This summary is the second part of the same book from last week. The book was published at file:///D:/9781464810961.pdf
Life outcomes are influenced by a child's development during the early years. Between the time of gestation and a child's sixth birthday, the brain matures faster than any other time of life. The environment children grow up in is a key determinant of their developmental trajectories toward outcomes later in life. Severe deprivation, along with stress, can impair healthy brain development (both structural and functional). Why does the learning crisis persist? One big reason is that, for many, the learning crisis is invisible. To tackle the crisis, it is necessary, though not enough, to measure learning. This is evident in how politicians often talk about education only in terms of inputs, numbers of schools, numbers of teachers, teachers salaries, schools grants, but rarely in terms of actual learning. Lack of data on learning means that governments can ignore or obscure the poor quality of education, especially for disadvantaged groups. Identifying learning gaps in the classroom is the first step toward resolving them. In environments of low learning, there is often a gap between the level of students and the level at which classes are being taught. Learning metrics help highlight where support is most needed. For learning metrics to guide action effectively, they need to be used as a range of tools to serve different needs, from classroom practice to system management. The learning crisis will be truly salient politically only when vulnerable populations, who likely to suffer from learning gaps, are adequately covered by national assessment systems. Schools can not produce learning without prepared, present, motivated learners. Around the world. many children receive too little investment in nutrition and stimulation during their early years, and many lack access to early learning opportunities that can prepare them for first grade. Many young people leave formal education with weak skills, and thus they are unprepared for further education and training. This problem is especially pronounced in several developing countries. Improving skills early can alter workers' labor market trajectories. remedial education interventions can work, if they reach the right people using the right approach. Effective remedial interventions meet people where they are, helping them transition into careers. Second-chance programs give youth who have dropped out of school a path to reengage in nontraditional learning environments, obtain secondary education and enter job training. In Australia and the U.S. early schools leavers are encouraged to enroll in programs that provide an equivalent to an upper secondary diploma. Across secondary-chance interventions, socioemotional skills play an important role in student success, with skills such as the ability to work toward long-term goals. The demand for second-chance programs is high and the evidence is promising, but keeping youth engaged in further education and training requires an integrated policy approach. After prepared and motivated learners, equipped and motivated teachers are the most fundamental ingredient of learning. Teachers are also the largest budget item, with their salaries accounting for over three-quarters of the education budget at the primary level in low- and middle-income countries. Yet many education systems put in classroom teachers who have little mastery of the subjects they are to teach. Meanwhile, education systems often lack effective mechanisms to mentor and motivate teachers. A key principle in leaving no learner behind is to help teachers teach to the level of their students. This technique has been successful in different formats across a range of scenarios, whether by using community teachers to provide remedial lessons or reorganizing classes by ability. Over time, education systems perform best when their teachers are respected, prepared, selected based on merit, and supported in their work. Countries should work toward these objectives. But in the short run, countries can take actions to strengthen the performance of teachers. They can provide a professional structure so that teachers feel motivated to apply what they know. Teachers are key to education. Making them more effective is an excellent investment. Learners and teachers have a more productive learning relationship when supported by learning materials and other inputs. Young people around the world face challenges in their transition from school to work. Many of them, especially youth from disadvantaged backgrounds, leave formal education prematurely, lacking the foundational skills needed to succeed on the job. As a result, many become unemployed or stuck in low-wage, unstable, informal sector jobs that offer them few opportunities to strengthen their skills. But the same can happen to secondary schools graduates, if they can not fulfill labor market needs. Workplace training deepens workers' skills and raises firms' productivity. Despite its potential benefits, young workers rarely receive workplace training. Successful short-term job training programs offer more than skills training. Programs that focus on developing multiple skills and that complement training with wraparound services such as career guidance, mentoring, and job search assistance have better odds of success. For example, comprehensive training schemes that emphasize technical skills, life skills, and interniships show positive effects in Kenya, Brazil, and Nepal. Career information is an important part of training programs, helping students identify opportunities, stay on course, and transition into a career. Career information interventions are usually grouped into career education program, which might include providing direction on coursework selection, and which is usually provided on an individual basis. Successful job training programs are typically based on strong ties with employers, with curriculums taught by teachers who have both industry experience and up-to-date pedagogical expertise. These programs also tend to reinforce skills, integrate calssroom instruction with workplace learning, and offer certifications that can be further built on. These features keep career paths open for graduates. though job training programs can yield positive outcomes, a key lessons is that trainees still need strong skills, cognitive and socioemotional, before moving into specialized streams. From 2000 to 2012, Brazil's learning outcomes on the PISA showed steady improvement, with gains in some subjects concentrated among poorer-performing students. Underlying this progress were reforms strengthened accountability for system performance, reduced funding inequalities across Brazil's diverse regions, and provided cash tranfers to the neediest families. Better information made it much easier to hold education agencies accountable for learning. The central government combined assessment results with student promotion rates to create an index of basic education quality IDEB for every school. Target based on this index are used by system administrators at every level, as well as parents, to hold schools and local administrators accountable for learning. Better information also raised incentives for politicians to improve performance. Public awareness of the index is high, with the biannual release of IDEB scores generating extensive media coverage and debate. This not only places education quality high on the political agenda, but also makes it an important factor when citizens choose their local representatives.
No comments:
Post a Comment