Contours of Capital

A representative of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) had agreed to give us 15 minutes. We had a very short window to get her excited about our work with children’s foundational learning. The call began right on time- 9.30 AM Indian Standard Time (7 AM in Nairobi). Everybody was present and ready. Pleasantries were short. We dived into our pitch…beginning with the learning crisis and shocking numbers of 617 million children unable to read and understand a simple text despite multiple years of schooling.

Zoom calls force a spotlight on people’s faces. The video captures expressions and movements mostly related to the facial muscles and the torso. The early morning sun had gently cast its light on her baseball cap and running shirt. It was mid-day across my city; I had spent the better part of my morning preparing for this pitch.

Half a minute in, she cut us off. We did not protest, instead we listened to her, “Foundational literacy and numeracy- it doesn’t sound too good. You should be talking about human capital development. That’s what’s everybody interested in. It’s hot.” If this were a boxing match, it felt like a one-two punch without the knockout swing. Her observation had not completely thrown us off. We got back on track after this brief segue and continued with our message. I quickly re-examined her LinkedIn- she had been a marketing person for a very long time. And now her portfolio dealt mostly with skill development and supporting the market readiness of youth. We were able to convince her about the importance of children’s foundational literacy and numeracy and her advice about “human capital” remained as just that- a friendly suggestion. I did not think too much about it back then. Afterall, PAL Network and its members had fought very long and hard to focus the world’s attention on children’s foundational learning. The COVID pandemic had upended school systems everywhere. Overnight a billion children were forced out of school and the great education machines came to a standstill. In this context, we were going to capitalize on the need to focus on children’s learning outcomes, especially their ability to read, recognize numbers, and do basic math problems.

We persisted with our original semantics and continued to bat to improve the salience of children’s foundational literacy and numeracy. But her statement about building human capital had carved a space in the back of my mind, just like a piece of gum under a table- unseen but present. I began reading and learning more about human capital. Through this write up I hope to convey my understanding in the context of children’s foundational learning and skilling of youth.

Our understanding of human capital stems from the World Bank Group’s observation that it consists of “knowledge, skills, and health that people invest in and accumulate throughout their lives, enabling them to realize their potential.” To these factors, we may perhaps add the factors of personal ‘time’ and ‘space’ that a person invests in life. But for our purposes, we will further narrow our focus on knowledge and skills that give children a platform for growth.

Human capital is not isolated from other forms of capital- financial, economic, constructed, social, cultural, intellectual, experiential, and natural capital – all of which act and interplay with human capital. After all, the financial universe we have today is a creation of our knowledge and skills. It began with our understanding of the law of uncertainty. Social capital emerges as a strong force because of aggregation of human capital, except that once a social formation is made, it will drive itself to some direction. Cultural capital comes from the expressions of human creative urge, which get translated into traditions or heritage. Intellectual capital is a direct outcome of use of human knowledge that gets recorded, stored, referred to, challenged and retrieved from when necessary. All these forms of capital are related, if not interdependent. Our conjecture is that knowledge, money, and teaching-learning are key drivers that enable the smooth sharing of different forms of capital from people to people. They drive the development of human capital. While they are unique, as knowledge empowers individuals to improve their competence, as a medium of exchange money is used to fuel knowledge production, and teaching is an established mode of knowledge and skill transfer, some commonalities across their characteristics are drawn. Understanding the parallels will help practitioners and other stakeholders in human resource development and education planning enhance existing programs or develop new programs to promote human capital, especially those focused on bettering children’s future growth and youth development.

Knowledge is universally accepted as a powerful concept, but its definition is elusive. The theory of knowledge depends on human perception and cultivation of ideas, but it includes three features: foundationalism, coherentism and reliabilism. The pundits would like us to search for these ideas in epistemology. When the debate on knowledge began in ancient Greece, the focus was on understanding cosmology (see Parmenides)- how familiar formations or things undergo change. The starting point was plurality of things, as they kept evolving. But a more general conclusion was that there were also unities or discernible patterns in their varieties. To understand change, they tried to find the linkages between ‘being’ and ‘becoming’ of anything. Is ‘being’ eternal was the question they asked. These will have some bearings on what we shall discuss in the following paragraph. But we find this initial idea of ‘duality’ (being/becoming) to be a powerful concept. Encyclopedia.com describes these in terms of ‘intuition’:

“This intuition controls Parmenides's theory of knowledge. Corresponding to the duality that he introduces between being (or true reality) and appearances, he also introduces a duality between knowledge, the object of which is being and in which alone is to be found truth, and another, corrupted or limited kind of cognition called doxai (Gr. δόξαι), a term often translated, somewhat misleadingly, as "opinions," that rather means one's perceptions of the plural and changing appearances of being.”[1]

It is a different matter that Socrates and Plato would be uncomfortable with such conceptualization of duality as they were looking for the answers to questions like what is ‘truth’ and whether one could propose a universal idea of what ‘virtue(s)’ could and should be. Plato thought that behind the familiar world of changing sensible things or appearances—there must be an archetypal world of ‘forms’ (‘ideas’) which are eternal and changeless, and which provide the stability needed for objects of knowledge.

