Table of Contents

Chapter 1. Introduction 1

Chapter 2. Structure of the Education Sector 3

2.1 The Education System 3

2.2 The Ministry of Education and Community Development 7

2.3 Religious schools 10

2.4 Parental involvement 10

2.5 Trade unions in the education sector 11

Chapter 3. Inputs in the Education Sector 12

3.1 Financing and expenditures 12

3.2 Non-instructional staff of the MOECD 15

3.3 Teachers 15

3.4 Instructional materials 20

3.5 Facilities 22

Chapter 4. Performance and Efficiency of the Education Sector 25

Introduction 25

4.1 Access and equity 25

4.2 Internal efficiency 27

4.3 External efficiency 30

Chapter 5. Government Strategy and International Support
in the Education Sector 33

5.1 Government's strategy 33

5.2 International support 33

Chapter 6. Conclusions and Evaluation 35

6.1 Strengths of the education sector 35

6.2 Weaknesses of the education sector 35

6.3 Immediate causes of weaknesses 35

6.4 Fundamental causes of weaknesses 36

Chapter 7. Recommendations 38

7.1 General considerations 38

7.2 Recommendations 38

List of Persons Interviewed 42

References 44

Figure 1 Structure of the Suriname Education System 4

Figure 2 Organizational Structure of the Ministry of Education and Community Development 9

Boxes

Box 1 Education in the Constitution 12

Box 2 Definition of Education Terminology 25

Tables

Table 1 Trade Union Representation in the Education Sector 11

Table 2 Government Expenditure on Education as a Proportion of Total Government Expenditure and GDP 13

Table 3 Average Salaries in Different Economic Activities in 1995 19

Table 4 Annual Budget of the Directorate of Education, MOECD 21

List of Annex-Tables and Appendices

Table A-2 Number of Pre-Primary School Teachers and Pupil Enrollment, by Gender and Year, 1985 to 1993

Table A-3 Primary School Enrollment by Grade and Year, 1984-1993

Table A-4 Number of Students, Classes and Schools under Supervision of Religious Organizations

Table A-5 Primary School Enrollment, Progression, Repetition and Dropout, by Grade and Year, 1984-1994

Table A-6 Number of Primary School Teachers, Pupil Enrollment and Teacher: Student Ratio (by gender and year, 1985 to 1993)

Table A-7 Primary Teachers by Level of Qualifications, 1991/1992

Table A-8 Estimated Costs to a Family for a Child to Attend Primary and Pre-Primary School, (per child per year)

Table A-9 Number of Students, Teachers, Classes, and Schools in General Junior Secondary School, by Gender and Year, 1989/90 to 1994/95

Table A-10 Number of Junior and Senior Secondary School Teachers, Pupil Enrollment and Teacher: Student Ratio, (by gender and year, 1985 to 1993)

Table A-11 Senior Secondary School Enrollment (VWO; 13 Year Program), Progression, Repetition and Dropout, by Grade and Year, 1989-1994

Table A-12 Senior Secondary School Enrollment (HAVO; 12 Year Program), Progression, Repetition and Dropout, by Grade and Year, 1984-1994

Table A-13 Senior Secondary Vocational School (NATIN -- Four Year Terminal Program), Progression, Repetition and Dropout, by Grade, Gender, and Year, 1989-1994

Table A-14 Number of Junior Secondary Technical School (NATIN) Students by Area of Specialization, by Gender and Year, 1989/90 - 1993/94

Table A-15 Enrollment in Junior Secondary Technical School (NATIN) , by Age, Gender, and Year, 1989/90 - 1992/93

Table A-16 Number of Technical School (TC-NATIN) Students Passing Final Examination, by Area of Specialization, Gender and Year, 1989/90 - 1992/93

Table A-17 Enrollments in Tertiary Education (selected years: 1989/90 - 1994/95)

Table A-18 Student Enrollment at the Faculty of Technology and Faculty of Medicine, University of Suriname, by Gender and Program of Study

Table A-18a Student Enrollment in the Faculty of Social Science at the University of Suriname, by Gender and Program of Study

Table A-19 Instructional and Research Staff at University of Suriname, 1996

Table A-20 Number of Instructional and Non-Instructional Staff in Tertiary Education Institutions, 1983-87

Table A-21 Enrollment in Junior Secondary Teacher Training, by Age by Gender and Year, 1989/90 - 1992/93

Table A-21a Comparison of Pupil Enrollments, Pupil-Teacher Rations, and Public Expenditures on Education, 1990 (Selected Countries)

Table A-22 Teacher Training College (PA --Four Year Terminal Program), Progression, Repetition and Dropout, by Grade, Gender, and Year, 1989-1994

Table A-23 Enrollment in the Advanced Teacher Training College (IOL)

Table A-24 Graduates from the Advanced Teacher Training College (IOL)

Table A-24a Skill Shortages at Executive Levels of the Government of Suriname. Results of a 1996 OAS and National Planning Office Study

Table A-25 Results of Primary School Completers' Examination (Not Including School Exam), by District, 1994-1995

Table A-26 Results of Primary School Completers' Examination (Including School Exam), by District, 1994-1995

Table A-27 Results of Junior Secondary School Completers' Examination and National Completers' Examination, 1995-1996

Table A-28 Results of Junior Secondary School Completers' Examination, by Year, 1990-1996

Table A-29 Results of Primary School Completers' Examination, by Year, 1990-1996

Table A-30 Number of Schools, by Level, Type, and Region, 1994

Table A-31 Results of Junior Secondary School Completers' Examination (Including School Exam), by District, 1995-1996

Table A-32 Results of Primary School Completers' Examination (Including School Exam) by District, 1994-1995

Table A-33 National Budget by Ministry

Table A-34 Annual Budget for the Directorate of Education, by Category of Expenditure, 1993 1995, (Surinamese Guilders, in 000s)

Table A-35 Number of Available Positions by Sector, 1980-1993

Table A-36 Unemployment Rates by Selected Education Levels

Table A-37 Summary of International Donor Assistance to Education, 1996

Table A-38 Dutch Assistance to Education in Suriname

Table A-39 Salary Scale for Teachers and Other Government Employees, March 1996, in Sf.

Acronyms

EBO Elementary Vocational

HAVO Senior Secondary Vocational Stream (translated as Pre-University College II)

HBO Higher Vocational Education

LBGO Junior Secondary General Vocational

LNO Vocational Home Economics

LTO Junior Secondary Technical

MEAO Commercial College

MOECD Ministry of Education and Community Development

MPW Ministry of Public Works

MULO General Junior Secondary Education

NATIN Technical College

NPO National Planning Office

OAS Organization of American States

PA Teacher Training College

PTA Parent-Teacher Associations

TTC Teacher Training Colleges

VBO Special Education

VWO Senior Secondary Academic Stream (translated as Pre-University College I)

Executive Summary

The education sector in Suriname is facing severe challenges and, in general, its performance is weak. There is a general perception that the education sector's problems result from a lack of resources, and that simply increasing the level of resources directed at the sector will solve the problems. This study disputes both of those notions. Suriname already devotes a greater share of national resources to education than any other country in the Latin American and Caribbean Region. Education absorbs 5 percent of GDP and 30 percent of the government's workforce.

The education system of Suriname comprises pre-school, primary, junior secondary, senior secondary, vocational and tertiary schooling. Upon entry into junior secondary education, students are assigned to one of six streams depending on their sixth grade examination results. Students in the most prestigious stream, general junior secondary, take an examination at the end of grade 10, which determines their assignment into six more streams at the senior secondary level. Tertiary education comprises the University of Suriname and a higher vocational education program, which offers advanced programs in 21 areas.

