All is Not Lost: USAID’s Education Data Has Been Preserved

Authors: Hetal Thukral (sustainED, LLC), Amber Gove (Gove Consulting), Cally Ardington (DataFirst) and Erin Meyer (ICPSR)

When USAID terminated its education programs in early 2025, it also removed public access to a rich collection of data on global learning outcomes–putting at risk two decades of work and hundreds of datasets. These datasets, critical to researchers, implementers and most importantly, decision-makers in each country, were nearly lost. In June 2025, a data sharing agreement between USAID and the University of Michigan’s Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR), allowed these data to be publicly available through the DataLumos platform.

2,500 files from 109 education projects across 43 countries and 20 years were saved

These datasets and their associated files, including instruments, reports and codebooks, were publicly available on USAID’s Data Development Library (DDL) website until early March 2025 when the site went dark. Our endeavor benefited from insider knowledge of USAID’s processes and contracts, initiative from data champions withinUSAID (at the time) and the research data community, and the continued demand for answers across the sector. 

The key ingredient to saving the data? Persistence. From navigating internal processes at USAID (and State Department) at a time when reductions in force and changes in leadership were unpredictable, to finding a trusted, vetted home for federal data - persistence was key.

Getting a data sharing agreement in place in July 2025 between USAID and ICPSR was just the first step to make the data publicly available again. With the agreement in place, copies of USAID education data were securely transferred to ICPSR.

Next, we needed to sort the files and upload them into ICPSR’s platform for at-risk government data, DataLumos. The DDL files had been organized by contract or task order (or more often referred to as ‘projects’), but as we grappled with how best to organize these resources for future users, we realized this framework may be less relevant going forward. We also knew that organizing data files by a project timeline - such as baseline, midline and endline - or by components of an activity - such as data from a parent engagement activity conducted by one implementing organization separately from the classroom interventions conducted by another organization - may require additional information that many external users may not readily have access to.

So, we grouped and reorganized the files by country and within country, by projects. Projects contain all data files relevant to that USAID award. We used projects as the organizing structure because it is predictable. Within projects, we allowed variability in file structures, as many file names and formats differed depending on the submitting organization’s conventions. A combination of automated and human checking was required to identify data files, codebooks, instruments, and reports. 

Once files were sorted, we partnered with the team at Research Data Access and Preservation (RDAP) and ICPSR, to host a hackathon in early August. Invitations were circulated via listservs and social media, inviting the public to join a 90-minute session to help tag datasets and craft summary language for each dataset and country-level collection. Over 110 volunteers helped review data files, match them to project descriptions, and prepare folders to upload into the DataLumos platform. 

For each country, the volunteers helped develop a file that describes the project, characteristics of the sample, languages, and assessments (whether the dataset includes an early grade reading or math assessment (EGRA or EGMA), surveys, or other instruments).

Finally, the DataFirst and ICPSR teams continue to work tirelessly to make all of the USAID education data collection available on the DataLumos platform. As of October 3, 2025, all the data shared by USAID directly with ICPSR has been uploaded to the platform.

How do I access the data?

There are currently two ways to get to the data:

1. Go to the DataLumos platform and create a free account. Browse by Government Agency and select “United States Agency for International Development.” Within the country folders, we have added an excel file with metadata such as languages, assessment tools, sampling information, and more. 

2. Access the data via the map below. The country links will take you to the DataLumos platform, where you will still need to create a (free) account to access the files.

What next?

We ask you to add to the USAID education data collection 

We know there are more datasets out there! If you know of data that is missing from the DataLumos repository, you can contribute data yourself. 

What allows all organizations and individuals who collected education data with USAID funds to now share data with ICPSR?

1. At the time of the Data Sharing Agreement execution in July, USAID legal staff confirmed that there is language embedded in every agreement that allows the implementing partner who collected the data to share it for public use. This falls under intangible property, under 2 CFR 200.315.

2. USAID’s data sharing agreement with ICPSR states the following: sublicense shall provide any and all rights to Recipient to archive and make available to others the Data, including, but not limited to, the rights to use, disclose, reproduce, prepare derivative works, distribute copies to the public, and perform publicly and display publicly, in any manner and for any purpose whatsoever, and to have or permit others to do so, in accordance the terms of this Agreement. Recipient agrees that all Data will be archived and provided to third parties with a license that requires attribution to USAID, as provided in the meta data.

