DR1 Daily News - Dominican Republic

A recent study by the Pontificia Universidad Católica Madre y Maestra (PUCMM) has cast a harsh spotlight on the struggling state of pre-university education in the Dominican Republic, warning of serious flaws in the national assessment system. Despite billions invested in public schooling, the research reveals a troubling disconnect between grade passing and actual learning, with only a fraction of graduates demonstrating satisfactory academic performance.

The Danilo Medina administration in 2012 was the first Dominican government to allocate extensive funding for public education after years of national protests demanding 4% of GDP established by law be allocated to the sector. As of 2012 this happened, but the money would mainly go to building schools and raising the salaries of public teachers and administrative staff without structural changes to ensure quality education. The...