How do we as researchers know that the data we collect reflects the full unbiased experience of the student, especially when asking sensitive questions with no right or wrong answer? A team at RTI International designed a small pilot to unpack this very question.
This article was co-written by: Julianne Norman, Maitri Punjabi and Lauren Edwards
This post is the first in a series we’re calling Hacking Tangerine. Tangerine, RTI’s open source data collection platform, came on the scene in 2012 responding to the critical need for an offline mobile data collection system that could support large scale Early Grade Reading Assessments and Early Grade Math Assessments in low-resource environments.
Though many of the issues we are facing in ensuring children worldwide are in school and learning are not new, COVID-19 has magnified the challenges. This pandemic has impacted nearly all facets of the world’s education systems and programs at the same time. Assessing children’s learning achievement is one important aspect of education support and reform; it is essential to know if children are learning. Yet many assessment efforts can no longer take place as planned. How can we gauge learning when best laid plans are out?
Several recent blog posts have raised the issue of COVID-19 related disruptions to schooling around the world and how this will impact student learning. All agree that the closing of schools will negatively affect students’ academic progress. But these blogs and related commentary raise some compelling questions, that are only just beginning to be answered.
Due to the global pandemic most of us are sheltering in place and an estimated 91% of children globally are out of school[1]. Advocates for global education are working from safe places looking for ways to keep children engaged and reading. A common reaction is to share links to online learning materials. The good news is that there are many high-quality online books out there. However, we want to encourage you to think before you link and match the link to the purpose and audience.