The education system is highly centralized and is coordinated, managed and regulated by the Ministry of Education and Community Development (MOECD). The MOECD rather than district governments is responsible for the provision of education throughout the country. The MOECD is also the dominant financier of education services. There is little tradition of parental involvement in schools.

The education sector absorbs a considerable share of national resources. Between 1993 and 1996, government expenditure on education amounted to 5 percent of GDP. The sector's absorption of human resources is even greater. Total direct and indirect employment by the MOECD is equivalent to 30 percent of total government employment and 12.5 percent of the country's workforce.

Nevertheless, the apparent strength of inputs to the sector is nullified by an unbalanced allocation between inputs and several factors that reduce the ostensibly strong teacher input: absenteeism, the poor quality and training of many teachers, and low motivation. It is estimated that around 50 percent of teachers are "ghosts" who do not attend work.

The education sector has achieved notable success in ensuring widespread access to basic education. However, the number of well qualified graduates produced by the education system is low. This under-achievement is linked to extremely high drop out and repetition rates, poor quality instruction, lack of educational materials and deteriorated school buildings. Among the students who do graduate, some, particularly those with technical-vocational training, have skills that are only marginally useful to employers. The system, therefore, poorly equips students with skills with which they can earn a living. Nor does the system provide employers with a skilled, highly productive workforce.

The government in the process of formulating a full plan for educational development. A committee has been appointed to review the education portion of the national multi-year development plan (1993-98) and prepare a new plan.

The major international donors to education in Suriname are the Governments of the Netherlands and Belgium. The major focus of Dutch support has been instructional materials and supplies at the primary level -- particularly in the interior, the development of apprenticeship programs in vocational/technical education, and support for higher education, both for strengthening the University of Suriname and for scholarships for students to study abroad.

The deficiencies in the education system exist despite the generous amount of financial and human resources devoted to the system. The contradiction between resource inputs stems from three immediate problems: misallocation of resources, inefficiencies and waste, and weak teaching capacity. However, these problems are symptoms of more fundamental deficiencies in the institutional structure of the education sector, which are common to many countries in the Latin American and Caribbean region. The combination of so many roles -- financier, purchaser, provider, employer and regulator -- in one large ministry has created a structure which lacks the appropriate mechanisms to make the system perform efficiently and equitably.

Under the current system the budget is determined by inputs and only very indirectly linked to output or outcomes. Schools, therefore, face very little financial incentive to improve the quality of education services or ensure that inputs are used efficiently. In addition, the current system of funding is highly centralized and providers have no discretion or control over what inputs they can use. The existing institutional structure also diminishes and disperses accountability for performance in the education sector. School principals and officials are not accountable to their major clients, parents of students, for the services they are providing. The concentration of so many functions in the MOECD also hampers its ability to carry out certain tasks such as strategic planning, regulation, monitoring and setting of standards.

Improving the system boils down to giving schools the means to improve performance, giving them incentives to improve performance and holding them accountable for it. Budgeting should be decentralized to let providers have discretion and control over the inputs they use. In addition, resources should be allocated on the basis of outcomes rather than inputs. Putting greater emphasis on performance as a criterion for receiving funds can transform budgets into an instrument for putting pressure on public providers to be efficient. It would also be necessary to ensure that in the process of reallocating responsibilities those that receive decision-making power have the right structure of governance, incentives and ownership to be held accountable for their actions. This would require: (i) a governance structure at the school level, preferably with parent and community participation; (ii) a budgeting process based on outcomes; and (iii) a standardized examination system.

If the reforms recommended above seem to be too radical for broad implementation, they could be tested or introduced on a pilot basis. A small number of schools could be selected to undergo reforms and then, once success is demonstrated on a small basis, the reforms could be broadened to other schools.

The above changes would allow the MOECD's role to shift from a focus on the provision of education to that of overseer of the education system, strategic planner, regulator and setter of standards. In sum, it would focus on the higher functions which only the Ministry is in a position to do and which, hitherto, have been crowded out by the day-to-day management and operation of the education system.

In addition, it may be beneficial to: review procedures for recruiting student teachers; consider introducing a modest fee for vocational and professional training courses; and thoroughly review the technical-vocational part of the education system. It will also be important to focus on school maintenance and refurbishment of existing buildings rather than embarking on a large program of new school construction.

This study presents the most comprehensive data array on Suriname's education sector currently available, to our knowledge. Through the generous help of current and former Ministry officials, this study draws on data (and reports) that are not widely available, even within the MOECD. These include working papers and trend studies that were prepared as part of Ministry work but not formally published by the Ministry. The Statistics Office of the MOECD did not have a Director at the time this study was conducted and, for all practical purposes, was not operational. Much of the data attributed to the Statistics Office of the MOECD for 1993 onward was developed prior to recent staff turnover and were made available to this study by former staff of that Office.

Notwithstanding the above, education data in Suriname is of uneven quality and much data in this report should be interpreted with caution. Data from different sources across ministries and across departments of the same ministry may not agree, though differences tend to be small and of little policy significance. More importantly, some of the most important problems of the education sector are not reflected in the national education data. Most notably, the high incidence of ghost teachers, counting part-time teachers as full time, and failing to adjust for teachers who are legitimately assigned to non-instructional tasks results in an overestimate of teachers providing instruction in the classrooms. Another is that the teacher count may overestimate the number of qualified teachers in the schools.

Prior to 1994, the MOECD Statistics Office provided analysis of school data collected by district inspectors. Effective operation of the Statistics Office ended in 1995 as a result of three factors: (a) loss of key personnel in May 1995; (b) the decision of the MOECD not to replace lost staff in the Statistics Office; and (c) lack of demand for data in the decision making process. Status data (number of students, teachers, and classes) are still collected by district inspectors, who forward those data to the Central Statistics Office which does the summary analysis. The Central Statistics Office reports annual enrollments but does not conduct any further data or policy analysis with this information. For example, it does not compute progression, repetition, and dropout rates, teacher to student or student to class ratios. Consequently, the MOECD has no effective way of monitoring quantitative indicators of the education system performance (beyond basic enrollment statistics).

Nonetheless, the issues and trends outlined in this report are of such a magnitude that even moderate levels of error in the data will not change the policy implications.

The developmental importance of investment in human capital, in general, and education, in particular, is rarely disputed now. Empirical research has demonstrated that initial levels of education strongly influence the GDP growth rate of countries (Barro 1993) and widespread access to basic education has been shown to foster broad based and more egalitarian growth.

Despite these sound theoretical underpinnings for public investment in education, and a widespread consensus in Suriname that education is important, the education sector in Suriname faces severe challenges. The allocation of inputs into the sector is gravely unbalanced, thereby undermining the efficiency of those inputs. From 1993-1996, 88.5 percent of the education budget was spent on personnel expenses. By contrast, less than 4 percent of the budget was spent on supplies, causing severe shortages of furniture, textbooks and instructional materials. Less than 2 percent of the budget is spent on maintenance and repair. As a consequence, the Technical Services Directorate of the Ministry of Education and Community Development (MOECD) estimates that 60 percent of the government schools need repair. Many facilities are without water, working toilets or blackboards.

Nor does the generous allocation to personnel expenditures result in high quality teaching. First, much of the expenditure on personnel is not spent on teachers partly because the MOECD employs approximately one non-instructional staff member for every 2.5 teachers. Second, it has been estimated that as many as 50 percent of teachers do not come to work. Third, those teachers who do come to work are recruited from the weakest academic students, receive weak teacher training and often have little interest in the job. One-third of primary school teachers do not have adequate teacher preparation. Teacher training officials estimate that less than one percent of incoming students have any interest in teaching as a career.

