Equitable Education for Marginalized Youth in Latin America and the Caribbean

Stacey N. J. Blackman is Lecturer in Special Education at the University of the West Indies at Cave Hill, Barbados.

• Introduction: Equity in Education—Situating the Discourse on the Marginalization of Children and Youth in Latin America and the CaribbeanStacey N. J. BlackmanPart I: Understanding the Marginalization of Children and Youth in Latin America and the Caribbean1 Theorizing on the Marginalization of Boys and Girls in Caribbean Schooling: Recurring Myths and Emerging RealitiesJerome De Lisle2 Perpetrators, Aiders and Abettors, or Weapons of Mass Destruction: A Paradoxical Analysis of the Role of Caribbean and Latin American Educational Systems in the Delivery of Equitable EducationIan A. Marshall3 Disparities in Education Outcomes in Trinidad and Tobago: A Sociohistorical AnalysisLinda Hewitt and Iris Hewitt-BradshawPart II: Children's and Youths’ Experiences of Exclusion in Latin America and the Caribbean4 Investigating Factors Associated with Mathematics Achievement and Youth Marginalization in JamaicaLois George5 Principals’ Narratives on the Risk of Marginalization for Barbadian Children with Special Needs During COVID-19 Stacey N. J. Blackman, Grace A. Fayombo, and Junnie O. Lynch6 Barriers to Technology-Enabled Education for the Deaf in the CaribbeanAndré Coy7 Chocolate, Children, and the Curriculum: Child Exploitation and the Dominican Cocoa IndustryEve Hayes de Kalaf and Leona VaughnPart III: Interventions and Advocacy for Marginalized Children and Youth in Latin America and the Caribbean8 Design, Development, and Implementation: An Autoethnographic Account of a STEM and Literacy Program for English Language Learners in PanamaBeverly A. King Miller, Joy Williams Haaf, and Aleshia C. Hill9 Experiences in Providing Vocational Skills Training Support for Youth in Care in JamaicaPriya Anaokar, Marva Campbell, Julie Meeks Gardner, Ceceile Minott, Andrien Perkins, Kathi-Ann Thomas, and Joan Thomas10 Tackling Marginalization in Education through Teacher Preparation: A Case for Learning Without Limits as InclusionStacey N. J. Blackman

“This edited volume provides a compelling analysis on the issues relating to educational access that, despite Education For All, have led to systemic and personal marginalization for students at the bottom of the pyramid in Latin America and the Caribbean countries. It uses a critical postcolonial lens to explore the social inequities in educational systems created by colonial legacies and the contemporary influence of globalization, political unrest and US intervention, development aid, and the COVID pandemic, whereby educational policies and practices favoring the elite persist in the Caribbean and have resulted in a severe marginalization of Indigenous and rural student populations in Latin America. I recommend this book to policy-makers, researchers, and practitioners alike both for its analysis of these systemic barriers and for the valuable solutions offered for change towards equity and social justice.” - Maya Kalyanpur, Professor and Chair, School of Leadership and Education Sciences, University of San Diego, USA“This edited volume provides interesting reading for Latin American and Caribbean scholars whose research focus is on the marginalization of Latin American and Caribbean youth. The editor, Stacey Blackman, presents an excellent introductory chapter in which she defines marginalization from the educational, societal and psychological perspectives and, just as important, highlights the common core of all the definitions, that is, “the othering or exclusion of the group, usually poor and/or minority.” […]A common theme running through the book is the challenges in meeting the successive UNESCO Education for All frameworks. The chapters are very informative and the references provide a rich source of literature for those interested in the area of research.Another theme running through the book is the legacy of the colonial past that has left Latin America and the Caribbean with an hierarchical education system that differentiates, stratifies and marginalizes and in so doing, maintains the status quo suited the colonial era.Overall this is a well-structured edited volume that adds to the limited research that looks at education systems in Latin America and the Caribbean and how policies and organizational structures perpetuate the marginalization of the youth. I recommend the volume as essential reading for educators and policy makers, and anyone interested in conducting further research in this area.” - Launcelot I. Brown, Retired Professor, Duquesne University, USA