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Hierdie artikel belig die literatuur oor die gaping tussen wetenskaplike getuienis en beleid binne die konteks van bewysgebaseerde of, soos ons dit gaan noem, navorsingsgesteunde beleid vanuit die studie van ʼn klassieke geval in Suid-Afrika, naamlik die sogenaamde De Lange-verslag na die onderwys van 1981. Ons vrae is: tot watter mate het die betrokke verslag wel gedien as grondslag vir die opdraggewer, naamlik die regering van die dag, se daaropvolgende beleid oor onderwys, en hoe kan die verhouding tussen die opdraggewer en agent verstaan word? Die De Lange-verslag en die daaropvolgende prosesse van beleidsformulering word in hierdie artikel gebruik as ʼn geval om die diskoers oor navorsingsgesteunde beleid te beoordeel. Die verslag wat in 1981 verskyn het, is ons fokus. Ons ontleding van hierdie dokument is aangevul met insigte vanuit sekondêre bronne wat oor die Raad vir Geesteswetenskaplike Navorsing (RGN)-ondersoek na die onderwys gepubliseer is, asook deur persoonlike onderhoude en argiefwerk met rolspelers vanuit daardie tyd. Hierdie artikel lewer ʼn tweërlei bydrae, naamlik tot die geskiedenis van navorsingsgesteunde beleidmaking in Suid-Afrika, en tot die sogenaamde gaping tussen twee gemeenskappe (navorsers en beleidmakers) as verklaring vir die beperkte invloed van navorsing op beleid. Die studie het bevind dat die mate waartoe die RGN-ondersoek na die onderwys wel regeringsbeleid beïnvloed het, ʼn direkte gevolg was van die mate waartoe dit die veelvoud van partypolitieke hindernisse en navorser-beleidmaker kompleksiteite kon oorkom. Dit is inderdaad ʼn eiesoortige geval wat buite die bestek van die algemeen geldende teoretiese beskouings oor navorsingsgesteunde beleidmaking val. This article throws light on the literature about the evidence-policy gap in evidence-based or, as we are going to call it, research-informed policy following on the study of a classic case in South Africa, namely the so-called De Lange report on the provision of education in the RSA. The question is: to what extent did the said report serve as a basis for subsequent policy of the government of the day regarding education, and what was the role of the principal-agent relationship in this? An ongoing theme in the literature regarding research-informed policy (evidence-based policymaking) is the apparent inability of academics to influence policy with the results of their research. An investigation of the De Lange report therefore promises to supplement or refute elements of the literature. At the same time, this report comes from a period in the South African history when it foreshadowed the great changes, which would come a decade later in a striking manner, and which might even have partially initiated these changes. Our article may therefore also have intrinsic historiographic value. The article starts with a short overview of the literature, which is followed by an exposition of what we understand by the case study approach. After that, we discuss the origin, historical context, role players, course, results and outcome of the HSRC investigation into education. In searching for answers regarding the question about the extent to which the De Lange report gave direction to subsequent policy regarding education, we ask the following questions: • To what degree did the specific nature and intensity of interaction between members of the HSRC investigation and the policymakers determine the influence of the De Lange report on government policy? • To what degree did the spirit of the times and divergent policy agendas hamper or promote the acceptance of the recommendations in the De Lange report? The question regarding the influence of the specific nature and intensity of interaction between the HSRC role-players and the policymakers in government policy is guided by the literature about research-based policymaking. The preponderance of studies on this topic focuses on the interaction and supposed distance between policy advisers (researchers) and policymakers as explanation for the degree to which researchers succeed in convincing policymakers of the value of the research results. Although the nature of the interest groups within our case study corresponds to a large degree with what is described in the literature, this case shows a distinct overlap of interests between the interest groups which narrowed the "theoretical" gap between them in practice. There was in this case therefore no mention of a gap, which had to be bridged to convince the principal of the value of research. The literature regarding the distance between policy advisors and policymakers therefore does not explain this particular case. In order to promote the awareness and acceptance of the results and suggestions, the research team launched a comprehensive communication campaign, even before the official publication of the report. Probably as a result of its scientific integrity, the report could withstand the test of robust discussion and investigation. No conclusive evidence could be found that this campaign substantially strengthened the influence of the research report on the subsequent policy. It seems from the literature that strong divergent ideas, policy agendas, and political ideologies and interest groups could also influence the official reception of research-informed evidence. Hence, the question regarding the influence of the spirit of the times and divergent policy agendas on the acceptance of the suggestions in the De Lange report for policy. The interim education working party appointed by the government following the release of the De Lange report played a decisive role in preparing the research evidence for reception by government. This task team drafted a report, which translated the research report politically, before the official policy of government was published as a White Paper. This study shows that where the political principal was a senior person within the context of the Afrikaner Broederbond as well as the scientific community, he was relatively junior within the caucus and cabinet of the governing party, with the resulting limited personal influence. This, together with other issues, which at the time created an unfavourable party political climate for the principal, explain in part the time lapse between the submission of the De Lange report to the Minister in July 1981 and the introduction of the eventual policy in November 1983. These events, which influenced the period and extent of integration of the scientifically grounded recommendations in government policy and even legislation, confirm the doctrine of limited rationality in terms of policymaking. With its account of the HSRC investigation into education in South Africa, this article contributes to the use of the case study as approach to policy studies. Faithful to the nature of a case study, the article contributes to a context-rich description of the HSRC investigation into education as a case of research-backed policy. It is a distinctive case of how research results influence government policy. The extent and period of the influence between researchers and policymakers could clearly not be explained by means of the supposed gap between researchers and policymakers. The degree to which this research report did influence government policy also cannot be attributed to the appropriateness and validity of the scientific results. This study showed that the influence of the report on government policy could probably be attributed to the degree to which the integrity of the process could overcome the multiple party political obstacles within the specific historical context. The steady, fragmented, although sustained implementation of the results of the HSRC investigation into education in South Africa, is indeed a distinctive case which falls outside of the scope of the generally held theoretical views regarding research-backed policymaking.

