Posts

Access to Secondary Schooling Key to Education in Paraguay

Education in ParaguayParaguay is a country located in South America, situated between the northern border of Argentina and the southern border of Brazil. Education in Paraguay is very structurally similar to that of the United States, in which children advance through primary and secondary school before moving on to advanced studies at a university or vocational training facility. Similar to the United States, the education system starts children in primary school at age six, and the children complete grades one through 12.

According to the World Factbook, 95 percent of males and 94 percent of females in Paraguay are defined as being literate. However, literacy is typically not achieved until the final years of primary education, which is normally completed at age 14.

Classbase has reported that education in Paraguay is unique due to the government’s historical political instability. In 2014, the government regained stability after a period of disorganization following the impeachment of President Fernando Lugo.

Following primary school, children have the choice to enter secondary school, as it is not required by law. However, a lot of families typically do not have the money to afford continuing education, and so the families often send their children across the border to Chile. It can be a large hassle for such families to send their children far away in order to attend school, especially if the families do not have the funds to allow their children to learn locally.

Tertiary schools, which are universities or vocational training facilities, exist in Paraguay, but, as mentioned, many children do not have the opportunity to advance greatly in the education system. A reformed education system would potentially greatly help the children Paraguay be able to learn a variety of useful skills, which will help them be able to attend university or vocational training.

– Emily Santora

Photo: Flickr

,

Education in Latvia: An End to Discrimination

Education in Latvia

Improvements in education in Latvia are of the utmost importance, because children are the most impoverished group of Latvians. As of 2012, 23.4 percent of children under the age 17 were living below the poverty line, whereas only 18.8 percent of adults up to 64 years of age and 17.7 percent of Latvians 65 and older were below the poverty threshold.

With so many children living in poverty, receiving an education is the first step towards improving their situation. From 2008 to 2012, there was a decline from 26.3 percent to 23.4 percent of children living in poverty, perhaps due to primary and secondary education being free and mandatory for all native Latvians.

However, there would be a much greater decrease if discrimination was not as prominent within education in Latvia. Children of minorities are denied access to health and education facilities.

Romani and Russian speakers experience language barriers, as Latvian schools do not teach in these languages. Children of these ethnicities are falling into poverty, or remaining in poverty, which greatly affects the country’s overall economy. Russian speakers alone represent a third of Latvia‘s population, greatly influencing the country’s poverty rate.

Fortunately, the European Commission Against Racism and Intolerance has addressed the issue and promises that the Latvian educational system will provide equal access to education and jobs. They demanded that schools alter their curriculum to provide instruction in minority languages and cultures.

Even further, there is a presence of a separate but equal society in which Roma children must attend different classes than their peers, which reinforces the belief that they are not capable of sharing language and education with Latvian students. The Council of Europe’s Anti-Racism Commission is also fighting to end this separation and merge all ethnicities into the same class.

Seeing how Latvia’s population has experienced an increase in its poverty rate, from 19 percent in 2010 to 22.5 percent in 2014, it is vital that the country makes improvements. Providing equal access to both basic and higher education is an important step forward, one that European officials acknowledge. Once Latvia ends racism, education will allow all children to climb out of poverty.

– Brianna White

Photo: Flickr

, , ,

Education Superpowers and What We Can Learn from Them

Education_SuperpowersIn 2015, 72 countries participated in The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development’s (OCED) triennial Programme for International Student Assessment. The test examines 15-year-olds’ aptitude in reading, math and science. Singapore, China, Japan, South Korea, Estonia, Canada and Switzerland are consistently among the top 10 performing countries in all subjects, with Singapore ranking number one across the board.

Science

  1. Singapore
  2. Japan
  3. Estonia
  4. Chinese Taipei
  5. Macao (China)

Reading

  1. Singapore
  2. Canada
  3. Ireland
  4. Estonia
  5. South Korea

Math

  1. Singapore
  2. China
  3. Japan
  4. South Korea
  5. Switzerland

What makes these countries different from low performing ones? Four notable components emerge from experts’ conversations about what makes education superpowers successful.

  1. Equality and a strong education policy
  2. High-quality instructors
  3. Parental involvement
  4. Objectivity

Equality and education policy
There is only a narrow socioeconomic discrepancy between schools in the top-ranked countries, proof of a remarkably consistent educational system. For example, Canadian students score high regardless of being an economically advantaged or disadvantaged student.

