View in EDS

Unlocking the Potential of Middle-Tier Education Governance for Scaling Impact in Low- and Middle-Income Countries

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Title: Unlocking the Potential of Middle-Tier Education Governance for Scaling Impact in Low- and Middle-Income Countries
Language: English
Authors: Brad Olsen, Molly Curtiss Wyss, Aleksandr Ivanov, Contributor, Esthery Kunkwenzu, Contributor, Manuel Sánchez Masferrer, Contributor, Ken Ndala, Contributor, Abijit Sharma, Contributor, Brookings Institution, Center for Universal Education
Source: Center for Universal Education at The Brookings Institution. 2025.
Availability: Center for Universal Education at The Brookings Institution. 1775 Massachusettes Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036. Tel: 202-797-6048; Fax: 202-797-2970; e-mail: cue@brookings.edu; Web site: http://www.brookings.edu/about/centers/universal-education
Peer Reviewed: N
Page Count: 42
Publication Date: 2025
Sponsoring Agency: Global Partnership for Education (GPE)
International Development Research Centre (IDRC) (Canada)
Document Type: Reports - Research
Descriptors: Educational Administration, Governance, Government School Relationship, Developing Nations, Foreign Countries, Delivery Systems, Administrative Organization, Educational Innovation, Educational Policy, Policy Formation, Stakeholders, Educational Improvement
Geographic Terms: El Salvador, Kyrgyzstan, Malawi, Nepal
Abstract: The middle tier of governance in education systems--that system level between central government and schools--is a critical but often overlooked lever for improving education in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). In theory, the middle tier serves as a bridge between the policymaking of the central level and implementation at the school level, supporting communication, contextualization, and cooperation between these system levels. If harnessed well, a strong middle tier can imbue innovation design and implementation with local knowledge to tailor delivery, sustain impact through data use and teacher support, and secure local commitment for sustained ownership. However, in practice, this potential often remains untapped, with mid-level actors largely relegated to compliance, documentation, and data collection tasks. Over the last 14 months, our Research on Scaling the Impact of Innovations in Education (ROSIE) project at the Center for Universal Education (part of the Global Partnership for Education's Knowledge and Innovation Exchange) studied this topic, looking specifically at the role of mid-level actors in decentralized systems with respect to identifying, contextualizing, and scaling education innovations for impact. [This project is part of and supported by the Global Partnership for Education Knowledge and Innovation Exchange (KIX), a partnership between the Global Partnership for Education (GPE) and the International Development Research Centre (IDRC).]
Abstractor: As Provided
Entry Date: 2026
Accession Number: ED678573
Database: ERIC
FullText Text:
  Availability: 0
CustomLinks:
  – Url: https://eric.ed.gov/contentdelivery/servlet/ERICServlet?accno=ED678573
    Name: ERIC Full Text
    Category: fullText
    Text: Full Text from ERIC
Header DbId: eric
DbLabel: ERIC
An: ED678573
AccessLevel: 3
PubType: Report
PubTypeId: report
PreciseRelevancyScore: 0
IllustrationInfo
Items – Name: Title
  Label: Title
  Group: Ti
  Data: Unlocking the Potential of Middle-Tier Education Governance for Scaling Impact in Low- and Middle-Income Countries
– Name: Language
  Label: Language
  Group: Lang
  Data: English
– Name: Author
  Label: Authors
  Group: Au
  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Brad+Olsen%22">Brad Olsen</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Molly+Curtiss+Wyss%22">Molly Curtiss Wyss</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Aleksandr+Ivanov%2C+Contributor%22">Aleksandr Ivanov, Contributor</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Esthery+Kunkwenzu%2C+Contributor%22">Esthery Kunkwenzu, Contributor</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Manuel+Sánchez+Masferrer%2C+Contributor%22">Manuel Sánchez Masferrer, Contributor</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Ken+Ndala%2C+Contributor%22">Ken Ndala, Contributor</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Abijit+Sharma%2C+Contributor%22">Abijit Sharma, Contributor</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Brookings+Institution%2C+Center+for+Universal+Education%22">Brookings Institution, Center for Universal Education</searchLink>
– Name: TitleSource
  Label: Source
  Group: Src
  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="SO" term="%22Center+for+Universal+Education+at+The+Brookings+Institution%22"><i>Center for Universal Education at The Brookings Institution</i></searchLink>. 2025.
