| Secondary education has been identified as 'the forgotten level' in Latin America. This educational level has not had the financial and technical support that elementary, higher education and, more recently, early childhood education have had. Nonetheless, it provides instruction for young people, including students that join the labor market, as well as those that continue to post-secondary or higher education. In El Salvador, educational research is limited, but there are documents1 that allow for the tracing of educational indicators in elementary and secondary education, such as coverage and dropout rates. However, like other Central American countries, it does not have evidence on curriculum decision-making.;By using adaptations to instrumentation that was developed for the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) along with a comparative approach, this research responded to the information gap for an informed discussion regarding curriculum decision-making and the power exerted by different agents and curriculum policy instruments as they shape and affect the education of young people. My general research question was: How do different service delivery systems compare, with respect to the factors that are exerting power over teachers' mathematics decision-making in secondary education in El Salvador?;This research was an exploratory case study and I used an inductive approach for data gathering. The analysis and presentation of the findings was based on qualitative analysis techniques; in particular I applied the Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA) methodology, developed by Charles C. Ragin (1989; 2000).;1The Business Foundation for Educational Development (FEPADE), using funds from USAID, has publications of this type (Fernandez and Carrasco 2000; Carrasco 1999; Umana 1998). |