Given these problems, it is not surprising that the performance of the education system is, in general, weak. The system is plagued by extremely high dropout and repetition rates. About nine of every 10 children begin school, but less than four in a thousand can expect to finish senior secondary school 12 years later. Many of the students who do eventually graduate lack the skills to contribute fully to the national economy and require training by employers. Against these deficiencies, must be set the education sector's success in ensuring widespread access to basic education. Suriname's enrollment ratios at the pre-primary and primary levels are high relative to the rest of Latin America and the Caribbean.

There is a general perception that the education sector's problems result from a lack of resources, and that simply increasing the level of resources directed at the education sector will solve the problems. This study disputes both of those notions. Suriname devotes a greater share of national resources to education than any other country in the Latin America and Caribbean Region. Education absorbs 5 percent of GDP and 30 percent of the government workforce. The underlying problem is that these resources are not used well because of fundamental deficiencies in the institutional and incentives structure in education. Until those deficiencies are addressed, additional resources for the sector will largely be wasted. Conversely, even without additional resources, undertaking the reforms proposed in this study could lead to a vastly enhanced education sector performance.

2. Structure of the Education Sector

The education system of Suriname comprises preschool, primary, junior secondary, senior secondary, vocational, and tertiary schooling. Figure 1 presents a chart describing the program of study within the formal education system and the options available to students as they move through the system.

The school year begins October 1 and ends August 17. The school day runs from 8:00 am to 1:00 pm for primary students; 7:30 am to 1:00 pm for junior secondary students; and 7:00 am to 1:00 pm for senior secondary students.

2.1.1 Pre-school

Pre-school is a two-year program for four and five year old children. Approximately 90 percent of all four and five year old children are enrolled in pre-school programs (see Appendix 1). The 20,979 children enrolled in pre-primary in 1993 were taught by about 672 teachers (Annex Tables 1 and 2). This resulted in an average class size of 28 students, though there is wide variation across schools. Pre-school programs typically are housed in primary school buildings, though they have their own teachers, who take a special training program to prepare as a pre-primary teacher. There is no set national curriculum for the pre-primary level; each teacher develops her own (virtually all the teachers are women). As a result, teachers draw heavily from the pre-primary curriculum taught at the Teacher Training College for their inspiration and lesson plans. Student promotion from first to second year and from second year to primary school grade 1 is automatic and virtually all pre-school children continue on to primary school.

2.1.2 Primary school

Primary school consists of grades 1-6 (ages 6-11). Suriname has not experienced the explosive growth that has characterized student enrollments in many other developing countries over the last ten years. In 1993, approximately 79,162 students were enrolled in primary school, an overall increase of only 7.7 percent (5,513 students) over the previous ten years (see Annex Table A-3). About half of those students were enrolled in religious schools. Successful completion of primary school is based on an examination administered nationwide at the end of grade 6 in combination with sixth grade school performance. Those awarded a Primary School Leavers' Certificate may continue to Junior Secondary School, with their choice of junior secondary options based on their examination scores.

Secondary education in Suriname is divided into two levels: junior secondary education, which generally lasts for three to four years, and senior secondary education, which lasts for two to three years. Upon entry into junior secondary education, students are assigned to one of six streams depending on their sixth grade examination results.

Students with the highest sixth grade examination performance can attend General Junior Secondary Education (MULO), which is a four-year general education stream. Instruction is offered in 11 subjects: Dutch, English, Spanish, accounting, mathematics, physics, biology, geography, history, drawing and physical education. Most subject areas rely on Dutch textbooks. Locally prepared textbooks and instructional materials are available for Spanish, history, physics and for a portion of geography.

Those with a lower score may attend a four year Junior Secondary General Vocational (LBGO) stream. LBGO is essentially a pre-professional stream leading to further education. Students with scores that are insufficient for the LBGO stream may attend "true" vocational streams. Of these, the most prestigious is the three-year Junior Secondary Technical (LTO) schools, which are oriented toward technical trade skills (carpentry, automobile mechanics, etc.).

Those with yet lower scores may attend an Elementary Vocational (EBO) school, a Vocational Home Economics (LNO) school, or a Special Education (VBO) school. The Elementary Vocational schools are aimed at imparting general handyman skills while Vocational Home Economics prepares girls in domestic home-making skills. These vocational programs do not generally lead to further educational options.

Of the 26,157 students enrolled in junior secondary education in 1993/94, 49 percent were enrolled in the MULO stream, 32 percent in the LBGO stream (the two streams that have the possibility of leading to further educational options), and 19 percent were enrolled in the terminal vocational and technical options.⁽¹⁾

2.1.4 Senior secondary education

Students in the general junior secondary (MULO) stream take an examination at the end of grade 10. Those passing the test can continue in senior secondary education, but again their options are determined by their examination score. Students with the highest scores can enter a three-year senior secondary academic stream (VWO, translated as Pre-University College I), which offers academic programs leading to university study.

Those with lower scores may enter a two-year senior secondary vocational stream (HAVO, translated as Pre-University College II). HAVO schools are really pre-professional schools intended to lead to further education in areas such as law, journalism, etc., and are not vocational schools in the more general sense.

The pre-university and pre-professional streams are offered in different schools, though in one case they share a building. Both types of school offer instruction in Dutch, English, Spanish, mathematics, physics, biology, geography, history, drawing, and physical education, though the two streams cover the material in different depths. Students in the VWO stream take school completers' examinations in seven subjects while those in the HAVO stream take examinations in only six subjects. Most subject areas rely on Dutch textbooks. Locally prepared textbooks and instructional materials are available for Spanish, history, physics, and for portions of geography and biology.

Students with scores that are insufficient for the pre-university or pre-professional streams may attend "true" vocational streams. Of these, the most prestigious is the four-year Technical College (NATIN), which is oriented toward technical trade skills. Only about one in every three students who enroll in NATIN actually graduate.

Those with yet lower scores can enter a four-year Teacher Training College (PA), where they can specialize in primary teacher training, or they may go to a Commercial College (MEAO) for either a three-year program in accounting and general management or a two-year program in secretarial skills. There are also options for less academically able students to attend a Junior Secondary level elementary vocational program (EBO), a vocational home economics program (LNO), or a special education program (VBO).

At both the senior and junior secondary levels the curricula for vocational programs of each school are largely determined by the instructional faculty of that school. There is little, if any, articulation between the vocational and technical skill training offered and the needs of local employers. Curricula are not based on a labor market analysis nor is instruction based on locally conducted task analysis.

There have been recurring efforts to establish apprenticeship programs with local companies but the scale of these efforts is still small. The Netherlands is assisting in supporting these programs and there is considerable interest among vocational educators in revitalizing and extending these programs over the next few years.

Of all the students enrolled in senior secondary education in 1993/94, 41 percent were enrolled in the VWO pre-university stream, 15 percent in the HAVO pre-professional stream, 11 percent in a NATIN technical college, 16 percent in teaching training colleges (PA) and 17 percent in a commercial college (MEAO).

2.1.5 Tertiary education

Tertiary education is comprised of two tracks: the University of Suriname (which possesses a medical school) and higher vocational education (HBO), which offers advanced programs in 21 areas, including advanced teacher training. Students with a School Completer's Certificate from a VWO (senior secondary academic school) may enter the university and students with a School Completer's Certificate from a HAVO (senior secondary vocational school) may continue on to the higher vocational education.

