Child Labor: Ecuador's Working Boys' Center
2016
This multimedia case study uses video interviews to describe a “blended” education-work model in Ecuador and its implications for debates about child labor. The model of the Working Boys' Center in Quito, Ecuador offers an opportunity to analyze the strengths and weaknesses of this approach and the complex motivations that drive child labor, including economic necessity and cultural values. The case also explores the role of conditional cash transfers in changing behaviors, and discusses avenues for effective change in countries where child labor is deeply entrenched.
The case is part of a series produced by the Harvard Kennedy School (HKS) Case Program, hosted by the HKS Strengthening Learning and Teaching Excellence (SLATE) initiative, the world’s largest producer and repository of case studies designed for teaching about how government works and how public policy is made. Each case in the series is designed to train public leaders, and introduces actual policy dilemmas along with data to equip students to learn how to apply the rigor of quantitative analysis in the real world.
This case may be purchased for a nominal fee; registered educators may obtain a free review copy. Online supplemental resources include short free documents and videos on how to teach with the case method, as well as downloadable related tip sheets and questions for class discussion.
Child Labor: Ecuador's Working Boys' Center
Source:
Garcia-Rios P. A Different Approach to Child Labor: Ecuador’s Working Boys’ Center. HKS Case No. 2061.0. Harvard Kennedy School Case Program 2016. http://case.hks.harvard.edu/a-different-approach-to-child-labor-ecuadors-working-boys-center.