Assessing basic competencies: a practical methodology

Abstract

Following the 1990 World Conference on Education for All in Jorntien, Thailand, many developing countries are making efforts to achieve basic education for all by the year 2000. However, when it comes to measuring educational progress, there are few methodologies that can overcome the many problems and controversies in this area. This paper describes a serviceable methodology for measuring basic ,education (competencies in reading, writing and arithmetic, as well as selected life ~kills), which has proven to be simple, inexpensive and rapid. This approach. termed the Assessment of Basic Competencies (ABC), has been tested in Bangladesh on 2,100 children between the ages of 11 and 12. The results are discussed here. This methodology may be of use to education programme managers in other developing countries.