The Civic Knowledge Gaps in Chile, Colombia and Mexico: An Application of the Oaxaca-Blinder Decomposition Method Using Data From the 2009 International Civic and Citizenship Education Study (ICCS)

Abstract

The existence of significant differences in the civic knowledge, civic attitudes and civic skills of young people from different socio-economic (SES) backgrounds represent civic competence gaps that affect their ability to act as personally responsible, participatory and justice-oriented citizens in their society (Carretero et al, 2016; MEN, 2004; Westheimer & Kahne, 2004). Identifying civic competence gaps, their magnitude, and the factors that account for them should be a priority for researchers, policy-makers and educators in Latin America because they can threaten the strength, stability and legitimacy of democracies in the region (Levinson, 2010). I use data from three nationally representative samples of 8th grade students who participated in the 2009 International Civic and Citizenship Study (ICCS) to identify civic competence gaps between youth from high and low SES backgrounds in Chile, Colombia and Mexico, using eight measures related to civic competence. I document large gaps in students’ civic knowledge in the three countries, and small gaps in their internal sense of political efficacy, intention to participate in future electoral processes and legal and illegal protests, as well as in their attitudes toward corruption, authoritarianism and disobeying the law. I do not find gaps in their attitudes toward civil disobedience. I then use the Oaxaca-Blinder method (Oaxaca, 1973; Blinder, 1973) to identify how 1) differences in access to school resources, positive school climates and interactive civic learning opportunities, and 2) differences in the civic knowledge gains that students from different SES backgrounds obtain from equal school resources, school climates and civic learning opportunities, account for the civic knowledge gaps in these countries. Findings suggest that the largest portion of the civic knowledge gap in Chile is due to differences in civic knowledge gains, but in Colombia and Mexico the largest portions are due to differences in access. In all three countries high SES students have significantly more access than low SES students to the school resources, school climate and civic learning opportunities that are associated with higher civic knowledge, and in every case, the school SES accounts for the largest portion of the explained civic knowledge gaps. Given equal characteristics, low SES students in Colombia and Mexico –but not in Chile- obtain more civic knowledge gains than high SES students from school resources, school climate and civic learning opportunities