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Renaud Comba

Education Research Specialist

Renaud is the Data Must Speak (DMS) Research Manager at the UNICEF Office of Research – Innocenti. Prior to joining UNICEF, Renaud worked for more than three years with Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA) based in Accra, Ghana in various research and policy positions. Before leading IPA's West Africa policy portfolio, Renaud managed several longitudinal impact evaluations in the Education sector. He was also the Education sector lead for the IPA Ghana country office. Prior to IPA, Renaud spent several years in Ghana as a research assistant and as an interim headmaster of a private school. Renaud holds a M.A. in Human Rights and Humanitarian Action from Paris Institute of Political Studies (Sciences-Po), and a B.A. in International Development and Political Science from McGill University.

Publications

Data Must Speak: Determining the Best Resources for the Togolese Education System
Publication

Data Must Speak: Determining the Best Resources for the Togolese Education System

The Togolese government, through the education sector plan (ESP) 2014-2025, aims to achieve universal quality primary education. With this goal, they recognize the challenges in education access, participation and retention. School performances is among the areas by which they are understanding and addressing these challenges. This policy brief – focused on the resources that could help in improving the Togolese education system – is part of a series that presents key research findings of the quantitative stage of the Data Must Speak (DMS) Positive Deviance research in Togo. By merging and analyzing existing administrative datasets in Togo, this series highlights specific resources and contextual factors associated with good school performances in Togo. More importantly, it aims to inform policy dialogue and decision-making in Togo and other interested countries. DMS – a global initiative implemented since 2014 – aims to address the evidence gaps to mitigate the learning crisis using existing data. DMS research is co-created and co-implemented with Ministries of Education and key partners. DMS research relies on mixed methods and innovative approaches (i.e., positive deviance approach, behavioural sciences, implementation research and scaling science) to generate knowledge and practical lessons about ‘what works’, ‘why’ and ‘how’ to scale grassroots solutions for national policymakers and the broader international community of education stakeholders. DMS research is currently implemented in 14 countries: Brazil, Burkina Faso, Chad, Cote d'Ivoire, Ethiopia, Ghana, the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Madagascar, Mali, Nepal, Niger, the United Republic of Tanzania, Togo and Zambia.
Data Must Speak: Giving All Girls a Chance for Promotion and Success
Publication

Data Must Speak: Giving All Girls a Chance for Promotion and Success

Data Must Speak: Investing in the Teaching Profession
Publication

Data Must Speak: Investing in the Teaching Profession

Data Must Speak: Unpacking Factors Influencing School Performance in Togo
Publication

Data Must Speak: Unpacking Factors Influencing School Performance in Togo

The Togolese government, through the education sector plan (ESP) 2014-2025, aims to achieve universal quality primary education. With this goal, they recognize the challenges in education access, participation and retention. School performances is among the areas by which they are understanding and addressing these challenges. What resources and contextual factors are associated with good school performances in Togo? By merging and analyzing existing administrative datasets in Togo, this report helps to identify positive deviant schools – those that outperform other schools despite sharing similar contexts and resources. Data Must Speak – a global initiative implemented since 2014 – aims to address the evidence gaps to mitigate the learning crisis using existing data. The DMS Positive Deviance research is co-created and co-implemented with Ministries of Education and key partners. DMS research relies on mixed methods and innovative approaches (i.e., positive deviance approach, behavioural sciences, implementation research and scaling science) to generate knowledge and practical lessons about ‘what works’, ‘why’ and ‘how’ to scale grassroots solutions for national policymakers and the broader international community of education stakeholders. DMS research is currently implemented in 14 countries: Brazil, Burkina Faso, Chad, Cote d'Ivoire, Ethiopia, Ghana, the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Madagascar, Mali, Nepal, Niger, the United Republic of Tanzania, Togo and Zambia.

Articles

What are the best practices to help build strong foundational skills and better educational systems?
Podcast

What are the best practices to help build strong foundational skills and better educational systems?

Join educational researcher Nina Alonso for this podcast series as she shares powerful stories from teachers around the world, talking in their own words about their own experiences.
A DMS researcher listens to a group of Ministry of Education professionals in Madagascar.
Blog

5 Ways Data Must Speak is Co-Creating Education Research

The Data Must Speak (DMS) Positive Deviance research believes that the most significant agents of change in the education sector are grassroot-level stakeholders, and that they should be at the forefront of addressing education challenges within their contexts. As such, the DMS team co-creates our research with stakeholders and partners, working together on research design, data collection and analysis, and evidence uptake.
A group of Brazilian Data Must Speak researchers stand together to smile and pose for a photo.
Blog

4 Realities when Co-creating Education Research

Since its launch in 2019, the Data Must Speak (DMS) Positive Deviance Research, together with Ministries of Education (MoE) and education partners, has worked to identify and scale the behaviours and practices of exceptional schools (i.e., positive deviant schools). Through a co-creation and co-implementation approach, the DMS research has generated evidence to contribute to addressing the learning crisis in 14 countries. However, the DMS research has faced unprecedented challenges brought about by the COVID-19 global pandemic. During the early stages of the research, the team and partners could not travel, engage in in-person activities, and sustain momentum for research implementation amidst emergency response. While the team has successfully adapted its activities, they were confronted with unforeseen realities when co-creating the research, even after pandemic restrictions were lifted.
A group of researchers discuss data points in front of a screen.
Blog

How to Unleash the Power of Data to Transform Education Policies

The Data Must Speak (DMS) research team at UNICEF Innocenti has worked closely with Ministry of Education partners to co-create and conduct in-depth analyses of administrative data. Often, lack of data is seen as barrier to creating evidence-based policy. However, when it comes to education, the vast majority of existing administrative data is still undervalued and underused. Harnessing the potential of existing datasets is not only cost-effective but sustains ownership and investment in national data systems.

Events

A girl writes on a blackboard.
Event

Data Systems and Data Use in Education: Data Must Speak (DMS) Positive Deviance Research

The Global Partnership for Education Knowledge and Innovation Exchange (KIX), in partnership with the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) and the Global Partnership for Education (GPE), is pleased to invite you to the Third Annual KIX Symposium, which will be held virtually on October 12-13, 2022 from 12 NN – 1:30 PM CET.   
Strengthening and Promoting Education Data Systems and Utilization in Africa: Lessons from the Data Must Speak Global Initiative
Event

Strengthening and Promoting Education Data Systems and Utilization in Africa: Lessons from the Data Must Speak Global Initiative

With reliable data, policymakers, school managers, teachers, and communities can identify problems, pose solutions, and direct resources where they are most needed. As part of the Africa Evidence Week 2021, UNICEF Office of Research-Innocenti is organizing a live webinar to share and discuss how UNICEF’s implementation of the Data Must Speak global initiative has supported countries in Africa strengthen the use of data and research for education management and decision-making. It will draw on panelists from Ministries of Education from Namibia and Togo, as well as UNICEF and its office of research.