In Macao and Vietnam, students with unfavorable socioeconomic conditions still outperform advantaged students internationally on PISA exams, citing a successful and consistent educational framework as one of the reasons for this.

High-quality teachers
The support and training for teachers in education superpower countries is extensive. These countries tend to have high salaries and comprehensive policy frameworks that support teachers and reflect the importance of teacher quality and preparation.

In a three-year study, the Stanford Center for Opportunity Policy in Education’s leading researcher Linda Darling-Hammond found that countries that best prepare their students focus on two things: building an effective and long-term educational system and professionalizing the teaching career.

The qualifications and training process of becoming a teacher are denser, but systems are in place to make this a more affordable process. In Canada, teachers are paid salaries comparable to that of engineers and other societal professionals. Singaporean primary school teachers earn an average of S$51,000 annually.

Parental involvement
In a comparative study reading parents’ involvement in the learning process between American and Chinese students, Cecilia Sin-Sze Cheung and Eva Pomerantz found that parental involvement was positively associated with the child’s achievement in both countries, especially in the education superpower of China.

Andreas Schleicher, OECD’s education director, argues that Singapore’s success is in part due to the high priority that parents in Asian countries put on education. This ultimately contributes to their child’s educational success and achievements.

Education superpowers don’t buy into the myths
Contrary to popular belief, a high rate of immigrants does not necessarily contribute to a lower success average in schools. In Canada’s case, embracing immigrant students has contributed to the overall success of the Canadian educational system.

OCED acknowledges that counties with high immigrant student populations are not associated with poor student performance.

The cost of being an education superpower
The top-performing countries also rank high on the World Health Organization’s adolescent suicide rate chart. Hong Kong, Japan and South Korea all near the top of both lists. Countries such as Albania and Peru that are among PISA’s lower test performers have a higher proportion of students who enjoy school.

Though preparing students for a global economy and cultivating abilities to compete on a universal level is worth applauding, it may be at the cost of happiness. The most important things for education superpowers to work on are reducing the stress put on students and making their education enjoyable as well as enriching.

– Sloan Bousselaire

Photo: Flickr

,

Education in Comoros: Focus on Improving Literacy

Education in ComorosAccording to the Global Partnership for Education, the government of Comoros considers education a vital aspect of the nation’s political, economic and social development. That said, in recent years the country has come across several difficulties in the realm of education. Here are several facts about the challenges being faced as well as what is being done to address them.

  1. Education in Comoros has strengthened significantly over the last few years to thanks to the government’s efforts to improve the system and provide equal access to all children in the nation.
  2. Despite its progress, the nation still exhibits high rates of repetition and dropouts at the primary and secondary levels. Poor learning outcomes have been recorded, including high rates of illiteracy, poor management of human resources as well as an increased dependency on foreign aid.
  3. This year marks the end of the Interim Education Sector Plan, which was established by the Global Partnership for Education in 2013 to address these challenges.
  4. Early childhood and primary school education were a major part of the sector plan. Specifically, this included raising parental awareness, diversifying preschools, increasing teacher quality and providing better access to children with disabilities.
  5. Literacy in the sector plan was meant to increase through an improved curricula, textbooks and resources for teachers.
  6. Secondary school was addressed in the same way as literacy, including better resources and textbooks. There is also a plan to construct more schools and classrooms with better facilities and infrastructure.
  7. In terms of higher education, it is planned to increase the monitoring of graduates and facilitating the connections between them and professionals, so as to meet market needs and create more career opportunities.

Comoros has had a history of political violence since its independence in 1973. Since then, it has been highly dependent on foreign aid. The country continues to work with the GPE and UNICEF to increase access to primary education in Comoros so that students can take advantage of this resource.

– Melanie Snyder

Photo: Flickr

, ,

Education in Cabo Verde Successes: Enrollment

Education in Cabo Verde

Cabo Verde is a small nation that consists of a group of islands just under 400 miles off Africa’s northeast coast. Nine of the 10 islands are inhabited and they are divided into two groups. The Barlavento group in the north includes the islands of Santo Antão, São Vicente, Santa Luzia, São Nicolau, Sal and Boa Vista. The Sotavento group in the south includes the islands of Maio, Santiago, Fogo and Brava.