We leave this debate to better minds and consider knowledge acquired through our schooling /learning system of being experiential knowledge, skills, or knowledge that we know. What we desire as an ideal learning outcome, and what becomes of the students who undergo the processes of learning in schools could seem like this duality, as explained also in Singh, Ó Giollagáin and Wells (2021) presented at the PAL Network Conference[2] in terms of ‘desired’ code versus ‘desirable’ code for teaching/learning of languages in our schools. From the Greek philosophers to Ferdinand de Saussure in 1910s to Noam Chomsky’s later day dichotomy of ‘deep’ vs ‘surface’ structures are all continuation of the same debate – what we intuitively know exists and what we can perceive.

Experiential knowledge is what we learn from our environment through our sensory system. For example, by playing in the sand, children learn its properties and behavior under different load conditions. This kind of experiential knowledge is heavily contextualised and considers the realities of children and their surroundings. From practical experience, we know that it is complicated to explain to a child in hot and dry parts of India or Kenya what snow is because they have never seen, touched, or tasted snow. What is ‘truth’ is obviously not an issue here because each one of us would not know about so many wonders of the universe, until (or unless) we experience them.

Skills help learners to know how to do something. Repetition and practice of skills are necessary for its mastery and progress. Commonly skill is the “know-how”. It is procedural. Knowing how to read, knowing how to think, knowing how to solve problems are skills that are essential for children’s development and growth. They can be strengthened through experiences but are typically well structured and learned by doing.

What we know explicitly is shared and distributed through human language. By communicating this knowledge, it is possible for people and societies to share, examine, and build on it. Knowledge claims are a core for the growth of communities.

Our conjecture is that there are three kinds of knowledge share some common properties as outlined in Exhibit 1. Knowledge here is contextual - whether its skills, experiences, or facts, they have different uses and meaning under different local conditions. Ten other properties of knowledge ranging from its applicability, and temporal nature to its ability to build on itself are shared. A total of eleven features constitutes core knowledge characteristics. Many features of knowledge are linked to key characteristics of good teachers and learners. In Exhibit 1 we draw linkages between the core characteristics of knowledge and those of learners who serve as the carriers, creators, and disseminators of knowledge. It is not surprising that characteristics of teachers and learners who are guardians of knowledge are aligned with features of knowledge. The parallels between money and knowledge are not obvious but important to consider. Consider the following exhibit:

Exhibit 1: Properties of knowledge and linkages to learner features

In the modern world, money serves as a medium of exchange, store of value, and regulated measure for commerce. There is no denying that money has a central role to play in the generation, preservation, and promotion of capital- financial, economic, constructed, and natural. Furthermore, it is also necessary for knowledge production and distribution. Money is used to fund and support innovations, develop new technologies, and disseminate new findings. Its importance is paramount in the context of a globalized world and marketplace.  

As practitioners and persons from civil society we view knowledge and teaching-learning using a socio-cultural lens- the market perspective is usually not considered. Knowledge and money are viewed as oil and water- popularly assumed to be opposing forces. A rudimentary google search on “money + knowledge” produces many results such as “What is more important knowledge or money?” By exploring the characteristics, we see how knowledge and money are not opposites but feed into each other. While it is common knowledge in science and engineering that markets and market actors often drive knowledge discovery through corporate funding of research and development, at least schooling is usually delinked from the market. For example, the law in India explicitly states that profiteering from education and schooling is punishable. In what follows we explore how some features of money and knowledge are aligned and what this means for the development of human capital in our societies. The links between money and knowledge how interconnected as shown in Exhibit 2. These linkages provide a basis to evaluate how to best prepare children as lifelong learners.

PAL Network’s vision of a world where all children have a foundation for lifelong learning is ambitious, but necessary for a progressive and equitable world. It has two parts- the first about reaching all children, and second about equipping them for lifelong learning. Children have a natural tendency to explore and learn through play. They experiment, discover, and grow. Curiosity drives them to test their boundaries of knowledge. Lifelong learning is about exercising this curiosity towards self-improvement. Accelerated learning kickstarts lifelong learning where children learn to read and do basic math. Knowing how to read empowers children for self-directed learning throughout their lives.

PAL Network’s “My Village” intervention builds on its philosophy of activity- based learning and teaching at the right level inspired pedagogy to not only support children’s foundational learning but also aims to build their socio-emotional skills, especially of girls aged 12-17 years. The focus of the socio-emotional component of the program is on communication, collaboration, and problem solving. Various modules will help children how share and express ideas clearly and listen to arguments critically as part of their communications training; problem solving modules will cover issues about how to analyze and evaluate choices for effective decision making and planning and strategizing for desired results; and collaboration will teach children how to share information, brainstorm together, and manage conflicts within groups. Many of our target children will soon participate in activities linked to their surrounding rural markets. We hope to support them as much as possible while also operating from our circle of competence. It is in this context durability, portability, divisibility, transferability, and limited supply related characteristics of money are applicable to knowledge and learning.

