Building the capacity to aspire: An experimental evaluation of Youth First Kenya

Last registered on July 20, 2023

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Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title

Building the capacity to aspire: An experimental evaluation of Youth First Kenya

RCT ID

AEARCTR-0011769

Initial registration date

July 18, 2023

Initial registration date is when the trial was registered.

It corresponds to when the registration was submitted to the Registry to be reviewed for publication.

First published

July 20, 2023, 5:24 PM EDT

First published corresponds to when the trial was first made public on the Registry after being reviewed.

Locations

Country

Kenya

Region

Primary Investigator

Name

Jalnidh Kaur

Affiliation

Teachers College Columbia University

Contact Primary Investigator

Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name

Kate Leventhal

PI Affiliation

CorStone

Contact Investigator

PI Name

Peter Cooper

PI Affiliation

CorStone

Contact Investigator

PI Name

Rosemary Gathara

PI Affiliation

Basic Needs Kenya

Contact Investigator

Additional Trial Information

Status

On going

Start date

2023-05-01

End date

2023-12-31

Keywords

Education

Additional Keywords

aspirations, capacity to aspire

JEL code(s)

Secondary IDs

Prior work

This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.

Abstract

Adolescents in low-resource settings develop low aspirations when faced with life pressures leading to an aspirations trap. We expose eighth-graders in Kenya to a psychosocial intervention (Youth First-Kenya) that aims to bridge the gap between the perception of one’s abilities and what is achievable. We examine the impact on aspirations, enrolment, and achievement of students.

External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation

Cooper, Peter et al. 2023. "Building the capacity to aspire: An experimental evaluation of Youth First Kenya." AEA RCT Registry. July 20. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.11769-1.0

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Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)

The intervention is an in-school program during which trained school teachers facilitate weekly interactive sessions with students, following an evidence-based small-group curriculum. The core curriculum designed by CorStone adapts research and best practices from positive psychology into materials, activities, and skills tailored for young adolescents in Kenya. Teachers (approximately two per school) receive eight days of intensive training and content immersion in a hybrid remote/in-person format. Additionally, teachers receive regular supportive supervision and mentoring by master trainers over five monthly peer support sessions.

Intervention (Hidden)

The curriculum uses a two-pronged approach to bridge the gap between the perception of one’s abilities and the perception of what is achievable: (1) the curriculum includes activities that develop students’ awareness of their character strengths and ways to nurture these, and (2) the modules use powerful contextualized narratives introducing role models that students can relate with. The program works on reducing the aspiration gap by decreasing the distance between what is aspired to and the current state.

Intervention Start Date

2023-05-01

Intervention End Date

2023-09-16

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)

Student aspirations, enrolment, and academic achievement

Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Student aspirations will be measured using self-reported measures using calibration questions as well as using child self-portraits. Student learning will be measured using end-of-year scores on centralized exams.

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)

- Parent-child aspiration difference (along three dimensions: education, career and age at marriage)
- Student aspiration windows (role models and their attributes)
- Effort towards future-oriented behavior (such as forming study groups and approaching the teacher for additional study resources)
- Confidence in using assets and skills targeted through YFK, including problem solving, goal setting, managing emotions, overcoming challenges, and identifying character strengths
- Resilience
- Psychological and social wellbeing
- Gender consciousness
- Teacher-level beliefs and practices

Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

The study is conducted with 250 junior secondary schools across four counties of Kenya – Kilifi, Taita Taveta, Kwale, and Mombasa. Half (125) of the schools are randomly assigned to receive the Youth First Kenya (YFK) intervention, while the other half (125) of the schools are randomly assigned to a control group not receiving the intervention. The student sample consists of approximately 9000 students, with 36 students randomly sampled per school. A subsample of 10 students per school and one of their parents/guardians are invited to participate in one-on-one interviews at the beginning and end of the school year. Additionally, two Class 8 teachers at each school are surveyed.

Experimental Design Details

Randomization Method

Randomization is done on computer using STATA code.

Randomization Unit

Randomization is done at the school level, with a matched-pair design.

Was the treatment clustered?

Yes

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters

250 schools

Sample size: planned number of observations

9000 students

Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms

125 schools control, 125 schools treatment

Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)

The study is powered to detect a minimum detectable effect (MDE) of 0.12σ on student learning and enrollment, and 0.15σ on student aspirations. This calculation assumes an intracluster correlation of 0.18, attrition of 0.15, and baseline to endline correlation of 0.45.

Supporting Documents and Materials

IRB