For the brightest students in the HAVO stream and the technically-oriented senior secondary (NATIN) schools there is also a possible route to the university. After taking their school completer's examination, students in these tracks can enter a one-year preparatory course of study at the university which leads to full admission for those who complete the course. In fact, this university entrance examination is the same school completers' examination taken by students completing grade 13 at the academic senior secondary schools (VWO). This option has the effect, then, of giving students in the HAVO and NATIN streams another chance at entering the university, but it does not save them any time because the grade that they skip at senior secondary school is replaced by an extra year of study once they are admitted into the university.

In 1993, 2,463 students were enrolled in the University of Suriname (nearly as many as enrolled in the academic senior secondary stream); 183 were enrolled in the Academy of Arts (which offers advanced professional training); and 1,339 were enrolled teacher training (see Annex Table A-17).

Curricula are determined by the instructional faculty of each institution and are intended to meet international standards. International assistance has supported curriculum development, advanced education for faculty, and the provision of library resources and specialized laboratory and other teaching equipment.

2.2 The Ministry of Education and Community Development

The education system of Suriname is highly centralized and is coordinated, managed, and regulated by the MOECD. The MOECD is also the dominant financier of education services. The MOECD is organized into four directorates, in line with its four major areas of responsibility -- education, culture, sports, and youth (see Figure 2 for the organizational chart of the ministry). Each of the directorates is headed by a permanent secretary with an assistant permanent secretary for each of the major functions within each directorate. Across the Directorate of Education, there are assistant permanent secretaries for Development Services, Education, Technical services, and Administrative Services. These four directorates are then organized into a total of 25 bureaus.

The MOECD rather than district governments is responsible for the provision of education throughout the country. The ministry is represented in each of Suriname's 10 administrative districts by a district inspector, who reports to the Chief Inspector in the ministry in Paramaribo, who, in turn, reports to the Assistant Permanent Secretary for Education. District inspectors have few if any staff -- those in the more populated districts may have a secretary. Originally intended to provide teacher supervision, their responsibilities have evolved to the point that they now handle virtually all administrative issues that involve the central ministry in the district. For example, they deliver and collect school data forms, forward school complaints about missing or inadequate supplies or furniture to the appropriate office of the central ministry, and respond to concerns about teacher performance. They operate as a first line of communication between a school and the ministry.

District inspectors for the coastal districts of Suriname generally live in their districts. Their housing is provided by the ministry and includes an office. Inspectors responsible for districts in the interior live in Paramaribo. In one respect, this makes sense, since transportation in the interior is mostly by river or air, and virtually all air connections have to go through Paramaribo. However, limitations on travel funds result in little, if any, on-site school visits to interior districts. Even in the coastal districts, inspectors ability to visit schools is seriously constrained by financial limitations. Inspectors are expected to use their own private vehicles for school visits. They receive Sf.6,250 (US$15.63) per month in car allowance to cover petrol and related expenses. This is inadequate to cover the true costs and, as a consequence, few school visits occur.

The lack of school visits is compounded by the fact that few schools have phones, even in districts close to Paramaribo. Offsetting this weak formal structure is a strong informal structure. Teachers and headmasters in rural districts are given a trip to Paramaribo each year as part of their incentive to work outside the capital and often have direct communication with central ministry personnel when they are in the city.

Figure 2: Organizational Structure of the Ministry of Education and Community Development

2.3 Religious schools

About half of all primary and junior secondary schools are operated by religious organizations, mostly Hindu, Muslim or Catholic, that operate with substantial government subsidies. The religious organizations provide and maintain the school facilities, which are usually in somewhat better repair than the government schools. The religious organizations recoup maintenance costs by charging students a higher entrance fee (about Sf.2,500 [US$6.25] per year) than do government schools (Sf.500 [US$1.25] per year). Religious school teachers are recruited, selected, and hired by the religious organizations, but must be selected from the same pool of the country's teacher training college graduates. None of the religious schools use expatriate teachers.

But in all other respects the religious schools are comparable to government schools. They follow the national curriculum and use the same textbooks prescribed for public schools. Similarly, they depend on the MOECD for delivery of the textbooks and instructional materials. Their teachers are paid by the government on the same pay scale as other government teachers. The Christian schools have some foreign sponsorship, but the Hindu and Muslim schools do not. Given the similarities, it is unlikely that religious schools provide significantly better quality instruction than government schools.

Schools supported by religious organizations are an integral part of the national education system and data about these schools generally are not disaggregated in government statistical reports. For that reason they are considered together with public schools in the remainder of this report.

2.4 Parental involvement

There is little tradition in Suriname of parental involvement in their local schools. While some schools have a core of interested and involved parents, most do not. The MOECD has, in the past, made efforts to increase parent involvement. While the results were disappointing, the experience offers some insight into the dynamics that operate in efforts to involve parents: In the 1980s, the MOECD launched a special program to promote parental participation through the creation of Parent-Teacher Associations (PTAs). PTAs were started in 295 primary and 155 junior secondary schools; however, parental activities were limited largely to fund raising for their school. The schools used the proceeds of the fund raising to purchase school materials (such as writing materials). Parents in the poorer neighborhoods did not have much time to participate in PTA activities because of the long hours they spent working. However, about 40 percent of those parents said that they would have made time if they also could have discussed the problems their children were encountering with the teacher, the curriculum, and instructional practices in the classroom. Teachers and headmasters resisted parental involvement in these matters. In the end the PTAs were not sustained, largely because parents did not see them as providing them with meaningful involvement in the activities of schooling.

2.5 Trade unions in the education sector

Teachers and other workers in the education sector are represented by a number of trade unions. Six unions represent teachers in religious schools and have a religious basis (see Table 1 below). Four of these unions have less than 150 members and their combined membership totals 1,930. Teachers in state (secular) schools are represented by the Suriname Public Teachers'Union (S.O.B.) which has a membership of approximately 2,220. However, unions are also configured on the basis of the level or function of schools. Teachers at secondary schools are represented by the Union of Teachers (B.V.L.) and teachers at technical schools are represented by the Technical Schools Teachers' Union (B.L.T.S.). Teachers' unions also operate at different levels of aggregation. All teachers' unions, except the B.V.L., are members of the Federation of Surinamese Teachers (F.O.L.S.) which is an umbrella organization representing all teachers in Suriname. In addition, because nearly all teachers are civil servants, all teachers unions -- except the B.V.L. which withdrew after a disagreement -- and the F.O.L.S. are also members of the Confederation of Civil Servants' Organizations (C.L.O.) which represents all civil servants. The most important unions in terms of negotiating with the government are the C.L.O., the F.O.L.S., the B.V.L. and the S.O.B..

3. Inputs in the Education Sector

3.1 Financing and expenditures

As in most of the region, education is primarily public funded. In Suriname this reflects not only a broad public consensus that the state should ensure the provision of education but also constitutional guarantees to free access to education (see Box 1).

Public Funding

The education system is financed through central government revenues. Between 1993-1996, government expenditure for education amounted to roughly 5 percent of GDP (see Table 2), which is slightly above regional norms. For example, in the mid-1990s Trinidad and Tobago spent 4.3 percent of GDP on education, Guyana 3.7 percent, Barbados 6.8 percent and Jamaica 5.1 percent⁽²⁾. In 1990, public expenditures on education amounted to 4.3 percent of GNP in Latin America and the Caribbean, 4.1 percent in East Asia, and 5.7 percent in industrial economies (UNESCO and World Bank as reported in IDB, 1996).