According to a 2014 report by the World Bank, 3 percent of primary school aged children were not enrolled in school. Girls were less likely to receive an education in Cabo Verde; only 1 percent of primary school aged boys were not in school compared to 4 percent of girls. The rate of completion of primary education in Cabo Verde is 99 percent, which shows that the small nation is making progress towards its goal of universal primary education.

Compared to other low to middle-income nations, access to education in Cabo Verde ranked among the 85th percentile, but it only ranked at the 61st percentile in learning. Despite this, the literacy rate of the youth population was 98 percent, which was higher than the average in other lower to middle-income nations. This is good news for education in Cabo Verde, because literacy is a necessary skill for accessing higher levels of education.

Although Cabo Verde has made great strides in access to education, there are still some obstacles to overcome. One problem for education in Cabo Verde is that many students and teachers alike speak Creole at home and have a weak command of Portuguese, which is the language used in the academic setting. Aside from that, there is not enough spending on supplies, books and lunches, and there is also a high rate of repetition. Students are more likely to repeat grade two during their primary education. The rate of repetition in grade two was 18 percent in Cabo Verde, which was double the average of other primary grades.

Cabo Verde‘s high enrollment and literacy rates show that education is a priority in the country. By addressing its students’ obstacles to learning, it can ensure that they get the most out of the education they are receiving.

– Fernando Vazquez

Photo: Google

,

Investments Key to Improving Education in Guinea

Education in Guinea
Several factors contribute to extreme poverty in Guinea. Guinea has made it a priority to address the major factors that add to this plight, one of which is education. With a population of around 10 million and a literacy rate of around 30 percent for young males and females, Guinea’s Strategic Poverty Reduction Document includes education as an important factor in helping to reduce overall poverty in the country. Guinea has received help from a few different nonprofits in order to develop strategies to meet these goals.

UNICEF is working to resolve the lack of investment in education that Guinea experiences. Classrooms have begun to overcrowd recently, partially due to refugee influxes, making it difficult for students to get the time and attention they need to succeed. Investments in additional classrooms and training staff are a part of UNICEF’s plan to alleviate this pressure, as well as adding new teaching styles to cater to the uniqueness of pupils.

Through UNICEF, the Global Partnership for Education is chipping away at specific goals to target the main issues surrounding education in Guinea. The partnership has set priorities of making education more universal and available, making improvements in quality and training and strengthening government to make investments in their people’s education and support reforms.

World Education, a nonprofit dedicated to improving quality of life through access to education, has been present in Guinea since the late 1990s. World Education has focused its efforts primarily on capacity building through several different methods. They have worked to engage NGOs within Guinea and support community participation projects as well as received funding to kickstart such programs.

While most extremely poor nations experience education issues, it is important to recognize the work of the aforementioned organizations and the role of government in education. With consistent effort in this area, the state of education in Guinea can improve.

– Casey Hess

Photo: Flickr

Understanding the Importance of Native-Language Instruction

The Importance of Native-Language InstructionIn schools across the world, students find themselves at an inherent disadvantage because their classes are not taught in their native language. Native-language instruction is crucial to optimize a student’s success, for many reasons.

Development of a student’s first language facilitates development in a second language. In other words, it is far easier to learn a second language when students already have a strong foundation in their first language. Knowledge and skills are also completely transferable from one language to another.

Native-language instruction also benefits a student’s overall well-being. Students enjoy school and are happier and more successful when they are taught in their own language. Conversely, students who are taught in a language other than their first language are more likely to fail early grades or drop out of school completely.

Girls are more likely to go to school and stay in school when the language of instruction is their first language, and parents are more likely to be involved in their children’s schooling. On a larger scale, native-language instruction emphasizes the importance of that language and its culture, and preserves the language for future generations.

Schools are typically taught in one of the national languages of a country. For example, Burundi recently declared that English was one of its national languages, so an increasing number of schools are now taught in English. This privileges urban students over rural ones. Urban students are more likely to already speak the national language or at least to have been exposed to it. Rural students are far more isolated and often enter school knowing only the language spoken at home.

