South Asia Regional Conference: Using Large-Scale Assessments

A South Asia regional conference on Using Large Scale Assessments to Improve Teaching and Learning took place from April 25-27, 2018 in New Delhi, India. The conference brought together policy makers and assessment officials from eight South Asian countries, assessment experts from national and international agencies, and representatives from Vietnam, Chile and Indonesia.

The objective of the conference was to initiate a knowledge-sharing dialogue on assessment practices in basic education in the South Asia region, and to learn from countries’ experiences with using assessment data to improve teaching and learning.

The agenda focused on:

1. The role and value of assessments in global contexts and the importance of networking within the South Asia region
2. Exploring ways in which international and regional assessments may be used to promote better teaching and learning in the future
3. Learning about assessment systems in the South Asia region and promoting cross-learning about assessment practices and use of assessment data
4. Learning about the design of exemplar systems and the challenges faced in their development
5. Enhancing knowledge on reporting of internationally comparable data on assessments and reporting achievement against the Sustainable Development Goals for Education
6. Exploring how noncognitive skills can be taught in schools and how they are measured
7. Collectively charting the future direction for collaboration and capacity development activities to improve learning through assessment in South Asia.

The conference was funded by the Russia Education Aid for Development (READ) Trust Fund. Established in October 2008, the READ Trust Fund is a collaboration of the Government of the Russian Federation and the World Bank. The program focuses on improving education quality and learning outcomes in low-income countries through the design, implementation, and use of robust systems for student assessment.