International Policy Forum puts the spotlight on using open school data to combat corruption
The Forum, from 24 to 26 January 2018, brought together researchers of an IIEP comparative study, national policy-makers from some 15 countries, and civil society representatives to discuss and share information on open school data initiatives in Asia, Africa, and Latin America. The discussions brought to the forefront key policy options to facilitate access to more reliable and effective educational data to improve service delivery and reduce corruption in the sector.
Public access to information was widely accepted as one of the most efficient means of achieving better transparency and accountability in education. It enables education authorities to monitor educational progress and outcomes and detect any bottlenecks or malpractice in the system. This can also help identify what types of measures need to be taken to improve overall service delivery.
In this context, many governments and civil society organizations are using a resource known as school report cards to share school-level information. They can cover many aspects of the school environment from student enrolment and achievement, funding, teacher qualifications and pupil-teacher ratios, and school facility conditions, to materials such as textbooks. The information can enable the school community – and specifically parents – to verify if the school has received all of the services and resources it was entitled to.
While the advantages of school report cards are clear, there are still unanswered questions about how to select, present, and use data effectively. During the Forum, participants explored issues such as what are the most critical data for improving transparency and revealing corruption, how can the reliability of information be ensured, and whether there should be any negative effects of open data to take into account. It will also look at the concrete actions required to ensure that data have a real impact on accountability once they are made public.
The Forum relied on the major outcomes of an IIEP research project on open school data conducted in Australia, Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Pakistan and the Philippines. Authors of two state-of-the-art papers on Africa and Latin America were also be present. Altogether, 15 countries were represented through their leaders in charge of open school data at the Ministry of Education level. Major civil society organizations involved in promoting access to education data were also present, including CheckMySchool, Accountability Initiative, Pratham and Transparency International. Discussions culminated with the formulation of policy guidelines aimed at supporting access to more reliable, usable and effective data.
