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In the past decade, hundreds of impact evaluation studies have measured the learning outcomes of education interventions in developing countries. The impact magnitudes are often reported in terms of "standard deviations," making them difficult to communicate to policy makers beyond education specialists. This paper proposes two approaches to demonstrate the effectiveness of learning interventions, one in "equivalent years of schooling" and another in the net present value of potential increased lifetime earnings. The results show that in a sample of low- and middle-income countries, one standard deviation gain in literacy skill is associated with between 4.7 and 6.8 additional years of schooling, depending on the estimation method. In other words, over the course of a business-as-usual school year, students learn between 0.15 and 0.21 standard deviation of literacy ability. Using that metric to translate the impact of interventions, a median structured pedagogy intervention increases learning by the equivalent of between 0.6 and 0.9 year of business-as-usual schooling. The results further show that even modest gains in standard deviations of learning--if sustained over time--may have sizeable impacts on individual earnings and poverty reduction, and that conversion into a non-education metric should help policy makers and non-specialists better understand the potential benefits of increased learning. [This paper is a product of the Office of the Chief Economist, Africa Region and the World Development Report 2018 Team.]

Set against the backdrop of increasing economic interdependence in East Asia, the idea of regional integration is now being discussed as a long-term political process in the region. As in the field of the international economy, de facto integration and interdependence exist with respect to the internationalization of the higher education system in East Asia. Based on the results of a comprehensive Japan International Cooperation Agency Research Institute (JICA-RI) survey of 300 leading higher education institutions active in cross-border higher education, located in ten Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) member Southeast Asian countries and three Northeast Asian countries (China, Japan, and Korea), this paper examines universities perceptions of the degree of cross-border activities, the significance of their expected outcomes, and their regional preferences for partners. The objective is to envision a direction for a future regional higher education framework in East Asia and to consider the policy implications of the internationalization of higher education in East Asia in the context of regionalization. The findings related to the degree of cross-border activities suggest a current perception that there is more prominent in conventional than in innovative activities, but that innovation will rise considerably in the future. With respect to the significance of expected outcomes,academic and political expected outcome are perceived to be more significant than economic expected outcome, which are nevertheless expected to be more significant in the future. Finally, in terms of their preferred regions of partners, universities in East Asia overall place a high priority on building partnerships within their own region. Yet, among Northeast Asian universities, North America is perceived as the most active partner. (Contains 3 figures, 21 tables, and 13 footnotes.) [This paper was prepared as part of a Japan International Cooperation Agency Research Institute (JICA-RI) research project titled, "Cross-border Higher Education for Regional Integration and the Labor Market in East Asia."]

COVID-19 school closures in East Asia and the Pacific threaten to widen existing learning inequities and increase the number of children out of school. During the pandemic, governments rapidly deployed remote learning strategies, ranging from paper-based take-home materials to digital platforms. However, lack of electricity -- critical to connectivity -- remains a key obstacle for the region, particularly in rural areas. Therefore, while digital learning platforms were offered by most Southeast Asian countries, take-up was low. A combination of modalities -- including mobile phone-based learning strategies -- and collaboration with a range of non-governmental education stakeholders have the potential to enhance the reach of remote learning and to make it more engaging for students. Lessons from the regional implementation of these strategies emphasize the importance of research to understand the needs of students, educators and parents and the impact of remote learning, especially in low-resource contexts.

Basic education is commonly regarded as a state responsibility. However, in reality, non-state providers (NSPs) have always been involved in basic education service delivery, and there is often a blurring of boundaries between state and non-state roles with respect to financing, ownership, management, and regulation. In recent years, the focus on the role of non-state providers (NSPs) has intensified within the context of the move towards achieving Education for All (EFA). The paper considers this shift, with particular attention towards service delivery to "underserved groups", defined as those for whom access to affordable government services of appropriate quality is most problematic. In some cases, this refers to particular sub-groups of a population within a country. In other cases (notably fragile states), it can refer to large sections of the country's population. The paper indicates the wide range of NSPs that exist to serve different underserved groups. It notes that NSPs are commonly viewed as having a comparative advantage over state provision--in terms of quality, cost-effectiveness, choice, accountability to citizens etc. However, in reality there is very limited robust analysis to support some of these claims. The paper then considers the ways in which non-state providers engage with the state in education service delivery, including with respect to contracting, policy dialogue, and regulation--and the role that donors play in this relationship. The paper concludes that relations between NSPs and the state are not straightforward given the range of different providers involved in education service delivery, with those serving the better-off tending to dominate engagement with government. This can be at the expense of smaller-scale, informal providers aiming to support those otherwise under-served by government provision. As such, the paper argues that there is a need for greater, and more constructive, engagement between NSPs and the state to ensure collaboration benefits the underserved, and so assists in moving towards the achievement of Education for All. Selected education indicators are appended. (Contains 15 footnotes, 1 figure, 6 tables, and 6 boxes.) [Abstract modified to meet ERIC guidelines. This paper was commissioned by the UK Department for International Development (DFID) Policy Division as part of a study on non-state providers in the water, sanitation, education and health sectors.]

