Civic Education in Chile: The Contribution of Teachers' Practices to Civic Knowledge Among Secondary Education Students

• In Event: 52.038 - Citizenship Education: A Comparative Analysis of Secondary School Students' Achievement in Chile, Colombia, and Mexico

Abstract

1. Objectives
Since 2006, Chilean students have been at the forefront of civic engagement, protesting for a more equitable society and education system (Bellei & Cabalin, 2013; Salinas & Fraser, 2012). They also show the highest levels of civic knowledge in Latin America (MINEDUC, 2010; Schulz, Ainley, Tim, & Lietz, 2011), but achievement in this area varies depending on the socioeconomic status (SES) of the students. However, there is no evidence showing if schools, via teacher practices, can foster civic knowledge and moderate the influence of SES on achievement in this area.

The objective of this paper is to investigate the degree in which teacher practices explain variation on civic knowledge, and if they may moderate the relationship between SES and civic knowledge.

2. Perspectives

The potential of the school to promote civic knowledge may be seen as a question of teacher efficacy. The literature has shown that teacher’s practices are related to student achievement in different domains (Kane & Staiger, 2012; Treviño et al., 2010). In Chile, there is evidence showing that teacher practices may moderate the relationship between student achievement and socioeconomic status (Treviño, Donoso, & Bonhomme, 2009). However, research in Chile has not showed the potential of teacher practices to foster civic knowledge.

3. Methods

The analysis uses the International Civic and Citizenship Education Study (ICCS) 2009 data for Chile. It fits several hierarchical lineal models, which general specification implies that civic knowledge is explained by teacher practices, controlling for both the student SES and school average SES. The model tests for interactions between teacher practices and SES at both student and school level.

4. Data sources

This study uses the ICCS 2009 data set for Chile, which is a nationally representative sample of 5192 eighth grade students, 1756 teachers and 177 schools.

5. Results

Results confirm that civic knowledge is directly related to socioeconomic status, and they also suggest that teacher’s practices marginally moderate the effect of socioeconomic status on students’ civic knowledge.

6. Scientific significance of the study

The study will provide evidence on how teachers may help improve student development in other domains different from the language, math and science. In that way contributing to understand the role of the school as an institution that prepares the citizens of the future.

Author

• Ernesto Treviño, Universidad Diego Portales