Learning Outcomes and Teacher Effectiveness for Children Facing Multiple Disadvantages in India and Pakistan, 2015-2018

The quantitative data from the TEACh project allows us to identify the characteristics of children not learning, and factors associated with disparities in educational outcomes in India and Pakistan. Information was collected from households and schools, at the beginning of the school year (in April). Assessments were made in school again at the end of the school year to identify what learning gains have been made, and the role of teacher and other factors (such as related parental support) in these gains for children with different characteristics. The first stage of the quantitative data collection required us to identify the children whose learning we want to assess. Cross-sectional data was collected from households to enumerate key household and individual characteristics. This included information such as household size and socio-economic status, as well as individual information on all of the children within the household (irrespective of their schooling participation). The household survey provides the first step towards quantifying whether children with different characteristics are in school. For those in school, it identifies the type of school they are attending (whether a mainstream or special school, and whether run by government, private sector, or NGOs). We also assessed learning of children aged 8-12 (approximately equivalent to grades 3-5) in the selected households. The second stage was to identify primary schools within the vicinity that are accessed by a majority of the children in the sample community or village. Children in grades 3-5 were tested both at the beginning and end of the school year in order to identify learning gains, using the same instruments as used in the households. These classes contained some children from the sampled households which allows us to link them back to the household information that has been gathered. Some basic household level information was also collected from all sampled children in the school (such as parental education and household size) to ensure this information is available for all children. Questionnaires were also administered to teachers to identify their background and other characteristics commonly associated with teacher effectiveness. Existing instruments such asSchoolTELLS in India and Pakistan, were adapted to draft the teacher surveys. The teacher instruments were designed to capture the extent to which teachers are aware of, and respond to, children’s diverse learning needs, their perceptions and attitudes towards these children, and the extent to which they feel prepared to teach children of different abilities, including related to training and other forms of support that they receive. As with SchoolTELLS, teachers were also asked to mark student tests to identify teachers’ content knowledge of subjects they are teaching.