Education in El Salvador

Overview of education in El Salvador

Education in El Salvador is regulated by the country's Ministry of Education (MINED). El Salvador consists of the following levels of education:

Basic Education divided into three cycles of three grades each:
1st Cycle: from 1st to 3rd grades
2nd Cycle: from 4th to 6th grades
3rd Cycle: from 7th to 9th grades; which is a transition to secondary education (e. g. specialized teachers for each assignment). Secondary school, called Bachillerato:
Two year General High School
Three year Technical High School (e. g. Accounting, Secretariat, Electronics and Computer Science, etc.) Five years (minimum) of Higher Education, consisting of university education or other tertiary education. Almost all students, public and private, take the PAES test during their second year of bachillerato. PAES is a learning aptitude test that acts as an indicator of their achievement. Students are tested on mathematics, language and literature, natural sciences, and social studies. The Human Rights Measurement Initiative (HRMI) finds that El Salvador is fulfilling only 64.8% of what it should be for the right to education based on the country's level of income. HRMI breaks down the right to education by looking at the rights to both primary education and secondary education. While taking into consideration El Salvador's income level, the nation is achieving 64.5% of what could be possible based on its resources (income) for primary education and 65.2% for secondary education. There is also an evident disparity when looking at global rankings, El Salvador repeatedly scores low in education quality and accessibility. According to statistics, only 82% of children make it to 9th grade. While according to the El Salvador Constitution (1983), starting at the age of 4 years old, every child is entitled to free education. However, since most families live on less than 8.75 Colón, equivalent to 1 US dollar, often children under the age of 7 drop out of school to support their parents by working. Within the El Salvador classroom, resources are limited. For instance, public school classrooms often reach more than forty students per one classroom teacher. A a result families are reluctant to send their children to public schools. Additionally, rural areas are more likely to be understaffed and under resourced.

In El Salvador the academic year begins January and ends in November. The curriculum is divided into three specific levels: Early Childhood Education, Basic Education, and Secondary Education. Early Childhood Education is the designated level for preschool aged children. Following  Preschool Education, is Basic Education which consists of three cycles of three grades each. In December 2014, the government of El Salvador entered into partnership with the United States Agency for International Development, in hopes of improving institutions of higher learning within the country with updated curricula and faculty training. The curriculum of schools in El Salvador is strictly set by MINED. Moreover, El Salvador requires that teachers attain at least a Bachelor's Degree in Education and a teaching license from MINED. While this number may seem insignificant, it does represent a steady increase in annual spending. In 2020, education only made up 13 percent of the country's annual budget.

El Salvador has had an incredibly high crime rate since the end of their civil war, with San Salvador being the seventh most violent city in the world and a homicide rate of 100 per 100,000 people. The high level of gang violence contributes heavily to the homicide rate. Per 100,000 people, there are about 323 gang members in El Salvador. This not only discourages children of poorer families to keep attending school but also strengthens the inequalities. Although little progress has been made, there have been some educational reforms put in place to decentralize and privatize education. By decentralizing responsibilities within the government and increasing the private sector's contribution, there would be more flexibility and efficiency in the education system. EDUCO was designed to recreate the schools in peasant communities that were separate from the state. There is a greater possibility that students stay in EDUCO schools because of the involvement of parents and community members. It was highlighted by the World Bank in their World Development Report publication in 2004. EDUCO has established five offices: La Libertad, La Paz, San Vicente, Usulután, and Morazán. These offices work to increase the outreach and support for children and schools across the country. EDUCO has improved the infrastructure of over 300 schools in the country and sent more than 7,000 packages of teaching material to schools across the country. In addition to this, more than 50,000 students have received medical care from the organization. Coupled with EDUCO's support, educational spending has increased 5.04% from 2020 to 2021. This is the first time that government spending for education has had an upward trend since 2014. In 2021, the literacy rate of the population (for those over 10 years old) was 90%. This is a slight decline from 2020, when the literacy rate was 90.4%. Other than this, the literacy rate has been steadily increasing since 2014. In March 2020, The World Bank approved the "Growing Up and Learning Together: Comprehensive Early Childhood Development in El Salvador" project. This initiative works towards improving the professional development of teachers working in early childhood care, physically revitalizing early childhood schools, and improving the management of the educational sector. The program is projected to cost 250 million dollars and is expected to be completed in June 2026.