Education Policy Oriented Civil Society Organisations In Latin America

Examining the roles, impacts and challenges of civil society organizations (CSOs) in Latin America, this volume provides a broad perspective on the range of strategies these organizations employ and the obstacles they face in advocating for and delivering educational reform. Building on previous research on international and comparative education, development studies, research on social movements and nongovernmental organizations, chapter authors provides new insights about the increasing presence of CSOs in education and offer case studies demonstrating how these organizations‘ missions have evolved over time in Latin America.

"How do poor people in Latin America participate in politics? What explains the variation in the patterns of voting, protesting, and contacting government for the region's poorest citizens? Why are participation gaps larger in some countries than in others? This book offers the first large scale empirical analysis of political participation in Latin America, focusing on patterns of participation among the poorest citizens in each country, and comparing those patterns to those of individuals with more resources. Far from being politically inert, under certain conditions the poorest citizens in Latin America can act and speak for themselves with an intensity that far exceeds their modest socioeconomic resources. We argue that key institutions of democracy, namely civil society, political parties, and competitive elections, have an enormous impact on whether or not poor people turn out to vote, protest, and contact government officials. When voluntary organizations thrive in poor communities and when political parties focus their mobilization efforts on poor individuals, they respond with high levels of political activism. Poor people's activism also benefits from strong parties, robust electoral competition and well-functioning democratic institutions. Where electoral competition is robust and where the power of incumbents is constrained, we see higher levels of participation by poor individuals and more political equality. Precisely because the individual resource constraints that poor people face are daunting obstacles to political activism, our explanation focuses on those features of democratic politics that create opportunities for participation that have the strongest effect on poor people's political behavior"--

First Published in 2000. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

This book presents pioneering research that is designed to show, from a qualitative and ethnographic perspective, how new information and communication technologies, as applied to the school system and to local governance initiatives, merely reproduce traditional pedagogical approaches and the dominant forms by which power is exercised at the local level. The studies thus constitute points of departure for further thinking about the need to promote an Internet culture based on the social application of a "right to communication and culture" and an "Internet right," that will permit the establi.

"Compared to other policy areas like health care, education is a relatively empty policy area because the beneficiaries--students and families, and business--are not politically active or relevant. This emptiness allows reform opponents like teacher unions and clientelist politicians to have greater impact, as well as pro-reform groups like civil society, policy networks and technocrats. Governments that managed to overhaul teacher careers took either a bottom-up electoral route (Chile and Ecuador) or a top-down technocratic route (Peru and Colombia). In other cases, machine unions (Mexico) or clientelist politicians (state of Rio de Janeiro) overturned career reforms."--

Civil society organizations have risen up the global education agenda since the international community adhered to the 'Education For All' Action Framework in the 'World Education Forum' that was held in Dakar in 2000. With the foundation of the Global Campaign for Education (GCE) civil society advocacy has sought to ensure that national governments, donors and international organisations make the necessary efforts to guarantee quality education for all children in the world. This book explores the strategies and actions, as well as the challenges and impact of civil society organizations in the achievement of the 'Education For All' international commitments. It does so by specifically focusing on seven national coalitions affiliated to the GCE. From Africa, to Asia to Latin America the book shows how these coalitions work and manage the differences between their different types of constituencies, explores their varied tactics and strategies, and explains their successes and failures after more than a decade of coordinated action. The book also provides a concise and comprehensive synthesis of findings from the distinct case studies and offers a series of lessons learned that are vital for education practitioners, academics, activists and policy-makers committed to more equitable and relevant education systems around the world.

Using the literacy and adult education programs in several Latin American countries as prime examples of adult educational reform, Torres examines such issues as why given educational policies are created, how they are constructed, planned, and implemented, what are the implications of such policies.

The purpose of this contributed volume is to examine the links among research, policy, and change in education in Latin America in the context of the relationships between the economy, politics, and the state in the 1980s. The case analyses will discuss the challenges these societies face in education in their progression towards the twenty-first century. In its various sections, the book addresses the following questions: How did education respond during the 1980s to the major sociopolitical and economic changes that affected these countries? How did the changes in the 1980s affect the relationships between education, society, and the state, and what lessons can be learned from the interaction between research and policy that may help in understanding the developmental role of education in the 1990s? And is educational research and policy helping to improve the social condition of minorities in Latin America? This volume will be of interest to scholars and policymakers in Latin American studies, educational research, education policy, and educational planning.

"Examines the relationship between private education and public policy in Latin America by combining conceptual analysis with empirical research, and incorporating case studies from Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Guatemala, Peru, and Venezuela"--Provided by publisher.