By Aimee Verdisco.
If anyone ever doubted the power of comparison to move policy, consider these results from standardized tests applied to third and sixth graders in math, language and science in 16 countries across the Region (SERCE, 2008):
Working women in Latin America have just three months of maternity leave, which is less than the 14 week minimum established by the ILO’s Maternity Rights Convention 183, according to Challenges No. 12, the joint news bulletin published by ECLAC and UNICEF. In Cuba and Venezuela, on the other hand, working women receive 18 weeks of 100% paid leave.
By Patricia Jara.
We recently had the privilege of hosting a meeting of renowned international experts in early childcare service quality at the IDB’s office in Washington, DC, to discuss childcare quality for children ages 0-3.
The group reflected on two topics that frequently come up in discussions with programs that offer childcare services in the region. Which factors define childcare service quality? And, how can we measure and monitor them?
By Ana Pérez Expósito.
Recently, several countries in the region – Colombia, Ecuador, Nicaragua and Peru, among others – are working on broad, cross-cutting early childhood development strategies and programs. They tend to include a wide range of services, such as pre and post-natal healthcare, lactation support, complementary nutrition, child growth and development monitoring, early stimulation and guidance on child rearing for parents.
By María Fernanda Merino.
March 24 is an important date for early childhood development in Peru. That’s the day when Cuna Más, an innovative program under the Social Inclusion and Development Ministry (MIDIS), will be launched.
The first time I watched this video, which was produced by our friends at the Instituto de Investigación Nutricional (Nutrition Research Institute) in Peru, I couldn’t stop thinking – and feeling guilty – about the times I had rushed my daughters when I fed them.
The video has a clear message: good nutrition depends not just on what we feed our children, but also how they are fed. In other words, interaction between the adult and the child at mealtime is fundamental to good nutrition. (Video in Spanish)
Researchers have defined and assessed inequalities and inequities in education in various ways, making it difficult to make comparisons among countries or among jurisdictions within countries. This paper sets out practical definitions for equality and equity in education and discusses the prominent issues regarding the use of large-scale national and international assessment data to assess them. Examples are drawn from the national assessment data from Brazil.