@techreport{wolf_learning_2021, title = {Learning in the time of a pandemic and implications for returning to school: effects of {COVID}-19 in {Ghana}}, url = {https://repository.upenn.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1027&context=cpre_workingpapers}, abstract = {The Covid-19 pandemic led to school closures all over the world, leaving children across diverse contexts without formal education for nearly a year. Remote-learning programs were designed and rapidly implemented to promote learning continuity throughout the crisis. There were inequalities in who was able to access remote-learning during school closures, though little systematic evidence documenting these gaps exists, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa. In this study, we surveyed 1,844 children in the Greater Accra Region of Ghana, as well as their caregivers and teachers, regarding their engagement in remote learning, literacy and math test scores, and household economic hardships. We document inequalities in access to and engagement in remote-learning activities during the ten months in 2020 in which schools were closed in Ghana. Specifically, children in private schools and children in highersocioeconomic status households engaged in remote-learning at higher rates and received more support from their schools and caregivers. Further, controlling for demographic characteristics and pre-pandemic learning outcomes, we document gaps in children’s literacy and math test scores, with food insecure and low-SES children, as well as children enrolled in public schools before the pandemic, performing significantly worse than their peers (0.2-0.3 SD gap). Finally, children in households that experienced more economic hardships during the pandemic engaged in fewer remote learning activities and had lower literacy and numeracy assessment scores. The findings speak to the potential consequences of increased inequalities due to the pandemic as schools re-open in Ghana and around the world and provide insight into how schools may address these inequalities as children return to the classroom.}, language = {en}, institution = {Consortium for Policy Research in Education (CPRE)}, author = {Wolf, Sharon and Aurino, Elisabetta and Suntheimer, Noelle and Avornyo, Esinam and Tsinigo, Edward and Jordan, Jasmine and Samanhyia, Soloman and Aber, J Lawrence and Behrman, Jere R}, month = aug, year = {2021}, note = {KerkoCite.ItemAlsoKnownAs: 2339240:IHPERKZR 2405685:Z7A2W9D6}, keywords = {⛔ No DOI found}, } @article{wolf_world_2021, title = {{WORLD} {BANK} {STRATEGIC} {IMPACT} {EVALUATION} {FUND} ({SIEF})}, language = {en}, author = {Wolf, Sharon and Aurino, Elisabetta and Brown, Autumn and Tsinigo, Edward}, year = {2021}, note = {KerkoCite.ItemAlsoKnownAs: 2339240:SA6TMDDV 2405685:869WDDDL}, keywords = {⛔ No DOI found}, pages = {21}, } @article{wolf_experimental_2019, title = {Experimental {Impacts} of the “{Quality} {Preschool} for {Ghana}” {Interventions} on {Teacher} {Professional} {Well}-being, {Classroom} {Quality}, and {Children}’s {School} {Readiness}}, volume = {12}, issn = {1934-5747, 1934-5739}, url = {https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/19345747.2018.1517199}, doi = {10.1080/19345747.2018.1517199}, abstract = {We assessed the impacts of a teacher professional development program for public and private kindergartens in the Greater Accra Region of Ghana. We examined impacts on teacher professional well-being, classroom quality, and children’s readiness during one school year. This cluster-randomized trial included 240 schools (teachers N ¼ 444; children N ¼ 3,345, Mage ¼ 5.2) randomly assigned to one of three conditions: teacher training (TT), teacher training plus parental-awareness meetings (TTPA), and controls. The programs incorporated workshops and in-classroom coaching for teachers and video-based discussion groups for parents. Moderate impacts were found on some dimensions of professional well-being (reduced burnout in the TT and TTPA conditions, reduced turnover in the TT condition), classroom quality (increased emotional support/behavior management in the TT and TTPA conditions, support for student expression in the TT condition), and small impacts on multiple domains of children’s school readiness (in the TT condition). The parental-awareness meetings had counteracting effects on child school readiness outcomes. Implications for policy and practice are discussed for Ghana and for early childhood education in low- and middle-income countries.