The World of Work - A study of the transition from secondary school in Tanzania

Future Yangu Podcasts is A Work Readiness Training Program Career Guidance and Counselling program preparing secondary school students for the World of Work (WoW). Future Yangu is designed specifically for this research project in close collaboration between HIP edutainment, Ruka creatives and the research team. It is an extracurricular learning material, delivered by teachers to a collective of students who form listening groups.

The program is delivered in a new innovative digital format, using audio podcasts. This is new to the education sector in Tanzania. The aim is to support the access of new digital learning materials. The program consists of 12 episodes which are accessible (to the treated schools) through a mobile phone App.

The program is designed to address one of the big challenges in Tanzania – youth unemployment and the lack of job readiness among secondary school leavers. The aim is to assist Form 4 students navigate the world of work so that they have a smoother school/work transition and can find education pathways and make inspiring career choices while enhancing their knowledge of work readiness and labor market skills. The program is particularly useful for those who will proceed to vocational and technical training and do not aim to go to university. They may or may not have received their Form Four Certificate - the ‘ticket to education pathways’. Common to all is that they must navigate their way into the Tanzanian labor market.

2023-02-01

2023-07-01

Aspirational Hope
We use three indices (aspirations, agency and pathways) based on Lybbert & Wydick (2017) and originally by Snyder (1994). We construct each index based on the students’ level of agreement with five sentences (from 10-totally agree to 0-totally disagree), following the method described in Kling et al. (2007) and Anderson (2008). We will also use alternative data driven scoring techniques

Primary Outcomes
a) Aspirations index
- It is better to accept things as they come rather than dreaming of a better future
- It is important to set goals in life, especially at school or to find a good job
- I am willing to make effort and investment to reach the goals I set for myself
- I have a precise idea of which study path and career I want to pursue
- I want to have a positive impact on the living conditions of my relatives/community
b) Agency index
- Hard work is more important than luck to have good results in school
- Hard work is more important than luck to find a good job
- My future is mainly determined by my own actions and not by others’ actions
- I am capable to reach the goals I set to myself
- Girls/Boys like me can make a positive change in our community
c) Pathways index
- I can find a way to solve most of my challenges
- I know many opportunities around me that allow me to reach my goals
- I know which path to take and where I need to make effort to reach my goals at school and find a good job later
- If my first plan for education and later career does not work out, I know how to reach another satisfying second plan
- I can rely on my social network, the people I know, directly and indirectly, to obtain advice for succeeding at school and finding a good job later
d) Aspirational Hope (combining all the above)

Education
We capture students’ aspirations and expectations about their CSEE exam and about their highest level of future education. We also capture whether they have any alternative plan in case they do not reach their aspiration.
Primary Outcomes
a) Education Aspiration: Measured by the question “What is the maximum level of education you aspire to attain?”

1. Secondary Lower (up to Form IV)
2. Basic technical certificate
3. Secondary Higher (up to Form VI)
4. Ordinary or Advanced Diploma
5. University Degree (Bachelor, Master or PhD - Doctorate)
88. Don't know
98. Other (specify)

We will use a simple indicator: A dummy equal to 1 if the response to the above question is “5. University Degree (Bachelor, Master or PhD - Doctorate)”, 0 otherwise.

Job

We capture student’s aspirations and expectations about their future occupation. For aspirations, we capture both their first and second aspirations.
Primary Outcomes
a) Job Aspiration: “What kind of occupation do you aspire to have in the future, around age 25-30? Select one”

(Do not read out loud)
1. Taking care of my Household and children
2. Work on the family farm growing crops, raising livestock, or fishing
3. Work in a business operated by a household or family member
4. Work as a paid employee in a private company
5. Work as a paid employee for the government
6. Work on my own as a self-employed worker
7. Work as a business owner with several employees
88. Don't know
98. Other (specify)

We will use a simple indicator: A dummy equal to 1 if the response to the above question is “4. Work as a paid employee in a private company” or “5. Work as a paid employee for the government”; 0 otherwise.



b) Job Expectation: “Now think about what might happen in reality, what do you think is the most likely occupation you will have around age 25-30? Select one”

1. Taking care of my Household
2. Work as an apprentice, trainee, or intern
3. Work on a family farm growing crops, raising livestock, or fishing
4. Work in a business operated by a household or family member
5. Look for a paid job, in a private company or for the government
6. Work as a paid employee, in a private company or for the government
7. Work on my own as a self-employed worker
8. Start a new business, by creating a new company
88. Don't know
98. Other (specify)

We will use a simple indicator: A dummy equal to 1 if the response to the above question is “6. Work as a paid employee for the government”; 0 otherwise.

