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The link between economic development and education in Latin America is generally well-recognized. A literate and educated work force is the largest single factor in explaining economic growth. In this study, the editors and contributors survey the various elementary educational systems to investigate the reasons behind the failure of schools to retain students in elementary grades. A group of scholars looks at the current state of education in four countries: Mexico, Argentina, Brazil, and Chile, with a view to designing more effective programs for reducing the dropout and grade repetition rates. For each country studied, there is an overview of the school system, teacher training and attitudes, centralized and decentralized planning, curriculum development, and psychological and environmental issues that contribute to school dropout.
List of contents
Part 1: Introduction and Overview l. Introduction: Education and Development 2. Causes of Dropping Out from the Perspective of Education Theory 3. Poverty, Psychology, and Dropouts 4. Fey Alegria: An Alternative Proposal for Primary Education in Latin America 5. The Role of the State in Education 6. The Impact of International Organizations on Educational Policy in Latin America Part II: Basic Education Systems 7. Argentina: Elementary School Enrollment and Attainment 8. Primary Education in Brazil: Changes and Prospects 9. Repetition and Quality of Education in Chile 10 . Basic Education in Mexico: An Overview Part III: Repetition and Dropout Measurement and Programs 11. Repetition and Dropout in Brazil: Measurement Issues 12. Argentina: Programs for the Prevention of Repetition and Dropout and Their Results 13. Government Programs to Eliminate Repetition, School Dropout, and Exclusion in Brazil 14. Prevention of Repetition and Dropout: Quality and Equity in the First Years of Primary Education in Chile-Two Programs to Achieve Them 15. Policies Against School Failure in Mexico-An Overview Part IV: Decentralization 16. Decentralization of Primary Education in Argentina 17. School Organization: Centralization/Decentralization for Primary School 18. Educational Decentralization in Chile 19. Dropout Rates and Preschooling in a Decentralizing System: The Case of Mexico, 1992-1996 Part V: Curriculum 20. Curricular Ideologies: Prescriptions and Normative Traditions in Teaching, Theories, and Practices 21. Curriculum and Teaching in Brazil: Current Conditions and Outlook 22. Curriculum and Educational Materials in Chile 23. Prevention of School Failure in Basic Education in Mexico Part VI: Teaching Conditions: Training and Salaries 24. Teachers' Training, Work Conditions, and Salary in Argentina 25. Training, Salaries, and Work Conditions of Teachers of the First Grades of Primary School 26. Experiences in Training Good Teachers in Work Places 27. The Training and Employment of Teachers in Mexico Regina Cortina Part VII: Conclusion 28. Conclusion: Improving Basic Education in Latin America
About the author
Laura Randall, professor of economics at Hunter College of the City University of New York. Joan B. Anderson is a professor of economics at the University of San Diego and is co-editor of the Journal of Borderlands Studies. She has authored a large number of journal articles on economic development in Latin America.
Summary
In this study, the contributors survey the various elementary educational systems to investigate the reasons behind the failure of schools throughout Latin America to retain students in elementary grades.