Durability: If knowledge can be reused and contextualized so that it is relevant for the user its benefits last for a long time- making it durable. Estimates show that the half-life of skills and knowledge for professionals in a typical organization is five years. This means, there is a need to update one’s knowledge base regularly and frequently.

PAL Network’s focus on foundational learning throws spotlight on one of the most endurable skills- the ability to read and understand. In a world that is only going to generate more and more data, improving children’s reading competence will equip them to access this increase reservoir of information. Interestingly, the international community revisited the definition of foundational learning to include soft skills as part of the definition. My Village is also supporting the development of adolescent children’s communication, collaboration, and problem-solving skills. This trifecta also equips learners to update their knowledge base by working in groups and deploying their problem-solving skills, with “knowledge update” as a key problem to solve for.

The second feature of important to the development of children across rural locations is portability. For a very long time, school education has been disconnected with the practical needs of the local surrounding that are usually agrarian or depend on large-scale commercial agricultural value chain or industrial activities. As the rural landscape transforms and integrates more and more with the global marketplace young people need to develop the ability to apply knowledge acquired within one domain to another. For example, what children and adolescents learn about clear communication in My Village can be applied to everyday life and growth activities such as higher education or work. Knowledge in one field is applicable for another area. It is portable and facilitates new ideas and viewpoints.

Exhibit 2: Properties of money and linkages to features of knowledge

Divisibility: The world consumes more than 59 trillion gigabytes of data daily. Most of today’s knowledge is digital. This information is seamlessly distributed across cloud storages and seamlessly compiled. Furthermore, today’s push towards specialized knowledge, where more and more quantum of knowledge is routed through specialized channels. This division of knowledge necessitates exposure to different streams of information. My Village has a limited component of digital learning where groups of children will be exposed to digital content. We hope to see enhanced participation and increased abilities with manipulating digital knowledge.

Transferability: Characteristics of teachers and learners determine how knowledge is transferred. While the distribution of knowledge has become easier, knowledge transfer continues to remain difficult. Since many of our children are far removed from foundational competence it is difficult for them to access and learn age / grade-level information. Helping with foundational skills improves the transferability of knowledge. Since My Village is working with youth, their participation also enhances their ability to transfer foundational and socio-emotional skills to children locally in a sustained manner. The development of youth and local talent is a key indirect benefit of the program.

Limited supply: Knowledge has no limitation. On this characteristic trait it is opposite to money, where the supply of money must be limited for it to have value. While knowledge on any subject at any point in time is limited, it is also discoverable. With each discovery, knowledge base expands more and more. Our experience throughout the PAL Network also shows that children learn better when limited “doses” foundational competence is given through level-based teaching-learning interventions such as the ALP. Lastly, unlike money, knowledge grows with sharing and wide distribution.

PAL’s My Village program covers 300 villages across Kenya, Tanzania, and Nepal. In its current form, the program aims to reach all children in the target villages- reaching an estimating 45,000 (300 x 150) children. We hope to test different combinations and permutations of activities in the four different components- namely, ALP/TaRL, SMS based interventions, community library, and socio-emotional skills, to come up with most effective combination. Eventually we hope to reach a million children through My Village and its partnerships. Our programs serves as a multi-country platform to direct action for children’s learning, youth empowerment, and human capital enhancement- the recent discussions and debates about the African Union’s agenda to shift focus from education to trade are quite typical of challenges of resource-limited geographies where PAL and its members operate... But we’ve learned a simple lesson that may not be always easy to execute- as a people we need to continue to build children’s learning environments as these feed their growth as human beings in productive societies.

The Zoom call with the representative of ECOWAS was long ago. We hope it continues to inspire us as we experiment with different means of youth and communities in children’s learning and knowledge development. Even though PAL Network and its members embody the non-profit spirit of partnering, questioning, and holding the educational system accountable, the parallels between knowledge and money will enable us to design programs that are better aligned with children’s needs and demands of the market that will eventually employ them.  

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[1] https://www.encyclopedia.com/religion/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/knowledge-theories#:~:text=Theory%20of%20knowledge%20is%20an,reliability%2C%20of%20knowledge%20in%20general.

[2] Singh, Udaya Narayana, Conchúr Ó Giollagáin & Gordon Wells. 2021. ‘Desired Code vs. Desirable Code: Language Learning in a Multi-Cultural Context.’ 2021 PAL Network Conference (Nairobi, Kenya): Building Better: Ensuring Learning Continuity for All, Nov 2-3, 2021.