The Impact of Supplementary Math Courses for Girls in Benin

In partnership with the Institute for Empirical Research in Political Economy (IERPE), the National Institute for Math and Physics (IMSP), and the Ministry of Secondary Education, researchers are evaluating the impact and cost-effectiveness of temporary supplemental math teachers on girls’ numeracy skills, professional aspirations, and early career labor market outcomes. From a subset of schools that the Ministry of Secondary Education classified as having inadequate math instruction, researchers randomly selected 90 schools to compare how different variations of this intervention affected girls’ math skills. Researchers assigned schools to one of two supplementary teacher program variations or to a comparison group. Supplemental math teachers: IERPE and IMSP trained older male students to serve as supplementary teachers for three-month periods. Supplemental sessions were available to all students (both boys and girls) in an eligible class. Girls-only math and life skills supplement: IERPE and IMSP trained female supplemental teachers, but supplemental sessions were only available to girls and designed to cater to the specific needs and learning levels of female students. The female teachers in this group were also trained to give life skills training to the girls. Comparison group: No supplemental sessions were made available to students.