Field Note: Exploring How EiEPC Data and Evidence Support Teaching and Learning in Practice: Implementing the Holistic Assessment for Learning in Syria

Abstract

In this field note, we describe how data and evidence can support teaching and learning in practice in Syria, drawing from one approach that used the Holistic Assessment for Learning (HAL), a formative assessment designed in 2018 to measure literacy, numeracy, and social-emotional learning among grade 2 and 3 students in formal education. In 2023, HAL was piloted, revised, and then rolled out across nonformal and formal education settings in northwestern and northeastern Syria by Save the Children International and Arfada for Development. Using training reports, field work data from the tool, teacher surveys, and debriefing tools, we explore in this field note how tools like HAL can inform future formative assessment data. We describe how classroom-level, curriculum-aligned measures can generate immediately actionable insights for teachers while remaining adaptable for aggregation into broader data systems. Teachers in Syria used HAL results on literacy, numeracy, and social-emotional learning to identify learning gaps and adjust lesson plans and remediation strategies in real time. We also situate the useability and lessons learned about formative assessments within the broader education in emergencies evidence ecosystem, highlighting implications for equity, standardization, and the localization of data systems during crises.