Assessing student learning: yes, but what next?

Evaluation plays a prominent role in national policies to improve education quality. It is emphasized by those involved, and significant logistical and financial resources are allocated to evaluation. However, the education system fails to use these resources effectively to regulate policies and initiatives at all levels. This observation is one of the findings that have been made by the IIEP- UNESCO Dakar Education Quality Management Support Programme during its diagnostic phase of quality management practices in several countries. These diagnostics reveal significant capacity for collecting data that are valuable for education policy, whether in the field of school statistics, multi-sector surveys or learning assessments.