The Decline in the Quality of Education in Venezuela

From an early stage of his government, the late Hugo Chávez raised as a challenge the creation of a new man for the country. A new man that was essential for his so-called "socialism of the 21st century" to take root in Venezuela. To meet this particular challenge, he developed educational "missions" at all levels, in particular preschool, elementary and high school. One of the most emblematic was Misión Robinson, created in July of 2003 and aimed at eradicating illiteracy which, according to unverified Government figures, had reached 1.5 million Venezuelans during that year, or 300,000 higher than the 1.2 million from the data produced by the 2001 National Census. More…