Efficiency and effectiveness of investment in high-quality education and training

Topic description

ExpectedOutcome:

Projects should contribute to all of the following expected outcomes:

• Design, develop and use methodologies to evaluate the effectiveness and efficiency of specific policy measures or programmes in the field of education and training based on rigorous quantitative research methods, for example randomised controlled trials, natural experiments or other statistical techniques to perform causal evaluations.
• Gather evidence to assess costs and benefits to compare the efficiency of policy measures or programmes.
• Identify education and training policies ensuring an efficient use of public resources to improve learning outcomes, as well as measures of equity and inclusion of education and training systems.
• Develop policy recommendations to inform policy measures, programmes, future evaluations and actions in the field of education and training.

Effective and efficient investment in education and training at all educational levels and for all age groups is a prerequisite for enhancing quality and inclusiveness of the education and training systems, improving the education outcomes, meeting the European Education Area objectives and targets, as well as for driving sustainable growth, improving well-being, and building a more inclusive society^[1]. The Commission launched an Expert Group on Quality Investment in Education and Training^[2] focusing on teachers and trainers, digital education, education infrastructure and learning environments and equity and inclusion.

Investing effectively and efficiently in education and training has a potential to aid the recovery and contribute to the green and digital transitions of the education and training sector. However, most of the empirical evidence on the evaluation of education and training policies comes from the United States or the United Kingdom. More analysis in EU Member States and Associated Countries is necessary to know if promising policies identified in the academic literature would be effective in a different local context. Moreover, a cost-benefit analysis of the policy measures evaluated is rarely available. Proposals should select education and training policy measures or programmes and assess their effectiveness to improve learning outcomes and measures of equity and inclusion in education and training systems, considering the situation of learners facing disadvantages, and including adult learning. Proposals could complement the quantitative research methods analysis with qualitative research methods. Proposals should also evaluate the costs associated with the policy measures or programmes analysed. Close cooperation with authorities responsible for the education and training policies analysed at the relevant level of Government is essential and should be ensured. Proposals should improve knowledge about the links between the outcomes of policy actions or programmes and their specific contexts, and about conditions for success to enhance the EU value-added. Clustering and cooperation with other selected projects under this call and other relevant projects are strongly encouraged.

[1] Council Resolution 2021/C 66/01: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=uriserv:OJ.C_.2021.066.01.0001.01.ENG

[2] https://ec.europa.eu/transparency/expert-groups-register/screen/expert-groups/consult?do=groupDetail.groupDetail&groupID=3759