Financing is centralized in the MOECD, which allocates in-kind services rather than money to schools. The MOECD, therefore, is responsible for the provision and distribution of teachers, supplies, and school maintenance to schools. The university has more financial autonomy than the schools and prepares and manages its own budget, although the current expenditure budget is vetted by the MOECD before being submitted to the Ministry of Finance. Funds from the Ministry of Finance and foreign donors pass through the MOECD before they reach the university.

The overall budget for education is determined by negotiations between the MOECD and Ministry of Finance. Funding is determined by inputs or installed capacity rather than by outputs or performance. It is calculated by multiplying the number of civil servants and teachers who work for the MOECD (or whose salaries are paid by the MOECD) by their salaries and adding on some expenses for other inputs and running costs. Actual expenditure outcomes can be very different from the planned budget if civil servants and/or teachers are given large salary raises during the year. This occurred frequently during the high inflation period of 1993-1995 (see Annex Table A-33). In 1994, for example, actual spending was forty times the budgeted level, indicating that the quantity of inputs determine the budget rather than conscious budgetary decisions determining the quantity of inputs.

3.1.1 Payments by users

Recipients of education services pay a small fraction of the cost of education. Tuition is virtually free at all levels of education, with schools charging only a modest entrance free ($1.25 per year for government schools and $6.25 for religious schools). The "no tuition cost" policy at the tertiary level is currently under review, and MOECD and university staff are investigating the feasibility of a student loan program. Both issues, however, are at early stages of considerations.

Families of children do, however, cover complementary expenses. Families of students must provide a school uniform, contribute to the child's transportation to school, and provide notebooks and pencils that the government has been unable to provide. Students attending teacher training colleges pay for all the supplies they need to complete their practice teaching as well as transportation costs.

Some of the research institutes at the university have been able to sell research and development services. However, these efforts have been inadvertently discouraged by a university policy which routes the resulting income to the central administration of the university rather than the research unit generating the funds. Moreover, when clients provide an advance payment for work they have commissioned, those funds are sometimes diverted by the university to cover other costs, making it difficult or impossible for the research unit to initiate the activities.

3.1.2 Allocation by level of education

The MOECD does not keep its accounts in a manner that allows for disaggregation of expenditures by level of education (pre-primary, primary, secondary, vocational/technical higher education). However, a crude estimation of the balance of expenditures between tertiary education on the one hand, and other levels of education on the other hand, can be derived by comparing the university budget with the total MOECD budget. In recent years, the university share of the MOECD budget has varied from 9.3 percent in 1993 to 7.7 percent in 1995. Suriname, therefore, commits less to tertiary levels relative to pre-primary, primary and secondary level than many countries in Latin America, which allocate between 20-40 percent of public current expenditure on education to the tertiary level. Suriname is in line with other Caribbean countries which allocate between 3.4 percent (Belize) and 21.4 percent (Jamaica) to tertiary education.

However, this refers only to national expenditures on education. Much international donor assistance has been directed at the university and the entire capital budget of the university is donor financed and not included in the statistics on national government expenditures on education. As a result, total funding of the university is much higher relative to primary and secondary levels than solely national expenditures data would indicate.

3.2 Non-instructional staff of the MOECD

The MOECD employs approximately 3,272 staff in non-instructional positions. Officials estimate that about 2,000 are grounds keepers, guards, and other support personnel and that about 1,300 are office personnel. This is probably an underestimate of the administrative staffing because: (a) some teachers are assigned to non-instructional responsibilities but continue to be paid (and counted) as teachers; and (b) religious organizations handle many of the administrative matters (teacher recruitment, teacher assignment, building maintenance and repair) for about half the primary and junior secondary schools in the country. The MOECD employs approximately one non-instructional staff member for every 2.5 teachers.

3.3 Teachers

On the surface, the teaching corps, which numbers 7,949, is large. However, in practice this ostensible strength is weakened by absenteeism, the poor quality and training of many teachers, and low motivation.

3.3.1 Quantity

In 1993, the total teaching pool included 3,695 primary teachers, approximately 808 general junior secondary school teachers, another 547 teaching in junior secondary vocational school, and 331 teaching in the various terminal junior secondary options. To provide adequate content coverage of the eleven subject areas composing the curriculum, junior secondary schools use part-time teachers, some of whom teach at several different schools, making an accurate count of teachers difficult. About 70 percent of the full-time general junior secondary teachers are women, though when all junior secondary options are combined, the proportion of men and women is about equal (since most of the other options are vocational/technical areas in which male teachers tend to predominate). At the tertiary education level much of the instruction is provided by part-time instructors. For example, the 99 full-time faculty at the University are supplemented by 167 part-time instructors (see Annex Tables 19 and 20).

Such staffing levels imply low pupil to teacher ratios: about one teacher for every 22 students at the primary level and one teacher for 12 students at both the junior and secondary levels. These ratios are low by international standards (see Annex Table A-21a), and belie the reality of the classroom where class sizes appear closer to 35-40. This discrepancy is explained by three factors. First, some people classified and paid as teachers are performing other jobs within the ministry or the school and are not providing direct instruction. Second, there are problems in the MOECD's data -- some part-time teachers are counted as full-time. Third, and probably most significant, many teachers do not come to work or meet their classes. Described as "ghost teachers", these individuals continue to receive their salary and benefits, but either hold other jobs or pursue leisure activities. Senior MOECD officials suggest that the number of ghost teachers and others employed through the education ministry is as high as 50 percent. An informal audit of school grounds keepers by a senior MOECD official in 1996 found 50 percent to be ghost employees.

Three factors help explain the prevalence of ghost teachers. First, ghost teachers continue to maintain their rights to their teaching job in order to keep their health insurance, an important fringe benefit in Suriname. Second, even though teachers' salaries are considered low, they are higher than other civil servants. Ghost teachers can continue to draw their salary. Third, there are few, if any, consequences for not coming to work or not performing one's job. In part this is because the MOECD does not have the management capacity to monitor teacher attendance. However, when evidence of ghost employees has been forwarded to the ministry, little or no action has been taken to correct the situation. Some believe there is official reluctance to correct the situation. More fundamentally, it reflects the lack of incentives and control at the school level. Schools have little incentive to enforce teacher attendance because they are not accountable to pupils' parents or the ministry for lost instructional time. Schools also have little means to enforce teacher attendance because teachers' salaries are paid by the ministry.

Finding teachers willing to serve in the interior and in some of the more distant coastal districts has been a long-standing problem. Teachers in interior schools are provided with housing and are given a trip to Paramaribo each year but these incentives have not been strong enough to attract and retain teachers in the interior.

To address teacher shortages in the interior, in 1984 the MOECD initiated a pilot program, known as the "boslandakte program", to recruit local community members from interior villages who had at least some junior secondary education to attend a special six month training program that would prepare them to teach in their local village. However, the subsequent civil war caused many teachers and boslandakte graduates to flee the interior.

Following the termination of hostilities in the interior and confronted with severe teacher shortages, the boslandakte initiative was reactivated in 1992. The results of the program have been mixed. When the program did not attract enough trainees from the interior districts, the program was opened to individuals from coastal areas. Upon completion, however, many of the trainees from the coastal areas refused to go to the interior. Overall, 60 percent of the 280 students who have participated in the program since 1993 have passed the exam and are teaching. While this has alleviated somewhat the shortage of teachers in the interior, boslandakte teachers receive only 6 months of training compared with four years for the regular teacher training programs.

