Higher Education | (News and Research 377)

Ernesto Schiefelbein: An Appreciation and Remembrance by Eduardo Velez  and Laurence Wolff | Ernesteo Schiefelbein died in Santiago Chile in January 2024 at the age of 89. “When Ernesto Schiefelbein began working in the field, there was little or no analytical or empirical work on education at any level in Latin America. Education ministers spent most of their time dealing with salary demands of teachers’ unions. Ernesto played a critical role in revolutionizing the attitudes of political leaders and decision makers toward the education system, using empirical evidence to argue that education quality and output were essential components of economic and social development. He believed that empirical research should be used to increase learning, reduce wastage and dropout, and build a more productive labor force. Educational decision makers should learn what worked and did not work before investing money, constantly keep their eyes on results, and benefiting from what was learned from classroom observations…[more]

Reimagining Higher Education in Cambodia : Modernizing Governance for Improved Access and Relevance | Bhatta, Salmi, Katwal, Pynonnen, Heng | The main objective of this study is to assess the performance of Cambodia’s tertiary education system in terms of equitable access, labor market relevance, and research output, and to provide policy recommendations to the government and all stakeholders in the tertiary education sector. This will inform priority reforms and investments to strengthen the sector overall and, specifically, improve coverage, relevance, research, and governance. Building on the latest analytical work carried out in 2017 ahead of the preparation of an ongoing higher education operation supported by the World Bank, the study is an important step toward overcoming knowledge gaps about the main drivers of the results of the Cambodian tertiary education system and institutions. It will shed light on the factors explaining disparities in access, the mismatch between higher education programs and labor market needs, the capacity of higher education to train the specialists and technicians needed for the green economy, and shortcomings in the governance set up and processes that impede both public and private HEIs from operating in a flexible and efficient manner. The findings of the report will significantly add to the evidence base for identifying policy options to improve equity, relevance, and governance at both the national and institutional levels.

Perceived returns to college education by ethnicity: Evidence from China | Mu, Liu | Ethnic minorities in China often experience poorer educational outcomes compared to the ethnic majority Han. However, certain minority groups, such as Mongolians, exhibit school attainment rivaling or surpassing that of the Han majority. This study investigates perceived returns to education as a potential factor contributing to ethnic differences in schooling outcomes. Drawing upon data from a 2019 household survey conducted in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, the paper leverages specially designed survey instruments based on vignette questions to capture respondents’ ethnicity-specific perceived returns to college education. It finds that Mongolian respondents perceive significantly higher returns to education when the vignette person has a Mongolian name. This result remains robust after accounting for sample attrition issues. The finding establishes a strong correlation between perceived returns to education and educational outcomes in the context China and highlights the heterogeneity within ethnic minority groups.

Late Bloomers: The Aggregate Implications of Getting Education Later in Life | Barany, Buchinsky, Corble | It is generally agreed upon that most individuals who acquire a college degree do so in their early 20s. Despite this consensus, we show that in the US from the 1930 birth cohort onwards a large fraction – around 20% – of college graduates obtained their degree after age 30. We explore the implications of this phenomenon. First, we show that these so called late bloomers have significantly contributed to the narrowing of gender and racial gaps in the college share, despite the general widening of the racial gap. Second, late bloomers are responsible for more than half of the increase in the aggregate college share from 1960 onwards. Finally, we show that the returns to having a college degree vary depending on the age at graduation. Ignoring the existence of late bloomers therefore leads to a significant underestimation of the returns to college education for those finishing college in their early 20s.

Investing in skills development to confront Zambia’s overlooked crisis – Youth economic disengagement  | Woldetsadik, Angel-Urdinola, Rodon, Mupuwaliywa, Banda | Darius Chiiko is a young Zambian entrepreneur in his early 30s. He lives in Lusaka and occasionally offers guided tours around the city. Darius’s tourism guide business boomed thanks to one of his clients, a Dutch YouTuber, who posted a video of his time with Darius. Nonetheless, Darius’s business success could rapidly fade, as he lacks the digital skills necessary to continue marketing his services on social media. He would like to take some training in digital skills and become a certified tour guide but finds it difficult to access flexible learning programs to build his skills and financing to build his business. Millions of youths in Zambia are in Darius’s dilemma, facing barriers to skill acquisition and productivity, and struggling with personal growth.

Two Ukrainian EdTech Startups Enter Europe’s Most Promising Unicorn List | Two Ukrainian EdTech startups have made it to the “Top 100 Next Unicorns” list that showcases Europe’s most promising startups with a prospect of reaching $1 billion in value. Headway and Preply, two educational technology (EdTech) startups from Ukraine, have made it to Viva Technology’s “Top 100 Next Unicorns” list that showcases European startups with the potential of reaching the “unicorn” status. Headway is an EdTech company that creates microlearning products with more than 80 million users globally. Founded in 2019, it has since expanded to more than 240 staff across offices in Kyiv, Warsaw, Nicosia, and London. Preply is an online education marketplace that connects students and tutors from around the world. Founded in Kyiv in 2012, the company has since expanded its market to more than 180 countries with more than 35,000 tutors and 600 employees located in different continents with offices in Kyiv, Barcelona, and New York. In July 2023, the company received $70 million from venture capital (VC) firms to integrate artificial intelligence (AI) into online tutoring. Later the same year, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) co-invested $10 million into Preply in partnership with Horizon Capital to “empower Preply to expand its research and development initiatives, integrate artificial intelligence to enhance the learning experience, and introduce new product lines.”

Just like students, teachers can learn in many ways  | Mufti, Rautiainen, Gregory | Every student needs the inspiration and guidance of a great teacher. In a continually evolving world and education landscape, how can countries best invest in the development of teachers to reach this goal? The World Bank’s Coach program, supported by partners through the Foundational Learning Compact, helps countries design, implement, and evaluate systems of teacher continuous professional development (CPD) using the evidence on effective practices. The program’s tools and resources are being used across several countries and contexts to strengthen and support CPD programs in various ways depending on program design, available resources, and the overall vision of teacher CPD. The variation extends from simple interventions such as mobile phone text-based guidance for teachers to highly structured coaching sessions based on classroom observation, and to collaborative support through communities of practice.

New Developments in the Economics of Education | Exciting opportunity to present your research on the economics of education at the Public Sector Economics 2024 Conference September 23, 2024, in Zagreb, Croatia. Submit proposals by May 15 here. Keynote speakers:  Daniele Checchi, University of Milan, Italy andHarry Anthony Patrinos, World Bank.