海角大神

Imagine a school where a teacher who doesn鈥檛 show up for class, or doesn鈥檛 hold a degree, or fails or refuses a mandatory evaluation can鈥檛 be fired. Imagine a school that routinely hires and promotes teachers on the basis of favors rather than merit.

Those are some of the practices Mexico hopes to change with an education reform that took effect this week 鈥撀燼 reform staunchly opposed by the powerful teachers鈥� union, but one supporters say could greatly improve the competitiveness of schools and boost Mexico鈥檚 place in the global economy.

鈥淓ducation is a great engine of transformation, social mobility, competitiveness, productivity, and social development,鈥� says Monica Tapia of the Citizen Coalition for Education, a nonprofit dedicated to reforming the system.聽鈥淢exico spends so many of its resources on education. But we鈥檙e not achieving learning.鈥�

The reform strips the education union 鈥撀燼rguably the most powerful in Latin America 鈥撀爋f its influence over the hiring of teachers. It provides for a system of merit-based pay and promotions, subjects Mexico鈥檚 estimated 1 million teachers to evaluations, and requires exams of those entering the profession. All with greater oversight by the federal government.

Although the union has threatened to fight any legislation that puts teachers鈥� tenure at risk, its most vocal critic was abruptly silenced this week 鈥撀燼t least temporarily 鈥撀爓hen, a day after the reform took effect, the government arrested union leader Elba Esther Gordillo on charges of embezzlement.

The reform doesn鈥檛 specify how teachers will be evaluated, or what the incentives or consequences might be. That will be up to an independent institution to decide after additional legislation is put in place.

鈥淲e know from our experience in the US that [evaluations are] rife with challenges and easier said than done,鈥� says Lucrecia Santiba帽ez, an education researcher with the RAND Center for Latin American Social Policy. 鈥淓verything hinges on those evaluations. If they end up being unreliable, low stakes, then it鈥檚 going to be a great missed opportunity to effect some change.鈥�

Low return on investment聽

Mexico spends a greater percentage of its budget on education than any other country in the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), and it has achieved nearly universal basic education. Yet across numerous metrics, Mexico gets a failing grade.

Fewer than half of students finish high school here. Mexico鈥檚 graduation rates are among the lowest of the OECD, and it falls behind Brazil and Chile.

Mexican students lag in math, science, and critical reading skills. In an international test of math skills 鈥撀燾onsidered an indicator of a country鈥檚 higher skilled talent base聽聽鈥� more than 25 percent of Korean students tested 鈥渁dvanced,鈥� as did 18 percent of Canadian students and 10 percent of US students. Fewer than 1 percent of Mexican students ranked at the advanced level.

The importance of these performance indicators are heightened as Mexico strives to achieve greater economic growth, especially in industries such as aerospace and information technology, and to reduce glaring inequality.聽

Aptitude statistics among teachers are equally weak. Eight in 10 teachers who took a non-mandatory 2008 evaluation exam didn鈥檛 pass, according to Mexicanos Primero, a nongovernmental organization advocating teacher evaluations and education reform.

In Mexico, just 16 percent of teachers earn their position competitively. The rest obtain a teaching plaza by a variety of means 鈥撀犫�渋nheriting鈥� it from a retiring friend or relative, obtaining it from the union, paying for it, or entering the profession by means of a guaranteed post upon exiting a teacher鈥檚 school.

The vast majority of Mexico鈥檚 education budget pays teachers鈥� salaries 鈥撀燽ut historically the state has had minimal control over their management. The new adherence to evaluations could put that power back in the government鈥檚 hands.

The teachers鈥� perspective聽

But teachers worry that a standardized test won鈥檛 accurately measure their ability in the classroom. It's an argument that echoes opponents of similar standardized testing efforts in the United States, especially those linking students' exam performance to teacher incentives.

Mariana del Roc铆o Aguilar Bobadilla, director of a Mexico City campus of the National Pedagogic University, notes that teachers in Mexico frequently work in diverse contexts. This includes city teachers contending with overcrowded classrooms, and聽rural teachers instructing multiple grades at one time.

Many teachers are open to evaluations if they are used to point out areas of weakness to work on 鈥撀燽ut they鈥檙e against any single exam that could make or break their career.

There is a lot on the line for them: Teaching can be a cushy job in Mexico, thanks to the powerful union to which the vast majority of teachers belong. Although starting wages are low, teachers in Mexico can earn a solidly middle class salary, between $1,000 and $2,000 per month; in some states, end-of-year bonuses amount to nearly half a salary. Many work just five-hour school days.

Proponents of these new regulations say they hope that at the very least they will rid the country of the practice of "phantom" teachers 鈥� people who may be collecting a salary but who never set foot in a classroom.

Ms. Aguilar Bobadilla notes that some 75 percent of teachers already participate in a voluntary program that ties some pay incentives to evaluations; she is critical of the fact that the government rarely consults teachers on the reforms that will affect them profoundly.

鈥淲e agree in that we want to see better results,鈥� she says. 鈥淏ut perhaps we don鈥檛 coincide on which paths to take to get there.鈥�

A better life?

The prevailing belief among parents, society, and in government is that education will afford children a better life in the future. But in Mexico, is it true?

In Mexico, unemployment rates increase with greater education, according to a 2012 OECD study. College-educated Mexicans were more frequently unemployed than those with a primary or secondary education, which suggests that the labor market still overwhelming requires low-wage workers. Although Mexico is currently graduating more engineers than ever, that pattern has held steady for a decade.

Mexico now has a unique opportunity to reflect on the kind of education system the country needs for the future 鈥撀燼nd a chance to bring together teachers and society into a common dialogue, says Felipe Hevia, a professor studying the issue of education at the Veracruz-based research center CIESAS-Golfo.

鈥淭he reform opens the door to discussion,鈥� Mr. Hevia says, 鈥淎nd it foments the possibility that if we really think it through, we have a chance as a society to decide what type of education we want. It鈥檚 an opportunity to break down the fight between society and teachers.鈥