MOECD officials do not have current data on teacher turnover, but estimate that about 20 percent of the teaching force leave teaching each year due to marriage, death, emigration, and better opportunities in the private sector. This translates into an annual demand for about 739 teachers at the primary level, 165 teachers at the junior secondary level, and about 116 teachers across various types of schooling at the senior secondary level.

While there are about 680 students enrolled in Teacher Training Colleges (TTCs) that prepare primary and junior secondary teachers, these colleges produce about 40-45 graduates per year [Some transfer to the Advanced Teacher Training Institute before graduating from the TTC] (see Annex Table A-21). The Advanced Teacher Training Institute, which prepares upper junior secondary and senior secondary teachers enrolled 769 in the first year program in 1994-95 and graduated about 176 that same year (Annex Tables 23 and 24). In total, these schools produce about 210 new teachers per year. Senior education officials suggest about 50 percent of those who graduate will actually take a teaching position.

This suggests a shortfall in teacher production, particularly for the primary and junior secondary levels. However, to the extent that the teacher ranks are inflated by ghost teachers, fewer new teachers would be necessary if ghost teachers could be encouraged to return to the classroom. (Alternatively, if ghost teachers leave the teaching force, it might actually increase the apparent teacher shortfall, since the annual turnover of teachers--now estimated at 20 percent --would represent a higher percent if computed only over the active teachers.)

3.3.2 Quality and motivation

The quality of teaching staff is weakened by recruitment of academically weak students to teaching, poor teacher training, and poor teacher motivation.

a. Recruitment

Often, students opt to receive teacher training not because they have a particular interest in or commitment to teaching, but because they are academically weaker and that is the only alternative they have if they want to continue studying. Pre-school teacher training is an educational option pursued by those who do not have a junior secondary school completers' examination score that would allow them into a better senior secondary option. Primary teacher training is an option generally pursued only by junior secondary school graduates who do not qualify for either the academic senior secondary tracks (VWO and HAVO) or technical courses of study (NATIN).

b. Teacher training

Training for pre-school and primary teaching is provided through a four-year program at three Teacher Training Colleges (TTC), all of which are located in Paramaribo. There is a part-time program in Nickerie in which students study in Nickerie four days a week and take courses at TTCs on the weekends. Training for junior secondary teaching is provided by the Advanced Teacher Training College. Vocational and technical teachers receive their training at a special Training College for Vocational Teacher Training.

The first two years of the TTC curriculum concentrate on improving students' knowledge of content in their area of specialization. Students take courses in 11 subject areas each year. In year three, students are introduced to pedagogical techniques. During that year, they attend class at the TTC four days a week and practice teaching in a school one day a week. The entire fourth year is spent practice teaching at a nearby school. TTC faculty are responsible for supervision of practice teachers, however they do not receive sufficient reimbursement to cover their costs of travel to the schools for supervision visits. There are differing opinions about the extent to which TTC students have an opportunity to familiarize themselves with the curriculum or instructional materials that are actually used in the primary schools, though presumably they encounter it during their practice teaching.

As noted above, students enrolling in the TTC tend to be less academically able and come to the TTC because they do not have test scores that allow them a better option. School officials estimate that less than one percent express any interest in teaching as a career. While about 300 enter each year, only about 50 complete the four year TTC program (see Annex Table A-22). School officials have no role in the assignment of students after graduation.

Moreover, morale among TTC teachers is low, partly because they work with the least able students who exhibit little if any interest in their studies. Teachers have few instructional resources with which to work. They even have to purchase their own reference books as the schools do not have a reference library for instructors. Facilities of the three TTCs need repair and upgrading. The buildings have water problems, broken toilets, poor athletic facilities, and cannot be adequately secured against theft. School officials report that many instructors hold second jobs. Instructors in the TTC are (usually) graduates of the Advanced Teacher Training College. Instructors at the Advanced Teacher Training College are graduates of that institution, graduates of the University of Suriname, or were trained abroad.

The Training College for Vocational Teacher Training faces the same problems experienced by the other teacher training colleges -- lack of funds, lack of tools and equipment with which to learn and practice one's trade. Consequently, it is highly probable that teachers' own preparation to be a VTT instructor is weak.

Recruiting and retaining teachers in technical areas poses a particular challenge because, if they are good at their trade, their skills demand a considerably higher salary in the private sector. Consequently, those who continue to teach tend to be older instructors who do not wish to compete in the private sector, or younger teachers who have second jobs in which they use their specialized skills to supplement their income.

c. Qualifications

Notwithstanding the problems associated with teacher training programs listed above, passage through the teacher training colleges does impart some preparation for teaching. One problem with the education sector is that a large number of primary school teachers do not have the minimum recommended teacher training qualifications. To be considered qualified to teach in primary school, a person must attend a four year training program at one of three teacher training colleges. In 1991-92, about 67 percent of primary teachers met this qualification (see Annex Table A-7). The remaining 33 percent were hired without adequate teacher preparation. Opportunities for in-service upgrading of unqualified teachers are limited. A bureau within the MOECD is responsible for offering in-service teacher training and it has organized some in-service training programs in conjunction with the Advanced Teacher Training College, but on a rather ad hoc basis.

The situation at the junior secondary level is probably somewhat better. To teach at the junior secondary level, a teacher is supposed to have graduated from the Advanced Teacher Training College. Data on the proportion of teachers who are considered qualified are not available. However, senior MOECD officials estimate that about 20 percent of the teaching force leave teaching each year -- about 162 teachers just from the general junior secondary track alone. Output from the Advanced Teacher Training College in 1991-92 was about 459. If this output has been maintained and if even half of those graduating enter teaching, the production of trained teachers should be able to meet demand at the junior secondary level.

d. Teacher morale

Teacher morale has been negatively affected by declining salaries in real terms, poor remuneration relative to other professions, inadequate preparation for teaching, poor facilities and a lack of materials. Between 1980 and 1994, teachers salaries declined by four-fifths in real terms, thereby contributing to an outflow of qualified teachers who could get jobs abroad. Although the real declines in teachers' salaries over that period was in line with economy-wide declines in wages and salaries, teachers had much less ability to absorb the decline because they started out from a lower base. As real salaries declined, therefore, economic necessity obliged some teachers to shift to jobs in other economic activities, which were much better remunerated (see Table 3). ⁽³⁾ This was manifested by formal shifts from education to other activities, informal shifts through an increase in ghost-workers, and a deterrent to potential teachers.

Inadequate preparation -- of the teachers without teaching qualifications and those that pass through TTCs -- further contributes to teacher demoralization, as do the poor state of teaching facilities and the acute shortage of teaching materials and supplies. School officials report that teacher morale is especially low among technical and vocational schools, in part due to the lack of student interest in the content of instruction and in part due to the lack of the equipment and materials that would allow students to practice their skills. They point out that technical and vocational students are among the least capable and justify the high dropout and repetition rates in terms of low student quality and interest.

3.4 Instructional materials

At present, schools are desperately short of texts and instructional materials, and do not have sufficient furniture, textbooks, or other instructional materials to support quality teaching. The MOECD has been unable to provide an adequate supply of even the most basic instructional aids, such as pencils and paper. This is primarily due to a shortage of funding for instructional materials, but is also due to problems with the distribution system. Schools' inability to secure the materials from theft once they are delivered to the schools compounds the shortages.

All of the vocational and technical schools face a particularly difficult instructional problem caused by the shortage of materials and supplies. Schools are unable to provide sufficient raw materials -- lumber, sheet metal, chemicals, tools, computers -- for students to use in practising their vocational trades. Specialized equipment is mostly broken and unrepaired. This lowers the quality of student preparation and reduces students' utility to employers.

