INTERNATIONALBANK FOR WORLD BANK R E T C N O E N STRUCTION PM AND DEVELO March 2004 No. 44 A regular series of notes highlighting recent lessons emerging from the operational and analytical program of the World Bank`s Latin America and Caribbean Region CHILE DECADES OF EDUCATIONAL REFORM DELIVER Lauritz Holm-Nielsen, Kristian Thorn and Juan Prawda A common vision and a remarkably consistent effort on the based on average monthly student attendance. Leveling the part of Chilean governments from the late 1960s to the playing field between educational providers stimulated mu- present have placed Chile at an advanced stage of educa- nicipal and publicly-subsidized schools to compete for stu- tional development. Today, primary dent enrollments. In tertiary educa- education is almost universal, net tion the government deregulated secondary coverage is at 75 percent the market, introduced fees in pub- and more than one third of the 18- lic universities and encouraged pri- 24 age-cohort is enrolled in tertiary vate institutions to participate in the education. In addition, Chile fea- provision of advanced education. tures many components of a mod- ern educational system, including a The restructuring of the 1980s im- full school day, use of private pro- proved efficiency and coverage, al- viders, a competency-based cur- though some questions have been riculum, assessment of learning raised about the initial impact on outcomes and a strong material ba- quality and equity, particularly sis for learning. given the decline in resources for education: between 1981 and 1990, Chile displays the benefits of ad- public expenditures on education dressing the complexity of improv- plummeted from 4 to 2.4 percent of ing learning outcomes within a co- GDP. herent strategic framework. The Chilean experience also showcases how contributions from international financial institutions can boost national educa- Targeting quality and equity in primary and tional reform processes. The World Bank has contributed to secondary education all phases of Chile's educational transition, through se- quenced projects at the primary, secondary and tertiary level. Chile's transition to democracy in 1990 gave new impetus to Building on lessons learned, the assistance has recently been educational reform. In contrast to the structural reforms expanded to include the adoption of a strategy for lifelong carried out under military rule, this wave of reform was learning and investments in research and innovation. targeted at the micro-level. The overriding policy goals be- came to improve learning processes and ensure equity in Deregulation and competition publicly financed education. In the early 1990s, the democratic government established the In the 1980s, Chile's military government made substantial base conditions for the school system to improve its perfor- changes to the school system. In keeping with its market- mance. Notably, learning facilities were modernized and oriented policies, the government introduced a system of students were given universal access to textbooks in five financing both publicly- and privately-managed schools subjects. One important innovation brought in by the new 1 government was the introduction of demand-driven instru- In the 1990's successive governments took steps to target ments. These included competitive mechanisms targeted at resources toward low-income communities and remote areas school-based quality improvement projects. of the country, addressing concerns about equity and quality. The MECE-Rural program delivered specially designed cur- Between 1996 and 2002, Chile's school system underwent riculum for multi-grade schools and developed a network of comprehensive curriculum reform. The new curriculum microcenters to break the isolation of rural teachers. Focused adopted for pre-primary, primary, secondary and adult educa- on more densely populated areas, the P-900 program pro- tion gave increased emphasis on independent thinking and vided additional inputs and teacher training for the worst `learning-to-learn' methodologies. In technical secondary performing schools in the country. As a result of these efforts, education, for example, the revision reduced the lines of the Chilean school system has enhanced its capacity to keep specialization from several hundred to 47 and introduced a poor children in school and help them learn. competency-based rather than an input-driven curriculum. Chile has made the introduction of information and commu- To deepen elements of reform already in place, a "full school nication technologies (ICT) in basic education a priority. day" program was introduced in 1997. This entailed moving Significant resources have been invested in computer equip- away from two shifts of six pedagogical periods with students ment, learning software and teacher training in all schools. attending classes either in the morning or the afternoon, to a Currently, 92 percent of pupils in publicly funded schools full school day consisting of eight 45-minute sessions. This have a computer room at their school, 85 percent also have reform gives students more time for learning and extra- Internet access and 76 percent of Chile's teachers have curricular activities and gives teachers more time for plan- completed basic training in ICT. ning, teamwork and training. The educational reforms of the 1990s were launched with full Teachers and management of each school that wants