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International Review of Education

, Volume 61, Issue 3, pp 327–341 | Cite as

Learning and literacy: A research agenda for post-2015

  • Daniel A. Wagner
Original Paper
First Online:

Abstract

Ongoing policy discussions concerning the post-2015 future of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals are providing the basis for renewed efforts to understand and improve learning and literacy in a global perspective. Aiming for a pathway towards better scientific understanding, this paper asks a central question: What research would be necessary over the coming decade to realise the goal of improving learning and literacy in poor communities in low-income countries? The joint topics of learning and literacy development, and the factors which influence outcomes, are complex and intertwined – which is one reason why universal literacy has still not been achieved in spite of major investments over the years. Research will play a crucial part in addressing this challenge, and this paper proposes and reviews ten major areas of learning and literacy research. Designing and responding to an appropriate set of research priorities will be one of the crucial ways of addressing the question of how to improve learning, literacy and educational quality in the post-2015 period.

Keywords

Learning Literacy Policy Research Post-2015 

Résumé

Apprentissage et alphabétisation : un programme de recherche pour l’après-2015 – Les débats actuels sur les politiques relatives au devenir après 2015 des Objectifs du Millénaire pour le Développement fixés par les Nations Unies instaurent une base pour des efforts renouvelés en vue de cerner et d’améliorer l’apprentissage et l’alphabétisation dans une perspective mondiale. Cherchant une voie pour une meilleure appréhension scientifique, l’auteur de cet article pose une question centrale : quelle recherche serait nécessaire au cours de la prochaine décennie pour atteindre l’objectif d’améliorer l’apprentissage et l’alphabétisation dans les communautés défavorisées des pays à faibles revenus ? Les thèmes conjoints de l’apprentissage et de l’alphabétisation ainsi que les facteurs qui influencent leurs résultats sont complexes et imbriqués – et l’une des raisons pour lesquelles l’alphabétisation universelle n’est pas encore réalisée en dépit d’importants investissements depuis de nombreuses années. La recherche jouera un rôle décisif pour traiter ce défi, et cet article propose et analyse dix grands domaines scientifiques sur l’apprentissage et l’alphabétisation. La définition et le traitement d’un ensemble adéquat de priorités scientifiques seront l’une des voies déterminantes pour répondre à la question du comment améliorer l’apprentissage, l’alphabétisation et la qualité éducative après 2015.

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Copyright information

© Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht and UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning 2014

Authors and Affiliations

  1. 1.University of PennsylvaniaPhiladelphiaUSA

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