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Lebanon- Research for Results Program Education Webinar Series

June 23-September 30, 2021

Beirut, Lebanon

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Students, Teachers and Schools in Lebanon

The Research for Results (R4R) Program is a joint research initiative between the Ministry of Education and Higher Education (MEHE), the World Bank, the United Kingdom’s Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCDO) and the United States Agency for International Aid (USAID). It analyzes education service delivery in Lebanon and provides key data and recommendations for evidence-based policy making and reform.

This webinar series aims to disseminate the findings of the R4R studies widely, with a focus on using insights to operationalize their findings for education sector reform in Lebanon. The series comprises of 2 webinars that will be organized between June and September 2021.

WEBINAR  1 :  Driving Forces behind Student Learning Outcomes will be organized on June 23, 2021 from 4:00 to 5:30 pm (Beirut time)

  • Over the past 18 months, Lebanon has been assailed by multiple crises—specifically, an economic and financial crisis, followed by COVID-19 and, lastly, the explosion at the Port of Beirut on August 4, 2020— which have all put  severe strains on an already struggling education sector. Pre- COVID 19 learning levels were already comparatively low, with only 6.3 years of learning taking place (after schooling is adjusted for actual learning). Recently, the COVID-19 implied school closures — over 75% of the school year between January 2020 and February 2021 — will likely lead to a further and significant decrease in learning. Effectively, students are facing a “lost year” of learning.

    Lasting improvements to many of the systemic challenges that Lebanon’s education sector is facing can only be brought through a comprehensive reform agenda.

    The Research for Results (R4R) Program is a joint research initiative between the Ministry of Education and Higher Education (MEHE), the World Bank, the United Kingdom’s Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCDO) and the United States Agency for International Aid (USAID). It analyzes education service delivery in Lebanon and provides key data and recommendations for evidence-based policy making and reform.

    This webinar series aims to disseminate the findings of the R4R studies widely, with a focus on using insights to operationalize their findings for education sector reform in Lebanon.

     

    The R4R webinar series comprises the following sessions and will take place between June and September 2021:

    • Webinar 1: Driving Forces behind Student Learning Outcomes
    • Webinar 2: Teachers as actors of change: Towards Access and Quality of Learning for all Students
  • The Research for Results (R4R) program was launched in 2016 in response to a request from the Lebanese  Ministry of Education and Higher Education to the World Bank for technical assistance in identifying evidence-based policy recommendations to strengthen the efficiency and quality of education services by public, private, and free-private providers. The R4R Program was supported by the United Kingdom’s Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCDO) and the United States Agency for International Aid (USAID). 

    The program’s primary objectives were to: i) generate new evidence on student and teacher performance across school types; ii) create policy recommendations to strengthen the efficiency and quality of education services by public, private and non-state providers in Lebanon; and iii) provide recommendations to policymakers for the public education sector planning post the second phase of the Reaching All Children for Education Program (RACE2).

    The R4R Program encompasses:

    The report focuses on the political economy of education in Lebanon. It includes an assessment of the performance of Lebanon’s bifurcated system in terms of learning outcomes, equity and efficiency, while explaining its foundations and underlying dynamics. 

    • R4R Volume II: (publication forthcoming) is the focus of this webinar series. It builds on the political economy study of R4R Volume I by deep-diving into the various school-level factors that affect learning and teaching. The analysis also focuses on service delivery within a nationally representative sample of schools (146 schools including public morning & afternoon shifts, free private and fee-based private schools). The following studies were conducted as part of R4R Volume II: 

    1. School Study: The study aimed to understand the enabling context of schools in Lebanon (school finances, management, teachers, school environment and facilities); 

    2. Student Assessment Study: The study aimed to understand student learning outcomes and perceptions in Lebanese classrooms focusing on Grades Four and Seven in Mathematics, Arabic and Foreign Languages; 

    3. Teacher Observation Study: The study aimed to understand teachers’ classroom practices and performance in Lebanese schools mainly in Grade Four and Seven classrooms (closely linked with the Student Assessment study); and 

    4. Vulnerability Study: The study aimed to identify the risks and opportunities for improving educational experiences among vulnerable Lebanese and refugee children.

  • MULTIMEDIA

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    Driving Forces behind Student Learning Outcomes

    June 23, 2021

    4:00-5:30 pm (Beirut time)

    • Lebanon’s performance on the Human Capital Index is poor due to low education outcomes: The Human Capital Index indicates that children born in Lebanon today will reach, on average, only 52 percent of their potential productivity when they grow up. This is lower than the average estimates for the Middle East and North Africa region (57 percent).
    • Differences in the quality of individual schools are very large – more than in other countries. Quality is good only in a few schools.
    • Learning outcomes in international assessments are low and declining over the last decade: PISA 2018 results show that more than two-thirds of Lebanese students are not achieving basic literacy, and that only 1 percent of students in Lebanon were top performers in reading.  

