Access to Education
- Oxfam at Queen's
- Sep 19, 2021
- 3 min read
The right to education is a concept that many take for granted, yet millions of people around the world cannot even access one year of schooling. As you will learn in this post, some of the barriers that children are presented with include the lack of teachers, poverty and external weather conditions. Using statistics and supportive facts, this blog will explore the reasons why some individuals around the world never get the chance to step foot in a classroom.
Poverty Around the World
Afghanistan
As a result of the lack of trained teachers, poverty, and the increase in overall insecurity, the number of girls enrolled in education in Afghanistan has been decreasing rapidly. In 2001, there were 5,000 girls enrolled in school in Afghanistan. Now there are over 2.4 million girls enrolled in school. While this is a great advance in education access, an estimated half a million girls enrolled in school do not attend. This is mostly due to poor school conditions and poverty. Many of these girls are forced into marriage and end up dropping out of school, or they have to help their families financially.
South Sudan
-85% of children in sub-Saharan Africa are not learning the minimum.
-South Sudan has one of the lowest female literacy rates in the world, with only 8% of women knowing how to read.
-More than two million children do not attend school in South Sudan. This is equivalent to 70% of the population.
-Only 18% of children who enrolled in grade 1 are still in school by grade 8.
Haiti
Haiti is considered one of the poorest countries in the world. Many extreme weather conditions, such as the 2010 earthquake, have reversed the poverty gains Haiti has achieved in the past decade. Mostly all students in Haiti begin school a few years late, and once they start, only 50 percent of students successfully reach sixth grade on time. Those who stay in school receive a poor education due to a lack of trained teachers, and basic materials. Only 30% of teachers are female.
A Word on Women’s Access to Education
Before the 1990s when women’s equal rights to education were starting to be considered society, the opportunities that women received in the educational system were narrow. Women were viewed traditionally for centuries: they belonged in the home and in traditionally female jobs (like teaching). Even within the education curriculum, women were underrepresented. Females who made contributions to the fields of science, arts, sociology, and history were rarely mentioned. There is an extensive amount of recognition that women have been waiting to receive for their work in society.
Global access to education has improved tremendously over the past couple of decades, but there is still a lot of work to be done. The rates of children and adolescents attending school in third-world countries are extremely low compared to First World countries such as Canada. If you want to help, spread important information and statistics around on the media, sponsor a child, volunteer for an association of NGO that aims to fight education rights (such as Save the Children), present possible policies that you would think could help to policy-makers or send a letter to your local prime minister or premier, and so on. There are so many free ways that you can help that can give someone a chance to have an education, which is truly a privilege that many of us take for granted.
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