20_11_20_ECO_dean

 "The provision of privately owned or popular initiative centers allows citizens to exercise their rights in such a crucial aspect as Education. This argument is sufficient for the State to facilitate and subsidize the creation of these centers and not the opposite". This is one of the conclusions of the session given this week at the Madrid headquarters of the University of Navarra by the economist and philosopher, Ignacio Ferrero, who presented at the session the study carried out for the journal "Cuadernos de business y Humanismo", and graduate "La financiación de la Education primaria y secundaria" ( January 2017).

development Ferrero valued the importance of the public Education and some good points of the new law, such as the emphasis on equality between women and men, the commitment to improve the Education based on greater learning staff, the attention to sustainable development , specifically the 17 SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals) of the UN's diary for 2030, and the need to address the digital change in the teaching. But along with these positive aspects of the law, it also contains greater restrictions on citizen-initiated schools, which put them at very serious risk. But above all, it imposes restrictions on families in the exercise of their right to choose the Education they want for their children.

Professor Ferrero echoes in his article all the jurisprudence, both national and international, which determines that it is the State that has the obligation to guarantee the provision, universal access and funding of the Education, although the right of the Education rests with the parents, who should be able to choose the Education according to their convictions. "Parents are recognized as the authority to decide which subject of Education they want for their children, within an established general framework , and at the same time they have the right to channel those decisions through the choice of schools, among those that exist or by creating educational centers themselves".

"The Education that a child receives not only benefits him/her, but also represents an indirect benefit to the whole country, since it contributes to consolidate a democratic and stable society (...) this social benefit is such that it justifies that the State demands that all citizens receive a minimum of Education. But the justification of an active role of the State in guaranteeing the provision, universal access and financing of an educational offer does not also imply the provision of this service", explains Fererro.

The Dean de Economic suggests that the principles of the market Economics provide arguments in favor of citizens or families providing this Education: it allows the educational offer to be better adjusted to demand, it favors competitiveness and innovation, also, transparency and resource efficiency. "It is easier for these schools to adjust to the convictions and needs of individuals, who may demand certain teaching methods or training with an impact on specific aspects of culture, science, etc.," he points out. "These centers have more incentive to offer a quality and competitive system, as it is the citizens' own money that is at stake. Citizen-owned centers can improve the quality of Education. Where there is no free market or competition, it is more difficult to demand quality and skill", he adds. In the Spanish scenario educational there is room for both state-owned centers and citizen-initiated centers, and they must coexist on equal terms. What should be pursued is that both systems have the best possible quality and serve as engines for the development of Spanish society and not persecute or harm the Education concerted, turning it into something residual.