What does this all mean for you? It means that if you have USAID-funded education data, and it's not already in the DataLumos platform, you can share it because a) 2 CFR 200.315 allows you to do so under your sublicense (the federal agency also retains its own licensing rights) and b) the data sharing agreement sublicenses all USAID data to ICPSR with all rights, with attribution to USAID. 

Not sure what to do with your in-process datasets? We are seeking funding for a pool of consultants to strip datasets of Personally Identifiable Information (PII) and create a standardized Public Use File (PUF) version for (as the name indicates) public use. If you already have a PUF but had not uploaded to the DDL, you can upload the PUF (along with codebooks, reports and instruments) to the DataLumos site.

You can also reach out to us if you have questions before you upload or if you would prefer to transfer the files to us to process and upload. We are happy to have a call to share additional lessons. Contact us at usaideducationdata@gmail.com

Please use and encourage others to use the USAID education data collection

Help us get the word out. There are a thousand dissertation’s worth of evidence in these datasets, and we want the world to see what can be done when we share evidence. We can’t wait to see what this community will do with these datasets. 

Help us improve the USAID education data collection

Let’s take advantage of this moment to set ourselves up for the future. We know that the collection has significant gaps - at times you’ll find a dataset but not the instruments or item quality information; you may find a short discussion of the sample but the sampling procedures aren’t documented thoroughly. We are hoping that cleaner, harmonized, streamlined versions of datasets will emerge from the community. As you find yourself curating a collection of datasets, please share them back with DataLumos for the future us to build on.

We have certainly learned the value of redundancy (having data saved and publicly available in multiple places), and we’re looking at the models used by the health sector to standardize processes for posting and embedding the requirements for public use data. Help us improve what we can in this collection by adding what you may have and let’s together create better data management and storage processes in the future. 

When you know better, you do better (thanks, Maya Angelou, we know you were thinking about data when you said that).

Oh, and we’re still working on saving USAID Teaching and Learning Materials. The Early Learning Resource Network will be uploading openly licensed books created with USAID funding to make these available for printing and reuse. We will share more about how and why we make these resources openly available. Reach out to the ELRN team if you want to share your resources with a global audience: info@earlylearningresourcenetwork.org

Case Studies: Impact of Education Program Terminations

Cambodia (IECD – 15M; IPEA – 25M):

• For years, USAID-funded scholarships helped build a digitally skilled Cambodian workforce by supporting tuition and essentials like laptops, dorms, and health insurance—especially for young women, rural students, and people with disabilities who would otherwise have no access to higher education. Now, that opportunity is disappearing. Ninety-three scholarships already awarded are being revoked, part of a broader freeze impacting 30 USAID contracts worth $260 million. Cutting these programs midstream doesn’t just waste resources—it devastates high-performing students from Cambodia’s poorest communities, many of whom will now be forced to drop out. This reinforces deep inequities—urban over rural, male over female, rich over poor—and closes doors for youth who had finally been given a chance.

• Impact on Private Sector Partnership: And these USAID scholarships were implemented in cooperation with America's corporate partners, like Meta and Amazon Web Services (AWS), who are eager and working to expand their presence in Southeast Asia and with youth more broadly. If the U.S. is serious about business and regional partnership, pulling out of higher education is short-sighted at best, and self-defeating at worst.

• Increasing Influence of China: And if the U.S. steps back, others step in. China, for one, is not shy about filling the space.

• China has already publicly stepped in to continue USAID's literacy programs.) In 2024 alone, China granted full university scholarships to 200 Cambodian students, part of a steady and strategic soft-power competition campaign in the region.

• China announced that it would be launching a partnership with UNICEF to improve quality inclusive education, health, nutrition, and hygiene for Cambodia’s most vulnerable children.