In countries with large indigenous populations and a multitude of languages, the lack of resources is a barrier to adequate native-language instruction. It costs money to employ teachers who are fluent in each of the native languages, and to provide textbooks that are in those languages and are culturally appropriate.

In Mongolia, the Kazakhs are the largest minority. Until 2005, teachers were only given textbooks written in Mongolian, even when they were teaching in Kazakh. In Botswana, schools teach exclusively in English and Setswana, the national languages and the languages of the ethnic majorities. These languages are also core subjects in the national curriculum, and thus students are required to take and pass exams in those languages. This disadvantages indigenous children who enter school with no prior knowledge of English or Setswana.

There are many programs targeted at addressing bilingual students and bridging language gaps. In the Bronx, there are schools which alternate teaching in English and Spanish every other week, meeting the needs of students who are fluent in both languages and enhancing their bilingualism.

In the U.S. alone, 175 indigenous languages are still spoken. All but 50 of these are projected to be extinct by 2024. Project SEED (Scholarships for Economic and Educational Development) and AILDI (American Indian Language Development Institute) develop curriculum in, teach and work to preserve native languages. In Cameroon, indigenous peoples have created a culturally sensitive education policy called ORA (Observe, Reflect, Act) which is tailored specifically toward young Baka children.

For curriculum to be most effective, especially for disadvantaged and marginalized students, it should be in their language, culturally sensitive and incorporate indigenous culture and traditions.

– Olivia Bradley

Photo: Flickr

, ,

UNHCR Financing Higher Education for Refugees

Higher Education for RefugeesIn 2016, the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) published its annual Global Report on the state of the world’s refugee crisis. Among other things, the report highlights a 6 percent rise in what it terms ‘populations of concern’ over the past year alone. That is a total increase of one million people.

Specifically, the global number of refugees — people who have been forced from their home countries due to war or other life-threatening occurrences — has risen by 6.7 million in just five years.

Imagine if nearly the entire population of Washington state was suddenly forced to leave, and depend entirely on their ability to convince a political body, over which they have no control, of the unequivocal necessity of their leaving home. The total number of people living this reality stands at 16.5 million.

What does this situation mean for college-aged adults? What access is there to higher education for refugees? According to UNHCR statistics on refugee education, the situation is bleak. Just 1 percent of all college-aged refugees are able to seek higher education, while the other 99 percent is left out.

However, there is one program that seems to have had a profoundly positive impact on thousands of college-aged refugees. The UNHCR’s Albert Einstein German Academic Refugee Initiative Fund (DAFI).

DAFI was first implemented in 1992, and has continued to receive a majority of its funding from the government of Germany. Through the financing of higher education for refugees at approved universities, DAFI aims to:

  • Promote self-reliance and empowerment for sponsored students and their family
  • Help sponsored students to become adept community leaders capable of assisting their home countries
  • Provide the training necessary for scholarship recipients to work within refugee communities while awaiting repatriation
  • Facilitate host country integration for scholarship recipients and their families
  • Demonstrate to all, especially women and girls, the value of education

So, what does it take for a potential scholar to be granted a DAFI scholarship? First, students must be in what the UNHCR terms “developing countries or countries in transition”, as well as have been granted asylum from the country in which they will pursue their studies. Second, they must be under 28 years of age when their studies begin.

Additionally, as the program is intended to arm a generation with the necessary skills required to help rebuild their countries of origin, all students must decide on a course of study that will see them quickly employed upon repatriation.

As of 2015, 2,321 people were able to achieve their dream of attending university. This is a substantial increase from a total of just 4,774 scholars in the first 15 years of its operation.

For its relatively short history, it would seem that the program of higher education for refugees has been hugely successful. Indeed, one of its only critiques may be that it cannot reach more would-be college students faster.

– Katarina Schrag

Photo: Flickr

,

Addressing Dropout Rates for Education in Norway

Education in Norway

Ranked twenty-first on the list of leading education systems in performance, graduation rates, and funding, Norway is among the many countries in Northern Europe that places education as a priority for all youth regardless of their financial or ethnic background. In 2016, Norway provided higher education to more than 200,000 students, more than tripling the student count from 2010. Education in Norway is highly valued, however, student drop-out rates are a continuing issue.