3.4.1 Funding

Although government funding for the education sector -- at 5 percent of GDP -- has been adequate, few of the resources have been allocated to instructional materials. As Table 4, shows, 88.5 percent of the education budget is spent on personnel expenses (salaries of MOECD employees including teachers, religious school teachers and administrators, and pension fund contributions). As a result, few resources are available for other items such as school and office supplies and equipment and maintenance. Less than 4 percent of the education budget is spent on supplies.

3.4.2 Distribution

The system for distributing textbooks and educational supplies from the central ministry to the schools is widely regarded as having broken down. Headmasters and teachers almost universally complain that they do not have the necessary materials to do their job. Even the distribution of materials and supplies to schools in Paramaribo is weak. A frequently cited reason for the distribution problem is lack of money to pay for transportation. While this may be a contributing factor, it does not appear to be the major reason for the breakdown. More money will not necessarily solve the problem.

Currently, school furniture and educational materials cannot be delivered to the schools until schools open in October for fear that these materials would be stolen from the schools. Schools do not have secure warehouse or storage facilities and the school buildings themselves cannot be secured against theft, which is widespread. Once school begins, the MOECD department responsible for distribution gives top priority to delivering chairs to all schools. They then give priority to national distribution of tables. Only when the furniture has been delivered is priority given to the distribution of textbooks and instructional supplies. Consequently, instructional supplies, when they are provided, do not arrive until many weeks after school begins.

A contributing factor is the procedures used for ordering furniture and instructional materials. Schools are required only to submit their orders for furniture and supplies in June. Since some schools are late submitting this information, the consolidated order does not go to the vendors until September, for a school year starting in October. Since the growth in enrollments has been relatively stable -- and hence predictable -- over the last few years, it should be possible to order materials and supplies ahead of time and have them distributed to schools before school begins. At present, however, there is a problem of warehousing. One could argue that the cost of providing warehouse facilities is more than offset by the value added by having instructional materials in the schools on time.

The Distribution Department has a computer system that allows it to track orders and plan deliveries. However, senior officials in the Department cite the need for more staff training. The Department lacks skilled personnel capable of developing and implementing a national distribution plan. It also lacks vehicles (only one of its two trucks is operational currently), though it rents extra trucks during peak delivery times. The issue of whether there are sufficient amounts of instructional materials available to be delivered is viewed as the responsibility of other Ministry departments.

3.4.3 Curriculum and materials

Until the mid+1980s, primary school instructional materials consisted mainly of Dutch textbooks brought from the Netherlands. This posed some problem for students, as they were unfamiliar with some of the terminology (such as snow) or to Dutch popular culture, such as the use of "ugly duckling" as a nickname for a particular automobile model produced by Citroen. In 1986, as part of an IDB project, new curricular materials were developed with special attention to Surinamese culture and with more emphasis on active student participation. Textbooks were replaced with workbooks in which students wrote their answers. Although employing a better pedagogical approach, these materials introduced a new problem. While the old textbooks had been reusable, the new materials had to be replaced each year since students wrote in them. Moreover, the workbooks had soft-covers and were not durable. When the government was unable to assume the recurrent cost for producing and distributing the new materials, subsequent students had no texts or instructional materials. To compensate, teachers presented the materials by writing the lessons from the student workbooks on the blackboard.

The problem was exacerbated when the IDB project was terminated early due to difficulties

encountered in other parts of the project (discussed later). While originally intended as a new curriculum for all six years, only materials for the first three years were completed in some of the subjects at the point at which the project was terminated. As a result, students switch pedagogical approaches in the middle of their primary schooling.

3.5 Facilities

As with instructional materials, the funding allocation to educational facilities is meager. From 1993-96, maintenance and repair expenditures received less than 2 percent of the education budget. As a consequence, educational facilities are in poor condition.

In 1994, there were 273 primary schools and 103 junior secondary schools throughout the country, most of which were in and around Paramaribo. Existing facilities are generally in poor repair, many without water, working toilets, or blackboards. There are only six senior secondary schools, five located in Paramaribo and one in Nickerie. Senior secondary school facilities are in relatively better condition than primary and junior secondary schools, but they are still in need of repair and refurbishing. School officials are not able to secure the schools and report that theft has resulted in the loss of much of the scientific and sports equipment and other school supplies. Vocational and technical school facilities are in very poor repair and are poorly furnished, reflecting the lower prestige assigned to vocational and technical education generally. The facilities at the tertiary level are in relatively better condition than those at lower levels of the education system, reflecting the fact that much of the international assistance to education has been directed at higher education.

The Director of Technical Services in the MOECD estimates that 60 percent of the government schools need repair. School repair is the responsibility of the Department of Technical Services of the MOECD and repair teams are dispatched from Paramaribo when a District Inspector reports the need for their services. Department of Technical Services staff appear to have the technical skills to make the needed repairs, but lack the funds to purchase the necessary materials. MOECD officials point out that one major repair may require a quarter of the annual materials budget for the Technical Services Department.

There is little history of community participation in maintaining government school facilities, though this occurs occasionally. The new Director of the Technical Services Department has been encouraging community participation by purchasing paint and supplies for communities that are willing to contribute labor. There is, however, some community participation in maintaining religious school facilities.

The government has assigned a priority to constructing new schools, but hopes to achieve that through international assistance. Progress on schools currently under construction is slow and only limited new school construction is funded within the government budget (capital expenditures accounted for only 0.8-2.7 percent of the Directorate of Education's budget between 1993 and 1996).

Some new school construction is needed to replace those schools which have deteriorated beyond repair. The need for additional school construction beyond replacement, is less clear. The high school participation rate and relatively slow growth in primary enrollments over the last ten years would suggest that the annual demand for new school facilities should be minimal and manageable. Similarly, the average class size of 25 students reported in the Ministry data suggests class sizes within existing facilities are well within international standards. However, visits to schools suggest that classes are considerably larger than Ministry statistics would indicate and a real need for new construction may be masked by poor data. Last year, for the first time, about 160 students in the Paramaribo area were denied admission to a primary school because there were insufficient school places.

The need for new schools is most pronounced in Districts farther away from Paramaribo, in which participation rates are still proportionately lower than in the urban and coastal areas. In particular, most schools in the interior were badly damaged (or destroyed) during the civil war. A Dutch government program, initiated in 1987, to construct new schools in the interior has encountered several setbacks that have delayed that effort (discussed later).

Construction of new schools is the responsibility of the Ministry of Public Works (MPW). The MPW is regarded as generally unresponsive to the needs of the Ministry of Education and new construction is slow. Buildings started in 1992 still had not yet been completed in late 1996. Problems in the earlier ill-fated IDB school construction project are attributed, in large part, to misallocation of funds within MPW.

4. Performance and Efficiency of the Education Sector

The large amount of human and financial resources devoted to the education sector was discussed in Chapter 3. This Chapter discusses the results of those inputs and analyses the performance and efficiency of the education sector. Box 2 provides definitions of terms commonly used to analyze the performance and efficiency of education systems.

4.1 Access and equity

Generous public funding of the education sector has resulted in relatively high levels of access to education, particularly at the basic levels. In 1990, the enrollment ratio at the pre-primary level was 94 percent, which was the highest in the Latin America and Caribbean region (UNESCO). Similarly, coverage at the primary level has been nearly universal. At the secondary level the enrollment ratio drops to 45 percent, which is on a par with Colombia, Mexico and Peru, below Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago (65 percent) and Barbados (81 percent), and above Brazil (19 percent), Venezuela (20 percent) and Nicaragua (26 percent) (see ID B, 1996).

