Embedding Technical Support for System-Wide, Evidence-Based Education Reform in Delhi

The low effort and effectiveness of government teachers in India is now well-documented. A number of randomized evaluations have shown that non-discretionary, systematic monitoring and incentives can raise teacher effort and improve student achievement. However, the question that remains to be addressed by existing research is whether school systems can adopt mechanisms to monitor teacher attendance and effort, and provide feedback to teachers at scale. This project will embed a J-PAL South Asia Research Associate (RA) in the Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (GoNCTD) to assist with the preparation of a randomized evaluation of a state-wide rollout of Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) cameras in the 22,000 classrooms under the supervision of the state’s Directorate of Education (DoE). The RA will lend support to other ongoing policy dialogues with GoNCTD, as well as help strengthen its capacity to collect and analyze administrative data.