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Note from the Editor - Diversity in Education
Rachel Schmidt
With the recent election debates in Ontario regarding faith-based schools, along with private sector collaboration in Haitian education and drastic changes in Venezuela regarding the ideology taught in public schools, we decided that it was the perfect time for a FOCALPoint issue on education. While alarm bells may be ringing about the Ontario Conservatives’ election promise to extend government funding to all faith-based schools (instead of just Catholic ones), the province of British Columbia has given 50 per cent funding to any faith-based schools that meet its criteria since 1977.
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How Competitive Are Latin America’s Schools?
Tamara Ortega Goodspeed and Jeffrey Puryear
Few people dispute that high quality schools are a key element of competitive economies. Good education prepares people to work and lays the foundation for stronger institutions, greater transparency and good governance—all of which allow economies to function smoothly.
Unfortunately, Latin American schools are not very competitive—with major failings in quantity, quality and equity. True, more children are going to school, and the vast majority finishes primary school. But high school graduation rates are low, making it difficult for countries to move into knowledge-intensive industries.
Public-Private Collboration in Education: A New Development Model for Haiti
Leslie Fillion-Wilkinson and Carlo Dade
Contrary to the perception that Haiti is a development “basket case,” groundbreaking developments have recently occurred in Haitian education. In the fall of 2005, leaders of the progressive Haitian private sector, NGOs and international development officials met in Canada at Willson House, the official Canadian cabinet retreat at Meech Lake, for a meeting co-chaired by former Canadian Prime Minister Joe Clark and former Inter-American Development President Enrique Iglesias. Organized by FOCAL and the Inter-American Dialogue and funded by the Canadian International Development Agency and the Inter-American Development Bank, the meeting revolved around the role of the private sector in Haitian development and identified key priorities for action. In early 2007, the participants reconvened in Atlanta to hold focused discussions on education, which was identified at Meech Lake as a priority for public-private collaboration.
Public education investments and inequality reduction in Peru
Gustavo Yamada and Juan Francisco Castro
Has investment in public education in Peru produced a more educated labour force over the past few decades? If we consider the standard measurement of human capital (i.e., years of education achieved by the labour force), the answer is yes. In 1985, the average years of schooling in the Peruvian labour force (those age 14 or higher) was 7.13 years. In 2004, the same indicator was 8.77 years. Has this same public investment also helped reduce the inequality of education levels in the labour force? The answer, again, is yes. In the Peruvian labour force, the Gini coefficient* of inequality in schooling years fell from 0.343 in 1985 to 0.290 in 2004. Why, then, have these positive results failed to reduce income inequality?
Education as Protection in Contexts of Armed Conflict: The Case of Colombia
Eleanor Douglas
The international community is increasingly concerned in honouring the right to education, especially in contexts of armed conflict and fragile, failing and failed states. Launched in 1990 by representatives of the international community, the movement “Education for All” is a global commitment to provide quality basic education for all children, youth and adults. Likewise, the Inter-Agency Network for Education in Emergencies (INEE) is a global, open network of non-governmental organizations, UN agencies, donors, practitioners, researchers and individuals working together to ensure the right to education in emergencies and post-crisis reconstruction. Despite these laudable efforts, the image of six-year-old Jairo swinging a spiked, three-foot pole at his best friend outside a ramshackle school building in Medellín indicates that more than a desk is required for education to protect children and youth.
Informal Education and Peacebuilding by Colombian Youth
Linda Dale
Education can mean many things, but most would agree that its core purpose is to equip young people to function effectively as citizens in their world. Though basic literacy skills are essential, it is equally important to develop students’ capacity for critical thinking. What kind of society do they want to have? What is the meaning of truth, justice and equality?
If all educational systems should engage their young people in these debates, it is even more important in countries that have experienced war. We cannot expect young people to automatically understand the meaning of human rights in a world where they have not existed. Youth who have survived by the power of the gun do not necessarily appreciate the merits of equality and tolerance for others.
Chávez and the Bolivarian Education System
Mariano Herrera
Bolivarian schools are perhaps the only expression of education policy within the formal education system of Venezuela. On September 17, Hugo Chávez announced a newly designed curriculum for Venezuela called the “Bolivarian Education System,” and the official documents reveal a drastic departure from the current curriculum. The most extreme changes are arguably the emphasis on Marxism - Leninism starting in the third year of secondary school, and the militaristic ideology guiding the programs of the fourth and fifth years of secondary school (equivalent to Grades 10, 11 and 12 in Canada). This program reflects the socialist rhetoric that has characterized Chávez’s administration. If applied, the curriculum will be an attack against freedom of thought and against Venezuela’s own constitution.
Chávez y el sistema educativo bolivariano
Mariano Herrera
Las escuelas bolivarianas son quizás la única expresión de política educativa dentro del sistema educativo formal venezolano.
El 17 de septiembre Hugo Chávez anunció un nuevo diseño curricular para Venezuela que se llamará “sistema educativo bolivariano (SEB).” En el documento oficial puede apreciarse un drástico cambio en el currículo. Lo más radical es su énfasis en la enseñanza del marxismo - leninismo a partir del tercer año de secundaria y la filosofía militarista y belicista de los enunciados filosóficos que orientan los programas de cuarto y quinto de secundaria. Este programa parece traducir la retórica socialista que caracteriza la administración de Chávez. Si se aplicara, sería un atentado contra la libertad de pensamiento y contra la propia constitución venezolana.
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