Last weekend I was in Chile for the release of our new More Urban Myths book and ResearchED Chile, and for the people who don’t follow the news: while I was there the tensions in Chile became high because of higher ticket prices for public transport, eventually leading to several casualties. I spoke with a lot of people while I was in South America and understood that they also are experiencing a polarization between extreem left and right political views and that a lot of the protests were fueled by students.

Bring in this new focus report based on 2016 ICCS data with some astonishing insights:

Results from the IEA International Civic and Citizenship Education Study (ICCS) 2016 show that more than two-thirds of the students in the participating Latin American countries reported that they would support a dictatorship as a form of government if it brought order and security, or if it brought economic benefits.

To make it more concrete and the implications:

• In all the Latin American countries that participated in ICCS 2016, students with higher levels of civic knowledge tended to be less likely to support a dictatorship.
  • Therefore: „ Schools may be able to contribute to the promotion of democratic values by improving the quality of civic education. „
• In all the countries analyzed, students who reported speaking more frequently with their parents about social and political issues, also tended to be less likely to support a dictatorship.
  • Therefore: „ Families that hold democratic values may be able to improve support for democratic systems by discussing social and political issues with their children. „
• In countries with democratic systems that are perceived to be failing, students with higher levels of civic knowledge tended to be more critical and report lower levels of trust in institutions.
  • Therefore: „ Civic institutions within countries may be able to support the development of democratic values in young people by improving their transparency and eradicating corrupt practices.