}, language = {en}, number = {1}, urldate = {2020-05-16}, journal = {Journal of Research on Educational Effectiveness}, author = {Wolf, Sharon and Aber, J. Lawrence and Behrman, Jere R. and Tsinigo, Edward}, month = jan, year = {2019}, note = {shortDOI: 10/ggjrcj KerkoCite.ItemAlsoKnownAs: 10.1080/19345747.2018.1517199 10/ggjrcj 2339240:S3WAE3PS 2405685:H52RQ6MY 2405685:JXYTEU3W}, keywords = {Ghana, \_\_\_working\_potential\_duplicate, classroom quality, early childhood education, kindergarten, school readiness, teacher training and coaching}, pages = {10--37}, } @techreport{aurino_nudges_2022, type = {Technical {Report}}, title = {Nudges to {Improve} {Learning} and {Gender} {Parity}: {Preliminary} findings on supporting parent-child educational engagement during {Covid}-19 using mobile phones}, copyright = {Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International}, url = {https://docs.edtechhub.org/lib/PWU63GQS}, abstract = {Key words: parental education engagement; caregiver engagement; nudges; text messages; schooling; learning; Ghana; gender In this study we evaluate a digital intervention to improve low-literate caregivers’ engagement with their children’s education and development in rural Ghana during the Covid-19 pandemic. The programme was a text-message-based behavioural change intervention for parents / caregivers that aimed to improve caregiver engagement in children’s educational activities, caregiver beliefs about returns to education, as well as children’s learning, enrollment, attendance, and gender parity in education. This household-randomised trial, conducted in the North East, Northern, Savannah, Upper East, and Upper West regions of Ghana, tested four variations of the intervention, varying both duration and a gender-parity focus. Households were randomised to one of five conditions: (i) regular behavioural nudges, 12 weeks; (ii) gender-boost behavioural nudges, 12 weeks; (iii) regular behavioural nudges, 24 weeks; (ii) gender-boost behavioural-nudges, 24 weeks; or (v) control. The interventions were implemented from January to April 2021 (for the 12-week groups) and January to June 2021 (for the 24-week groups). We collected data at midline (April–June 2021) and endline (August–September 2021). Our preliminary results suggest that a short, light-touch, SMS-based intervention can change caregiver behaviours and child outcomes in a rural, low-literate sample. However, the results were complex and intervention effectiveness depended on the caregiver having minimum levels of schooling. For caregivers with no education (65\% of the sample), the intervention only increased caregiver expectations on reaching the desired level of education, especially among girls, but reduced educational engagement and some measures of children’s school enrollment and attendance. Educational engagement among Ghanaian caregivers is low relative to peer countries (Bornstein \& Putnick, 2012; McCoy et al., 2018). The findings suggest that caregivers may need a base level of capital and resource (e.g., exposure to formal education) to enact the messages and increase their educational engagement with their children. Without this base level of capital, messages may increase caregivers’ aspirations for their children without providing enough support to change educational investments in positive ways. An output of the EdTech Hub, https://edtechhub.org}, language = {en}, institution = {EdTech Hub}, author = {Aurino, Elisabetta and Tsinigo, Edward and Wolf, Sharon}, month = feb, year = {2022}, doi = {10.53832/edtechhub.0083}, note = {KerkoCite.ItemAlsoKnownAs: 10.5281/zenodo.6337916 10.5281/zenodo.6337918 10.5281/zenodo.6338002 10.5281/zenodo.6338007 10.53832/edtechhub.0083 2339240:AZXVF44M 2339240:GZRZGRN7 2339240:MJPJVVCU 2405685:6QCZIQR2 2405685:D9VW8AI3 2405685:PWU63GQS 2405685:QAXG3NCJ 2405685:RKRPWPX5 2405685:VT5Z6XB6 2405685:YBG8MTTQ 2405685:ZDHGEBKD}, keywords = {\_r:AddedByZotZen}, }