to adopt financial and political support, reflected in increased re- the full-day scheme are required to propose an institutional source allocations for education, particularly at the primary learning plan for how the additional time will be used. This and secondary levels. Reforms were financed out of revenue bottom-up approach is illustrative of the process of educa- growth due to the expansion of the economy and resources tional reform in Chile, where schools are given considerable earmarked for education from the value added sales tax. freedom to interpret general rules in a manner attuned to their Between 1990 and 2001 public expenditure for education specific context. increased from 2.4 to 4.4 percent of GDP. Adding private expenditure on education (another 3.3 percent of GDP) puts Due to the considerable investments required in school Chile among the countries in the world that invest the most in infrastructure, it is taking longer to adopt the full school day education, in relative terms. The salary of teachers also rose than originally envisaged. Currently, around 7,000 schools considerably during the 1990s. This rise was accompanied by with an enrollment of about 2 million students (65.6 percent the introduction of incentives for teachers to improve learning of the subsidized enrollment) have implemented the initiative. outcomes, upgrade their qualifications and work in locations considered difficult for geographic or social reasons. 2 Chile has shown a high degree of transparency about learning out- World Bank Education Projects in Chile comes and openness to compara- tive evidence from abroad. The MECE-Básica ­ Primary Education Improvement Project (1992-1998). The project aimed at national learning assessment sys- (a) improving quality, equity and efficiency in primary education; (b) expanding coverage and tem (SIMCE), introduced in the enhancing quality of preschool education; and (c) developing institutional, managerial and 1980s, has been updated to reflect financial capacity in the basic education system. curriculum adjustments. Every second year, learning assessments MECE-Media ­ Secondary Education (1995-2001). The project objectives were to (a) are undertaken in grades 4, 8 and improvetheinternalandexternalefficiency,qualityandequityofeducationalservicesprovided 10 and results are made publicly by secondary schools and (b) strengthen managerial capacity in the secondary education sector. available. In the 1990s, learning results at the national level im- MECE-SUP - Higher Education Improvement Project (1998-2004). The project supports (a) proved consistently, though only policy coherence and equity; (b) the establishment of a quality assurance mechanism; and (c) slightly, for both primary and sec- the operation of a competitive fund for quality improvement. ondary education. At the same time there was some progress to- MSI - Millennium Science Initiative (1999-2002). The project (a) invested in Science Institutes ward narrowing the gap in learn- and Nuclei, and (b) supported networks for promoting excellence in science. ing results between urban and ru- ral schools. Participation in the Lifelong Learning and Training Project (2002-2008). The objectives are to (a) provide new 1999 TIMSS and 2002 PISA tests opportunities for lifelong learning and training; (b) improve the quality and increase the revealed that the Chilean school coverage of technical-professional education; and (c) establish instruments to support the system, albeit among the leaders provision of lifelong learning and training services. in the LAC region, still performs below competitive worldwide Science for the Knowledge Economy (2003-2009).The program seeks to (a) strengthen Chile's learning standards in reading, sci- innovation system; (b) improve the science base and Chile's access to advanced human capital; ence and mathematics. Disap- and (c) enhance public-private linkages in research. pointing international test results have led to renewed focus on teaching-learning practices and re-drafting of the primary curriculum. Also, changes have national accreditation commissions have set standards and been made to lift secondary education to the level of leading granted formal recognition to programs at the graduate and countries by postponing specialization and modernizing the undergraduate level based on self-assessments and external technical-vocational track. peer-review processes. Quality improvements in tertiary edu- cation are supported through a competitive fund financing curriculum reform, institutional strengthening and graduate programs in areas considered important for Chile's global Tertiary education and lifelong learning competitiveness. To monitor the quality and relevance of Tertiary coverage in Chile has risen sharply in the past twenty offered careers, a tracking system has been set up to follow years, from about 150,000 students enrolled in 1980 to the employment and income of higher education graduates 480,000 in 2001, equivalent to a gross enrollment rate of 38 (www.futurolaboral.cl). percent of the 18-24 age cohort. Charging tuition from all students, Chile has been able to accommodate an increased The government considers advanced human capital, a strong demand for post-secondary learning opportunities without science base and university-industry cooperation to be key in dedicating a high proportion of public resources to tertiary preparing Chile for the