• Based on the information provided in the press release, this new effort by China Aid seems to replicate the content of two RTI-implemented USAID programs that were recently terminated: the Integrated Early Childhood Development (IECD – 15M) program and its Inclusive Primary Education Activity (IPEA – 25M). Together, IECD and IPEA were making America safer, stronger, and more prosperous by reducing poverty, building goodwill, and forming a strategic safeguard against Chinese influence in the geopolitically strategic country of Cambodia. The IECD Activity helped Cambodian children and families thrive by improving nutrition for young children, promoting agricultural practices that enhance community nutrition, improving water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) practices, facilitating screening and access to services for children with developmental delays or disabilities, and helping children meet critical developmental milestones. IECD focused on early childhood, with particular emphasis on the first 1,000 days (from conception to age 2). This project also decreased the risk of human trafficking of vulnerable children, thus cutting off funding sources for transnational criminal organizations – including organizations that traffic not only in humans but also fentanyl. IPEA supported the development and implementation of Cambodia’s reading program for grades 1-3, thereby expanding access to high-quality education for students nationwide, including children with disabilities. This programming was a force multiplier in the pursuit of sustainable economic growth, poverty alleviation, social stability, and participatory democracy. The China Aid launch event in Phnom Penh was held one week to the day after USAID canceled both projects.

• In March 2025, the Trump Administration eliminated two U.S.-supported aid projects aimed at promoting childhood literacy and improving nutrition for children under five in Cambodia. Subsequently, China’s foreign assistance agency announced funding through UNICEF for comparable child education and nutrition programs. (Page 71 of the Committee on Foreign Relations Report – “The Price of Retreat: America Cedes Global Leadership to China”)

• In Cambodia, China signed cooperation agreements spanning key sectors including energy, education, infrastructure, trade, connectivity and tourism. (Page 69 of the Committee on Foreign Relations Report – “The Price of Retreat: America Cedes Global Leadership to China”)

• Indonesia ($5M)

• In March 2025, the Trump Administration terminated a $5 million USAID award that had previously helped the Indonesian International Education Foundation (IIEF) secure $26 million in 2024 to send Indonesians to American universities. The first Trump Administration had supported this activity in 2020. Before its contract termination in March 2025, IIEF was confident it could substantially grow the pipeline of Indonesian students sent to the United States. As a result of the Trump Administration’s foreign assistance freeze, Indonesian scholars had their scholarship plans abruptly disrupted, including a student planning to pursue a doctorate at the University of Rhode Island. Meanwhile, China aggressively recruits Indonesian students to its universities through its “Study in China” initiative, contributing to more than 10,000 Indonesians who study in China each year. (Annex Page 3 of the Committee on Foreign Relations Report – “The Price of Retreat: America Cedes Global Leadership to China”)

• Honduras ($8M):

• Project Name: Early Childhood Education for Youth Employability (ECEYE)

• Termination Status: Terminated

• Description: in partnership with the Honduran Ministry of Education and the private sector, the ECEYE activity aimed to improve the quality of pre-primary education for young children between the ages of 3 to 6 in Honduras. As a result of the termination, more than 100,000 young children won’t benefit from the intervention. The activity was also going to improve employability and economic status for 25,000 young mothers and fathers (while also providing them with quality childcare opportunities), addressing one of the drivers of irregular migration.

• West Bank and Gaza ($49M):

• Project Name: Basic Education Activity (BEA)

• Termination status: Terminated

• Description: The Basic Education Activity (BEA) worked closely with local organizations and stakeholders to strengthen non-governmental education services and improve the wellbeing and learning outcomes of children in kindergarten through grade 6.

• U.S. Strategic Objectives: the activity supported the resumption of social services in Gaza, and the use of education as a means to increase stability and mitigate violent extremism, while providing access to important psychosocial support for children coping with the negative impacts of disaster and conflict.

• Implementing partners: Creative Associate International (MD) and local implementing partners.

• Uzbekistan ($25M):

• Termination Status: Terminated

• As part of longstanding U.S.-Uzbekistan education cooperation, two critical initiatives—in-service training for 200,000 teachers and updated materials for 27,000 future educators—are now at risk due to project suspensions. If in-service training is halted, 40,000 teachers will miss essential professional development, directly impacting the quality of instruction for millions of primary school children. Delays in updating pre-service curricula jeopardize the training of future teachers, threatening the long-term quality of education across the country.

• Cutting these programs weakens children’s learning outcomes and undermines reforms designed to raise educational standards. It also damages U.S. credibility and leadership in a key strategic region.