Haiti's economic development has been held back by a history of civil conflict and violence. With donor assistance declining from its exceptional levels following the 2010 earthquake, and concessional financing growing scarce, Haiti must learn to live with tighter budget constraints. At the same time, the United Nations forces that have provided security in the past decade are scaling down. Against this backdrop, this paper explores the conditions under which public spending can minimize violent conflict, and draws possible lessons for Haiti. Drawing on an empirical analysis of 148 countries over the period 1960-2009, simulations for Haiti suggest that increases in military spending would be associated with a higher risk of conflict, an observation in line with Haiti's own history. Greater welfare expenditure (education, health, and social assistance), by contrast, would be associated with lower risk of conflict.

MEd (Comparative Education), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2016. Binne die konteks van 'n universiteit word akademiese begaafdheid beskryf as studente oor beskik wat bo die algemene prestasie binne 'n spesifieke jaargroep presteer en 'n behoefte aan gedifferensieerde programme en bykomende hulpbronne het. Behalwe vir akademiese prestasie word kreatiwiteit en taaktoewyding ook in ag geneem in die identifisering van akademies-begaafde studente. Daar is gevind dat daar verskillende uitdagings is in die identifisering van akademies-begaafde studente wat insluit klasgrootte, taal, onkundige onderriggewers en die oneffektiwiteit van 'n standaardmetode vir identifisering. Omdat hulpbronne en finansies deurlopend 'n probleem is in die voorsiening van onderwys moet daar gepoog word om onderwysvoorsiening produktief te maak. Produktiwiteit in onderwys verwys na die insette (hoeveelheid geld spandeer aan student) ooreenkomstig die uitsette (student se akademiese prestasie). Elke onderriginstelling bestaan binne sy eie bepaalde unieke konteks en moet kan funksioneer binne die plaaslike, internasionale en globale kontekste. Die doel van die studie was om vas te stel op watter wyses akademies-begaafde studente ondersteun kan word en terselfdertyd aan die uitgangspunte van produktiewe onderwysvoorsiening te voldoen. 'n Kombinasie van die interpretivisme en konstruktivisme is gebruik as paradigma vir die studie omdat die navorser die ingesamelde data en die konteks van die deelnemers kon bestudeer eerder as om bloot net die ervaring te probeer verstaan. Die kwalitatiewe navorsingtradisie is gebruik omdat hierdie tradisie hom daartoe leen dat gebeure of ervarings betekenis gegee word binne sy natuurlike omgewing. Individuele onderhoude is met 33 deelnemers gevoer aan die Noordwes-Universiteit, Potchefstroomkampus. Die deelnemers is verdeel tussen 23 akademies-begaafde nagraadse studente en tien doserende personeel. Uit die resultate is daar gevind dat dit belangrik is om akademies-begaafde studente in ag te neem deur aan hulle unieke onderwysbehoeftes te voldoen. Die studie het daarop gedui dat dit moontlik is om onderwysvoorsiening aan akademies-begaafde studente binne die uitgangspunte van produktiewe onderwys te laat geskied. Alhoewel doserende personeel poog om akademies-begaafde studente in ag te neem binne die konteks van ʼn klaskamer belemmer die gebruik van standaard assesseringsmetodes die proses. Identifisering van akademies-begaafde studente word bemoeilik deurdat daar nie een standaardmetode vir identifisering is nie. Daar is ʼn behoefte aan die gebruik van ʼn multidimensionele metode vir die identifisering van akademies-begaafde studente. Voorstelle vir die ondersteuning van akademies-begaafde studente wat waarskynlik aan die uitgangspunte van produktiewe onderwys kan voldoen sluit in mentorskapprogramme, gefokusde kurrikulum, ekstrakurrikulêre aktiwiteite, assistentskappe, asook die skep van sosiale netwerke. Hierdie studie het daarop gedui dat dit nodig is om aan die unieke onderwysbehoeftes van akademies-begaafde studente op tersiêre onderwysvlak te voldoen. Alhoewel sekere wyses van ondersteuning reeds is plek is, is daar gevind dat produktiewe wyses vir die aanbieding van ondersteuning moontlik is. Within the context of a university, academic giftedness is described as a quality evinced by students who perform better than the general performance of students within a particular year group and who therefore have a need for differentiated programme and additional resources. Apart from academic performance, creativity