Bangkok, September 2025 - The Southeast Asia Primary Learning Metrics (SEA-PLM) reconvened its Technical Experts Network (TEN) on 1–2 September 2025, bringing together leading specialists from across the region to strengthen the technical foundations of the programme and chart pathways from new data to actionable policy recommendations. The meeting was made possible with the generous support of the UK Government through the ASEAN-UK SAGE programme

The TEN was established in 2024 to serve as a technical advisory body to the SEA-PLM Regional Secretariat and provide independent, scientific guidance on methodology, survey design, and research priorities. Members – drawn from across Southeast Asia for their expertise in assessment, pedagogy, psychometrics, and policy research – serve for the full SEA-PLM 2024 cycle.

Mr Outhit Thipmany, Deputy Director General of the Research Institute for Educational Sciences, Ministry of Education and Sports Lao PDR and Mr Cashel Gleeson, British Ambassador UK in Lao gave opening remarks.

Across the two days, the objectives were practical. The Ministry of Education and Sport Lao PDR team and partners reviewed and finalized Lao PDR’s Initiative 2 action plan. They dug into SEA-PLM 2024 Main Survey results and the system-level questionnaire, especially Module 3 on teacher policy and workforce and sketched how to report and communicate results. The group also looked ahead to the regional report launch in November and the development of regional policy recommendations, making sure national priorities and timelines line up with the wider regional workplan.

The agenda was paced to make progress. Day 1 updated everyone on the programme’s regional timeline, followed by a hands-on review of the system-level questionnaire with follow up on Module 2 and 3, and a consultation on the 2024 policy recommendations. Day 2 convened the National Steering Committee to discuss country snapshot results, key insights, and what those findings mean for reforms. 

Representative of SEAMEO Secretariat, UNICEF EAPRO, and Ministry of Youth and Sport Lao PDR (Left to Right: Mr John Siena, Dr Jose Balmaceda, Ms Manoly Dongvan, Linda Jonsson

The highlight was formalizing the role of the SEA-PLM National Steering Committee (NSC). The NSC is meant to be the country’s “decision bridge” for SEA-PLM which provides strategic leadership, keeps work aligned with national priorities, and makes sure ministries, institutes, and partners are coordinated. Its functions are concrete, overseeing national workplans, guiding the technical team, reviewing deliverables like the national report and communications, and opening doors for evidence-based policy dialogue.

The Bangkok training gave the team the tools to analyze, the NSC provided the structure to decide, and the action plan set the rhythm to deliver. With the December regional launch on the horizon, Lao PDR is now better positioned to translate SEA-PLM 2024 results into policy briefs, budget-aware timelines, and classroom-level changes that teachers and students can feel. 

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SEA-PLM is supported by the UK Mission to ASEAN under the ASEAN-UK ASEAN-UK Supporting the Advancement of Girls’s Education (SAGE) Programme. Its content is the sole responsibility of the SEA-PLM Regional Secretariat and does not necessarily reflect the views of ASEAN-UK SAGE.