Every year, the Preprimary and primary teachers who seek to be hired in the public sector They undergo a diagnostic evaluation to identify their level of knowledge in indispensable areas to exercise teaching. This is a requirement to participate in the process of selecting and appointing places in the Ministry of Education (MINEDUC).
The 2024 results show that teachers have deficiencies in the knowledge and skills that are required in mathematics and in communication and language, because on average They reached 54% of the knowledge established by the National Base Curriculum (CNB) of education for preprimary and primary levels.
Regarding the competencies related to pedagogical work in the classroom, the implementation of different educational modalities and learning styles, didactic planning and other teaching strategies, the level is also low, with a general average of 58%.
Sayings percentages are related to the correct number of answers that teachers obtained in each of the tests.
Édgar Florencio Montúfar Noriega, director of the General Directorate of Educational Evaluation and Research (DIGEDUCA), an institution responsible for carrying out these diagnostic tests, points out that the teachers evaluated know, on average, on average, on average, half of the contents asked and that are based on the national base curriculum (CNB), Although there are teachers who obtain results higher than average.
The results of the 2024 in communication and language do not far from those registered in the previous three years, since the average remained at 54%. In mathematics and in teaching strategies they improved four points: in the numerical area it went from an average of 50%, reached in 2021, to a 54% in 2024; while in the pedagogical work related 54% to 58%.
In 2020, the evaluation was suspended due to the Covid-19 pandemic and resumed in 2021, when 17,478 teachers underwent the test. By 2024, participation grew 57.1% (27 thousand 469), then The possibility of doing it online was opened.
In the group there were first -income teachers, re -entry or who opted for additional positions, as well as those who sought to renew the evaluation constancy, which has a validity of five years.
“The test is designed with the aim of capturing the knowledge that teachers have. While the average is 50% of correct answers, we find a percentage that had, for example, 60% of correct answers. There are teachers who have good results and it is important that they enter the system,” says Montúfar Noriega.
He adds that This type of evaluations must play an important role in the hiring processes, with the purpose of having teachers who have more knowledge.
Weaknesses in teachers knowledge
Within the group of teachers evaluated, much already taught in some public establishment and is interested in obtaining another place; For example, he works on the morning day and also wants to do so in the evening or in weekend plan. Most belong to contract staff.
“One would expect a person working in Primary to dominate 100% of the contents to be taught; that is the ideal,” he adds. However, the results of the tests show otherwise.
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In the case of mathematics, teachers manage to develop simple operations, but They have difficulty resolving complex operations and apply mathematical procedures to everyday life problems. While, in communication and language they present complications in reading comprehension skills.
The DIGEDUCA director mentions that these results allow the teacher to know the areas in which he needs to strengthen knowledge. Although there is an individual responsibility of the teacher to improve, it also corresponds to the Directorates of the Ministry of Education responsible for the update, training and training to develop processes that improve the score and mastery of curricular contents.
“We must see it as a system, where we do the evaluation and we see how teachers are, but there are also other dependencies whose function is to train, train, update teachers, develop educational material. The evaluation gives information so that these addresses develop these processes,” he adds, because a teacher who manages more content can move them better to their students.
Verónica Spross, Executive Director of Entrepreneurs for Education, points out that The results of the diagnostic tests to teachers have not varied in a decade And they show that about half of the teachers have the expected level in each area evaluated.
On the other hand, it indicates that The figures reflect that the teacher training system in the country has not had the expected successand this is manifested in the classrooms. “The low preparation of teachers often becomes the roof of students’ learning,” says Spross.
He adds that, in the hiring processes, those who obtain greater scores must be prioritized; However, beyond the written evidence, an interview to the candidates and the presentation of a model class should be incorporated.
Requirement for a place in the MINEDUC
The diagnostic evaluation is a requirement to apply to a teaching position, either for the first income, re-entry or to opt for an additional place, according to Ministerial Agreement 1685-2024. The certification must be in force, with a duration of five years
Bliss test has a weighting of 0 to 10 in the file rating during the opposition process.
Teachers can perform the online evaluation, provided they have the minimum conditions: electricity, Internet access, a computer with appropriate operating systems for the evaluation and camera platform, in order to guarantee that it is the teacher who solves the test.