The gap in educational development begins at ten years
The academic performance among disadvantaged and disadvantaged students begins to develop at ten years and extends throughout life, according to the study "Equity in Education: overcoming barriers to social mobility."
The report, prepared by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and presented today in London, concluded that more than two thirds of the educational gap observed between children aged 15 and 25 to 29 years , it goes back to ten years of age.
The director of the OECD, Gabriela Ramos, said today that the study confirms what the leading organization has been warning "a long time", that "where you are born and the economic capacity of your parents continues to determine your life chances."
This is because "these factors influence the quality of education" and that "lack of equity" in this area affects social mobility ", that is, the ability to change socioeconomic status.
Ramos said that, in the 34 member countries of the OECD, this change takes between four and five generations or 135 years.
The document reflects that students born in families with lower incomes and single parents have a worse educational development compared to those who enjoy a better socioeconomic position.
The two biggest challenges faced by students born in disadvantaged families are "the lack of quality of their educational opportunities" and "stress," Ramos said, which limits not only his performance but also his self-esteem and confidence in your own potential.
For the directive, "early and effective interventions in this problem" can "break the circle" so that all children "have the same opportunities to thrive".
The Director of Education and Qualifications of the OECD, Andreas Schleicher, said that "very little progress has been made to break down barriers to social mobility and give all children the same opportunities to progress".
"More investment is needed to help the favored students to improve and recognize the key role that teachers must play," he added.
The report also analyzes the social and economic resilience of students, in terms of their satisfaction with their lives, their social integration and their absence of test anxiety.
Thus, he found that one in four disadvantaged students in the OECD countries are resilient, with Croatia, the Czech Republic, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Latvia, the Netherlands and Switzerland leading the list.
On the other hand, Bulgaria, Italy, Montenegro, Portugal and the United Kingdom are in the tail, with a percentage of students able to adapt to adverse situations of around 20%, below the average of 26.2% of the students. 34 countries studied.
In the case of Mexico, the percentage stands at 22%, and the report revealed that students from that country who are resilient in basic skills are three times more likely to be socially and emotionally.
However, in the Latin American country, 60% of disadvantaged students attend disadvantaged schools, 12% more than the OECD average.
The report notes that disadvantaged Mexican students who attend better schools earn 71 more points (the equivalent of two years of schooling) than those who attend lower quality schools.
The objective of this new OECD report, based on the latest PISA 2015, has been "to examine the socio-economic differences between students and how they affect educational outcomes".
The document concludes that early access to education is "key" so that children can acquire "essential social and emotional skills, particularly those of disadvantaged families".
It also urges countries to allocate "additional resources to disadvantaged students and schools" and to support teachers "in order to identify the needs of students and manage diversity in the classroom."
