Schools 2030: No universal fix: what our global research tells us about whole-child learning

This synthesis report from the Schools2030 Research Cohort is intended for education policymakers, practitioners and researchers interested in improving whole-child learning at scale. Drawing on five studies conducted between 2021 and 2023 across Tanzania, Kenya, Pakistan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, it examines how social-emotional and academic learning interact, how communities define quality education, and how learning is assessed.

The report finds that educational approaches are most effective when designed around local contexts rather than imported models. Evidence for these findings include culturally unfamiliar assessment methods distorting learning outcomes, communities valuing both academic achievement and ethical development, and locally co-created teaching and assessment tools having better results. The report also highlights the central role of teachers, identifies gaps in support and training, and presents eight findings and seven recommendations for strengthening whole-child learning systems.