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This paper explores the potential the North American community college model holds for Latin America as a means of responding to the expansion of secondary education in this region. The authors propose learning from, not imitating, experiences found in North America and Europe and discuss how these lessons may be of used to inform Latin American educational policy. The paper begins with a brief introduction to the origins of the community college in the United States and highlights a few of the defining characteristics of the community college model: accessibility, accountability, social mobility, and economic benefits for students. The second section of this paper provides a brief introduction to postsecondary education in Latin America and then discusses how insights gleaned from an analysis of the North American community college model might be useful in shaping Latin American educational policy and institutions. The authors conclude that the North American model of community colleges holds very real potential to inspire Latin America to create a similar system tailored to meet the unique demands and needs of the region. Appended is a summary of key descriptive statistics for American community colleges. (Contains 22 references.) (RC)

This paper reviews relevant literature and examines various case studies in order to synthesize recent and promising trends in the field of teacher training in Latin America. Five sections focus on: "Trends, Not Best Practices" (teachers as an issue of education policy, dispelling myths, and innovative programs and identifiable trends); "Current Trends in Teacher Training in Latin America" (classroom-based training, effective teacher education as continuing education, group training and networking, intensive use of pedagogic support and supervision, integration of training into the larger framework of teacher career regulations and incentives. and training as a response to social and educational priorities at the local level); "Scaling Up Replicability"; and "Conclusion" (a strong case can be made that much more than training is involved in effectively tackling the troubles of teaching in Latin America, which include differences in teaching methods and teacher salaries). (Contains 33 references.) (SM)

This report summarizes what is known about educational improvement in Latin America and provides objectives and strategies to guide the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) in supporting primary and secondary education in Latin America and the Caribbean over the next decade. It is based on six background papers as well as a review of the lessons learned from recent regional and country experience. The papers are "The Need for Education Reform"; "Five Critical Areas of Reform to Improve Quality and Increase Equity"; "The Challenge of Secondary Education"; "Navigating and Managing the System: Tools to Achieve Reform Goals"; "The Art of Implementing Education Reform"; and "Looking to the Future: Developing an IDB Action Plan." The critical areas of reform are making teachers partners in reform; providing more and better textbooks and teaching materials; selectively supporting the use of technology in education; decentralizing educational management and increasing accountability of key stakeholders; and strengthening early childhood education and development. The report summarizes new challenges facing secondary education in the region (i.e., meeting increasing quantitative and qualitative needs while simultaneously serving a more diverse clientele). It sets out information and management tools needed to meet long-term goals and confirms the fundamental importance of engaging in a long-term and consensual reform process. (Contains 81 references.) (SM)

U.S. and European models of delivering secondary education were examined to identify ways of improving Latin American and Caribbean secondary schools and easing Latin American and Caribbean students' transition from school to work. The following delivery options were considered: (1) separate job training from formal secondary education; (2) move technical education to the postsecondary level; (3) create tracks within formal secondary education; (4) develop a single national curriculum with electives; (5) build academics into vocational subjects; (6) blend office technology into academics; and (7) maintain a few elite secondary technical schools that are closely linked with industry. The following were among the conclusions that emerged from the analysis: (1) the traditional structure of secondary education is obsolete; (2) because of the diverse situations and cultural traditions existing in the countries of Latin American and the Caribbean, there is no single model of secondary education that can be recommended for all countries in the region; (3) many new alternatives include a progressive separation of vocational preparation from academic streams; (4) regardless of their level and regardless of whether they have ties with academic studies, the most successful technical schools are closely tied to industry; and (5) in all cases, more emphasis must be placed on solving problems rather than on memorizing facts and theories. (Contains 17 references) (MN)

This paper synthesizes the issues, problems, research, and current best practice in secondary education in Latin America and the Caribbean. Overall, Latin America and the Caribbean enroll much lower percentages of school age children in secondary education than the region's chief competitors, and the region's secondary education is inadequate by international standards. Secondary vocational education is usually low prestige, underfunded, and inadequately linked to the labor market. Expenditures per student are much lower than the region's competitors. The paper identifies six critical areas for quality improvement, including: increased learning of higher order skills in mathematics, communications, and language and better measurement of achievement; more effective instruction, schools, and systems; public school management reform; use of technology for improvement of educational quality; reassessment of the relationship between secondary schooling and the labor market; and more and better research on what works in secondary education in terms of increased learning, retention, and performance in the labor market. The paper estimates critical quantitative, financial, and human resources needs during the next 10 years and identifies a variety of strategies for meeting the challenges in a cost-efficient manner. (Contains 88 references.) (SM)

This paper presents the views of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) on higher education in Latin America and the Caribbean and offers a strategy for how it can promote improvement. The paper attempts to produce an accurate assessment and useful policy implications. The first chapter, "A Mixed Performance," contains a general assessment of the current situation. The second chapter, "Deciphering Higher Education's Obscure Texts," identifies the key functions performed by the region's higher education systems. Chapter 3, "Policy Issues," analyzes significant policy trends in diverse national settings and sets forth the IDB views on performance to date and desirable reform. The final chapter, "How the IDB Can Help," discusses the aspects of reform that might attract direct IDB assistance through a lending strategy delineated according to higher education functions. The paper proposes guidelines for IDB action but does not specify the financial amounts that would support each action. A central contention of the paper is that the performance of Latin American and Caribbean higher education systems is quite variable across countries and sectors, as well as across institutions and units. (Contains 9 tables and 52 references.) (SLD)