In partnership with the Ministry of Education and Culture (MOEC), the Ministry of Religious Affairs (MORA), and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID/Indonesia), RTI International administered the two surveys to 4,812 grade 2 students, equally divided between boys and girls and equally allocated across the four proposed “regions” of (1) Sumatra and its adjacent islands; (2) Java and Bali; (3) Kalimantan, Sulawesi, and its adjacent islands; and (4) the “MNP” region, consisting of Maluku, East Nusa Tenggara (Nusa Tenggara Timur [NTT]), West Nusa Tenggara (Nusa Tenggara Barat [NTB]), and Papua islands (Eastern Region).

This article reviews the development of the EGRA and EGMA, which are locally tailored, timely assessments designed to directly inform policy and instruction for learning improvement, particularly for countries on the lower end of the income spectrum. The history of the design and implementation of the tools as well as case studies of their use in Egypt and Kenya, are a useful counterbalance to the experience of the more traditional international large-scale assessments (ILSAs) documented in this special issue—in particular for understanding the needs of countries struggling to transform ‘education for all’ into ‘learning for all’.

Article published in the International Journal of Educational Development. Volume 40, January 2015, Pages 315–322. Published abstract: The rise and widespread adoption of the early grade reading assessment (EGRA) has produced an ample supply of critics and converts. This paper seeks to clarify the purpose of EGRA and its limitations. EGRA was created to inform education systems and programmes and alone, is not an intervention. Designed to measure some of the foundational literacy skills that readers need for beginning reading, EGRA is a collection of subtasks, each with a specific purpose. This paper includes a description and rationale for each subtask, as well as the conceptual framework that underpins the assessment. Key results from multiple surveys provide informative, grounded examples of how the assessment results are being used to inform both classroom practice and system-level policy. We conclude with a brief discussion on the potential uses of EGRA and similar oral assessments of early learning for informing the monitoring of the post-2015 education indicators.

USAID/Nepal is interested in developing a program to help improve reading outcomes in the early grades of basic education. To inform the program design, a rapid education sector assessment was conducted to better understand past, current, and planned policies, practices, programs, innovations, and initiatives targeted towards early grade reading. This assessment aimed to identify strengths, weaknesses, and key leverage points to improve children’s reading outcomes within the institutional context of Nepal’s education system. The assessment was conducted over a two-month period by a team of researchers and staff from RTI International, including Mr. Joseph DeStefano, Senior Researcher; Dr. Frank Healey, Senior Researcher; Ms. Sharon Loza, Project Management Specialist; and Dr. Wendi Ralaingita, Education Researcher. Significant support was also provided by Dr. Vishnu Karki, Consultant; Dr. Yogendra Yadava, Local Language Expert; Jayanti Subba, Education Specialist, USAID/Nepal; and Mitch Kirby, USAID, Senior Education Advisor. The assessment was carried out by desk study and a two-week field visit from May 7 to May 19, 2012. This report reflects findings from the assessment.

Nepal Early Grade Reading Assessment, Education Management Efficiency Study, and Teacher Observation Study This is the final report for the Nepal Early Grade Reading Assessment, Education Management Efficiency Study, and Teacher Observation Study in 2014. The report provides findings related to the research questions of the study regarding the following topics: Education Leadership, Management, Practices, and Attitudes; Knowledge and Practices Related to the Teaching of Reading; Availability of Teaching and Learning Materials; Opportunities for Mother-Tongue-Based Multi-Lingual Education; Capacity and Readiness of Existing Teacher Professional Development System; and Teacher Motivation and Participation. The activity takes place under the EdData Task Order 15: Data for Education Programming in Asia and Middle East (DEP/AME)

The purpose of this report is to provide data on children’s early grade reading skills as measured by the EGRA. In addition, we report information from an accompanying interview with children, the teacher passage, and select data from the EMES-TOS. The report focuses on these key research questions (RQs): 1. To what extent are students in Grades 2 and 3 learning to read in Nepali? 2. What reading-related skills are students in Grades 2 and 3 acquiring? 3. What factors—both in-school and out-of-school—help explain student performance on the EGRA? 4. How well do teachers understand a written explanation of a proposed Early Grade Reading Program? This analysis is guided through the prism of the core research questions that were developed and agreed upon in consultation with the Ministry of Education (MOE) and its stakeholders. This report presents data that address each of the research questions and draws conclusions based on those data. The report also identifies additional areas for further research or exploration that could be useful for decision makers. To get started, results from the first research questions are presented, providing an overview of the core findings from the EGRA. A brief description of the EGRA and the survey administration follows, as well as some descriptive characteristics of the study. After this, an in-depth analysis for each of the remaining three key research questions is presented. The report finishes with conclusions and recommendations.

Learning to read is a fundamental part of the first few years of primary education for early and sustained success in school. Yet, in many developing countries, a distressing number of students are not learning to read at all during these critical first years of schooling. On September 8, International Literacy Day, the Center for Universal Education (CUE) at Brookings and the International Reading Association hosted a discussion on how ensuring literacy in the early grades can help to fulfill the promise of quality education for all. Amber Gove of RTI International presented the findings from the attached report “Early Reading: Igniting Education for All,” which represents the work of a community of practice that has been developing and refining assessment tools, piloting interventions, and sharing practices for scaling up these proven methods of improving literacy. Following the presentation, USAID Director of Education David Barth and International Reading Association President Patricia Edwards and Jamaica Teachers Association General Secretary Adolph Cameron joined a panel discussion on the paper’s findings. This revised version, with additional data and evidence from early reading interventions, was released in May 2011.

This analysis report was written to gain insight into both student facility with foundational skills and to better understand characteristics among Iraqi schools associated with this performance. In 2012, USAID/Iraq, in partnership with the Ministry of Education (MoED), contracted with RTI International under the Education Data for Decision Making (EdData II) project to conduct an EGRA, EGMA, and SSME in a sample of primary schools in Iraq.

This final report for USAID/Haiti Tout Timoun Ap Li (ToTAL – All Children Reading) Applied Research Activity describes the activities and accomplishments of the program from start-up in August 2012 to completion in December 2014. It documents ToTAL’s accomplishments in curriculum development, teacher training, classroom coaching, and applied research, particularly quantifiable improvements that ToTAL made in the reading abilities of treatment students, as well as challenges that were encountered.

This toolkit is the product of ongoing collaboration among a large community of scholars, practitioners, government officials, and education development professionals to advance the cause of early reading assessment and acquisition among primary school children in low-income countries. In the interest of consolidating diverse experiences and developing a reasonably standardized approach to assessing children’s early reading acquisition, this “toolkit,” or user manual, serves as a guide for countries beginning to work with EGRA in such areas as local adaptation of the instrument, fieldwork, and analysis of results. This toolkit is intended for use by Ministry or Department of Education staff, donor staff, practitioners, and professionals in the field of education development. The document, in 12 sections, seeks to summarize a large body of research in an accessible manner. The procedures described in this toolkit are to be used in all USAID-funded administrations of EGRA and, it is hoped, in all other EGRA administrations as well. -- Suggested citation: RTI International. (2016). Early Grade Reading Assessment (EGRA) Toolkit, Second Edition. Washington, DC: United States Agency for International Development. --