    This first event of the webinar series will include presentations from International Assessment experts, including in depth analysis of Lebanon’s results on PISA 2018 and TIMSS 2019, and results from the Student Assessment Study of the R4R, to provide a better understanding of learning in the  classroom

    A panel will discuss key questions on learning and educational reform:

    -  How well do students learn over the academic year?

    - What do Lebanon’s PISA 2018 and TIMSS 2019 results tell us about students’ achievements in reading, math and science?

    - What are key policy and practice reform actions that can improve student learning outcomes in Lebanon and overcome inequities across schools?

    Agenda

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    H.E. Dr. Tarek Majzoub

    Minister of Education and Higher Education

    Tarek Majzoub is Lebanon’s caretaker Minister of Education and Higher Education. He obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Law from the Lebanese University, a Bachelor’s degree in Engineering (BE) from the American University of Beirut (AUB), and a doctorate in Public Law from the University of Rennes I (France), in 1993. He taught at universities in Lebanon and a number of Western countries. He served as a consultant at different government institutions and ministries and at a number of international and regional organizations (League of Arab States, ESCWA, UNDP, ILO, FAO, UNESCO and the World Bank). He is the author of several legal articles and books.

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    Mr. Saroj Kumar Jha

    World Bank Mashreq Regional Director

    Saroj Kumar Jha is the World Bank Regional Director for Lebanon, Iraq, Iran, Jordan and Syria, since July 2017. Before his appointment, Saroj was Senior Director of the Fragility, Conflict and Violence Global Practice at the World Bank Group. Earlier, he was the Bank’s Regional Director for Central Asia and also served as the Global Manager for the Disaster Risk Management Practice and as Head of the Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery (GFDRR), which he founded in 2006.

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    Brief overview of Research for Results Study Objectives and Implementation

    Mr. Fadi Yarak, Director General, Ministry of Education and Higher Education

    Fadi Yarak is the Director General of Education and Higher Education in the Lebanese Ministry of Education and Higher Education. He has served to date under six successive governments. He leads the management and development of Lebanon’s school system, supervising the development of policies and strategies, legislation, and programming in the sector. He is responsible for the direction and operation of national public schools, as well as liaison with and regulation of Lebanon’s thriving and complex private school sector. He also serves as Chair of the Board of the Indemnity Fund that governs and manages pension rights for teachers in Lebanon. Mr. Yarak is the Government of Lebanon’s focal point on SDG4 and directs the Ministry’s Executive Committee on this topic.

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    Presentations

    PISA and other International Assessment Research- Dr. Maciej Jakubowski and Dr. Tomasz Gajderowicz

    *Maciej Jakubowski is a policymaker, advisor, and researcher in education and labor market policy. He served as an under-secretary of state at the Polish Ministry of National Education. He established the Evidence Institute to promote evidence-based policymaking and large-scale student assessments. Before joining the government, he worked in the OECD PISA team in Paris. He is a consultant for the World Bank, European Commission, UNDP, UNESCO, OECD, and cooperates with think-tanks and governments in Europe and the US. He previously worked as a senior advisor to the Public Education Evaluation Commission. Mr. Jakubowski holds a doctorate in economics and MA in sociology from the University of Warsaw where he still works as an assistant professor. *Tomasz Gajderowicz is a policy advisor in the field of education and the labor market. Tomasz specializes in data science methods for uncovering incentives, that drive educational and professional decisions. He elaborated the framework of the implementation of modern microeconometric techniques in research on preferences and assessments. Tomasz holds a doctorate in economic sciences, he works as a European Commission expert, a consultant for the World Bank, and ETEC consultant. Tomasz holds the position of Research Director in Evidence Institute and works as Assistant Professor at the University of Warsaw. Tomasz is experienced in leading a number of international projects on educational data analysis and policy.

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    Student Learning Assessment in Grades 4 and 7 across Schools in Lebanon- Dr. Ghinwa Malas Itani and Ms. Sheena Fazili

    *Ghinwa Itani Malas is an Education Specialist at UNICEF Lebanon country office. Her work focuses on supporting the development and implementation of quality formal and non-formal education in collaboration with the Lebanese Ministry of Education and Higher Education, local and international development partners and stakeholders in the Education sector in response to the compounded multiple crises Lebanon is facing. She holds a doctorate in Educational Leadership as well as various certifications for professional development, training and accreditation in international education. Ghinwa was involved in numerous projects to improve education for children, teachers and school leadership in private and public educational institutions. *Sheena Fazili is a Consultant in the World Bank’s Education Global Practice. She is part of the EduAnalytics team which is responsible for measuring learning poverty while also providing broader data-focused technical assistance to the Bank’s education portfolio. Her research interest lies in the area of Economics of Education with a particular focus on fragile contexts. She works on measuring the impact of policies and interventions to improve learning outcomes. She holds a Master’s in Development Economics from Georgetown University and specializes in the use of econometric methods to inform evidence-based decision making.