and commitment to tasks are also considered in the identification of academically gifted students. It was found that there are various challenges involved in the identification of academically gifted students, including class size, language, inadequately trained teachers and ineffectiveness of a standard criterion for the identification of such students. Because resources and finances constitute a problem throughout the provision of this form of teaching, an effort has to be made to make education provision productive. Productivity in education refers to inputs (amount of money spent on a student) in line with the outputs (academic performance of the student. Each education institution exists within its own specific and unique context, and must be enabled to function within the local, international and global contexts. The aim of the study was to determine in what ways academically gifted students can be supported and at the same time be in compliance with the points of departure of productive education provision. A combination of interpretivism and constructivism was used as a paradigm for the study because the researcher could then study the collected data and the contexts of the participants rather than simply try to understand the experience. The qualitative research tradition was used because this tradition lends itself to events or experiences being given meaning within its natural environment. Individual interviews were conducted with 33 participants at the North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus. The participants were divided between 23 academically gifted students and ten lecturing staff. From the results it emerged that it is important to consider academically gifted students by providing in their unique educational needs. The study indicated that it is possible to provide appropriate education to academically gifted students within the context of the point of view of productive education. Although teaching staff attempt to consider academically gifted students within the context of a classroom, the use of standard assessments methods inhibits the process. Identification of academically gifted students is rendered more difficult because there is no one standard method for such an identification process. There is a need for a multi-dimensional method for the identification of academically gifted students. Proposals for the support of academically gifted students that would probably comply with the points of departure of productive education include mentorship programmes, focussed curriculum, extra-curricular activities, as well as the creation of social networks. This study indicated that it is necessary to comply with the unique educational needs of academically gifted students at the tertiary level. Although certain modes of support are already in place, it was found that productive ways for the provision of support are possible. Masters

This study presents evidence from a randomized control trial (RCT) in Mongolia on the impact of in-service teacher training and books, both as separate educational inputs and as a package. The study tests for the complementarity of inputs and non-linearity of returns from investment in education as measured by students test scores in five subjects. It takes advantage of a national-scale RCT conducted under the Rural Education and Development project. The results suggest that the provision of books, in addition to teacher training, raises student achievement substantially. However, teacher training and books weakly improve test scores when provided individually. Students whose teachers have received training and whose classrooms have acquired books improved their cumulative score (totaled across five tests) by 34.9 percent of a standard deviation, relative to a control group. Students treated only with books improved their total score by 20.6 percent of a standard deviation relative to a control group of students. On the other hand, extra teacher training did not have a statistically significant effect on the total test score. In addition, providing both inputs jointly improved test scores in most subjects, which was not the case when either input was provided individually. This study sheds light on the relevance of supplementing teacher training schemes with appropriate teaching materials in resource-poor settings. The policy implication is that isolated education investments, in settings where complementary inputs are missing, could deliver minimal or no return.

