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THE QUALITY OF PUBLIC EDUCATION IN HONDURAS

The Quality of Public Education in Honduras

Jose Roberto Martínez Arguijo

Faculty of Economic, Administrative and Accounting Sciences

National Autonomous University of Honduras

EO-025: General Drafting Section: 0801

Lic. Oscar Amaya Armijo

Index

Presentation...................................................................................................................3
Introduction....................................................................................................................4
CHAPTER I.......................................................................................................................5
Education in Honduras through the years................................................................................5
Beginnings of Education in Honduras.......................................................................................................5

What is meant by education?...................................................................................................................5

Structure of the education system...........................................................................................................5

Education development...........................................................................................................................6

Problems in Education..............................................................................................................................7

Infrastructure in educational centers.......................................................................................................7

Financing for educational purposes.........................................................................................................8

Projected school-age population 2016 to 2020........................................................................................8

CHAPTER II......................................................................................................................9
The decline of education.........................................................................................................9
Repetition Rate........................................................................................................................................9

Dropping out of classes............................................................................................................................9

Deficiency in the use of ICT in students....................................................................................................9

Poor quality at the educational level......................................................................................................10

Illiteracy..................................................................................................................................................10

Lack of training for teachers...................................................................................................................12

Education in times of pandemic.............................................................................................................12

Conclusions...................................................................................................................13
Bibliography.................................................................................................................15
Annexes........................................................................................................................17
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Presentation

The work for the research was applied by Dr. Nery Alexis Gaitán Guzmán from the

Faculty of Arts and Humanities of the National Autonomous University of Honduras

(UNAH), I have dedicated myself to research on “ The quality of public education in

Honduras ”

This research was carried out by the student Jose Roberto Martinez Arguijo,

students of the Banking and Finance career, from the Faculty of Economic, Administrative

and Accounting Sciences. Research carried out using narrative quotes.

The time to carry out the entire investigation was carried out within a week. All the

information is found in news, newspapers, reports and documentaries.

Introduction

This research is based on the educational system of Honduras and the quality of public

education. For years, Honduran education has been in clear decline on the part of students

and teachers do not make the necessary commitment to improve education. Students now

no longer want to study and this is reflected in the high annual failure rates reported by the

Secretary of Education; Although that is one of the factors, it is equally influenced by the

fact that teachers no longer give quality classes, they only teach tasks without explaining to

the student and without giving them a lesson.

The infrastructure of educational centers is precarious; the lack of chairs, walls in ruins and

classrooms that flood when it rains. They are one of the main problems that prevent

students from receiving a decent education.

Institutions have to have the right equipment to teach classes and students can learn for free

in a better way.

Nowadays, we live in a technological era where it is of utmost importance that the student

can handle it properly.

Education is a human right that is not required in Honduras. It is seen in the high illiteracy

rates.

Due to the extreme poverty in the country, several children work from an early age trying

to make a living at home, leaving education aside. The pandemic brought to light all the

weaknesses of the Honduran educational system. Since, the majority of students who

live in rural places do not have internet service or a computer to receive their classes with

dignity; Therefore, parents have had the need to withdraw their children due to lack of

resources.
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CHAPTER I

Education in Honduras through the years

Beginnings of Education in Honduras

It is said that in the provinces of Tegucigalpa and Comayagua, around 1731, the

Spanish crown founded the Colegio San Agustín in the Villa de Santa María de la Nueva

Valladolid, by Bishop Antonio López Portillo of Guadalupe. 8 years later, Villa de San

Miguel de Heredia was founded in Tegucigalpa. Despite all these schools as the beginning

of wanting to give education to children, it was not until 1982 when Honduras declared

education as a right; issued through decree No. 131, which must be allowed to study for

minors between five and fourteen years old. (Chávez, Duarte, & Quiroz, sf)1 .

What is meant by education?

