Emiliana Vegas

No More Cutting Class? Reducing Teacher Absence and Providing Incentives for Performance

Expanding and improving basic education in developing countries requires, at a minimum, teachers who are present in the classroom and motivated to teach, but this essential input is often missing. This paper describes the findings of a series of recent World Bank and other studies on teacher absence and incentives for performance. Surprise school visits reveal that teachers are absent at high rates in countries such as India, Indonesia, Uganda, Ecuador, and Zambia, reducing the quality of schooling for children, especially in rural, remote, and poor areas. More broadly, poor teacher management and low levels of teacher accountability afflict many developing-country education systems. The paper presents evidence on these shortcomings, but also on the types of incentives, management, and support structures that can improve motivation and performance and reduce avoidable absenteeism. It concludes with policy options for developing countries to explore as they work to meet Education for All goals and improve quality.

Challenges for Social Policy in a Less Favorable Macroeconomic Context

Over the last decade and a half Latin America and the Caribbean have made notable advances in reducing poverty and improving social outcomes. Extreme poverty fell by more than a third from 19.3 % in 2002 to 12.0 % in 2014; and inequality, as measured by the Gini coefficient, fell from 0.56 to 0.51. In parallel, child mortality fell from 32 to 18 deaths per 100,000 children from 2000 to 2013 (see UN IGME 2014). By 2013, school attendance rates among 6–11-year-olds reached 98 %, and among 12–17-year-olds rose to 87 %. Although gaps remain across income and demographic groups, the biggest advances in reducing chronic malnutrition and improving school age-attendance profiles occurred for children from the lowest socioeconomic groups.

América Latina y el Caribe en PISA 2015: Datos básicos sobre PISA

El Programa para la Evaluacion Internacional de los Alumnos, o PISA por sus siglas en ingles, evalua cada tres anos lo que los estudiantes de 15 anos saben y pueden hacer en ciencia, lectura y matematica.

América Latina y el Caribe en PISA 2015: ¿Cómo le fue a la región?

America Latina y el Caribe se ubica nuevamente a la cola del ranking internacional de calidad educativa. La participacion de la region en esta prueba aumento a 10 paises, lo que muestra un claro compromiso por mejorar la calidad y aprender de otros paises.