Measuring learning during crises: Developing and validating the Holistic Assessment of Learning and Development Outcomes (HALDO)

Abstract

Sample-based learning assessments are increasingly common in low- and middle-income countries but have yet to affect education programming in situations of conflict and displacement. Without identifying what children already know in the immediate aftermath of forced displacement, education practitioners are often unable to address the gaps and challenges learners face. The Holistic Assessment of Learning and Development Outcomes (HALDO) is a new tool that aims to identify children's learning needs in these situations. This article examines the tool's internal consistency, inter-rater reliability, concurrent validity, and construct validity in three locations and provides evidence of its effectiveness. The study found strong inter-rater reliability in two contexts, internal consistency in all contexts, and evidence of construct validity in all latent constructs in HALDO, except for literacy in Lebanon.