• When we pull back from successful partnerships, we leave a vacuum that others will fill—making America weaker, not stronger.

• Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC):

• Termination Status: Terminated

• Jennifer, a USAID colleague, was stationed overseas with her colleagues to promote access to education amongst the highly fragile and conflict-ridden DRC. Just one day after the global stop work order was issued (January 25, 2025), Rwandan-backed militants overtook the capital city and displaced upwards of 10,000 people. In regular circumstances, Jennifer and her team would launch into action to provide services to the youth impacted by this conflict, youth that are particularly vulnerable to forced military service, forced child labor in nearby mines, gender-based violence, and other horrors of conflict. Instead, Jennifer and her team were forced to wait for waivers that never came – to date, none of the education programming operating prior to January 24th in the DRC has resumed. This is a missed opportunity to provide life-saving assistance and ensure the next generation of children in the DRC are able to pursue bright futures rather than succumb to extremism and worse, outcomes that will impact regional security and could lead to increased US military presence in the future.

• Nigeria:

• Termination Status: Terminated

• Inclusive Development Partners (IDP) is a Kansas-based, women-owned small business that, until recently, partnered with USAID to institutionalize best practices related to inclusivity in education, particularly for children with disabilities, all around the world. In Nigeria, for example, IDP worked to ensure that out-of-school children – many of whom have disabilities – were finally reached with educational opportunities to ensure these otherwise overlooked youth were able to gain foundational skills, including literacy, numeracy, and social and emotional skills, in order to progress to higher levels of education, training and/or engagement in the workforce. This program not only was life changing for the children beneficiaries, their families, and their communities, but also decreased the risk of destabilizing factors like human trafficking and extremist recruitment – both of which are key to American interests in maintaining stability in Nigeria and the broader region.

• Algeria (1.2M):

• The suspension of the WE2-Design Program in Algeria has blocked 800 women and youth in eight communities from launching small businesses that respond to local economic needs.

• This makes America less safe: Algeria borders unstable regions where extremist groups operate. By cutting off economic opportunities, we leave vulnerable populations exposed to terrorist recruitment tactics based on financial desperation. Fewer options for youth means more openings for extremism.

• This makes America weaker: The U.S. exit leaves a vacuum that China and Russia are eager to fill. Abruptly halting support damages trust, undermines U.S. credibility, and reinforces authoritarian influence in a strategic region.

• This makes America less prosperous: A stable, growing Algerian economy creates future markets for U.S. businesses in energy, infrastructure, and tech. Without engagement, China will continue locking the U.S. out of valuable opportunities.

• In short, ending this program doesn’t just hurt local women and youth—it harms U.S. security, economic competitiveness, and global leadership.

• Zambia (50M):

• Termination Status: Terminated

• After four years of progress transforming pre-service teacher training in Zambia, the project’s final and most critical phase—transferring leadership to the Ministry of Education—has been halted due to the foreign aid freeze. This puts the literacy gains of thousands of Zambian children at risk. Without trained teachers, students are less likely to learn to read, increasing dropout rates and perpetuating poverty.

• This makes America less safe: A generation of Zambian youth growing up without basic literacy weakens economic prospects and heightens the risk of social instability, which extremist groups can exploit—undermining regional and global security.

• This makes America weaker: By walking away at the handover stage, the U.S. breaks trust and loses influence in Zambia, where China remains a visible and reliable partner. It signals to our allies that U.S. commitments can vanish overnight.

• This makes America less prosperous: Stalled education reforms mean higher unemployment in Zambia and fewer future markets for U.S. trade and investment. A more educated Zambia benefits global stability and creates economic opportunity for both countries.

• This funding pause threatens not just a project, but the future of Zambian children—and America’s role as a trusted global leader.

• Malawi (15.6M):

• Termination Status: Terminated

• All USAID programming in Malawi—including the STEP teacher training initiative—has been abruptly halted, leaving 90,000 primary school teachers without essential training in early-grade literacy and numeracy. This directly harms millions of Malawian children, who will now continue to receive poor-quality instruction. Without basic reading skills, students are more likely to drop out, fall into poverty, or become vulnerable to exploitation.

