‘State of the art’ literature on Core Capacities

Core Capacities refers to a set of ‘life skills’ that are naturally present in young children, and that can be cultivated through various practices. The L4WB Foundation is particularly interested in making these core capacities explicit in all learning environments for both children and adults.

The L4WB-F is partnering with UNICEF’s Office of Research, Innocenti, and the US based Fetzer Institute in a two-year research project, beginning in January 2018. This project will be the first stage in a multi-year study on developing practices and products for strengthening core capacities.

The aim of the research is to inform real, positive and efficient change in general education policies and practices. The initial effort will assess the current state of the field through a series of documents, guided by experts collaborating across disciplines:

●       What do we know about data and previous research on core capacities?
●       Which concepts and definitions already exist?
●       What has already been measured?
●       What does studies show on age-sensitive development?
●       What are their applications and impact?
●       What has been the role of policy, so far?

In fall 2019, the first stage of this research will conclude with a public conference in order to disseminate the results of the synthesis report and background papers, and to seek input on the second research stage of data collection with stakeholders, involving additional collaborators.