– Name: Avail
  Label: Availability
  Group: Avail
  Data: Center for Universal Education at The Brookings Institution. 1775 Massachusettes Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036. Tel: 202-797-6048; Fax: 202-797-2970; e-mail: cue@brookings.edu; Web site: http://www.brookings.edu/about/centers/universal-education
– Name: PeerReviewed
  Label: Peer Reviewed
  Group: SrcInfo
  Data: N
– Name: Pages
  Label: Page Count
  Group: Src
  Data: 42
– Name: DatePubCY
  Label: Publication Date
  Group: Date
  Data: 2025
– Name: SourceSuprt
  Label: Sponsoring Agency
  Group: SrcSuprt
  Data: Global Partnership for Education (GPE)<br />International Development Research Centre (IDRC) (Canada)
– Name: TypeDocument
  Label: Document Type
  Group: TypDoc
  Data: Reports - Research
– Name: Subject
  Label: Descriptors
  Group: Su
  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Educational+Administration%22">Educational Administration</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Governance%22">Governance</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Government+School+Relationship%22">Government School Relationship</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Developing+Nations%22">Developing Nations</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Foreign+Countries%22">Foreign Countries</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Delivery+Systems%22">Delivery Systems</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Administrative+Organization%22">Administrative Organization</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Educational+Innovation%22">Educational Innovation</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Educational+Policy%22">Educational Policy</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Policy+Formation%22">Policy Formation</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Stakeholders%22">Stakeholders</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Educational+Improvement%22">Educational Improvement</searchLink>
– Name: Subject
  Label: Geographic Terms
  Group: Su
  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22El+Salvador%22">El Salvador</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Kyrgyzstan%22">Kyrgyzstan</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Malawi%22">Malawi</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Nepal%22">Nepal</searchLink>
– Name: Abstract
  Label: Abstract
  Group: Ab
  Data: The middle tier of governance in education systems--that system level between central government and schools--is a critical but often overlooked lever for improving education in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). In theory, the middle tier serves as a bridge between the policymaking of the central level and implementation at the school level, supporting communication, contextualization, and cooperation between these system levels. If harnessed well, a strong middle tier can imbue innovation design and implementation with local knowledge to tailor delivery, sustain impact through data use and teacher support, and secure local commitment for sustained ownership. However, in practice, this potential often remains untapped, with mid-level actors largely relegated to compliance, documentation, and data collection tasks. Over the last 14 months, our Research on Scaling the Impact of Innovations in Education (ROSIE) project at the Center for Universal Education (part of the Global Partnership for Education's Knowledge and Innovation Exchange) studied this topic, looking specifically at the role of mid-level actors in decentralized systems with respect to identifying, contextualizing, and scaling education innovations for impact. [This project is part of and supported by the Global Partnership for Education Knowledge and Innovation Exchange (KIX), a partnership between the Global Partnership for Education (GPE) and the International Development Research Centre (IDRC).]
– Name: AbstractInfo
  Label: Abstractor
  Group: Ab
  Data: As Provided
– Name: DateEntry
  Label: Entry Date
  Group: Date
  Data: 2026
– Name: AN
  Label: Accession Number
  Group: ID
  Data: ED678573
PLink https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=eric&AN=ED678573
RecordInfo BibRecord:
  BibEntity:
    Languages:
      – Text: English
    PhysicalDescription:
      Pagination:
        PageCount: 42
    Subjects:
      – SubjectFull: Educational Administration
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Governance
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Government School Relationship
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Developing Nations
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Foreign Countries
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Delivery Systems
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Administrative Organization
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Educational Innovation
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Educational Policy
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Policy Formation
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Stakeholders
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Educational Improvement
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: El Salvador
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Kyrgyzstan
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Malawi
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Nepal
        Type: general
    Titles:
      – TitleFull: Unlocking the Potential of Middle-Tier Education Governance for Scaling Impact in Low- and Middle-Income Countries
        Type: main
  BibRelationships:
    HasContributorRelationships:
      – PersonEntity:
          Name:
            NameFull: Brookings Institution, Center for Universal Education
      – PersonEntity:
          Name:
            NameFull: Brad Olsen
      – PersonEntity:
          Name:
            NameFull: Molly Curtiss Wyss
      – PersonEntity:
          Name:
            NameFull: Aleksandr Ivanov, Contributor
      – PersonEntity:
          Name:
            NameFull: Esthery Kunkwenzu, Contributor
      – PersonEntity:
          Name:
            NameFull: Manuel Sánchez Masferrer, Contributor
      – PersonEntity:
          Name:
            NameFull: Ken Ndala, Contributor
      – PersonEntity:
          Name:
            NameFull: Abijit Sharma, Contributor
    IsPartOfRelationships:
      – BibEntity:
          Dates:
            – D: 01
              M: 12
              Type: published
              Y: 2025
          Titles:
            – TitleFull: Center for Universal Education at The Brookings Institution
              Type: main
ResultId 1