The main objective of the report is to provide recommendations for policy makers and sector managers to help improve service delivery and the resultant outcomes in primary education. The fundamental premise of this analysis stems from Punjab Social Sector Public Expenditure Review conducted in FY2013.

Over the past decade, decentralization of fiscal and policy-making authority has become a cornerstone of development organizations’ recommendations for good governance. Yet the institutional design of multilayered government can create tensions as new elites attempt to fill governing spaces long occupied by traditional patrons. This paper uses the case of post-conflict Sierra Leone to explore the power-sharing dynamics between traditional hereditary chiefs and newly elected community councilors, and how these dynamics affect the provision of local public goods. The paper uses data on several measures of local service provision and finds that councilor/chief relationships defined by competition are associated with higher levels of public goods provision as well as greater improvements in these goods between council areas over time. Relationships defined by frequent contact in the absence of disputes as well as higher frequencies of familial ties between the two sets of actors are associated with worse local development outcomes. This evidence suggests that greater competition between elite groups is beneficial for local development, whereas collusion or cooption between old and new elites harms the provision of local public goods.

This framework paper provides an overview of what matters most for school autonomy and accountability. The focus is on public schools at the primary and the secondary level. This paper begins by grounding School Autonomy and Accountability in its theoretical evidence base (impact evaluations, lessons learned from experience, and literature reviews) and then discusses guiding principles and tools for analyzing country policy choices. The goal of this paper is to provide a framework for classifying and analyzing education systems around the world according to the following five policy goals that are critical for enabling effective school autonomy and accountability: 1) level of autonomy in the planning and management of the school budget; 2) level of autonomy in personnel management; 3) role of school councils in school governance; 4) school and student assessment, and 5) accountability to stakeholders. This paper also discusses how country context matters to school autonomy and accountability and how balancing policy goals matters to policy making for improved education quality and learning for all.

This paper studies study the impact of providing school and child test scores on subsequent test scores, prices, and enrollment in markets with multiple public and private providers. A randomly selected half of the sample villages (markets) received report cards. This increased test scores by 0.11 standard deviations, decreased private school fees by 17 percent, and increased primary enrollment by 4.5 percent. Heterogeneity in the treatment impact by initial school quality is consistent with canonical models of asymmetric information. Information provision facilitates better comparisons across providers, improves market efficiency and raises child welfare through higher test scores, higher enrollment, and lower fees.

As countries redouble their efforts to achieve learning for all at the primary and secondary levels, the private sector is a resource for adding capacity to the education system. This report presents an analysis of how effectively the current policies in Tanzania engage the private sector in basic (primary and secondary) education. The analysis draws on the engaging the private sector (EPS) framework, a product of the World Bank’s systems approach for better education results (SABER). SABER EPS research in Tanzania has found that access to primary education is nearly universal; however enrolments at the secondary level are low. The report provides an overview of SABER EPS, followed by a description of the basic education system in Tanzania, with a focus on the private sector and government policies related to private provision of education. The report benchmarks Tanzania’s policy environment utilizing the SABER EPS framework, and finally offers policy options to enhance learning for all children in primary and secondary school.

As Dubai has grown over the last two decades, the demand for private education has grown with it, a reflection of the number of expatriates settling in the city. Today, 88 percent of all students attend private schools. The surge in demand over this period had in fact been so significant that authorities, recognizing the need to establish a specific governmental entity to oversee the sector s expansion, moved to create the Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA) in 2007. Given the city-state s unique context (in which a majority of the population are expatriates, not Emiratis), the immediate challenge for this new public institution was to identify an appropriate approach for regulating a private education sector. The main objective of the present review is to understand what has motivated KHDA s policy initiatives, what principles have guided design, how they were operationalized, and how they function in real life situations today. In what follows, we look first at the broader context of the issue by giving a brief overview of: (i) the growth of private sector education; and (ii) the rise of public governance reform initiatives in the global education policy agenda. The authors then turn to the case of Dubai: the authors present the argument in the road not traveled before reviewing how that policy framework was translated into its present institutional configuration in Dubai through the development of the institutions that came into being. The authors then reflect on the policy framework in operation, showing how the constituent components function together. The authors end by suggesting some options on potential ways forward that will further enhance the system.

