IDB report signals Latin America’s urgent battle against the “learning crisis”

Punta Cana.- Following the educational disruptions caused by the pandemic, Latin America remains ensnared in a “learning crisis,” exacerbated by socioeconomic disparities that hinder access to and the quality of education, according to a report jointly published by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the World Bank on Wednesday.

On average, students in the region lag behind their OECD counterparts by 5 years, a point underscored by Mercedes Mateo, the head of the IDB Education Division, during the report’s presentation. Utilizing data from the 2022 round of the OECD Program for International Student Assessment (PISA), the report reveals that three-quarters of 15-year-olds in the region struggle to demonstrate “basic level” mathematical skills, and over half lack essential reading skills.

“If learning were a disease, we would be talking about a global pandemic,” emphasized Mateo while presenting the findings at a seminar held within the Annual Meeting of the IDB Board of Governors in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, running until March 11.

Among the 14 participating countries in the region, Paraguay, the Dominican Republic, and El Salvador scored the lowest, while Chile, Uruguay, and Mexico exhibited better student performance.

The report further exposes the stark impact of income on academic performance, with over 88% of students from low-income households showing poor performance, compared to 55% of their affluent counterparts. In terms of equity, the PISA tests revealed that no country in Latin America and the Caribbean achieved “above-average levels of inclusion” in 2022.

Addressing this inequality presents challenges beyond investing solely in education, as infrastructure and transportation also play crucial roles in student success. Despite dedicating 5.2% of the GDP to education, Costa Rica’s Finance Minister, Nogui Acosta, emphasized the need to ensure access to technology and invest in infrastructure for adequate bandwidth.

Mateo advocated for smarter investments, urging countries to “invest more but also invest better,” aiming for efficiency, improved spending, and impactful programs. She cited personalized tutoring as a successful strategy, noting that it enables students to learn “30% faster” than traditional educational methods.