Investigating the Impact on Learning Outcomes Through the Use of EdTech During Covid-19: Evidence from an RCT in the Punjab province of Pakistan

Resource type
Report
Authors/contributors
Title
Investigating the Impact on Learning Outcomes Through the Use of EdTech During Covid-19: Evidence from an RCT in the Punjab province of Pakistan
Abstract
The objective of the current study is to test the impact of low-tech solutions on maths, Urdu, and English scores for students in the underdeveloped district of Bahawalnagar, which is situated in the southern part of Punjab in Pakistan. The target population for this study is Grade 8 students attending private schools. We have tested the impact of three interventions, namely: Teaching at the right level (TaRL), Fortnightly assessments (FAS) Digital teacher training sessions (DTS) Our findings show a significant and positive ‘Intention to Treat’ (ITT) impact on Urdu and English scores of the students in the TaRL treatment group. The students increased their English and Urdu scores by 0.56 SD. However, we found no significant impact of the intervention on maths scores in the TaRL treatment group. Fortnightly assessments and digital teacher training sessions were also found to contribute to higher English scores of the students. However, we found no ITT impact on the maths and Urdu scores for these treatment groups. The Local Average Treatment Effect (LATE) analysis revealed positive and significant improvement in Urdu and English scores of the students in the TaRL treatment group. Key stakeholders whom we interviewed suggested that redesigning the curriculum and incorporating TaRL within this approach could facilitate enhancement in learning outcomes in students in deprived areas. Our findings are important to help inform policymakers on the importance of designing and implementing cost-effective, low-tech solutions to help reduce learning gaps. An output of the EdTech Hub, https://edtechhub.org
Report Number
41
Report Type
Working Paper
Institution
EdTech Hub
Date
2021-01-08
Language
en
Call Number
0067
Rights
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
Citation
Adil, F., Nazir, R., & Akhtar, M. (2021). Investigating the Impact on Learning Outcomes Through the Use of EdTech During Covid-19: Evidence from an RCT in the Punjab province of Pakistan (Working Paper No. 41). EdTech Hub. https://doi.org/10.53832/edtechhub.0067