Abstract
Factors
Influencing Education Outcomes Among Adolescents in Northeast-Peru
According to the UNICEF Report on the Situation of Children
in Peru, only 57% of all adolescents in Peru between the ages of 17 and 19
years complete secondary education (UNICEF 2012). In Loreto, a state in
northeastern Peru, the rate of secondary education completion is only 38%.
(Kallpa Iquitos 2006). This study was conducted in four low-income, urban,
neighborhoods in a region of the state’s capital. The goal of this project is
to provide local planners with education assessment data for programs to
increase school completion. This study has two specific aims: 1. To generate a
descriptive educational profile of adolescents between the ages of 12 and 25;
2. To understand high school graduation rates in relationship to household
income and parental education. The combined Peruvian-U.S. team administered a
20-question survey for a total of 182 completed surveys. The participant sample
was divided into three educational categories—continuing education, completed
high school, and dropped out of high school. The parents of most high school
graduates were classified into the high education category. Surprisingly, most
of the adolescents who completed high school were in the low household income
level. A chi square analysis was used to determine the strength of the
correlation between participant education level and parental education or
household income. A significant correlation was found between parental
education and participant education level (p=0.0392), but not between household
income and participant education level (p=0.389). These results suggest that
parental education, but not household income may be key to increasing high
school graduation rate in this region; results will be shared with our local
partners.
Project Description
Factors Influencing Education Outcomes Among Adolescents in
Northeast Peru
Introduction
PURPOSE
The
goal of this project is to provide local planners with education assessment
data for programs to increase school completion. This study has two specific
aims:
1. To
generate a descriptive educational profile of adolescents between the ages of
12 and 25.
2. To
understand high school graduation rates in relationship to household income and
parental education.
SETTING
The
state of Loreto is located in northeast Peru. Iquitos, Loreto’s capital, is
located in the Amazon Basin and is only accessible only by plane or boat.
Pampachica is an impoverished peri-urban community consisting of nine diverse
neighborhoods, located on the outskirts of Iquitos. High poverty rates, limited
resources, and the transitory nature of the population that characterizes this
region suggest that the population of Pampachica is more marginalized than
other communities in the same state.
Organizational
Affiliation and Community Partnership
GlobeMed
is a student organization that promotes global health equity and social justice
by connecting American Universities in one-to-one partnerships with grassroots
organizations around the world. Since its founding in 2007, GlobeMed has
expanded to include over 1,500 undergraduates at 50 university-based chapters
throughout the U.S.
GlobeMed at the University
of Rochester was founded in 2010. Its partner organization in Iquitos is called Kallpa, Peruvian youth-empowerment NGO
committed to promoting civic participation, environmental responsibility, and
healthy behaviors among adolescents in Pampachica.
Background
Kallpa, Iquitos works
extensively with the community of Pampachica. Program directors observed that
many local adolescents were not attending or graduating from high school. High
school graduation rates in Loreto are reported to be as low as 38% (Kallpa,
Iquitos 2006) as compared to the national rate of 57% (UNICEF 2012), but
graduation rates in Pampachica had not yet been specifically documented.
METHODS
Data
Collection
A
team of five students and two local youth travelled door to door in four
Pampachica neighborhoods, orally administering a 20 question survey to individuals
between the ages of 12 and 25 in their homes. An infrastructure of strong
relationships with community members and local residents greatly facilitated
this process. In total, 188 students were surveyed. 6 surveys were excluded
from analysis due to errors in data collection or entry. Sample sizes were
determined in each of the four neighborhoods based on population statistics
collected by Kallpa Iquitos in 2012.
Data
Analysis
Students
were classified into three educational categories—high school drop out, high
school graduate, or continuing student—based on their answers to three survey
questions:
1.
Are you currently studying?
2.
At what level are you currently studying?
3.
Did you graduate from high school?
Parental
education was measured as a composite score of maternal and paternal education
scores. Each parent was given a score between 0 and 6 based on their highest
level of education completed, with 0 being no education and 6 being completion
of higher education. The composite score was calculated as the sum of maternal
and paternal education scores. Composite parental education was classified into
three levels—low (scores of 0-3), moderate (scores of 4-6), or high (scores of
7+). Family income was also categorized as low (less than 400 soles per month),
moderate (between 400 and 700 soles per month), and high (greater than 700
soles per month).
Chi
square analysis was used to assess the relationship between participant
education level and parental education or household income.
RESULTS
Results:
Specific Aim I
A
descriptive educational profile of adolescents ages 12-25
Participants
were classified into three categories—high school drop out, high school
graduate, and continuing student. In Table 1, participants are organized by
neighborhood, age, gender, household income, and parental education.
Results:
Specific Aim II
Parental Education and High School
Graduation
*The
calculated expected values are reported in parentheses
p = 0.0392
Household Income Level and High
School Graduation
*The
calculated expected values are reported in parentheses. 
p = 0.389
CONCLUSIONS
Findings
suggest that parental education, but not household income, is a significant
factor influencing a student’s successful completion of high school education
in Pampachica. Further research into the factors affecting successful
completion of high school education in Pampachica, including a more
comprehensive analysis of all nine neighborhoods, represent next steps in
understanding the educational profile of the community’s adolescent population.
We plan to share our findings with Kallpa Iquitos, the community of Pampachica,
and the regional government of Loreto, Peru in hopes that formal documentation
of the nature of barriers to education in the expansive peri-urban zones of
Iquitos will both encourage the government to take responsibility for improving
educational resources and also help Kallpa Iquitos develop more effective
educational programs at the community level to promote the valuing of education
as well as access to it.
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