Key details
| Location | Worldwide |
| Clients | UK FCDO, World Bank, Bill, and Melinda Gates Foundation and UNICEF |
| Partners | University of Cambridge, Results for Development, The ODI, Brink and Jigsaw |
Background
The EdTech Hub is a consortium-led programme, which aims to increase the use of evidence to inform decision-making regarding the most appropriate and effective uses of technology to improve learning, through cutting-edge research methods and innovation approaches.
- Generating rigorous research evidence on the effectiveness of technology for education, focusing on the most marginalised populations
- Engaging stakeholders in evidence-based decision-making on technology use in education
The programme is structured into three spheres of work:
- Research – Building a broader knowledge base around educational technology (edtech) effectiveness
- Engagement – Working directly with partners and governments to promote effective edtech use in policy and practice
- Innovation – Exploring new and innovative pathways to assist and enhance learning through technology, championing new ideas
The Hub’s work relates to technology and learning worldwide. Nonetheless, the programme also has a list of six low-and middle-income countries as its focus, particularly or its engagement work: Bangladesh, Ghana, Kenya, Pakistan, Sierra Leone, and Tanzania.
Our Approach
Our research identifies whether this TPD model addresses the needs of rural / disadvantaged teachers. The study focuses on a sample of teachers and students from schools in rural / semi-rural areas to understand whether and how school-based TPD initiatives promote student learning (as an alternative to traditional centralised and cascade models). The study addresses three key gaps that currently exist in the literature surrounding TPD in emergency contexts in the following ways:
- Examining learning outcomes. Examining the relationship between TPD and student learning outcomes, using an exploratory mixed-methods design that goes beyond the limited approaches of previous studies.
- Examining conceptualisation of TPD. Investigates the relative importance of education system components and aspects of TPD.
- Examining definitions of ‘emergency’. The study focuses on Sierra Leone, where the population has experienced multiple, overlapping forms of emergency, and fills the gap in the EiE evidence base on improving learning outcomes despite contextual pressures.
Contribution
OpenDevEd is engaged across the Engagement, Innovation, and Research spheres, with the oversight of Dr. Björn Haßler as the Technical director of the Hub. Tasks undertaken by OpenDevEd staff include:
- Rapid review Help Desk assessments for governments and clients in priority countries
- Construction and maintenance of the Hub’s Evidence Library and publishing research with Creative Commons licensing
- Leading agile sandbox innovations with external partners such as Jusoor Syria
- Direct in-country engagement with Ministries of Education in Kenya, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, and Pakistan, integrating edtech into national education programming, promoting the use of open education resources, and partnering with tech providers (e.g. Kolibri)
Personnel provided: Technical Director, Tech Adviser, Researcher, and other short-term research and engagement staff as needed, dependent upon the expertise required by the Hub.
RESOURCES
See more publications in our Evidence Library .
