Economist identifies useful education reforms in India

Jim Berry believes that economics can be a force for good. His projects in India use economic studies and principles to uncover the best ways to alleviate poverty and inform policy. His most recent work shows that although government officials in developing countries tout increases in enrollment as a sign of improvements in primary education, test scores show actual learning hasn't matched this progress. Berry, assistant professor of economics, began his work in India as part of his dissertation at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, with MIT's Jameel Poverty Action Lab, where he is an affiliate. He lived in India from 2002-03 as a research assistant. His research shows that adding a volunteer teacher outside classroom time or offering teacher training and supervision can make a substantial difference in a child's learning.For his current research project, Berry considered the many challenges India faced in its educational system: lack of classroom furniture and materials, automatic grade promotion, low parental involvement and poorly trained teachers. Since past research had shown little educational improvement from infrastructure changes, Berry focused on changing curricula, teacher training and evaluating reforms - originally devised by education-focused nongovernmental organizations - that he and his co-authors call "teaching at the right level." The method encourages teachers to split classes into smaller groups based on ability and use targeted materials and methods to teach students at their individual level.