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News, ideas, and analysis from J-PAL staff and affiliated professors. Subscribe to our newsletter to receive monthly email updates.

Student at computer

Overcoming administrative burdens: Strategies to increase FAFSA filing in the United States

A new J-PAL policy insight highlights evidence from randomized evaluations on interventions to increase FAFSA filing rates. In this post, we situate the insight within the larger context of higher education and barriers to accessing public programs, also known as “administrative burdens.”
Child laughing with parents and holding a spoon

Fostering early child development to alleviate poverty in Guatemala

In Guatemala—one of the countries with the world's highest stunting rates and low early childhood education enrollment—several organizations and government institutions increasingly recognize the importance of improving early child development (ECD) and have accumulated relevant key lessons on ECD...
A woman gives a lecture and gestures with her hands.

Affiliate Spotlight: Raquel Bernal on early childhood education and the importance of lifelong learning

Raquel Bernal is Professor of Economics and President of Universidad de los Andes in Colombia. In this Affiliate Spotlight, she shares more about her path to development economics and her research on early childhood education.
A group sits at tables while two people stand facing a white board.

Facilitating access to administrative data in education: a fruitful partnership between IDEE and the French Ministry of Education

By
To promote experimental research in education, IDEE collaborates with the French Ministry of National Education and Youth to develop new IT tools and resources, specifically an accessible online catalog of administrative data in education.
A student and tutor in a classroom

Tutoring Evaluation Accelerator: Building partnerships to accelerate learning

J-PAL North America announces a new partnership with Accelerate to launch the Tutoring Evaluation Accelerator, which aims to support ten tutoring providers from Accelerate’s Call to Effective Action to implement data-driven programs and generate critical evidence on tutoring.
Tutor and student study together in Gaborone

20 for 20: The tutor is calling - Targeted instruction by phone boosts learning across six countries

By
  • Noam Angrist
  • Amanda Beatty
  • Colin Crossley
Youth Impact tested a phone-based adaptation of Teaching at the Right Level for mathematics that became ConnectEd, a one-on-one tutoring program that uses phones to connect high-quality instruction with students and parents. With ConnectEd, every week grade 3 to 5 students receive math problems...
Two girls doing schoolwork at desk

Affiliate Spotlight: Selim Gulesci on entrepreneurship, gender, and the policymaking process

This affiliate spotlight features reflections from Selim Gulesci on his research surrounding gender, labor, and economics, and touches on his new role of Scientific Advisor for J-PAL Africa’s Girls’ Education and Empowerment portfolio.
Pregnant woman with smartphone

Leveraging technology to improve child-caregiver interactions at scale

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Can technology be used to improve child-caregiver interactions and support child development? Traditional parenting interventions are often costly and tightly controlled, which limits their large-scale implementation. A low-cost intervention called Crianza Positiva, delivering text and audio...