Education in Norway is implemented in three parts: primary school, lower secondary school and upper secondary school, the first two of which are mandatory to complete. Students must go to school between the ages of six and 16, but after graduation from lower secondary school, students are given the option to either pursue upper secondary school or discontinue education to enter the job market. Upper secondary school is a three-year program that incorporates either general or vocational studies.
 
As of 2015, the completion rate of the 64,000 students enrolled in upper secondary school starting in 2010 was 59 percent. Norwegian schools are tuition-free, and Norway continually supports equality in education. So the question is: why do students drop out of upper secondary education?

The answer to this question may have little to do with Norway’s philosophy on education. In fact, it could lie in the background of each student. One major factor influencing the decision to finish schooling is grade point average in lower secondary school. If a student is presented with poorer grades in early education, their likelihood of receiving good grades or seeing their higher education through is low. While 59 percent of the student population in 2015 graduated within the given time span of their schooling, 7 percent failed final exams and 15 percent dropped out before or during their final year.

Obtaining a quality lower secondary education in Norway is an essential factor to the success in upper secondary school. Since lower secondary school occurs during the development ages of 10 to 16, it is imperative for teachers to provide students with engaging and effective curriculum specifically tailored to that age group. The focus is on basic knowledge concepts, such as reading and math, then upper secondary school is a more advanced approach that offers career-specific courses, like business or nursing.

New ideas like the Transition Project focus on low-performing students in lower secondary school to increase their reading, writing and numeracy competencies. This project provides students with follow-up workshops, homework assistance and surveys for teachers to complete and keep track of their lower-scoring students.

Reforms like the Transition Project provide students and teachers alike with cohesive learning. Teachers are able to lecture with more clarity and students are able to grasp the curriculum with more ease. Those students needing more assistance have outlets to spend more time on specific concepts. As a result, students are less likely to fall behind in their classes and will gain a better overall understanding of the curriculum based on the increase in involvement and participation with their teachers.

With an unemployment rate of 7.5 percent for students with education below upper secondary school and only 3.4 percent for students with upper secondary education, it is vital to emphasize the importance of finishing school. Norway has seen the underlying problem, and its efforts in decreasing dropout rates in upper secondary school are just beginning.

– Brianna Summ

Photo: Flickr

,

Education in Libya During and After Gaddafi

Education in LibyaEducation in Libya was faced with the tall task of rebuilding the war-torn infrastructure following the 2011 fall of former Libyan president Muammar Gaddafi.

The Libyan regime under Gaddafi saw education centralized. This meant that schoolchildren learned a skewed geography, used symbols and units of measurement that did not match international norms and the curriculum was tightly controlled for the purposes of indoctrination.

After years of conflict and the fall of the Gaddafi regime in Libya, the international community was tasked with rebuilding the country. Now, two million children under the age of 15 have seen a drastic overhaul of their formal education. Working alongside Libyan authorities, organizations such as UNICEF made great strides to jumpstart the educational system. Within months, schools were operational and steps were being made to reinvent the curriculum.

Educational experts are now in a position to correct the impacts of Gaddafi’s influence. Libyan schoolchildren are now using accurate maps and standardized symbols. Of more cultural importance, Libya’s children are able to openly discuss their country’s history, including the events that led to Gaddafi’s rise to power and subsequent fall.

Despite the newly revamped curriculum, higher education comes at a cost. During the Gaddafi era, education was compulsory but completely free of charge. Indeed, the government funded study abroad if certain educational programs could not be accessed within the country. Students in tertiary, or higher education programs are widely accessible in Libya today but are no longer funded by the government.

In spite of Gaddafi’s infamous legacy, his reign was also marked by irrefutable gains in the educational system. Libya’s citizens enjoyed unparalleled access to education and the literacy rate increased from 25 percent to 87 percent.

However, education in Libya has improved dramatically since 2011. Gaddafi’s fall opened the country to a much-needed overhaul of the curriculum. Libya and the international community continue to make strides to solve factual inadequacies while maintaining its access to education. Furthermore, the literacy rate of 15-24-year-olds in Libya is a staggering 99.9 percent.

While it may not be a perfect system, the educational system in Libya can serve as a guide to countries tasked with rebuilding their infrastructure.

– Eric Paulsen

Photo: Flickr