Learning in Twenty-First Century Schools: Note 7: Maintenance of School Buildings

Submitted by SPH DIGITAL on Fri, 02/21/2020 - 00:17

This chapter contains information, criteria, and ideas compiled during direct interactions with public officials working in the fields of education and school building in Argentina, Barbados, the City of Bogotá, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Honduras, Jamaica, and the Province of Buenos Aires. It also includes the results of the author's own observations made during visits to a large number of educational institutions in those countries and from reading official technical and strategic documents available on the subject.

Learning in Twenty-First Century Schools: Note 5: Environmental Audit and Comfort Levels in Educational Institutions

Submitted by SPH DIGITAL on Fri, 02/21/2020 - 00:15

The study of comfort levels considers the factors that affect the balance between the body and its environment in buildings in order to ensure that these living spaces -in this case, classrooms- fall within what are referred to as "comfort zones", or in some cases, "life zones". There is a need to provide a suitable design that can provide the parameters and elements with which to generate concrete solutions.

Learning in Twenty-First Century Schools: Note 4: Public-Private Partneships in School Infrastructure in the Caribbean

Submitted by SPH DIGITAL on Fri, 02/21/2020 - 00:14

Several Caribbean countries are now considering the use of PPPs to modernize their infrastructure and improve the delivery of public services, with Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago currently providing the most advanced examples in terms of the institutional arrangements that have been put in place (PPIAF 2014). Trinidad and Tobago is currently undertaking preliminary detailed analysis to determine the potential value for money of two pilot projects involving, among other things, the PPP-based procurement of 10 early-childhoods education centers and 10 primary schools.

Goodbye Barriers! A Guide to Design More Accessible Spaces

Submitted by SPH DIGITAL on Wed, 02/19/2020 - 12:39

Having infrastructure accessible to all is one of the great challenges found in developing countries. There are numerous subnational, national and international standards put in place and, although they must be complied with by designers and builders, they are not necessarily sufficient to achieve universal accessibility, let alone understand their importance. Goodbye Barriers! is a guide that presents solutions to the design and construction of buildings and public spaces.

Irresistible: Change Management for Digital Health

Submitted by SPH DIGITAL on Tue, 02/11/2020 - 09:11

Health organizations are inherently complex because of the diversity of actors within a health facility, the power health professionals have over decision-making, and external governance and control factors, such as health laws or professional association regulations that govern professional practices. As a result, changing one process affects a range of professional practices.

New series of webinars on Aging and Long-term Care

Submitted by SPH DIGITAL on Mon, 02/10/2020 - 16:12

At the IDB, we aim to help the region’s governments prepare to tackle the challenges of aging by creating and/or strengthening the supply of long-term care services. That’s why we created the Panorama of Aging and Long-Term Care to provide information on health conditions and current and future needs for care services for older people in order to encourage evidence-based policymaking.

Who Drives on Ride-Hailing Platforms in Latin America?: A Profile of Uber Drivers in Brazil, Chile, Colombia and Mexico

Submitted by SPH DIGITAL on Mon, 02/10/2020 - 10:56

Digital platforms can improve the functioning of markets characterized by coordination problems and high levels of fragmentation, such as the transportation market. In recent years, the adoption of digital platforms across Latin America (Latam), notably in the ride-hailing sector, has been considerable. This expansion may increase the availability of better job alternatives for workers in the region, which is characterized by high levels of informality and citizen’s insecurity.

Can we really change parenting behavior?

Submitted by SPH DIGITAL on Mon, 02/03/2020 - 23:08

This question has been on our minds as we analyze the effects of a recent home visit program implemented by the Nicaraguan government (results forthcoming, stay tuned!). The Nicaraguan intervention, like most home visit programs, targets children’s first and arguably most important teachers: their parents. The curriculum aims to strengthen parents’ knowledge of early childhood development and provide concrete examples of activities parents can do with their children to encourage early cognitive, social-emotional, and language skills.