The study of the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) corresponding to 2022 left a snapshot of the harsh impact of the Covid 19 pandemic on students between 15 and 16 years old in Latin America and the Caribbean . But the depth of the effects is still being evaluated and recovery plans still appear incipient. This is the opinion of the Chilean commercial engineer and coordinator of the Latin American Laboratory for Evaluation of the Quality of Education of Unesco (LLECE-Unesco), Carlos Henríquez, who states that there are no single recipes to correct the deficiencies caused by school closures and the adoption of remote classes. But yes, he says, there are good experiences within the region that could counteract the loss of well-being and learning, especially in primary school students.
Rather than turning our gaze towards models such as the Finnish or other European ones, Henríquez assures EL PAÍS that a focus should be placed on educational centers that managed to advance despite complex environments: “We should learn what they are doing, and scale certain policies.” His perspective is that, as progress is made in correcting inequalities in educational systems and good practices based on evidence are established, the region could emerge from the stagnation in which it has found itself for a decade.
Ask. How do you read the PISA 2022 report on Latin America?
Answer. It was not as catastrophic as projected because it appears that the educational systems were resilient, due to the efforts made as a whole. Although we have a great task because one out of every two students measured in PISA 2022 in Latin America does not have basic skills in reading and three out of every four, on average, in mathematics.
Q. How much did the pandemic put the quality of education in the region at risk?
R. Students in schools in Latin America and the Caribbean, understanding their heterogeneity, are not only in spaces of learning, but also of well-being – linked to food, health and care – and, in that sense, they were at risk. The problem is that there has been stagnation since 2013 in the learning agenda, which is not related to the pandemic, but rather to a debt with educational quality in the region.
Q. PISA 2022 carries out an evaluation of 15-year-old students, but one of the groups most impacted by the pandemic are children in the initial school stage.
R. The account made by the LLECE laboratory based on the national evaluations of the countries is that there was a loss of well-being and learning, mainly in the youngest children; which is reflected more intensely in mathematics than in language. On the other hand, the difficulty of these students in relating to others stands out. They are small children, and it is not only important that they learn to write or basic operations, but also how to relate, solve problems with their peers, play and share. These were the biggest difficulties that schools experienced in 2022.
The PISA assessments provide information on completion of the school system and skills for the world of work, which is important; But having information about primary or early age is essential so that school systems not only verify what has happened, but also adopt policies to improve. In this direction, the results of the Regional Comparative and Explanatory Study (ERCE) 2025, from LLECE-Unesco, in the region will also be a contribution to be used for improvement.
Q. How long can the effect of the pandemic on students last?
R. There are simulations that said that this effect would last even until these students reached the working world, only these results invite us to carry out analysis based on evidence and to be cautious. Apparently, Latin American systems were resilient, there was respective support and families played a role. But it is very hasty to say what the impact (of the pandemic) has been, although the important thing is that this information provides evidence to provide, greater support, make decisions and, hopefully, invest more.
Q. You mention that Latin American systems were more resilient. What do you attribute it to?
R. You have to investigate it. The PISA study indicates that, unlike developed countries, in the region – with intermediate and lagging educational systems – there were no such large losses or, at least, several countries did not lose as projected. One of my hypotheses is that the family was very important in accompanying this. I believe that there was a commitment on the part of the family and school relationship and in the networks to counteract the impact of the pandemic. On the other hand, there are studies that may be more informative for medium- and low-performing educational systems in our region. Some reports indicate that studies contextualized to the regional curriculum such as the ERCE (Unesco Regional Comparative and Explanatory Study) have a higher level of information at all levels of performance, even lower.
Q. There is constant talk about the gaps in education in Latin America. Why haven’t they been reversed?
R. Much has been done and progressed in the countries. If one compares the years 2000, 2010 and 2020, there is effort in the vast majority of nations. But if one sees a diagnosis, one can say that investment in Latin America is insufficient. OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) countries invest three times more per student than the regional average. I’m not even saying that it doesn’t work, but the level of investment to achieve good results must be higher. The call is for social pacts, prioritizing education as an engine of development throughout our society, investing more based on evidence and making educational policies scalable to all schools.
Q. What common elements can countries in the region apply to improve student performance?
R. All countries have different contexts. In the ERCE 2019 study we found elements that explain that the weight of the socioeconomic group to which the student belongs is very important when correlating with the results and, therefore, more active policies are required to counteract these inequalities. Along these lines, teachers must be supported in more effective strategies to know where each student is in their learning trajectory and then offer specific support so that each student advances in their learning. There must be recovery plans in all countries in order for this to be a great agreement and a 2024 crusade in each of the countries that, hopefully, can allow governments to allocate more resources, involve civil society and Actions are deployed to support lagging students who require greater support.
Q. Moderate economic growth is expected in Latin America by 2024, how will this influence achieving improvements in educational systems?
R. UNESCO’s call is to make greater and relevant efforts to accelerate recovery and prioritize educational transformation. We understand that it is difficult to improve, but it is key that this is a priority at the level of societies and not just governments. It is ideally necessary to increase investment in education and improve its use to impact what is done every day. In that sense, investing in professional development, in teacher support, in evidence-based strategies that support fundamental skills in primary school and in ways to provide feedback on learning, are steps to build a route for improvement. Latin America must and can make education its great engine of social mobility and for that it requires the contribution and priority of everyone.
#Carlos #Henríquez #PISA #results #Latin #America #catastrophic #projected