World Bank to Help Strengthen Vocational Education in China’s Gansu Province WASHINGTON DC, March 31, 2017 – The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors today approved a $120 million loan to help improve the quality and relevance of vocational schools and strengthen their partnership with industry in China’s Gansu province. Gansu, in northwestern China, is one of the least developed provinces, based on both income and human development measures, with nearly 60 percent of its population living in rural areas. The majority of its labor force is working in the low-productivity primary sector, though the secondary and tertiary industries are the main drivers of the province’s economy. To facilitate the transition of low-skilled labor force into more productive employment, it is critical to build a modern technical and vocational education and training (TVET) system. “The new project will support the implementation of the government’s vocational education development strategy in Gansu. We place special emphasis on closer collaboration between the industry and schools both at the system and school levels so students can obtain skills businesses need,” said Xiao Liping, World Bank’s Senior Education Specialist and the project’s team leader…
New Study Recommends Key Actions to Improve Early Childhood Education in Mongolia
A new World Bank report recommends that Mongolia expand access to preschool services in rural areas, prioritizing home-based early-childhood education for hard-to-reach populations, such as nomadic herders. more | Монгол
New Study Recommends Key Actions to Improve Early Childhood Education in Mongolia (The Financial)
Recommendation to improve early childhood education in Mongolia
Parents or centers: How should governments prioritize early investments in children?…Sophie Naudeau and Amer Hasan, representing Team Centers, argued that investments are best channeled through centers because SDG target 4.2 calls for every child to have at least one year of pre-primary education. So, if governments are to increase access to preschool, they better do it right (as attending low-quality preschool can actually worsen developmental outcomes! And so can low-quality daycare). Center-based care and education can wield positive impacts on child development (Engle et al 2011), as well as other members of the household (e.g., in Mozambique and Argentina). Plus, early classroom interactions can foster social inclusion while enabling children to develop socio-emotional abilities. Team Centers pointed out that cost-effective approaches to preschools do not necessitate investment in fancy infrastructure, but rather in-service training that builds the social capital of community workers who spend time with children. All acknowledged that quality is key to effectiveness…
Jakarta Basic Education Conference 2017 Presentations now online
Education for hearing-impaired children improved
Why Singapore’s education system needs an overhaul
Disadvantaged students get support from Microsoft
How effective is compulsory schooling as a policy instrument?
Skills or jobs: Which comes first?
For long-term economic development, only skills matter
Exclusive: Pisa data may be incomparable, Schleicher admits
Dutch kids aren’t stressed out: What Americans can learn from how the Netherlands raises children
Robots and Jobs: Evidence from US Labor Markets
Database of Output-Based Aid Education Projects
How Effective Are Active Labor Market Policies in Developing Countries?
What skills are needed for tomorrow’s digital world?
Education, economics and public policy 