Inequality: The Legal Guardian of a Failed Public Education System
Latin America is one of the most unequal regions of the world economically, according to reports by the International Monetary Fund. Furthermore and narrowing the scope, according to the World Bank, in Panama “sharp regional disparities also predominate. Poverty prevails in rural areas, mainly inhabited by indigenous people and afro descendants. Access to basic services is not universal and remains linked to factors such as geographic location, education levels, ethnicity and income levels of households.” Economic inequality expands gaps in opportunity and education. Given that the public education system in Panama is deeply flawed due to governmental negligence, resorting to private schooling has sky-rocketed over the decades. The privatization of schools is one of the main deterrents of developing quality public education systems in countries with large inequality gaps.
Realistically, complete economic equality would require the higher classes and even many first-world citizens, to decrease their current living status by several notches. However, the upgraded lifestyle that the lower-income population would receive would weigh much more in the opportunity-cost scale. If you (the reader) are a member of the upper class, is that something you would be willing to do given the choice? Sleep on it.
Inequality and lack of education are intertwined. Nonetheless, I have mixed feelings about having the same education handbook for everyone. Before being outraged, hear me out. Having a structured Ministry of Education has proven to have more than a handful of benefits but continues to trap us under a suffocating standardization ceiling. For example, would it be correct, or ethical, to teach an indigenous child from a remote village about the conquest of America using material from a European, say Spanish, textbook? The indigenous population has their own valid version of history that is passed down through generations and is no less accurate than the colonizing-state version. Adversely, other subjects that are more objective such as STEM fields and language courses should continue to remain standard, along with life skills such as critical thinking and how the taxing system works in that country.
Article 26 of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that:
(1) Everyone has the right to education. Education shall be free, at least in the elementary and fundamental stages. Elementary education shall be compulsory. Technical and professional education shall be made generally available and higher education shall be equally accessible to all on the basis of merit.
and that
(2) Education shall be directed to the full development of the human personality and to the strengthening of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. It shall promote understanding, tolerance and friendship among all nations, racial or religious groups, and shall further the activities of the United Nations for the maintenance of peace.
As mentioned above, general (elementary) education is a human right, therefore it is to be free and accessible to all. Perhaps Article 26 should be amended to “Everyone has the right to quality education.” Furthermore, it is important to note that the article emphasizes elementary education (kindergarten-6th grade.) Critical thinking is learned from a young age but the more profound questions pertaining to the world we live in kick-off in adolescence. With that in mind, secondary education is way overdue to be classified as a human right.
Education is leaning more towards becoming a product rather than a service and schools are the business that sell it. The privatization of schools has allowed for education to become a lucrative business, leaving the public/accessible schooling system at a distant second place. In Panama, where I live, people go to public school primarily because they cannot afford private school. That’s how lacking the current system is and even more scarily so, this inferiority placed on public education has become normalized. While I do agree that the alternative of private and particular schooling should continue to exist, I also consider that the public system is in desperate need of restructuring. Amidst the COVID-19 Pandemic, both the public and private sectors questioned the efficiency of last-minute online classes platforms. Furthermore, a local politician and leader of a prominent political party asked the president (via social media) to consider monetary alleviation for the guardians of private school children, since they have “removed a weight from the state by enrolling their kids in those entities.”
Providing education should not be seen as a burden to the state but rather one of the efficient services it is obligated to provide given the collection of taxpayer money. Every single legally-working Panamanian is discounted an educational tax from his/her paycheck monthly. Where is all that money being allocated to and if there is a fixed income entering that department, why is our current system so far-below average? This kind of questioning unmasks corrupt practices and sparks the need for change in people, therefore seen as a threat to the malpractices taking place. However, that last topic merits a whole other written monologue so let’s bypass it for now.
After much debate, all public and private schools were suspended with the exception of the ones that follow the international calendar, as that school year ends a month from now. From an egalitarian perspective, this decision is the wisest. By suspending both, it is ensured that when classes resume, opportunities should be more or less equal to all. If the private sector, with adequate technology, were to continue business as usual amidst the pandemic-caused economic halt, an even greater education gap would open with much harsher social and individual economic repercussions in years to come. By suspending the system entirely, a concrete weight is placed on the government to improve the current system in order to resume as soon as possible. This move pushes for public education to step up faster to the private sector and elevates the bar for the current administration.
However, a mere day later the President announced that schools would be able to continue giving classes efficiently through online portals as long as they met the criteria to do so. Although controversial and somewhat classist, like every topic recently, it is understandable for education to continue if possible. What is the criteria for a school to qualify as compliant? Yet to be disclosed. Announcing formally made “decisions” with no specifications one day and going back on them the next causes confusion amongst the population.There appears to be a conflict in communication between government entities, which is enhancing public speculation and distrust. All in all, there is great complexity behind the management of an unprecedented crisis like the COVID-19 pandemic is.
It is difficult to come up with policies that leave everyone satisfied, given that what is good for everyone is not always comfortable for everyone. However, it is crucial to think collectively rather than individualistically in order to have solutions that benefit the greatest number of people in the least amount of time. Maybe just maybe, the public education system will be revamped due to necessity and if we play our cards right along with a supportive, conscientious government, Panama can evolve into a more advanced society that starts with this sector and leaks into all other areas. Education is the base of a society and everything else stems and flourishes from there.
Update 04/30: The Panamanian government announced a few days after the publishing of this article (completely unrelated lol) that the schools that are able to prove they are able to provide a full online program would be able to continue with the school curriculum. Over 100 schools nation-wide have been approved thus far.
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This piece is part of The Pandemic Diaries: a personal series of stories, anecdotes and 12am thoughts that took place during the COVID-19 pandemic. All written and published during the isolation period.
