BE² April 2025 Newsletter

• Education World Forum, 18-21 May 2025, London: The Education World Forum (EWF) is the world’s largest annual gathering of education and skills ministers. It is hosted by the UK’s Department for Education and supported by FCDO, Department for Business and Trade and the British Council, and is now under new stewardship by Times Higher Education (THE). This year’s topic is: From stability to growth: Building stronger, better, bolder education together. For more information, access this link.
• Catch-up then what? Aligning education systems with children’s realities. The webinar, organized by the Open University, CSGD, and World Vision, will be held virtually on 27^th May 2025, 12:00–13:15 BST. This session will bring together researchers and practitioners to discuss systemic strategies for supporting vulnerable children’s educational recovery and progression. For more information, access this link.
• International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement: 11^th IEA International Research Conference (IEA IRC) will be held in Rome, Italy, 25–27 June 2025. Hosted by the Department of Humanities at Roma Tre University, with pre-conference workshops on 23–24 June, the conference will explore the theme “Researching Education for Sustainable Futures”. For more information, access this link.

Useful resources

• AI Revolution in Higher Education: What you need to know – Ezequiel Molina, Exequiel Medina and The World Bank
• Impact of USAID withdrawal on global education and skills development – European Training Foundation (ETF). Prepared for the ETF by Elena Walls (former BE² Steering Committee member) with contributions from Hugues Moussy, Thierry Foubert and Ermina Martini from the ETF. The report highlights the challenges and opportunities for the EU following the dismantling of USAID.
• See also the related webinar recording: Impact of USAID withdrawal on Global Education and Skills Development ENG
• Moving from intention to action on disability inclusion in education – Global Partnership for Education, Mariana Rudge, Sightsavers, and Wenna Price
• One year of CEPE: Strengthening Education Through Evidence in Colombia – Ana Cubillo, Jacobs Foundation
• Testing Digital Accessibility in Education – The Case of the Dominican Republic – UNICEF Innocenti
• The Impact of Population Trends on the Needs of the Education System – UNICEF
• Unlocking High-Quality Teaching – OECD
• 2025 Latin America Report – UNESCO GEM Report and OEI
• 5 insights from a survey on stakeholders’ evidence needs – Madhuri Agarwal, Michelle Kaffenberger, Lily Kilburn and What Works Hub for Global Education Working Paper

Past events

• Leveraging the Science of Learning for Education Transformation: The Role of Knowledge Brokering for Innovating Teaching and Learning. – UNESCO – On 29^th April 2025, UNESCO hosted a session of the FA1 (Evidence and Policy) Learning Series. The event brought together policymakers, researchers, and practitioners to explore how knowledge brokering can bridge the gap between global research and local implementation. The session highlighted strategies for translating the science of learning into meaningful, context-specific education reforms, fostering collaboration among diverse actors to drive evidence-based innovation in teaching and learning. For more information click here.
• The Teaching Profession Reimagined: Adapting to a Changing World – OECD – On 23^rd April 2025. The session explored emerging trends in teacher professionalism, highlighting the need for career diversity, strengthened autonomy, and supportive work environments. Drawing on insights from the OECD’s New Professionalism and the Future of Teaching project, speakers discussed how schools and systems can empower teachers and foster sustainable, dynamic careers. Watch the recording here.
• Building Strong Foundations in Education: Lessons from India – Pratham Education Foundation – On 23^rd April 2025, Rukmini Banerji, CEO of Pratham Education Foundation, delivered a lecture on Pratham’s innovative, community-based approaches to improving foundational learning in India. Drawing on decades of experience, she highlighted effective, low-cost interventions that strengthen early literacy and numeracy, promote equity, and leverage technology to reach marginalized children.
• The Africa’s Higher Education Centers of Excellence (ACEs), together with their partners, got together to celebrate their 10th Anniversary in a high-level forum. The celebration took place in Accra (Ghana), on April 7-9.  The op-ed authored by Ousmane Diagana, Vice-president, Western and Central Africa, World Bank, and Mamta Murthi, Vice-president, People, World Bank is available on AllAfrica.com and Voices.
• World Bank resources on inclusive education and children with disabilities: Inclusive Education, Disability Data Hub,  Inclusive Education Approach Paper, blog: “Educating children with disabilities: Addressing the unfinished agenda. Reflections a decade later.”