Evidence-based And Endogenous
Curriculum Development
Takuya BABA
Hiroshima University, Japan

History of international assistance• International assistance started in 1960 as UN’s firstdevelopment decade• The remarkable international collaboration:
Education for all in 1990, MDGs in 2000, SDGs in2015• Shift of focus in International assistance: Basiceducation, Institution and ownership, Monitoring
the progressInternational and regional assessment
SACMEQSouth Africa, Zambia
Grade6TIMSS 2019
South Africa
Grade 4Averagescore
25％ score
75％ score

374
301
439

Questions regarding education assessment• Can international education assessment
appropriately assess children in terms of the focusof the curriculum in the respective country?
• Can the respective countries utilize the results ofinternational assessment for curriculum
improvement?
• How is the reality of Zambian pupils?

Some findings from our previous study(G5 to G7)

Whether correct or wrong, there are different levels ofstrategies

Role of local expert
Local experts create knowledge based on practice(Baba & Nakai, 2011)
Modernization Theory

Endogenous development

External Expert:
New Knowledge fromOutside

External Expert:

Local Expert:
Importation of New
Knowledge from Outside

Local Expert:
Theorization of Wisdom ofPractice through Examinationof Knowledge from Outside

Practicing Teacher:
Reception of Knowledge
from Outside

Practicing Teacher:Creation of Wisdom ofPracticeJICA research project on Zambianstudents’ numeracy (2018-2021)• Knowledge creation requires professional
discussion based on data and evidence. The
objective is to develop an assessment tool for
Grade 1 to 4 students’ numeracy competence.

• Clements & Sarama (2013) described stepwise
development of children’s understanding using the ideaof learning trajectory.
• Mulligan & Mitchelmore (2009; 2013) developed anassessment method for early mathematical competencefrom the pattern and structure.
• Roberts (2015) identified five representation types and apersistent problem of counting-all strategy.

• Joint research project between University ofZambia and Hiroshima University funded by JICA.

Exploratory Research method• Developmental stage
1) Formulate draft tools,2) Conduct field trials with the draft tools,
3) With analysis of data and revise the draft tools.
• Final stage
1) Conduct Pre-study (Baseline survey)2) Implement Intervention3) Conduct Post-study (Endline survey)

representation
Viewingstructurally

Construction of task based
interview tool

Developmental
stage

Attention togrouping ten

Sample task “Arrange bottle tops using
the mental frame”

Level 4

Level 2

Changes in each gradeChanges in each grade (difference ofdifference)

**
**
**

• ** shows 5% level of statistical significance.
Change in control G
3.21－2.90＝0.31

Change in experimental g
3.51－2.56＝0.95

effect0.95－0.31＝0.64• Even control group may have learning effect. Thus
difference of difference (change in experimental group) –(change in control group) was calculated.

Local knowledge from the exploration• We realize some local knowledge through thisexploration process.
• [One example] After confirming ten bottle tops in
one frame, and adding one onto an empty frame,
we asked the total. The pupil immediately
answered 11. Then we asked him the reason, andhe paused and started counting one by one. There
are some interpretations behind this event.
• [Other examples] Interview questions, Testdevelopment

We are grateful to Ministry of Basic Education,Schools, Teachers, students. Also I thank you JICA, ourcolleagues such UNZA team , staffs, Japanese teamand all.