Embedded Lab Inception Workshop: Building a Culture of Evidence-Based Decision Making in Collaboration with Rwanda Ministry of Education to Improve Learning Outcomes

Rwanda Education

Embedded Lab Inception Workshop: Building a Culture of Evidence-Based Decision Making in Collaboration with Rwanda Ministry of Education to Improve Learning Outcomes

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In 2019, the Director-General of the Rwanda Education Board (REB) requested technical assistance from IPA to support REB’s Teacher Management and Staffing Unit through the creation of an embedded lab to strengthen the use of data and evidence. The goal of the lab is to support evidence-driven education policy, improve the use of administrative data for better policies and programs, and promote evidence-informed policy in education to enhance the quality of learning in Rwanda. 

This partnership builds on a recent randomized evaluation conducted among Rwandan public-sector primary school teachers, which showed that working under P4P contracts motivated teachers to achieve better learning outcomes for students. As a result of this evaluation, the Ministry of Education (MINEDUC) and REB wanted to understand how government structures could further benefit from evidence to enhance the quality of learning outcomes relevant to social and economic development in Rwanda. 

It is in this regard that IPA, in collaboration with MINEDUC, convened a full-day inception workshop to officially launch the embedded evidence lab. Key objectives for the workshop included:

  • Discussing the embedded lab initiative design and sharing its achievements with key stakeholders;
  • Discussing the embedded lab long-term plan and education research agenda;
  • Discussing the establishment of a research committee to provide support, guidance, evidence-co-creation, and oversight of the embedded lab initiatives; and
  • Conducting evidence ecosystem mapping

 

Tentative Agenda

Time

Subject

Facilitator 

09:00-09:15

Arrival and Registration

Sophie Mushimiyimana and Melissa Douce Mahoro

09:15-09:30

Opening remark & Intro to IPA

Victoria Isika

09:00:10:00

Embedded evidence lab achievements- REB

REB Representative

10:00-10:15

Coffee break

 

10:15-10:45

Intro to Embedded evidence lab & long-term plan

Victoria Isika and Leo Mfura

10:45-11:15

Adapting and scaling interventions for teacher value-added

Dr. Andrew Zeitlin

11:15-11:45

Embedded lab—Experience from other countries—Ghana

Bethany Park

11:45-12:30

Feedback on the lab’s plan

Panelists and Jean Leodomir Habarimana Mfura

12:30-13:30

Lunch

 

13:30-15:30

Evidence ecosystem mapping exercise (Key stakeholders with influence over evidence use and uptake in each system)

EDT, Leodomir Mfura, and Victoria Isika

15:30-16:00

Discussion on the establishment of the research committee and discussion on quick research topics

All invitees

16:00-16:15

Closing remarks

MINEDUC representative


Workshop Speakers/Facilitators

Address

Kigali Convention Center (following COVID-19 protocol)

City

Kigali

Country

Rwanda