NN40, May 2008
Education for Sustainable Development? Or The Sustainability of Education Investment? A Special Issue
Are Expansion and Quality Both Sustainable in Latin American Secondary Education?
By Claudia Jacinto, Redetis, IIEP, Buenos Aires
Email: cjredetis@yahoo.com.arProgress was made in terms of access to basic education in most of the Latin American countries during the last few decades. Gross enrolment ratios in secondary education, which is increasingly considered as the minimum level required to have access to paid employment, rose by nearly 70%. Nevertheless, there are still some serious problems to resolve: a very high proportion of children and adolescents still leave the school system very early, without acquiring the minimum levels of knowledge and skills needed to integrate into society. Repetition of grades and overage pupils, together with a low level of learning of the basic contents of the education provided, are also typical characteristics of the Latin American education systems.
On average, almost 40% of Latin American adolescents between 15 and 19 years of age drop out of school at some point during the basic education cycle, and almost half of those who drop out do so at an early stage, before completing their primary education. School dropout, be it during or on completion of the primary cycle, or during the secondary cycle, is much more frequent among the poorest households. On average, the global dropout rate in the first income quartile in urban areas is 37%, whereas in the highest?income quartile it is 14%. Disadvantaged youths who begin vocational training programmes without having finished secondary education are often lacking in basic ?transferable? skills, which can apply to a variety of situations, not only because they dropped out early, but also because the schools they attended were not good enough. These youngsters face risks of long-term exclusion from work, as well as serious difficulties with social integration.
To address this situation, a number of programmes have been created which aim at providing these youths with the opportunity to be reinserted into more flexible formal education and training schemes to finish secondary school and/or acquire the basic and technical skills they need for the workplace.
Some countries have developed alternative schemes involving distance education and evening classes. However, a number of other risks have emerged. Although opening schools in marginal districts offers more opportunities for children living there to continue their education, it can also mean access to a notoriously low-quality system of education.
A number of NGO initiatives have shown that social and cultural projects as well as support to individuals and groups can provide a good starting point, motivating students to stay in or return to school. Scholarship schemes are another strategy to improve the retention. Flexible programs support youth and adults in flexible basic and secondary education. But, after all these efforts, do the youth learn what they need to get good jobs and a quality way of life?
Of course, the response involves not only education but also other development policies. But even concerning education, although there is a broad consensus that greater retention should go hand in hand with improved learning processes, too often policies to improve retention are perceived as lowering academic standards. So, the dilemma is not only how to expand secondary education but how to improve current strategies to foster and sustain quality.
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