improving exam scores of six different interventions in primary schools. The original results were calculated using West African Francs (CFA) but I have converted these into US dollars, which is probably a more easily recognisable currency. 1000 CFA = $1.72.
The results are as follows :
A) Increasing textbooks : giving textbooks to an additional 10% of pupils. 1) Impact on test scores : + 0.44%. 2) Cost per pupil : $0.34. 3) Impact on score per $1.72 spent : 2.2%
B) Reducing class size : Reducing number of pupils per class by 10. 1) Impact on test scores : 0.0%. 2) Cost per pupil : $14.58. 3) Impact on score per $1.72 spent : 0.0%
C) Increasing teacher qualifications from primary school certificate to secondary school certificate. 1) Impact on test scores : 9.6%. 2) Cost per pupil : $16.00. 3) Impact on score per $1.72 spent : 1.3%
D) Increasing teacher qualifications from secondary school certificate to first degree. 1) Impact on test scores : 0.3%. 2) Cost per pupil : $20.65. 3) Impact on score per $1.72 spent : 0.03%
E) Increasing by 10% the proportion of teachers with initial professional training. 1) Impact on test scores : 0.41%. 2) Cost per pupil : $1.61. 3) Impact on score per $1.72 spent : 0.44%
F) Improving physical condition of the classroom. 1) Impact on test score : 1.2%. 2) Cost per pupil : $8.61. 3) Impact on score per $1.72 spent : 0.24%.
Conclusions :
1) Most expensive innovation is increasing teachers' qualifications to first degree.
2) Cheapest innovation is increasing number of text books.
3) Biggest impact on scores comes from increasing teachers' qualifications to secondary school certificate.
4) Least impact on scores (zero) comes from decreasing class size.
5) Most cost effective innovation per dollar is increasing number of text books.
6) Least cost effective innovation per dollar (zero) is decreasing class size.
Any comments?
All the best
Hywel
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Hywel Coleman
Honorary Senior Research Fellow
School of Education
University of Leeds
Leeds LS2 9JT, UK
[email protected]
www.hywelcoleman.com
www.langdevconferences.org