IEA Project Director Dr. Steffen Knoll, Senior Advisor and former Executive Director of IEA Dr. Hans Wagemaker and Consortium partner NFER (National Foundation for Educational Research) represented by Dr. Angela Hopkins met in Gaborone, Botswana, for the inception meeting of the Botswana Educational Achievement Monitor (BEAM) project at the premises of the Botswana Examinations Council (BEC).
BEAM is one of IEA's new capacity building projects to support local governments in establishing a achievement monitor system to observe student performances over time. It is intended to facilitate educational reform and improvement in key subject matter areas. IEA and NFER will provide knowledge, procedures and tools around areas, such as: assessment framework development, item development, item piloting, field testing and preparation for main data collection. The goal is to empower BEC staff to continue the development and implementation of national assessments over time to identify trends.
The inception meeting was an important opportunity for the consortium to meet with the CEO of BEC Prof. Brian Mokopakgosi, the Director of Research Dr. Moreetsi Thobega, the project manager Mr. Tshepiso Masukusuku and project stakeholders of the ministry and involved organisations to learn and discuss next steps. We look forward to a fruitful collaboration on this exciting project.