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    Discussion

    Ms. Hilda Khoury, Director Department of Guidance and Counseling, General Directorate of Education, MEHE

    Hilda Khoury is the Director of Counseling and Guidance Department in the Lebanese Ministry of Education and Higher Education. She has also worked as a math writer and editor (e-Platform), coordinator and math teacher, teacher trainer and an educational consultant throughout her career.

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    Dr. Diane Nauffal, Assistant to the President for Institutional Research and Assessment, Lebanese American University

    Diane Nauffal is Assistant to the President for Institutional Research and Assessment at the Lebanese American University. She provides decision-support research and analysis needed in planning and policy-formulation processes and institutional effectiveness activities. In addition, she supports all institutional assessment efforts covering the spectrum of activities related to programs, students, faculty and staff. Diane also serves as a faculty member in the Department of Education, specializing in educational leadership and management. Her areas of professional interest are strategic planning, leadership and governance, educational policy, assessment of student learning, accreditation, and institutional effectiveness with an emphasis on higher education. She has several articles, conference papers and book chapters in these areas. She holds a doctorate in Educational Management and Policy from the University of Birmingham, UK.

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    Moderated by Dr. Karma El-Hassan, Associate Professor Measurement & Evaluation, Education Department, American University of Beirut

    Karma El Hassan is a professor of Educational Psychology Measurement and Evaluation at the American University of Beirut. She previously served as the Director of the Office of Institutional Research & Assessment (OIRA) at the University. As Director of OIRA, she engaged in institutional assessment, development of assessment plans, and preparations for accreditation, program and peer review in higher education. Karma has served as UNESCO Consultant since 2007, closely engaged in preparing several country and regional reports, conducting assessment studies, and conducting regional workshops on assessment. In Lebanon, she contributed by serving on the following committees: Basic Education Strategic Planning, the National Task Force for Governance in Higher Education, Research for Results (R4R) Steering Committee, and as the national advisor on The National Student Learning Assessment Framework.

    Q&A from participants

  • MULTIMEDIA

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    Teachers as Actors of Change: Towards Access and Quality of Learning for all Students

    June 30, 2021

    4:00-5:30 pm (Beirut time)

    • Teachers receive little continuous training on pedagogy and soft skills.
    • Poverty is one of the main factors impacting the enrollment of children in formal education (and indeed in non-formal educational institutions) as families struggle to provide some of the basic needs for their children.
    • School completion is highly unequal, with only half of 18-year-olds from the lowest economic quantiles still in school, and the risk of dropping out of primary school before age 12 is estimated at almost 10 percent.

    This second event of the webinar series will discuss classroom-level practices in Lebanon as well as the risks and opportunities in improving the learning experiences of vulnerable children in Lebanon. The webinar will feature the results from the Teacher and Vulnerability Studies of the R4R to provide a better understanding of teaching and learning in the classroom and beyond.  

    A panel will discuss key questions on learning and educational reform:

    How knowledgeable are the teachers in the content they teach?

    How effective are the teachers in their classroom practices?

    What are good practices that can contribute to higher levels of persistence and positive learning experiences for vulnerable children?

    AGENDA

    Welcoming Remarks

    Mr. Fadi Yarak, Director General of Education, Ministry of Education and Higher Education

    Mr. George Nohra, President, Center for Educational Research and Development

    Mr. Andreas Blom, Manager, Education Global Practice, MENA Region, The World Bank

    Presentations

    Teacher Study/Classroom Observations: Ms. Anahita Hosseini Matin

    Understanding Risks and Opportunities for Improving the Education Experience for Vulnerable Children: Ms. Hana Addam El-Ghali

    Discussion

    Mr. Jihad Saliba, Senior Program Development Advisor – S2R2, Center for Educational Research and Development

    Moderated by Dr. Karma El-Hassan, Associate Professor Measurement & Evaluation

    Education Department, American University of Beirut

    Q&A from participants

  • The World Bank’s Education Reform Path for Lebanon presents key challenges within the education sector in Lebanon and highlights areas for further development based on key research in the field. The proposed Reform plan is in line with the Ministry of Education and Higher Education’s 5-year draft sector plan towards improvements in equity, quality, and governance in education.  

    The World Bank’s Education Reform Path draws from the latest education sector research, including the Research for Results Program.