@article{angrist_stemming_2020, title = {Stemming {Learning} {Loss} {During} the {Pandemic}: {A} {Rapid} {Randomized} {Trial} of a {Low}-{Tech} {Intervention} in {Botswana}}, issn = {1556-5068}, shorttitle = {Stemming {Learning} {Loss} {During} the {Pandemic}}, url = {https://www.ssrn.com/abstract=3663098}, doi = {10.2139/ssrn.3663098}, abstract = {The COVID-19 pandemic has closed schools for over 1.6 billion children, with potentially long-term consequences. This paper provides some of the first experimental evidence on strategies to minimize the fallout of the pandemic on education outcomes. We evaluate two low-technology interventions to substitute schooling during this period: SMS text messages and direct phone calls. We conduct a rapid trial in Botswana to inform real-time policy responses collecting data at four- to six-week intervals. We present results from the first wave. We find early evidence that both interventions result in cost-effective learning gains of 0.16 to 0.29 standard deviations. This translates to a reduction in innumeracy of up to 52 percent. We find increased parental engagement in their child’s education and more accurate parent perceptions of their child’s learning. In a second wave of the trial, we provide targeted instruction, customizing text messages to the child's learning level using data from the first wave. The low-tech interventions tested have immediate policy relevance and could have long-run implications for the role of technology and parents as substitutes or complements to the traditional education system.}, language = {en}, urldate = {2020-08-12}, journal = {SSRN Electronic Journal}, author = {Angrist, Noam and Bergman, Peter and Brewster, Caton and Matsheng, Moitshepi}, month = jul, year = {2020}, note = {KerkoCite.ItemAlsoKnownAs: 10.2139/ssrn.3663098 2129771:37WVYGRH 2129771:3GGG8ENA 2129771:4XBSBHNZ 2129771:J8UCMIES 2129771:NQQA5HAW 2129771:U3ZVQN5U 2129771:ZAKRMJ4F 2405685:7YTYUC4P}, keywords = {Education, Human Capital, Technology, \_COVID\_DEAA-List, \_\_C:filed:1}, }