Workshop participants with NIE Experts and SEA-PLM Regional Secretariat

PHNOM PENH, CAMBODIA – “Assessment evidence becomes most impactful when it informs curriculum reform, strengthens teaching support, and guides policy decisions.” This shared message emerged across discussions during Capacity-Building Workshop: From Frameworks to Classroom Practice held on 26–27 March 2026. This was convened by the SEA-PLM Regional Secretariat following the release of the 2024 regional results to highlight the interconnections and complementarity among assessment evidence, classroom implementation, and policy adoption.

With support from the UK Government through the ASEAN-UK SAGE Programme, the two-day workshop gathered representatives from Ministries of Education, particularly from curriculum and teacher development departments, from Cambodia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, and Viet Nam.

The workshop reflected SEA-PLM’s commitment to ensuring that regional assessment findings are translated into concrete actions at both system and classroom levels, aligned with the Initiative 2 strategy. The activity likewise served as a key capacity-building and knowledge transfer component of the ongoing SEA-PLM Curriculum Mapping Study.

Key workshop highlights include the release of the SEA-PLM 2024 Regional Snapshot on Writing Results, alongside an overview of corresponding national datasets. These provided participants with timely and relevant evidence to inform discussions and policy reflections. Findings highlighted persistent challenges in writing instruction across the region, including gender disparities in learning outcomes in writing, socioeconomic inequalities, diverse language contexts, and gaps in teacher preparedness.

Curriculum Mapping with the National Team from Ministry of Education of Youth and Sport in Cambodia

Collectively, these insights underscored the urgency of translating assessment results into targeted improvements in Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN).

The workshop also introduced curriculum mapping as a practical mechanism to bridge assessment frameworks with national curricula and classroom practices. The exercises on mapping methodologies, analytical tools, and practical approaches were led by experts from the National Institute of Education (NIE), Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, alongside specialists from the Australian Council for Education Research (ACER).

(Left - Right) The expert from ACER Ms Sandra Knowles, and Nanyang Technological University Ms Christina Tong Li Lim, Mr Ban Heng Choy, and Ms Donna Lim Ching-Tse

This Cambodia pilot focused on developing practical maps for primary-level reading and mathematics, which forms part of the Phase 1 of the Curriculum Mapping Study. Tools enabled curriculum specialists and educators to trace learning progressions and align expected competencies with SEA-PLM proficiency standards.

Country reflections pointed out that the exercise extended beyond technical alignment. Participants emphasized its value in examining the coherence between curriculum intent, classroom practice, and assessment outcomes.

As SEA-PLM continues to deepen regional collaboration, the workshop reinforces its commitment to helping countries translate insights into actionable, context-specific strategies and used to improve teaching and learning in the classroom here it matters the most.