Keeping Students in School: Behavioral and Tech Solutions from Pakistan

This 75-minute webinar presents results from the Middle School Transition (MST) Study, and offers insight into the importance of using local insights to inform large-scale, tech-driven interventions to maximise their efficacy. The study evaluates the effectiveness of a low-cost, digital intervention to improve post-primary school enrolment. Focusing on the transition from primary to middle school, the session highlights how non-academic barriers—such as lack of information, low confidence, and procedural complexity—shape parental decision-making, particularly for girls in rural contexts. The webinar walks participants through integrated results from administrative data analysis, behavioural diagnostics (COM-B), and results from a mixed-methods, field-based, randomized controlled trial.

The webinar begins with a short framing of the problem and study context, followed by a presentation of key research findings, including national trends, behavioural insights, and intervention results. This is followed by a panel discussion bringing together researchers and government practitioners to reflect on implementation realities, scalability, and the role of evidence in decision-making. The session concludes with an interactive Q&A, allowing participants to engage directly with the speakers.

The session aligns closely with gLOCAL Evaluation Week’s focus on strengthening evaluation practice in a rapidly evolving, technology-driven landscape. It contributes a grounded, local perspective to global debates on the role of AI and innovation in evaluation, demonstrating the continued importance of context-specific, field-based evidence. By showcasing how low-cost behavioural interventions can be rigorously evaluated and applied in low-resource settings, the webinar speaks directly to questions of credibility, adaptability, and the future of evaluation in uncertain and resource-scarce environments.

Participants will gain practical insights into designing and evaluating behavioural interventions in low-resource settings, applying tools like COM-B to understand decision-making, and interpreting mixed-methods evidence to assess what works, for whom, and why. They will also develop a clearer understanding of the role of local context, the limits of technology-driven solutions, and how behavioural approaches can be integrated into routine monitoring and evaluation systems.