knowledge economy. With the ulti- education. mate goal of improving Chile's national innovation system, scholarships are made available to doctoral students and The Ministry of Education operates a financial assistance measures have been taken to increase the mobility of re- system that seeks to ensure that qualified students are not searchers between the public and private sector. At the same denied the opportunity to enter higher education by lack of time, support for institutions of excellence provides new resources. Although insufficient, financial support rose by 85 employment opportunities for young scientists and enables percent between 1990 and 2002 for students attending the 25 Chile to retain researchers of international repute. member institutions of the Council of Rectors. A future challenge is to extend financial assistance to needy students By adopting a lifelong learning approach, the government is in private universities, professional institutes and technical taking steps to provide additional learning opportunities for training centers. adults who have not benefited from improvements to the formal educational system. The Chile Califica program seeks Chile has been a regional forerunner in quality assurance of to strengthen vocational education, expand opportunities for tertiary education institutions and programs. Since 1999, training and enhance linkages between secondary technical 3 education and tertiary-level institutions. The end-goal is to Araneda, Hernán and Cristóbal Marín (2002). Meeting the design a policy framework with appropriate instruments to Challenge of the Knowledge Economy: Lifelong Learn- target the 6.5 million Chilean adults with incomplete second- ing in Chile, The World Bank. ary education and an estimated 5.5 million workers who need Brunner, José Joaquín Brunner and Gregory Elacqua (2003). further training. Informe Capital Humano en Chile, Santiago: Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez. Cox, Christián and María José What can we learn Lemaitre (1999). Market and from Chile? State Principles of Reform in Chilean Education: Policies A key lesson learned from and Results. In: Perry, Chile is the benefit gained by Guillermo et al. Chile ­ Recent persistent and creative reform Policy Lessons and Emerging at all levels of the educational Challenges, The World Bank system. By keeping the quasi- Institute voucher system and fees for Delannoy, Françoise (2000). university education, demo- Education Reforms in Chile, cratic governments of the 1980-98: A lesson in Pragma- 1990s ensured a high degree tism, Country Studies, Educa- of continuity, building on the tion Reform and Management macro framework introduced Publication Series, vol. 1, no. 1, by the military government. A June, The World Bank. combination of micro-incen- Holm-Nielsen, Lauritz and tives for teachers and fami- Natalia Agapitova (2002b). lies, substantial investments Chile ­ Science, Technology in the learning environment and curriculum reform have had and Innovation, LCSHD Paper Series, No. 79, The substantial impact on the quality and equity of the educational World Bank. system. Holm-Nielsen, Lauritz ; Patricia García Zúñiga and Thomas Nikolaj Hansen (2002). Chile ­ Human Resources for Chile has had considerable success in conducting external the Knowledge Economy, LCSHD Paper Series, No. evaluation of small-scale pilots in order to fine-tune instru- 78, The World Bank. ments prior to their implementation at the national level. Also, Vegas, Emiliana (2002). School Choice, Student Perfor- by pursuing a policy of openness, successive governments in mance, and Teacher and School Characteristics, The Chile have been successful in building partnerships with World Bank. external stakeholders. These have boosted nationally planned Whitman, Ian (2003 draft). Reviews of National Policies for reform processes by bringing in technical assistance and Education: Chile, The Organization for Economic Co- financial support. Perhaps most notably, Chile illustrates the operation and Development. benefits ­ in the form of productivity gains and economic OECD (2003). Evaluating Chile's Educational Polices growth ­ associated with combining liberal trade policies 1990-2003: Background report prepared by the Chil- with targeted investments in technology and human capital. ean Authorities, The Organization for Economic Coop- eration and Development. Although Chile has come a long way, numerous challenges Prawda, Juan (1993). Educational Decentralization in Latin remain. These include expanding the coverage of pre-primary America: Lessons Learned, International Journal of education, bringing learning outcomes in primary and sec- Educational Development, vol. 13, no. 3, pp; 253-64. ondary education to international standards, reducing inequi- ties in tertiary education and improving opportunities for adults who wish to upgrade their skills. Several decades of About the Authors reform place Chile in a strong position to address these challenges. Lauritz Holm-Nielsen and Juan Prawda are Lead Education Specialists in the LAC Human Development Department of ********** the World Bank. Kristian Thorn is a consultant and M&E specialist attached to LCSHE References Arellano, José Pablo (2001). La Reforma Educacional Chilena, Revista: Comisión Económica para América About "en breve" Latina y el Caribe, No. 76, pp. 83-94 To subscribe to "en breve" send and email to "en_breve@worldbank.org" 4