Government cuts accreditation for Chile’s problem high schools

Thirty-eight schools across the country will say goodbye to their government funding, certified classes. 

Doctored attendance sheets. Skeleton teaching staff. Undereducated teachers. Unpaid workers’ pension funds. The Education Ministry listed 38 Chilean high schools, plagued with problems, that lost their 2013 official accreditation Thursday.  

“Constructing a new regulatory framework so that all institutions can ensure that people receive a legitimate (education) is important on the medium to long term horizon,” said Education Minister Harold Beyer. “The institutions need a change. In every way, this is reasonable. It’s what we need to do and for 30 years, we haven’t done it.”

In the wake of the decision to revoke their accreditation, the schools’ government funding will dry up, as will their ability to certify courses of study. Twenty of these schools are located in the Santiago Metropolitan Region and the remaining 18 are scattered throughout Chile’s regions. All schools belong to the 400 precincts stamped as “risky” in June as part of the Education Ministry’s 2012 investigation into the nation’s high schools. The 29,404 audits have so far fined US$13.7 million from 4,106 municipal and private high schools receiving government funds.

In April 2012, 37 other schools were forced to give up their official recognition.

By Katie Manning - The Santiago Times