Well-being and Stress
Primary Outcomes
a) Well-being Index: Cantril Self-Anchoring Striving Index: a higher score on Cantril Ladder indicates that the individual perceives their life as more satisfying and fulfilling.
b) Stress Index: Cohen’s Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-4): Scoring can range from 0-16, higher scores indicate higher perceived stress.

While the binary indicator is our main outcome of Education expectation and Education aspiration, we will also report the treatment effects on each item in the exploratory analysis.

While the binary indicator is our main outcome of Job expectation and Job aspiration, we will also report the treatment effects on each item in the exploratory analysis.

Education
a) Alternative Plan: “Do you have an alternative plan for your education and future work life, if you do not reach that education level?”
1. Yes
2. No
We will use a simple indicator: A dummy equal to 1 if the response to the above question is “1. Yes”, 0 otherwise.

b) Exam Expectation: “Are you more likely to receive (i) Division I, II or III, or (ii) Division IV or 0?”
We will use a simple indicator: A dummy equal to 1 if the response to the above question is “Division I, II or III”, 0 otherwise.

c) Peers Exam Expectation: This year, there are about ww form IV students in your school. How many of these do you think will receive Division I, II or III?
We will use a simple indicator: A dummy equal to 1 if the response to the above question is “Division I, II or III”, 0 otherwise.

Jobs
a) Job Second Aspiration: “If your first aspired occupation does not work out, what would be your second aspired occupation?”
1. Taking care of my Household
2. Work as an apprentice, trainee, or intern
3. Work on a family farm growing crops, raising livestock, or fishing
4. Work in a business operated by a household or family member
5. Look for a paid job, in a private company or for the government
6. Work as a paid employee, in a private company or for the government
7. Work on my own as a self-employed worker
8. Start a new business, by creating a new company
88. Don't know
98. Other (specify)
We will use a simple indicator: A dummy equal to 1 if the response to the above question is “6. Work as a paid employee, in a private company or for the government”; 0 otherwise.

Fertility
We capture here aspired and expected age at first child.
a) Fertility Aspiration: “If you were to have a child, at what age would you aspire to have your first child?”
Number 15-50

b) Fertility Expectation: “Think about what might happen in reality, if you were to have a child what do you think is the most likely age you will have when getting your first child?”
Number 15-50

Exam preparations
a) Study Effort: the sum of the answers to the following questions
○ During the week (Monday to Friday), outside of school hours, how much time do you usually spend doing work for school, for example, homework or study?
Answer: h hours and m minutes per day
○ On the weekends (Saturday and Sunday), how much time do you usually spend doing work for school,for example, homework or study?
Answer: h hours and m minutes per day

Social Engagement
Build a simple index by adding answers for all of the following questions:
a) School Club Participation: How many different school clubs are you currently attending? Answer: number 0 to 20
b) Leadership Position: Do you currently hold any student leadership position in school or club?
c) Volunteering Aspiration: Are you planning to do any volunteering work in any community after you finish the Form 4 exam?
d) Internship Aspiration: Are you planning on doing any internship or any apprenticeship after you finish the Form 4 exam?

Cluster randomized trial. Randomization is at the school level. The target population of participants are the students of Form IV.

Not available

randomization done in office by a computer.

school

Yes

50 schools

2,800 students

25 schools per arm.

given the ICC observed in pilot data and while preparing the project, we expect to be able to detect an effect of 0.1 to 0.2 sd depending on the outcome (with 5% level of significance and 80% power).