We define education as the process in which the receiver (Student) receives new

knowledge and skills, through different processes that the sender (Teacher) transfers to him

using certain methods in order to facilitate easy understanding. (Sanchez, 2019)2

Structure of the education system

In Honduras, education is comprised of 4 levels which are:

1. Preschool education.

2. Primary education.

3. Middle education.

4. Higher education.

Which fulfill the function of developing the student's skills, demonstrating their

intellectual capacity from a young age until they reach an older age. Which serves to
1
Brief information on how the process for the implementation of education was, through Spain.
2
The development of the human being is explained through the use of knowledge, helping the development of
motor skills and guiding the student to an area where their performance will be the best.
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THE QUALITY OF PUBLIC EDUCATION IN HONDURAS

demonstrate your strengths and weaknesses; thus knowing which branch of study best suits

their knowledge and skills. (OEI, 2001)3

Education development

On January 12, 1889, the Ministry of Public Education was installed, education was

oriented towards observation and inductive methods in the teaching of science, and

academic studies alternated with learning a trade, liberal or mechanical art. In 1953, the

classification of education was defined for the first time, which are: preschool education,

primary education, adult education, extracurricular education, secondary education and

higher education.

In its fight to improve education in the country, the Ministry of Education began

the implementation of a new educational model in 1994: the Morazánica School, which was

part of the National Educational Development Plan 1994-1997. (OEI, 2001)4

According to information from the OEI (2001), in 1998 a program called

PROHECO emerged, which consisted of taking education to the most remote places in

Honduras, referred to as post-degree places. For example, the villages, where a problem on

the part of the government could have been the reason for preventing the construction of

schools, which benefit everyone from the smallest to the largest.

Problems in Education

Since previous years, public education in Honduras has been on the decline, since

those in charge of organizing the educational system are not taking it as a serious matter.

But if we include other factors that affect the student, in some cases, it is the lack of

commitment of both the teacher and the student. Public education is a right that the

3
It explains the stages that the average student has throughout their life.
4
It shows the years in which the division of school levels is made and how plans are created to improve
education. This was done to improve its organization, and better divide the academic load by the teacher.
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government grants to everyone without exception of ages, since, if you did not have the

opportunity to do so before, you can finish your studies.

Honduras has had many challenges to achieve quality education. There are very few

educational centers that have all the necessary equipment to teach classes. Education is said

to be free, but in reality there are many educational centers that charge students for

surveillance, maintenance, etc. (Magaña, 2017)5

Infrastructure in educational centers

Dropout, repetition, poverty, infrastructure and low quality of teachers are the

challenges that the educational system has for each school year, without leaving aside the

exclusion of one million 100 thousand children and young people as revealed in a report by

the citizen platform Transformemos. Honduras (TH). The victims of exclusion are minors

between 3 and 17 years old, a determining factor in the increase in poverty, exclusion and

social violence.

The teacher leader (Oveniel Flores) urged to bring technology to all educational centers,

which is vital for children and young people who must face the challenges of ICT, which

mark the global reality.” (García, 2020)6

Financing for educational purposes

Spending on education increased its participation from 27.1% of total gross spending in

2004 to 29.5% in 2008, that is, it grew faster than the total spending of the central

government. Increases in allocations granted to the education sector have raised its

participation in central government public spending from 28.5% in 2000 to 36.5% in 2007.

5
This short article describes the most common problems in education, from the point of charging a security
guard to the point of delinquency and gangs.
6
It tries to explain the decline that has occurred and the little concern to improve the facilities of schools and
colleges.
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Expenditure on education increased at an average annual rate of 21.5% in the period 2004-

2008, while the total gross expenditure of the central government rose 17.7% average

annual rate for the same period. (Universidad Pedagógica Nacional Francisco Morazán

Instituto de Investigación y Evaluación Educativas y Sociales-INIEES, 2013)7.

