Based on the results from ICFES tests (Colombian equivalent of the American SATs) from 1980to 2009, the study uses a hierarchical/multi-level analysis to provide an estimate of the schooleffect in each educational sector for three different tests. The results suggest that the publicschool effect has always been smaller than that of private schools in the last thirty years andthat the effect on the mathematics section of the test is always smaller, regardless of the educationalsector. They also indicate that since 2000 there has been a considerable drop in thecoefficient, which could be related to the change in the tests that year. Lastly, an intertemporalanalysis of score percentiles reveals that private schools have traditionally ranked higher thantheir public counterparts.

By recognizing the importance of teacher profile in the quality of basic education, this study describes and analyzes the characteristics of public teachers in the city of Medellín. Analysis results suggest that: (1) teaching career is essentially feminine and senior, and (2) female teachers have higher ranks, teaching experience, and educational level than male teachers, which translates into higher wages. This implies that, although the sector is meritocratic, it is necessary to generate better incentives for current teachers and for high school graduates (especially the best ones) to make the teaching career more attractive (and sought-after), and to avoid a possible deficit in teachers, not only in Medellín, but also in Colombia.

Using the Icfes tests 1980-2009 —the Colombian equivalent to the American SAT—, this paper estimates the school effect by sector inside a hierarchical analysis. The results suggest the public school effect has always been smaller than the private school effect in these last three decades and that the effect on mathematics’ test is always smaller independently of the sector. Likewise, the evidence suggests that since 2000 the school effect falls in both sectors and in the three tests, indicating the Icfes’s methodological change modified the importance of the own characteristics of the schools on the academic achievement. Finally there is evidence that private schools are better positioned that public schools using a percentile analysis.