In October 2010, the Government of Madhya Pradesh hosted, with World Bank technical advice, a Conference on higher education reform in the State. The Governor, the Chief Minister and the Minister of Higher Education all addressed the Conference and about 150 people attended the event. Subsequently, four regional Conclaves were organized, in which a total of more than 400 people participated, representing the leadership, administrators, faculty and students at universities and colleges across the State. This represents an impressive outreach to the sector stakeholders. This report is written on the cusp of the publication of the Government of India s 12th Five Year Plan. The indications are that the Government of India intends to push ahead with some significant reforms in the higher education sector. Of particular significance for this report is the emphasis, for the first time, on the need to support the improvement of State universities and colleges. The objective of this report is to provide policy makers in Madhya Pradesh with a menu of options for improving the equity, governance and financing of the higher education system in the State. Though the primary audience is policy makers, this report could serve as part of the continued dialogue with the higher education sector on the direction for reform.

Social Safety Nets (SSN) are defined as non?contributory transfer programs targeted to the poor or those vulnerable to poverty and shocks. About half of World Bank social protection projects in the reviewed cohort are SSN. They are mostly non-emergency investment operations with a higher presence in Latin America and the Caribbean and Africa regions. Projects aimed at strengthening country's safety nets system, including their targeting, administration and service quality, are the most common type of SSN interventions (25 percent). These are closely followed by conditional cash transfers (20 percent), and health, nutrition and education projects (15 percent). The remaining projects are a mixture of public works; food crisis mitigation measures and other types of safety nets (social inclusion, housing, and technical assistance).

This Country Status Report (CSR) for Liberia is part of an ongoing series of country specific reports being prepared by the World Bank in collaboration with governments and development partners. The series aims to enhance the knowledge base for policy development. This report is intended to help engage a diverse audience on issues and policies in the education sector and to develop a shared vision for the future of Liberia. It is the first sector-wide report produced on the education system in Liberia since the end of the war. A policy options matrix follows the executive summary, which will provide government and partners with guidance on the key priorities to tackle. Besides consolidating information in a policy-relevant manner, this CSR makes a unique contribution to the education knowledge base by documenting not only traditional and basic indicators, such as gross enrollment rates and retention, but also examining the performance of the education system in terms of access, quality, equity, and resource allocation and utilization. The report also includes chapters on education governance and teacher management. This report highlights the country's significant education progress since the end of the 14-year civil war in 2003 and the challenges that need to be addressed.

AusAID SPHERE Trust Fund The Philippines has one of the largest public-private partnership programs in education in the world, serving more than 567,500 students who represent almost 9 percent of the 6.5 million high school students in 2009. The Government of the Philippines explicitly recognizes the complementary roles played by public and private schools in the education system. The Education Service Contracting (ESC) program aims to increase access to quality basic education at the secondary level by extending financial assistance from the public budget to 'poor but deserving' elementary school graduates to attend private high schools that have contracted with the government. The ESC program improves school quality, relieves congestion in public high schools, maintains the financial viability of private secondary schools (more than one-third of private secondary school enrollments are supported by the program), keeps the overall costs of public secondary education in check, and encourages households to invest in education.

This report seeks to inform the process of design and implementation of institutional reforms related to the development of a new education quality assurance system in Chile. The report is a synthesis report that draws on previous work by The World Bank in the context of a two-year program of technical collaboration with the Government of Chile. As part of this collaboration, the World Bank produced two related reports, including: (i) a comparative report that analyzes the K-12 education quality assurance systems of Ireland, the Netherlands, New Zealand and Scotland to understand how quality assurance functions are distributed across central government institutions; the characteristics of these institutions; and the relationships between them; and (ii) a comparative report that analyzes how these four OECD systems have evolved over time; what lessons emerge from their experience implementing institutional reforms in the past 15 years; and what lessons emerge regarding the exercise of education quality assurance functions. In addition, the report draws on two research papers by local experts analyzing the implementation of institutional reforms in Chile s health and criminal justice sectors, as well as on an analysis of the Chilean Ministry of Education s current organizational and human resources capabilities conducted by Ministry of Education staff.