Can internet access at home stimulate learning among children? It is an especially urgent question in developing countries where digital access and educational achievement lag considerably behind those in developed ones. Ofer Malamud, Santiago Cueto, Diether Beuermann and I decided to address the issue in an experiment where we provided both laptops and internet access to … [Read more...] about Can the Internet Boost Learning in Latin America?
About Julián Cristiá
When Poverty Is No Obstacle to Educational Success
Villa Esperanza, is a shantytown of unpaved streets and low-slung tin-roofed house, a place where the prospects for children would seem grim. Most adults in the town outside Lima work selling goods on the street or in other low-paying jobs. Many are illiterate, and the social problems, ranging from gangs to high levels of alcoholism, disease and domestic violence, might snuff … [Read more...] about When Poverty Is No Obstacle to Educational Success
It's Time to Improve Primary Education: This Is How
Over the last 25 years, Latin America and the Caribbean has boosted efforts in primary education to the point that it is nearly universal, with three out of four students finishing primary school on time. But educational quality for very young children in the region still lags far behind that of developed countries. It even trails countries of similar levels of development in … [Read more...] about It’s Time to Improve Primary Education: This Is How
Curing Education's Ills With Lessons From Medicine
Latin America's educational systems are failing their students. Despite steady advances in enrollment, students in the region perform considerably worse on standardized tests than their counterparts in advanced economies. They even trail students from developing economies with similar levels of development. The problem is not lack of spending. The average country in the region … [Read more...] about Curing Education’s Ills With Lessons From Medicine
When the Scientific Method Goes to School
Ask any parent in Latin America or the Caribbean what they most want for their kids, and you're very likely to hear it summed up in one word: education. Parents know that learning can bring their children satisfaction, success and prosperity, and they've opened their wallets, spending a higher share of their household budget on schooling than in the United States. Governments … [Read more...] about When the Scientific Method Goes to School