The principal reason for relatively high enrollment ratios is that private costs have not represented a significant constraint on access to education, because -- as noted in Chapter 3 -- tuition is virtually free at all levels of education. Therefore, household expenditures are limited to very modest entrance fees, a school uniform, a contribution to the child's transportation to school, and notebooks and pencils that the government has been unable to provide. The estimated annual costs to a family for sending one child to a primary school in a district outside Paramaribo is US$26 (see Annex Table A-8). The costs to a family that has three children in primary school would be about $77 per year. The annual cost to a family for sending a child to pre-primary school -- where pupils do not wear uniforms -- is US$5.75. These expenditures compare with an annual per capita income of $1,280.

Cost is more of a deterrent to entering Teacher Training Colleges. Students have to pay for all supplies they need to complete their practice teaching -- e.g. special paper they need for lesson plans, extra writing books, photocopies of parts of a lesson they want to use in class and glue and scissors. They are also responsible for any transportation costs associated with their practice teaching. Students from districts outside Paramaribo may stay at a government dormitory at a cost to the student of Sf2,000-3,000 per month.

Geography undoubtedly does constrain access to education. The nearly 67 percent of the population who live in and around Paramaribo have much greater access to education than children from rural areas, particularly the interior districts (see Annex Table A-30). Primary schools in the interior districts were badly damaged or destroyed during the civil war and many have not yet been repaired fully. Most junior secondary schools are in the Paramaribo area with a scattering of schools in other coastal cities. There are no junior or senior secondary schools in interior districts. Boarding facilities for children who are out of commuting range and have no urban relatives are extremely limited, leaving little opportunity for these students to continue their education.

The quality of instruction also appears to vary between the urban and interior areas. Examination scores (for all their problems) indicate that student performance on the primary school leavers examination differ across students in urban, coastal and interior areas of the country. While about 50 percent of students in the Paramaribo urban area qualify for entrance to the MULO (academic track) junior secondary option, only about 30 percent of students in the interior do so (Annex Table A-32). Such variations, however, may derive more from the lower average household incomes in the interior than from geographical differences in the quality of provision.

The education system is equitable from a gender perspective. Girls outnumber boys in primary and the academic tracks of junior and senior secondary education (see Annex Table A+1). All pre-school teachers, 88 percent of primary teachers, and about 70 percent of secondary teachers are women. (Senior secondary teacher data is not available by gender.) While male teachers outnumber female teachers in technical schools, female vocational students tend to outperform their male counterparts, as indicated by the higher percent of girls passing at each grade level (Annex Table A+13).

4.2 Internal efficiency

4.2.1 Dropout and repetition

Student dropout and repetition are extremely high in Suriname. While about 9 out of every 10 Surinamese children start school, less than four in a thousand will finish senior secondary school 12 years later. Until 1992, dropout at the primary school level averaged about 4 percent each year for grades 1-5, and then increased sharply for grade 6, presumably reflecting parents' judgements about the low probability of their child passing the primary school leavers examination administered at the end of grade 6 (Annex Table A-5). More recently (1992+1993) there has been a sharp increase in student dropout during and after grade 1. Nearly one in five students who started first grade did not return for second grade.

Most students who do not pass to the next grade do not dropout, they repeat the grade, often doing this several times in the course of attending primary school. Over the last ten years, about a quarter of the students at every grade level (1-6) repeat that grade the following year. A cohort analysis, tracking the same group of students from 1988+1994, indicates that, of 10,275 students in the sample who started grade 1 in 1988, 7.27 percent completed six grades in six years. Another 12.4 percent completed in seven years; 12.7 percent completed in eight years; 9.8 percent completed in nine years; and 5.6 percent completed in ten years of schooling (Annex Tables 5a and 5b). Overall, only about 48 percent of those who started ever received a primary school completers' certificate.

The MOECD has some special programs for addressing the needs of those students who never enter or drop out of primary school, but they are relatively small in scale and cannot keep up with demand.

Data on student enrollment by grade and data on student progression, repetition, and dropout are not available for junior secondary schools. Anecdotal information from individuals familiar with the national education data suggest that 22 percent - 28 percent repeat each grade and that perhaps another 17 percent dropout each year. These estimates are consistent with repetition and dropout rates for the primary and senior secondary levels. At the senior secondary level, dropout and repetition rates are high in all three tracks. In 1991, one in every three students in the 13 year (top academic) track dropped out after the first year; another one in every four students had to repeat the grade (Annex Tables 11a).

The high rates of repetition and dropout indicate high rates of wastage and low internal efficiency. Student dropout means that the government pays for many years of schooling that do not result in graduates with employable skills. Repetition means that the government has to pay for extra years of education for many students. As a consequence of dropout and repetition, the government must invest 15 years of primary schooling for every student who completes the six grades of primary schooling. This compares with 6.7 years in Panama, 7.5 years in Venezuela, nearly 9 years in Peru and 11 years in Nicaragua (IDB, 1996).

4.2.2 Examination system

Examinations at the end of each cycle of schooling are used to ration educational opportunity. While procedures for developing these national tests follow well established professional guidelines, they are ultimately administered and scored in a way that undermines their validity and usefulness.

National tests are administered at the ends of the primary cycle (grade 6), the junior secondary cycle (grade 10), and the senior secondary cycle (grade 12 or 13, depending on course of study). Each of these examinations has two purposes: (a) to determine eligibility for a school completers' certificate for that cycle; and (b) to determine a student's eligibility and placement in the educational options at the next cycle.

Primary school completers are directed into subsequent educational options through a combination of their end-of-cycle test score and their age. If students below the age of 13 receive low scores, they may have the option of repeating grade 6. If they are over the age of 14, they have exhausted their eligibility for primary school and must either take a lesser vocational junior secondary option or drop out of school. The examination given at the end of the junior secondary cycle is used to determine eligibility for a junior secondary school completers' certificate and is re-scored to yield a second score that is used to place the student into one of the senior secondary options (see Annex Table A-28).

Prior to 1984, these end-of-cycle examinations involved only a test prepared by the Examinations Bureau of the Ministry of Education. However in 1994, responding to a public outcry about low examination passing rates, the Minister of Education changed the procedures to allow each school to prepare its own end-of-cycle test. The results of these school tests are then combined with the national test results in the determination of both eligibility for a completers' certificate and placement into the next cycle. In combining the school and national test scores at the primary level, the school test is worth one-third and the national test is worth two-thirds of the final combined score. At the end of junior secondary, the school and national tests are given equal weight. This procedure has three consequences:

8. ⁸ Tracer studies of recent graduates that could clarify the employment options available to graduates have not been conducted. Anecdotal evidence indicates that actual unemployment of school graduates, at least at the junior and senior secondary levels, is low because those not employed in formal positions generally earn an adequate living by piecing together a series of part-term activities.

9. ⁹ A report evaluating the primary school project was due in late November 1996.

10. This section draws on the analysis in the special section of the IDB's 1996 report on Economic and Social Progress in Latin America: Making Social Services Work.

11. An even more precise measure of schools' outputs is the number of students passing a standard national exam. However, it can be difficult in practice to determine the extent to which differential exam pass rates are due to schools' own efforts and teaching skills as opposed to other factors, such as average household income of the attending students. For this reason, if pass rates are used as a criterion in the formula allocating funding, they should be given a relatively low weighting.