• This makes America less safe: By walking away from foundational education, we forfeit a key tool for building stability in Southern Africa—opening space for extremist groups to exploit vulnerable youth and further destabilize the region.

• This makes America weaker: The sudden termination of programs has damaged U.S. credibility. Local leaders now say China keeps its promises while America walks away. China’s airport road is on time and visible—U.S. education programs have vanished.

• This makes America less prosperous: A poorly educated workforce limits Malawi’s economic growth and future trade potential. And with no active programming, U.S. companies lose the chance to introduce educational tools and technology, ceding influence to competitors.

• In short, ending this program doesn't just hurt teachers and children—it harms America's global reputation, weakens our alliances, and limits future economic opportunity.

• South Sudan ($43M)

• Project Name: USAID South Sudan Youth Empowerment Activity

• Termination Status: Terminated

• The USAID Youth Empowerment Activity (YEA) reached 20,500 out-of-school youth in South Sudan, providing literacy, numeracy, health education, and business skills—especially for young women who made up 62% of participants. Despite operating in one of the world’s harshest environments, YEA empowered youth to read for the first time, launch businesses, and lead in their communities. Yet, just 2.5 years into a 4-year plan, the program was terminated. Cutting this program denies thousands of young people the chance to read, earn, and lead, leaving them vulnerable to poverty, exploitation, and instability.

• This makes America less safe: Youth without education or economic opportunity are more likely to be exploited by violent or extremist groups, fueling insecurity in a fragile region.

• This makes America weaker: The U.S. walked away midstream. China and other powers now appear more reliable partners in the eyes of local communities.

• This makes America less prosperous: We’ve lost the chance to support a rising generation of entrepreneurs, workers, and future partners—limiting long-term economic and diplomatic opportunity.

• Ending YEA didn't just end a program—it ended opportunity for thousands of youth who saw education as their way forward.

• Tibet ($40M)

• Termination Status: Terminated

• In March 2025, the Trump Administration terminated approximately $40 million in support for ethnic Tibetans in exile, including $2 million to promote education among Tibetan children. USAID has also supported Tibet’s government in exile’s ability to push back against China’s propaganda. The Chinese government has led a decades long crackdown on independent voices inside and outside of Tibet. As recently as June 2025, IBM reported that Chinese-affiliated actors were leading a hacking campaign to spy against Tibetan groups in the lead up to the Dalai Lama’s 90th birthday on July 6. (Page 74 of the Committee on Foreign Relations Report – “The Price of Retreat: America Cedes Global Leadership to China”)

• The Gambia ($25M)

• In December 2024, MCC selected The Gambia as eligible to develop a compact based in part on its performance under its $25 million threshold program. The compact would address economic underutilization of the Gambia River for transport and tourism and low enrollment and poor quality of education. In a June 2025 briefing, MCC informed the Senate Foreign Relations Committee staff that development plans for this compact have been placed on hold due to the Trump Administration’s foreign assistance review. Meanwhile, China continues to build infrastructure around The Gambia River, including announcements in August 2024 that they would construct two bridges to boost transportation. (Annex Page 15 of the Committee on Foreign Relations Report – “The Price of Retreat: America Cedes Global Leadership to China”)

• Africa:

• At the 2024 Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, China announced it would establish an alliance of Chinese and African hospitals that includes joint medical centers to elevate China-Africa health cooperation. Beijing announced that it would provide training for 100 African medical professionals and support the development and operation of Africa’s Centres for Disease Control and Prevention headquarters and its sub-regional centers. China will also provide Africa with approximately $840 million in military grant support to strengthen African armed forces, train 6,000 African military personnel and invite 500 African military officers to undergo training in China. Beijing will also train 1,000 police enforcement officers across the continent. Lastly, Beijing will provide “Chinese language plus vocational skills” education in Africa, roll out Chinese-language workshops and train African personnel with Chinese language proficiency and vocational skills. (Annex Page 7 of the Committee on Foreign Relations Report – “The Price of Retreat: America Cedes Global Leadership to China”)

• Global:

• Makes drastic cuts to U.S. humanitarian and food assistance: The Trump Administration’s FY 2026 budget request proposes cutting lifesaving humanitarian assistance by 61%. These cuts would eliminate the procurement and delivery of U.S.- grown food aid. The proposal would also terminate international food assistance programs, including Food for Peace, Food for Progress, and the McGovern-Dole Food for Education programs that purchase millions of tons of commodities from American farmers such as wheat, rice, beans and sorghum. Meanwhile, as China continues to develop its own foreign assistance capabilities, it is gaining ground by attempting to recreate U.S. assistance programming. (Page 19 of the Committee on Foreign Relations Report – “The Price of Retreat: America Cedes Global Leadership to China”)

• The Trump Administration’s FY2026 budget request would eliminate Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) funding by 93%. Instead of offering an alternative to programs it disagrees with, the Trump Administration is choosing to abandon decades of U.S. cultural and educational leadership and cede these opportunities to Beijing. (Page 50 of the Committee on Foreign Relations Report – “The Price of Retreat: America Cedes Global Leadership to China”)

Measuring What We Treasure: Assessment Practices for Early Childhood Care and Education

Written by USAID and BEC’s Early Childhood Education (ECE) Working Group

Photo Credit: Patricia Esteve and RTI

Meheret, a 5-year-old girl from the Somali Region in Ethiopia, walked to a shaded, quiet place outside her Early Learning Center. There, she discovered a colorful mat, books, and other play materials, including blocks. An assessor asks Meheret about shapes and numbers and her friends. Before long, she laughs as she hops on one foot. What do these activities have in common?

Meheret participated in an early childhood care and education (ECCE) assessment. An assessor asked standardized, child-friendly questions to measure Meheret’s emergent literacy and math skills, social and emotional development, and motor skills. Alongside thousands of other young children in Ethiopia, Meheret demonstrates the abilities she has developed throughout the school year. Policy makers, government officials, and Ministries of Education and Health find this data crucial to track progress towards early childhood goals nationally, and report internationally on contributions towards key strategic documents, such as the Advancing Protection and Care for Children in Adversity: A U.S. Government Strategy for Children to Thrive (2024–2029) (USG Thrive Strategy). The USG Thrive Strategy aims to integrate Early Childhood Development (ECD) interventions, including ECCE, into foreign assistance programs to support children from vulnerable groups and their families. Furthermore, the 2018 USAID Education Policy prioritizes, “sustained, measurable improvements in learning outcomes and skills development,” including at the pre-primary level. The current USG Strategy on International Basic Education (2024-2029) calls for government activities across the education continuum to, “generate and use data and evidence to drive decision-making and investments.” The early childhood goals are clear, but the question remains–how do we track progress to achieve these goals?

This September, USAID launched a new standard ECCE indicator, marking the first inclusion of a learning outcome indicator at the pre-primary level among USAID standard indicators. This significant achievement for young children’s education enhances the visibility of ECCE goals and the progress towards their achievement on a global level. Specifically, it means that learning outcomes for young children benefiting from USAID support will be reported to Congress of the United States annually.

Indicator ES.1.1-1, “Average early learning skills score for pre-primary learners targeted for USG assistance,” is meant to capture improvements in learning and educational outcomes, including emergent literacy and math skills, social and emotional skills, and motor skills. Dr. Abbie Raikes, founder of ECD Measure explains, “We’ve learned through Together for Early Childhood Evidence, that government and civil society leaders [in the Africa region] are eager to have reliable data on early child development to inform investments and programs. USAID’s effort to collect data on young children’s learning and development is a great step forward in building data-driven early childhood systems.”

IDELA assessment of Accelerated School Readiness (ASR) learner Samira Ahmed at Galma Pre-Primary School in Sawena Arda Woreda, Oromia Region.

Photo Credit: Ahmed Mohammed a CDA-ODA co-facilitator at Galma School

Tools for Measuring Progress and Impact

USAID implementing partners have flexibility in how to measure the indicator as long as they use an age-appropriate assessment with satisfactory psychometric validity, reliability, and fairness.

When choosing a tool, implementers can benefit from expert guidance from organizations such as USAID, ECD Measure, the World Bank, and the IDELA Network Community of Practice.

Implementing partners can use a variety of relevant tools to measure the indicator including the International Development and Early Learning Assessment (IDELA) tool from Save the Children, the World Bank’s AIM-ECD (Anchor Items for the Measurement of Early Childhood Development) and MELQO, as well as national assessment tools like the South Africa’s Early Learning Outcomes Measure (ELOM).

