Social origin and citizenship participation in Latin American schools

Authors

Juan Castillo

Publication Date

4-2012

Subjects

Citizen participation, Civics, Student engagement

Comments

Papers about ICCS presented at the Annual Meeting of AERA in Vancouver (13 - 17 April 2012)

Abstract

Empirical research in political participation has consistently shown that participation is characteristic of those with higher socio-economic status and formal education (Brady, Verba, & Schlozman, 1995; Lijphart, 1997; Dalton, 1988; Han, 2009; Marien, Hooghe, & Quintelier, 2010). Socio-economic status differences among citizens are accentuated in societies with high economic inequality as the Latin American ones (De Ferranti et al., 2003; Deininger & Squire, 1996; Dion, 2007; Hoffman & Centeno, 2003; Korzeniewicz & Smith, 2000), and therefore it would be expected to find political inequality in terms of participation in this region (Côrtes & Dubrow, 2011). Such a link is not only a threat to the principles of egalitarian political participation in a democracy, but in the Latin American context it also puts at risk the legitimacy of the democratic system itself, as it no longer represents the whole spectrum of its citizenry. Schools are considered one of the key social institutions for neutralizing the effects of differences in social origin and for providing possibilities of social mobility. In the same sense, formal education is proposed as one of the main channels for promoting citizenship participation: it is in this institution where the practice of different concepts of authority and liberty as well as their interrelationships occur, whereas at the same time students gain access to experience the city and to break with the unconditionality of their homes. In this ideal sense, it would be expected that family socio-economic status differences would not be reflected in educational differences. As the empirical evidence suggests, this is hardly the case in any society, let alone highly unequal ones. Apart from differences in general educational achievement, it is certainly relevant to know to what extent social origin impacts on the participation levels at school and on the disposition to participate in future adult life, and if this is the case, to detect which variables at the school level have the potential of mitigating or enhancing this effect.

Recommended Citation

Castillo, J. (2012). Social origin and citizenship participation in Latin American schools. https://research.acer.edu.au/civics/58

Language

English, English