Inequality of Opportunities in the Educational Attainment of Chilean Students

Abstract

This study measures the contribution of inequality of opportunities on the educational attainment of Chilean students, captured through the SIMCE test scores. For this, it employs a recently introduced methodology that quantifies the effect of exogenous and endogenous factors on socioeconomic outcomes, using parametric and non-parametric techniques. The study applies this methodology for the SIMCE tests in Mathematics and Language in the 1999 to 2007 period for fourth grade primary, eighth grade primary and for second grade of secondary school. The results show a reduction in the percentage of inequality of SIMCE results arising from exogenous circumstances, which can be interpreted as a decrease in inequality of opportunities. This conclusion is robust to the estimation technique and the schooling grade. In addition, the results reveal that inequality of opportunities is greater in secondary school than in primary school.