How structural, cultural, family and educational factors affect math, literacy, and social-emotional learning

• In Event: Examining Public Policies, Curriculums, and Programs across the educational ecosystem in the LAC region

Proposal

Guatemala is a country that faces challenges in terms of coverage and quality of education. This is most evident in rural and indigenous contexts. Its poverty and inequality rates are among the highest in the Latin American and Caribbean region, driven by the existence of a large and underserved population, mostly rural and indigenous and employed in the informal sector. (World Bank, 2023)

Considering that education is a human right, and it is necessary to promote a more inclusive environment, this has generated the demand and interest of various cooperation entities to provide support in several areas. However, although multiple efforts have been made in recent years, the results are not as expected. Only 31% of graduating students reached achievement in reading and 14% in mathematics in 2022. (Ministry of Education, 2023)

Therefore, it has been considered that it was necessary to better understand other aspects that may affect the improvement of educational quality, and implement actions more appropriate to reality, including the post-pandemic situation. Therefore, this presentation will explain how it was designed and the main results of the study, it developed a Landscape Assessment research named: Factors related to educational quality in reading, writing, mathematics, and socioemotional learning and their influence on the transition to lower secondary education in Guatemala. This study established the following research question: In what way do structural, cultural, educational, and family factors contribute to or limit the learning of reading, writing, mathematics, and socio-emotional skills and the transition to 7th. grade of indigenous or non-indigenous boys and girls from urban and rural areas, in poverty, and/or persons with disabilities?

Evidence indicates that there are several conceptual frameworks that research has found to be key to the learning of reading, writing, mathematics, and the socio-emotional well-being of students. Therefore, two frameworks were considered in the design and analysis of the research data: Reading MATTERS and CASEL (Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning). USAID Reading MATTERS Conceptual Framework, USAID (2020) & CASEL (2023) A mixed methods research design was used, allowing to obtain the necessary information to meet the explanatory scope of the study. For the quantitative component, it was carried out a documentary review and an analysis of data, statistics, and administrative records from 11 official entities: National Institute of Statistics (2009- 2021), Ministry of Education (2020), Ministry of Social Development (2019), United Nations (1995), UNICEF (2017), Ministry of Government (2020 -2021), National Institute of Forensic Sciences of Guatemala (2021), Public Ministry (2021), International Organization for Migration (2017), Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (2020), and Ministry of Public Health and Social Assistance (2021). Qualitative data was collected through focal workshops, semi-structured interviews, and classroom observations in 106 schools. In these, different stakeholders participated, such as personnel from Directorates of Departmental Education, educational supervisors, Community Development Councils parents, teachers, principals, students from 4th to 7th grade, returnee students, and students and families of students with special educational needs.
KoboToolbox was used to store and manage the data and, later, categories and subcategories were created in Atlas Ti. These were initially created according to the ones proposed in the research protocol and, later, they were analyzed according to Grounded Theory. The analysis techniques include content analysis, gap analysis, multi-causal analysis, comparative analysis, and statistical analysis. It includes the analysis of the Math and Language topics and activities that teachers were developing with their students during the classroom's observations. Likewise, the linking of the research data, with the Reading MATTERS and CASEL (Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning) frameworks were made.

The most relevant findings of the study will be presented, which, based on updated information and data, show that family, cultural, structural, and educational factors can favor or limit the learning of mathematics and literacy. In addition, there are multidimensional structural factors such as poverty and extreme poverty that limit access to basic health, nutrition, security, and employment services. This also favors adult centrism, which is evidenced in practices such as child labor, the overload of domestic chores that may reduce the time they spend on homework, and time devoted to schoolwork and learning. Likewise, it was evident that there is a difference between the teachers' training and what they apply in their classroom, both in reading, writing, and mathematics. However, it was found that some basic elements of Reading Matters do apply, although these vary between schools and teachers. Concerning the CASEL framework, it was evident that teachers do not have training in this area and that at the family level and in the students themselves there are perceptions of lack of capacity and low self-esteem to move on to the next educational level. Another relevant finding is that economic difficulties, family disintegration, limited employment opportunities, and the belief that they can have higher incomes and better positions outside the county cause some of them to leave their studies and migrate.

These and other aspects that will be presented highlight the challenges for Guatemalan children and youth to access quality education through reading, writing, and mathematics and for socio-emotional development. This study can serve as a reference to implement different actions in Guatemala and the region. In addition, it serves as a reference to carry out similar studies and take into account the challenges and lessons learned for future research.

Authors

• Jennifer Elizabeth Johnson, Universidad del Valle de Guatemala

• Sophia Maldonado, Universidad Del Valle De Guatemala