Chile

Differences in skills between boys and girls

• 15-year-old girls in Chile reported lower levels of emotional regulation skills (stress resistance, emotional control, and optimism), energy, sociability, trust, self-control, and creativity than 15-year-old boys, on average. Except for creativity, all these gender differences at age 15 were larger than the average across sites in Chile.

• 15-year-old boys in Chile reported lower levels of achievement motivation, tolerance, empathy, and responsibility than 15-year-old girls, on average. Gender differences at age 15 in achievement motivation were larger than the average across sites in Chile, while gender differences in empathy were smaller than average.

Figure 1. Largest gender differences in skills in Chile

Standardised differences between the scores of 15-year-old girls and boys in Chile compared to the average across sites

Note: The five skills with the largest gender differences in Chile are included, ordered from the largest to smallest difference. All standardised differences between boys and girls are statistically significant with a threshold p < 0.05. Differences in Chile that are significantly different to the average across sites are indicated by the asterisk against each skill.

Source: OECD, SSES 2023 Database Table B2.4

Differences in skills between advantaged and disadvantaged students

• Disadvantaged 15-year-old students in Chile reported lower levels of all skills than advantaged students, on average, except stress resistance, for which there was no significant difference by socio-economic background.

• Differences in skill levels by socio-economic background in Chile were larger than the average across sites for most skills, including all task performance skills (responsibility, self-control, persistence, achievement motivation), emotional control, trust, optimism, sociability, curiosity, creativity, empathy, and assertiveness.

Figure 2. Largest differences between advantaged and disadvantaged students in skills in Chile

Standardised differences between the scores of 15-year-old advantaged and disadvantaged students in Chile

Note: The five skills with the largest differences by socioeconomic background in Chile are included, ordered from the largest to smallest difference. All standardised differences between advantaged and disadvantaged students are statistically significant with a threshold p < 0.05.

Source: OECD, SSES 2023 Database Table B2.5

Levels of absence and tardiness and students’ ambitions for the future

• In Chile, 61% of 15-year-olds had arrived late for school at least once in the two weeks prior to the SSES assessment, above the average across sites (48%). However, the picture was more mixed for skipping school. In Chile, 24% of students had skipped classes, below the average across sites (29%), and 42% had skipped at least one day of school in the prior two weeks, above the average (31%).

• In Chile, 88% of 15-year-olds expect to complete tertiary education, above the average across sites (84%), and 54% expect to have a managerial or professional job when they are 30, below the average across sites (57%).

Relationships between social and emotional skills and academic outcomes

• In Chile, higher levels of task performance skills (achievement motivation, persistence, responsibility, self-control), curiosity, emotional control, tolerance, empathy, and assertiveness were associated with better grades in maths, reading and arts among 15-year-old students. Higher levels of trust, energy and optimism were associated with better grades in maths and arts, while higher levels of creativity were associated with better grades in reading and arts.

• Students with higher levels of all skills except sociability and assertiveness also report being late and skipping school less often.

• The positive relationship between persistence and grades in all subjects was stronger in Chile than on average. The positive relationships between the skills of achievement motivation, responsibility, self-control, emotional control and trust and grades in mathematics was stronger in Chile than on average. The positive relationship between empathy and grades in arts was stronger in Chile than on average. The relationship between creativity and grades in reading and between assertiveness and grades in arts were smaller than average in Chile.

Figure 3. Relationships between students’ social and emotional skills and grades in Chile compared to the average across sites

Standardised regression coefficients of individual skills on maths and reading grades among 15-year-olds in Chile compared to the average across sites

Note: Significant coefficients at a threshold of p < 0.05 are coloured, non-significant coefficients are outlined. Coefficients in Chile that are significantly different to the average across sites are indicated by the asterisk against each skill.

Source: OECD, SSES 2023 Database Tables B4.1 and B4.4

Relationships between social and emotional skills and students’ ambitions for the future

• In Chile, 15-year-old students with higher levels of task performance skills (achievement motivation, self-control, persistence, responsibility), open-mindedness skills (curiosity, tolerance, creativity), empathy and assertiveness were associated with higher expectations of both completing tertiary education and having a managerial or professional job at age 30. Higher levels of energy and optimism were also associated with higher expectations of completing tertiary education in Chile.

