Learning Better: Public Policy for Skills Development

Abstract

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons IGO 3.0 AttributionNonCommercial-NoDerivatives (CC-IGO BY-NC-ND 3.0 IGO) license (http:// creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/igo/legalcode) and may be reproduced with attribution to the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and for any non-commercial purpose. No derivative work is allowed.Any dispute related to the use of the works of the IDB that cannot be settled amicably shall be submitted to arbitration pursuant to the UNCITRAL rules. The use of the IDB's name for any purpose other than for attribution, and the use of IDB's logo shall be subject to a separate written license agreement between the IDB and the user and is not authorized as part of this CC-IGO license. Note that link provided above includes additional terms and conditions of the license.The opinions expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Inter-American Development Bank, its Board of Directors, or the countries they represent. Preface New technologies that are fusing the physical, digital, and biological worlds are impacting all industries, countries, and individuals. This so-called Fourth Industrial Revolution will change the way we live and transform the way we work. Preparing this and future generations of workers for a fast-changing world is not only desirable, it's essential. At the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) we know that a key ingredient to improve lives in Latin America and the Caribbean is having the right skills to face the challenges of this new era. For this reason, we dedicated the 2017 edition of our flagship publication, Development in the Americas (DIA), to studying this topic and to proposing evidence-based solutions to address this critical problem.Undoubtedly, our region will be heavily impacted by sweeping trends around the world. Artificial intelligence, automation, the Internet of Things, 3D printing, and autonomous vehicles are not science fiction anymore. They are real and available in many parts of the world and beginning to find their way to Latin America and the Caribbean. These new trends are changing our jobs and the way we work. The full impact of these changes is still unknown, but clearly there will be a fundamental transformation in the way businesses do their business and workers do their work.A phrase by Robin Chase (co-founder of Zipcar) is telling: "My father had one job in his lifetime, I will have six jobs in my lifetime, and my children will have six jobs at the same time." Not only will our work not be a 9-to-5 job, but we will also not have the same job for our entire life. The Fourth Industrial Revolution will impose continuous and fast changes that will imply new challenges.A central challenge is how to prepare the workers of today for the jobs of tomorrow. I am optimistic because one of the region's principal assets is its people's talent. But much must be done, starting with helping the many workers in the labor force today find good jobs, and stay updated on t...

Universities and Intergenerational Social Mobility in Brazil: Examining Patterns by Race and Gender

“…The tremendous expansion in tertiary schooling has placed downward pressure on the returns to completing tertiary as compared with secondary. Not only have returns to completing tertiary versus secondary declined in recent years (Busso et al 2017), but studies find that the private return to graduating from college is negative for approximately 30% of students in Colombia and 20% of students in Chile (Gonzalez-Velosa et al 2015). 14 Moreover, studies have found declines in the overall quality of tertiary schooling provided as compared with earlier years (Busso et al 2017).…”

“…The practice of not charging tuition or fees at high quality public universities in Latin America has long been criticized as a policy with good intentions that effectively acts as a subsidy from the poor to the rich. The regressive nature of government spending at tertiary schooling compared with spending at lower levels has been highlighted by economists for decades (Psacharopoulos et al 1986, Rozada and Menendez 2002, and Busso et al 2017. In Brazil in particular, the tuition-free federal universities were for many years regarded as institutions that primarily served the elite, as the poor were characterized as being excluded by entrance exams that were insurmountable without private schooling and expensive tutoring (Birdsall and James 1993).…”

The Role of Universities in Intergenerational Social Mobility: Examining Mobility at the Federal University of Pernambuco, Brazil

“…The tremendous expansion in tertiary schooling has placed downward pressure on the returns to completing tertiary as compared with secondary. Not only have returns to completing tertiary versus secondary declined in recent years (Busso et al 2017), but studies find that the private return to graduating from college is negative for approximately 30% of students in Colombia and 20% of students in Chile (Gonzalez-Velosa et al 2015). 8 Moreover, studies have found declines in the overall quality of tertiary schooling provided as compared with earlier years (Busso et al 2017).…”

“…The regressive nature of government investment in tertiary schooling compared with spending at lower levels of schooling has been highlighted for decades. (Psacharopoulos et al, 1986, Rozada et al 2002, Busso et al 2017. In Brazil, the tuition-free Federal universities were for many years regarded as institutions that served the elite, as the poor were understood to be excluded by entrance exams that were insurmountable without previous private schooling and expensive tutoring (Birdsall and James 1993).…”

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“…In LAC and in more advanced economies evidence suggests that there is an imbalance between the skills of the workforce and the skills demanded by the productive sector (e.g., Bassi et al 2012, Cappelli, 2014, Busso et al 2017. LAC needs new solutions to catalyze growth and maintain positive trends in the reduction of poverty and inequality.…”