Identifying Effective Education Interventions in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Meta-Analysis of Impact Evaluations

Abstract

In this article, I identify educational interventions with an impact on student learning in Sub-Saharan Africa. After a systematic literature search, I conducted a meta-analysis synthesizing 56 articles containing 66 separate experiments and quasi-experiments and 83 treatment arms. I evaluated 12 types of education interventions such as the provision of school supplies, the use of teacher incentives, and school-based management programs. I examine each intervention type, present analytics on relative effectiveness, and explore why certain interventions seem to be more effective. A key finding is that programs that alter teacher pedagogy or classroom instructional techniques had an effect size approximately 0.30 standard deviations greater than all other types of programs combined. Limited evidence further suggests that pedagogical programs that employed adaptive instruction or teacher coaching were particularly effective. Given that the literature in the field is still nascent overall, these results advocate for further research into these pedagogical interventions.