How Can We Measure the Progress of All Children?

Tools like IDELA, AIM-ECD, MELQO, and ELOM help measure programming contributions towards early learning and development of children, but concerted efforts are required to ensure inclusive measurement and capture and report the progress of all children.

Measurement efforts often exclude three groups of young children: those using a language other than the language of instruction, children with disabilities, and those affected by conflict and crisis. By taking the context and needs of different populations of children into account, we can make measurement approaches more inclusive.

1: Contextualize for Language of Instruction

Measuring early childhood development and learning requires robust tools adapted for diverse contexts, such as multilingual communities. Assessment tools must be sensitive to both the language of instruction and the home language of the child. To measure the impact of the kindergarten component of the USAID’s activity Renforcement de la Lecture Initiale pour Tous (RELIT) in Senegal, RTI responded to the multilingual aspect of the Senegalese education ecosystem. “To match the languages of instruction, we translated the assessment tool into five languages,” said Dr. Nell O’Donnell Weber, education research analyst at RTI. “It was a challenge to find data collectors with the required qualifications: bilingual in French and one of languages of instruction, the temperament to work with young children, the will to travel to remote regions.”

Similar language considerations occurred in Ethiopia, where the MELQO tools were adapted to the Ethiopian context, including translating them in six local languages from six regional states. The USAID/LEGO Foundation funded Childhood Development Activity (CDA) has been supporting the Ethiopian Education Assessment and Examinations Services to apply MELQO tools. An upcoming context assessment of the CDA activity will include MELQO tools to provide insights into pre-primary settings and children’s development in conflict- and drought-affected regions.

2: Contextualize for Children with Disabilities

Measurement efforts often exclude children with disabilities because they are not in school, have not received a formal diagnosis, or the assessment lacks accommodations. For example, if Meheret used a wheelchair, would she be excluded from an assessment simply because she could not hop and engage with the items related to the physical development domain?

An IDELA Community of Practice survey revealed that only half of the community users had ever used its tool for assessing children with disabilities. “Challenges to including children with disabilities in assessments is a common and critical issue that we have been trying to address” explained Filipa De Castro, Senior Advisor for Research at Save the Children. “We have developed a set of accommodations for IDELA tailored for different types of disabilities, such as allowing extra time for the child to answer, adapting testing items, or materials to enable children to participate in certain tasks.” With reasonable ECCE assessment accommodations, practitioners can track learning outcomes for all young children, including those with disabilities.

3: Contextualize for Conflict and Crisis Settings

UNICEF estimates 400 million children live in areas affected by conflict and crisis. In protracted crises, which can last between 10 and 26 years, young children may spend the entirety of their childhoods in refugee camps. Conflict and crisis contexts often exhibit data sensitivity, as people and systems may use information to discriminate, overlook, or oppress specific identity groups. In these contexts, data needs must be balanced with ensuring safety of children and their caregivers. USAID uses these important considerations to guide work in early childhood care and education. In Fiscal Year 2022, USAID’s implementing partners advanced pre-primary education in 31 countries, of which 11 experience conflict and crisis.

Next Steps

An indicator is only the first step of many in tracking progress towards global ECCE goals. It provides an opportunity for implementers, governments, donor and international agencies, and all stakeholders in the ECCE sub-sector to develop relevant guidance to move through the necessary tool selection, contextualization, adaptation, methodology design, application, and reporting. For more information on USAID’s ECCE indicator, register for the USAID Young Learners, Big Impact: Measuring Learning Outcomes in Early Childhood Education webinar on October 31, 2024 here.

This blog was co-authored by USAID and the Basic Education Coalition (BEC) Early Childhood Education (ECE) Working Group, writers include: Kate Anderson, Unbounded Associates; Filipa de Castro, Save the Children; Cynthia Koons, Save the Children; MaryFaith Mount-Cors, EdIntersect; Nell O’Donnell Weber, RTI; and Susan Werner, BEC ECE WG Chair. 

Associated Resource(s): Fiscal Year 2024 Compendium of Standard PIRS for Education Programming