Education as a dimension of human development: A Provincial-level Education Index for Ecuador

and ethnic income), which is mainly observed in General Basic Education, and which evi- dences major differences between provinces. All of this would help to build a fairer education system and to expand equal opportunities [132]. These are just some of the challenges that Ecuador’s education policies must face in the coming decades. In order to gain insight into the distribution of a country’s well-being, it is necessary to ana- lyze the distribution of its educational outcomes, as well as their evolution over time. In LAC, a region with large gaps in access to education, the analysis of educational attainment is particu- larly important [133]. Education data provided by LSMSs offer valuable information for authorities to implement public policies aimed at improving citizens’ living conditions [47]. However, data are worthless if their interpretation is not based on knowledge of the underlying reality. Thus, as this research has shown for Ecuador, understanding the educational situation behind the microdata provided by a country’s household survey and, in particular, by a LSMS, allows for the definition of educational development indices at the national and subnational levels. The values of these indices could provide a guide for the design and implementation of policies to ensure coverage of educational demand and excellence in education, as well as the equality inherent in the right to education for all. Supporting information S1 Table. Structure of the National Education System (non-university education) in Ecua-

dor affecting the fifth round 2005–2006 and sixth round 2013–2014 of the Ecuadorian Liv- ing Standards Measurement Survey. (DOCX) S2 Table. Structure of the National Education System (non-university education) in Ecua- dor affecting the sixth round 2013–2014 of the Ecuadorian Living Standards Measurement Survey. (DOCX) S3 Table. Procedure for estimating the mean years of schooling indicator in the fifth round of the LSMS (2005–2006). (DOCX) S4 Table. Procedure for estimating the mean years of schooling indicator in the sixth round of the LSMS (2013–2014). (DOCX) S5 Table. Values of the mean years of schooling and expected years of schooling indicators. 2006 and 2014. (DOCX) S6 Table. Values of the provincial-level education index and of its components, and annual average variation. 2006 and 2014. (DOCX) S7 Table. Percentage of students benefiting from free schoolbooks, school meals and uni- forms. (DOCX) Acknowledgments We thank the editor and the two anonymous reviewers, whose valuable comments and sugges- tions helped us to improve the quality of the manuscript. PLOS ONE Education as a dimension of Human development PLOS ONE | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0270932 July 8, 2022 21 / 27