Educación y estado

Se sigue acumulando evidencia que da soporte empírico al principio de la separación de la escuela y el estado. Soy conciente de que este tipo de cosas son poco políticamente correctas, pero creo que las cifras son demoledoras:

British Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown recently committed the UK government to spending at least US$15 billion on aid for education in Africa over the next ten years. It is an article of faith to him that the only way the poor in Africa can be helped is by massive injections of aid. But has he ever bothered to ask poor Africans what they want?

I've been doing that for the last three years, researching some of the poorest slums in African countries -- Kenya, Ghana and Nigeria--that have all followed the Chancellor's lead and introduced free primary state education. Ask parents what they think of the state schools and they'll tell you that children in them are "abandoned." They see huge classes -- up to 80 or more -- and hear of teachers who don't turn up and, if they do turn up, spend their time sleeping or knitting or drinking.

They don't think plugging more money into state schools is a prudent use of resources.

These poor parents have not been waiting helplessly for the munificence of Western politicians. My research teams have found that most are sending their children to private schools, run by educational entrepreneurs who charge very low fees--perhaps $3-$5 per month, well within reach of those on the poverty-level income of $1 per day. These private schools, my research has shown, outperform the government schools, at a fraction of the teacher cost.

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