Eric A. Hanushek, a professor from Hoover Institution of Stanford University in United States of America and Rukmini Banerji, chief executive officer of Pratham Education Foundation in India, have received the 2021 Yidan Prize in recognition of their contributions to education research and development.
Hanushek, who received the 2021 Yidan Prize for Education Research for his academic contributions which focused on education outcomes and the importance of teaching quality, has also transformed research and policy internationally.
Following a rigorous judging process, conducted by an independent judging committee of recognised education experts, Hanushek work scaled the hurdle for helping shape the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 4, which is ensure inclusive and equitable quality education.
It also helps to reframe targets for learning outcomes and has shown that it is how much students learn – and not how many years they spend in school – that boosts economies.
On her part, Rukmini Banerji received the 2021 Yidan Prize for Education Development for her work in improving learning outcomes.
According to the Annual Status of Education Report (ASER), which is an assessment approach pioneered by Banerji and her team in India, there is a literacy and numeracy gaps among children who had already spent several years at school.
Banerji in a bid to close these gaps, through the ‘Teaching at the Right Level’ (TaRL) programme, worked with schools and local communities to provide basic reading and arithmetic skills that ensured no children are left behind.
The TaRL programme has become a systematic and replicable model that reaches millions of children annually in India and around the globe.
Hanushek and Banerji as the recipients of the 2021 Yidan Prize for Education Research and Yidan Prize for Education Development will join nine laureates who have been awarded the Yidan Prize since its inception in 2016. The award was established by the Yidan Prize Foundation – a global philanthropic education foundation that inspires progress and change in education.
With the Yidan Prize funding, Hanushek said it plans to carry out a research fellow programme in Africa, and to support analytical capacity to shape education policies from a local perspective.
On her part, Banerji plans to strengthen and expand Pratham’s work with young children so that strong foundations can be built early in a child’s life. This, she believes, will contribute significantly towards the goal of seeing ‘every child in school and learning well’.
The Yidan Prize Foundation is a global philanthropic foundation, with a mission of creating a better world through education. Through its prize and network of innovators, the Yidan Prize Foundation supports ideas and practices in education—specifically, ones with the power to positively change lives and society.