The purpose of this study is to measure the comprehensibility of the Expanding Circle nations' citizens, namely Burmese, Cambodians, Indonesians, Laotians, Thais and Vietnamese towards the Outer Circle Englishes, namely Bruneian English, Malaysian English. Philippine English and Singaporean English. Ten universities in the Expanding Circle that participated in the study, namely Assumption University, Chiang Mai University, Khon Khaen University, King Mongkut University of Technology North Bangkok, Mahapanya Vidayalai University, Mahidol University, Prince of Songkla University Hat Yai Campus, Rajamangala University Srivijaya Songkhla Campus, and Rajamangala University Srivijaya Trang Campus in Thailand, and University of Riau in Indonesia. Participants in the data collection process consist of two hundred and one subjects in undergraduate and graduate level. Eight comprehension tests and a questionnaire were used as main tools in the data collection process. Qualitative and quantitative analyses were used to analyze the results of the comprehension tests and to reveal the questionnaire's results. The following are the results of the study. (1) The Englishes spoken in the Outer Circle were moderately comprehensible to the citizens of the Expanding Circle nations. Based on the standardized comprehensibility scales and levels set in this study, the comprehensibility scores of Bruneian English, Malaysian English, Philippine English and Singaporean English are M = 4.90, M = 5.57, M = 5.01, and M = 4.76 respectively. All fell under the moderate comprehensibility level set at 3.34-6.67. (2) The Expanding Circle citizens exhibited varying degrees of comprehensibility towards the Outer Circle Englishes. The least comprehensible variety among the Burmese is Malaysian English; among Laotians and Thais is Bruneian English; and among Cambodians, Indonesians and Vietnamese is Singaporean English. The most comprehensible varieties are Malaysian English among Cambodians, Thais and Vietnamese; Philippine English among Indonesians, and Singaporean English among Burmese and Laotians. (3) There are types of exposures related to the Expanding Circle's citizens' comprehension of Outer Circle Englishes. They are exposures to English through education, work experiences, outside the classroom, social media, and travelling and staying abroad. Based on Pearson correlation coefficients, this study established the positive significant correlations between graduate studies and comprehension scores at p less than 0.01 level. Positive significant correlations were also found between comprehension scores and several factors, namely exposure through work experiences at p less than 0.01 level, the use of social network and watching TV at p less than 0.05 level, reading newspapers and watching movies at p less than 0.01 level, and studying in Thailand at p less than 0.01 level. Based on ANOVA results, there was a significant effect of pre-school education on comprehension scores at F (3, 198) = 4.94, p = 0.002; primary education on comprehension scores at F (2, 199) = 6.93, p = 0.001; and, graduate studies on comprehension scores at F (3, 198) = 7.46, p = 0.000. However, there is no significant effect of secondary education and undergraduate studies on the subjects' comprehension scores. (Contains 6 tables. and 4 figures)

This final report contains the proceedings and other materials from a workshop to provide training experience in literacy follow-up materials development to participants from UNESCO member states in the Asia and Pacific region. Focus is on practical agricultural training for adults. The proceedings discuss the objectives of the workshop and summarize the following: opening addresses, orientation to the workshop, paper presentations and discussions, group work, planning of national follow-up activities, and closing. Recommendations of the workshop are listed. Chapter I consists of six presentations: "Horticulture and Animal Raising in Vietnam: Problems and Needs" (Tuyen); "Training in Vocational Agriculture: Experiences of the Department of Non-Formal Education, Thailand" (Choomnoom); "Development and Production of Literacy Follow-up Materials in the Field of Agricultural Vocational Training" (Hoang); "How To Develop Effective and Attractive Literacy Follow-up Materials" (Sharma); "UNESCO Report: Education for Human Development" (Sakya); and "ACCU Report: ACCU's Regional Cooperative Literacy Programs in Asia and the Pacific--Literacy Materials Development and Personnel Training." Chapter II reports on the field survey, development, and field testing of materials by three groups during the workshop. The three group reports are provided. Chapter III contains the reports of 18 countries (Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Iran, Laos, Malaysia, Maldives, Mongolia, Nepal, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam) and plans of follow-up activities for nine (Afghanistan, China, Indonesia, Maldives, Mongolia, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam). An appendix provides general information, schedule of the workshop, list of participants, and opening speeches by Dao, Sakya, and Miyamoto. (YLB)