• The relationship between skills and students’ expectation to attend tertiary education were larger than average for self-control and energy, while the relationship between curiosity and empathy and expectations to have a managerial or professional job were larger than the average across sites.

Figure 4. Relationships between students’ social and emotional skills and their future aspirations in Chile compared to the average across sites

Standardised regression coefficients of individual skills on students’ expectations to complete tertiary education and have a managerial or professional job in the future among 15-year-olds in Chile compared to the average across sites

Note: Significant coefficients at a threshold of p < 0.05 are coloured, non-significant coefficients are outlined. Coefficients in Chile that are significantly different to the average across sites are indicated by the asterisk against each skill.

Source: OECD, SSES 2023 Database Tables B4.19 and B4.30

Students’ health behaviours

• 15-year-old students in Chile reported higher levels of several unhealthy behaviours compared to the average across sites: not eating fruit or vegetables most days (47% compared to 35% on average), skipping breakfast most days (45% compared to 37% on average) and exercising only once a week or less (40% compared to 31% on average).

• In Chile, 12% of students said they had ever smoked or drunk alcohol and 52% get less than 8 hours sleep most nights, below the average across sites (17% and 57% respectively).

Figure 5. Percentage of students engaging in unhealthy behaviours in Chile compared to the average across sites

Note: Frequencies of each behaviour that are significantly different to the average across sites are indicated by an asterisk against the behaviour.

Source: OECD, SSES 2023 Database Table B3.3

Gender differences in health and well-being outcomes

• In Chile, as in almost all sites, girls report worse levels of all six measures of health and well-being (life satisfaction, current psychological well-being, test and class anxiety, health behaviours, relationship satisfaction and body image) than boys, on average.

• Gender differences in all health and well-being outcomes except relationship satisfaction were larger in Chile than the average across sites.

Relationships between social and emotional skills and students’ health and well-being outcomes

• In Chile, higher levels of all skills – particularly optimism and energy – were associated with healthier behaviours and greater life satisfaction, psychological well-being, body image and relationship satisfaction.

• Higher levels of most skills – all except responsibility, sociability, self-control, and creativity – were associated with lower levels of test and class anxiety.

• The positive relationship between optimism and energy and most health and well-being reported outcomes (health behaviours, life satisfaction, current psychological well-being, relationship satisfaction, and body image) was stronger in Chile than on average across sites. The positive relationship between empathy and achievement motivation and test and class anxiety was stronger in Chile than on average across sites.

What is the Survey on Social and Emotional Skills?

The Survey on Social and Emotional Skills (SSES) is an international survey designed by the OECD’s Centre for Educational Research and Innovation to improve understanding of social and emotional skills among 10- and 15-year-old students. The Survey aims to understand how levels of these skills differ among students with different characteristics; how these skills matter for important student outcomes; and how students’ school and home environments influence skill development.

Which social and emotional skills are covered in the Survey?

The 15 skills measured in the Survey were selected to provide a comprehensive coverage of those that are relevant for children’s and adolescents’ success and well-being. Further information on why and how these skills were selected can be found in the SSES assessment framework (Kankaraš and Suarez-Alvarez, 2019[1]).

How were these skills measured?

All students complete a questionnaire where they indicate the extent to which they agree or disagree with a series of statements. Examples of statements include: ‘I keep working on a task until it is finished’, ‘I stay calm even in tense situations’ and ‘I am able to defend my interests when they are challenged’.

Who participated in the Survey?

All sites in SSES 2023 surveyed 15-year-olds and surveying 10-year-olds was optional. Students in sixteen sites – six countries and ten sub-national entities - participated in SSES 2023. Data from seven sites who participated in the first round of SSES in 2019, but not in 2023, are also included in analyses in this report wherever possible to expand the coverage of the international average.

Some 18,000 10-year-old and 52,000 15-year-old students took the SSES assessment in 2023, representing about 630,000 10-year-olds and 3 million 15-year-olds in the schools of the 16 participating sites. In Chile, approximately 3,600 15-year-old students completed the assessment, representing about 229,000 15-year-old students.