Projected school-age population 2016 to 2020

The population projected by the National Institute of Statistics (INE); between the

age range 0 to 4 years at the base of the pyramid; is being reduced considerably, this

decrease in the population is possibly affected by the decrease in birth rates, where the

population will increase due to the demographic transition in a range of 5 to 9 years and

especially between the ages of 10 to 14 and 15 to 19 years old, this indicates a fairly clear

picture that the increase in the population at these ages will translate in educational terms

into a greater demand for the Basic Education Level from 7th to 9th grade and for the

Secondary Education Level o Diversified demand will be even greater in the years to come.

Starting from the population pyramid projected for the period 2016, planning must be done

in the logic of expanding educational coverage at the Secondary Education Level or also

called “Diversified” and also review the educational offer and the link with the potential of

the territory of each department and municipality of the country. (Secretary of Education,

2017,P.20) 8

7
On page 128, he summarizes what has been invested in education in a certain period. The problem with this
type of expenses is that they are not reflected in education over the years.
8
The Secretary of Education always does a study on the number of students who will enter the student period.
As we see in this text, it explains to us that a study was carried out in 2016 in which there is a decrease in new
admissions between the ages of 0 to 4 years, which are normally preschool children. It is worrying, since it
tells us that the large number of students are not entering the education system.
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CHAPTER II

The decline of education

Repetition Rate

By 2017, the repetition level grew to 61,940 and in 2018 the behavior remained the

same, so a total of 80,776 were recorded who could not save the school year. This situation

is observed more at the basic education level, from first to sixth grade and also from

seventh to ninth grade. (Sánchez R. , 2019)9

Dropping out of classes

Meanwhile, the educational system is experiencing an average of gradual increase

that has remained at 10,000 students who left the classrooms in the last four years. Statistics

reflect that 47,813 students dropped out and in 2016 the figure rose to 58,730. While in

2017 there were 67,024 students who dropped out of school. (Sánchez R. , 2019)10

Deficiency in the use of ICT in students

The results of the Qualitative Phase Self-Evaluation Report of the Pedagogy Career

(2012) show that students lack skills in the use and management of ICT, a situation that

demands ruptures that modify and innovate the way in which it has been developed at a

theoretical level. and practical the subject of Educational Technology I, always under the

comprehensive view of what the training of the pedagogy professional of the 21st century

should be. (UNAH-National Autonomous University of Honduras, 2016,PP.14-15)11

9
The lack of interest in studying causes many young people to repeat the school year. Wasting a year of
learning and knowledge, wasting the money that parents make with effort.
10
It is a common way that the student has to escape from their responsibilities, since by not taking advantage
of the opportunity that many want, education goes down the drain since for that same reason they can even
join gangs just to get what is easy, without any effort. .
11
Currently, the use of technology for educational uses must serve to train the student. We will not deny that
they serve as a distraction, but initiative must be taken to increase our intellect.
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THE QUALITY OF PUBLIC EDUCATION IN HONDURAS

Poor quality at the educational level

Blanca Munguía, coordinator of Transformemos Honduras, elaborates by stating that

“education in Honduras is still a pending debt; the academic performance evaluations that

have been carried out in the last five years reflect that there has still been no progress in

educational quality. The last evaluation in 2016 showed stagnation and in the case of

mathematics a setback, it seems that the best decisions or strategies have not been made to

advance educational quality.”

Likewise, he adds that “another great challenge in terms of educational quality is the

knowledge and abilities of teachers to provide their classes, their lesson plans and other

skills that are required to develop an effective and efficient class day. Teacher training must

be reviewed and adjusted.” (Tranformemos Honduras, 2018)12

Illiteracy

Illiteracy is a very important problem in the educational reality of the country. In

Honduras, 11.0% of people over 15 years of age do not know how to read or write. The

data indicate that the illiteracy rate continues to be higher in the population of rural areas

(17.2%). However, it affects both men and women, in both cases the illiteracy rate is 11%.

