Analyzing the Dynamics of School Dropout in Upper Secondary Education in Latin America: A Cohort Approach

Abstract

The Policy Research Working Paper Series disseminates the findings of work in progress to encourage the exchange of ideas about development issues. An objective of the series is to get the findings out quickly, even if the presentations are less than fully polished. The papers carry the names of the authors and should be cited accordingly. The findings, interpretations, and conclusions expressed in this paper are entirely those of the authors. They do not necessarily represent the views of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development/World Bank and its affiliated organizations, or those of the Executive Directors of the World Bank or the governments they represent.

Increasing Educational Disparities in the Timing of Motherhood in the Andean Region: A Cohort Perspective

“…Although children from more disadvantaged groups have been increasingly entering secondary school across generations, the quality of the institutions they attend and their school completion rates are lower than among those in the more advantaged groups (ECLAC 2002(ECLAC , 2007(ECLAC , 2010. Quality of school can influence educational aspirations, perceived returns to education, prospects of attending university and consequently students decisions about whether to complete school (Azevedo et al 2012;ECLAC 2010;Kattan and Székely 2015). These in turn can determine young women's opportunities, for example on the labor market, which have a potential to influence their motivation to avoid early motherhood.…”

“…The educational expansion resulted in virtually universal primary school coverage in the three countries, but the secondary school attendance and completion rates have been lower (ECLAC 2010). The problem of secondary school grade repetition and dropout in the region has been particularly pronounced (Kattan and Székely 2015) and is more common among the poorer, those living in rural areas and indigenous populations (ECLAC 2002(ECLAC , 2007(ECLAC , 2010. Moreover, completing university in that context is still something that is reserved for more privileged groups.…”

“…However, the completion of a low quality secondary school education can limit the chances of students from poorer backgrounds to attend university (ECLAC 2010). The poor quality of secondary schools can contribute not only to lower chances of attending university, but also lower aspirations and incentives to complete secondary school at all (Kattan and Székely 2015).…”

“…In this paper, I distinguish between, and compare, women who complete and dropout of secondary school. This analysis aims to enhance the understanding of the changing educational disparities in the timing of motherhood in the context of substantial increase in the share of women who enter secondary school and high levels of secondary school dropout observed in the region (Kattan and Székely 2015).…”

Human capital development at school and work

“…Approximately 45 percent of those that enter secondary education do not graduate. Upper secondary school completion rates in Latin America are well below the average for OECD countries, of around 85 percent (Kattan and Székely, 2015;OECD, 2011).…”