The numbers are alarming. And they worry. According to the latest report of the Observatory of Argentines for Education, 24,202 new classrooms are missing to ensure coverage in the 3-, 4-, and 5-year-old kindergarten rooms.
According to the work called “Importance of the entry level: evidence, costs and remaining challenges”the construction of these classrooms would allow all children to access the benefits of early education, which include higher levels of learning in primarybetter school discipline and higher high school graduation rates, among others.
Although in Argentina the 5-year-old room has been mandatory since 1993 and the 4-year-old room since 2014, the same is not the case with the 3-year-old rooms. Although they are not mandatory, Law No. 27,045 of 2014 establishes that governments must guarantee its universalization, that is, to facilitate access for the population that demands it.
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According to this report, the greatest deficit is in room 3, where 17,399 classrooms are needed. While in the compulsory rooms the debt is less: 5,144 classrooms are missing in room 4 and 1,659 in room 5.
The document, which bears the signatures of Martin DeSimone (from the World Bank), Martin Nistal and Leyre Saenz Guillen (from the Observatory of Argentines for Education), offers a review of the impact of early childhood policies, especially at the initial level (from 3 to 5 years old), in Argentina, Latin America and the rest of the world. Besides, the cost that would imply the total coverage of the rooms of 3, 4 and 5 at a national level is analyzed.
On this last point, for example, from the Observatory they maintain that The construction of 45 m2 classrooms cost, between 1993 and 1999, an average of 15 thousand dollars. At current values, it is equivalent to $27,986 per classroom. So, to build all the classrooms needed, $677,317,172 will be needed.
According to the NGO report, the remaining classrooms have a construction cost of $677,317,172.
The study shows that construction of kindergartens increases attendance. To estimate the cost of building the classrooms necessary for all students ages 3 to 5 to attend kindergarten, the authors took two scenarios. The first provides that it is only necessary to build classrooms and not complete schools.
The second scenario, meanwhile, presupposes the need to build complete schools. The first scenario would cost 2.13% of the annual spending on education consolidated between the Nation and the provinces in 2021, which was 6,878,707 million pesos. While the second would cost triple: 6.66%. This would be equivalent to incorporating some 521,000 students per year into the education system.
“Initial education is a right, but it is not enough to promote investment in the sector. In the document we show that initial education is a smart investment. It has very high returns, both individual and social, and it tends to benefit the most vulnerable more,” he explained. Martin DeSimoneco-author of the report.
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For the authors, Kindergarten attendance improves performance in Language and Mathematics in primary schoolincreases retention rates in school, increases the number of school years completed, improves school discipline, reduces dropout rates, improves the probability of graduating from high school and increases the probability of enrolling in university. In addition, in the long term it is associated with a lower probability of being incarcerated and higher earnings in adulthood.
“The evidence is compelling: the possibility of going to kindergarten makes a substantial difference in the future of each student. The data shows that guaranteeing access to the initial level of all children has an impact on better educational trajectories, more robust learning and more developed social skills. That is why it is so important to invest at the initial level”, he affirms. Melina Furmanresearcher at CONICET and the University of San Andrés.
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“The realization of the right to education and play for all children from birth is the responsibility of the entire society. Having access to a free, quality public initial education improves the present life of minors, their families and their communities,” said Rut Kuitca, president of the Argentine committee of the World Organization for Early Childhood Education – OMEP. And he added: “It is essential to have state funding to ensure the creation of nursery schools equipped with good spaces and materials, adequate food, qualified teachers and sufficient support staff.”
“The report shows the importance of early childhood education and care, as well as its growing political interest, with encouraging data on the increase in coverage. However, its positive impact lies not only in access but also in the quality of the service. Three issues can be pointed out beyond the construction of classrooms: the scarcity and fragmentation of the offer from 0 to 3 years, the consideration of the role of families in this stage and the urgent attention to the qualification of the personnel in terms of training and working conditions”, concluded, for his part, Gabriela FairsteinUBA and FLACSO teacher.
CC / ED