Furthermore, illiteracy is higher in older people. Up to the age of 35 the rate is less than

10%, from the age of 36 it increases until reaching its maximum in the population aged 60

and over, of which almost half (30.2%) do not know how to read or write. (INE, 2016)13

12
Blanca Munguía tells us that the biggest challenge we have is to improve methods so that education is better
in all aspects, seeking to be better professionals. Even if the 200 days of class are completed, if the knowledge
does not remain with the student, it is not of much use.
13
Illiteracy rates are very marked in people who are over 60 years old for different reasons that they could
have had in their childhood and remained stuck in their first school years and thus take away the opportunity
to learn.
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Board1

Illiteracy rate by sex and age groups

Ages Man Women Total

From 15 – 18 5.1% 2.6% 3.9%

Years

From 19 – 24 5.0% 2.9% 3.9%

Years

From 25 – 29 7.5% 5.4% 6.4%

Years

From 30 – 35 8.2% 6.5% 7.3%

Years

From 36 – 44 10.9% 9.8% 10.2%

Years

From 45 – 59 14.2% 16.1% 15.2%

Years

60 years and over 26.6% 33.2% 30.2%

National Total 11% 11.1% 11%

Source: INE, EPHPM June 201614

Lack of training for teachers

Teachers perceive that the impact of the training in relation to the mastery of the

CNB thematic content is low, since only a little more than 60% of them expressed that

“they feel that they handle the content well” after receiving the training. This fact is

aggravated if one considers that in one out of every three cases (35%), the teachers stated
14
Table of how illiteracy develops by gender and age.
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that, in their opinion, they did not need the thematic training received because they did not

have specific weaknesses in those contents. ( Solís & German Edgardo Moncada Godoy,

2010)15

Education in times of pandemic

The UPNFM also conducted a study in April 2020, this university interviewed

31,426 teachers to ask how they connected with their students. The teachers' responses

showed that 81.2% were in contact with parents through phone calls and 74.8% through

WhatsApp messages. Regarding technological means, 92% of public school students had

access to a television, 80% to a cell phone with Internet and only 33% to a computer with

Internet. (Revistazo, 2020)16

Conclusions

According to the study carried out on education in Honduras, it can be seen that

despite its constitution as a right being very old, we see that there has not been a

15
The lack of concern for education and training that should be essential for teachers.
16
One of the biggest limitations in this pandemic for the educational sector is the lack of internet, since most
people do not have the monetary capacity to buy internet for their phones.
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considerable improvement, since it has not been given the importance it deserves and is

The privilege that children should have over education has been abandoned, many times it

is denied just because of their economy, since by not being able to buy supplies and a

uniform, parents are forced to put their children to work. their children at a young age, thus

denying them the opportunity to develop their skills.

According to what was investigated, it tells us that one factor that greatly influences

is the lack of responsibility on the part of the student. We say this since a good number of

students fail their classes or drop out halfway through. In the case of the university, they

often cancel classes because they are going badly, and this happens because they do not

give enough importance to studying, and in many cases denying the opportunity to other

people who really want to study and get ahead.

We highlight an important issue, which is the infrastructure of each educational

center, which when searching for images or information is in very poor condition, reaching

the point that the students themselves sit on a log and even on the ground. This arises from

the bad investment and the lack of concern on the part of the Secretary of Education, by not

investing in education.

The illiteracy rate is very high in people over 60 years of age, this is worrying, just

knowing that many people in their past were not able to complete their studies or left them.

Analyzing that the educational problem is not current, but rather drags on over the years.

The development of education with the current situation of the country is very

difficult, in the case of people who do not have the necessary requirements to continue the

school process due to the lack of help and that is why they lose their school year. The lack

of solutions is a persistent problem for not being able to continue, since they must find their

own way to be able to access a computer and see their assignments, making extra expenses.
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Teaching has dropped a lot and not only because of the virus, it is also due to the

lack of training of some teachers, often teaching topics outside of what was assigned.

Improving the quality of education in Honduras is not a task that will be solved

overnight, but at least there must be an intellectual in each student, supporting them

morally, psychologically and economically.

If we all put a little effort and help, education could improve, to reach the point of

achieving good development in the country.

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Annexes
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