Second meeting of ministers of education
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Social ImpactHistorically, Latin America and the Caribbean have used two indicators to assess the social impact of education: the literacy rate among the adult population, and the total number of years spent at school. Around 41 million people are illiterate in 24 nations of Latin America and the Caribbean, representing some 13 percent of those countries’ populations aged 15 and over. This rate ranges from two percent in Guyana to more than 50 percent in Haiti; in other words, while in Guyana approximately two out of every ten people are unable to read and write, this figure rises to five out of every ten in Haiti. These figures indicate the dissimilarities that exist in literacy rates among our countries. Countries with literacy rates comparable to those of the world’s most developed nations exist alongside nations where more than a third of the adult population is illiterate. Not only are there major differences in literacy rates among countries; disparities also exist within nations. Trinidad and Tobago, for example, has an illiteracy rate of two percent; however, 70 percent of these illiterate people are women. In fact, women still account for most of the region’s illiterates. In 1997, illiteracy among women represented 55 percent of total illiteracy in Latin America and the Caribbean, with rates of 60 percent or more in Peru, Bolivia, Trinidad and Tobago, Suriname, Guyana, Mexico, Guatemala, and Ecuador. All our countries have lower illiteracy rates among their younger citizens than among those who are older. In certain countries, however, this generation gap is more pronounced. In Chile, although illiteracy among the adult population runs at five percent, among young people aged between 15 to 24 years it is less than one percent. A different situation prevails in Nicaragua, where the adult illiteracy rate is 33 percent, compared to 27 percent among young people. This means that in Nicaragua, and in Haiti and Guatemala, similar levels of illiteracy are still passed on to successive generations. Some studies have shown that, in spite of their low levels of absolute illiteracy, most developed countries suffer from a skills shortage among their adult populations. According to an OECD study, only slightly more than half the populations of the USA and Canada managed to attain the minimum level the Organization was looking for. This suggests that moving from the concept of absolute illiteracy to that of functional illiteracy reveals the educational weaknesses present in the region and underscores the need to use indicators that better reflect the illiteracy problem. The educational profile of the population is one indicator of the education system’s achievements and it showcases the educational efforts made by countries. Chile and Argentina are the only countries in the region where most of the adult population has at least ten years of schooling (58 and 51 percent, respectively); this means that those countries have made sustained efforts over time to provide education for the majority of their populations. In contrast, in the Dominican Republic, Paraguay, Mexico, Brazil, El Salvador, and Honduras, fewer than one-third of the population have attained that level of education. In the remaining countries, the proportion varies between 43% (Uruguay) and 34% (Costa Rica). Although on average no country provides ten years or more of schooling, the elite sectors in most of them — that is, the richest ten percent of the population — reach levels in excess of that figure. Comparing figures for years spent at school reveals great differences from one country to the next. For example, Argentina’s average (9.4 years of schooling) is equal to the level attained by the richest ten percent in Honduras and even higher than the level attained by the same elite ten percent in Nicaragua. Looking at things a different way, the level attained by the poorest ten percent in Argentina (seven years) is equal to the national average in Peru. If twelve years of formal education is taken as being the “minimum,” Argentina has the highest proportion of adults with that level of schooling (23%), followed by Chile (22%); this means that even the countries with the region’s highest levels of education are far from providing universal coverage at the level that ECLAC defines as the minimum (12 years). Moreover, in countries like Honduras, El Salvador, and Brazil, where less than ten percent of the population between the ages of 25 and 59 have twelve years of schooling, it is less likely that the vast majority of people will be able to escape poverty unless current education conditions change. The education profile of the younger generation — 15- to 24-year-olds — reflects a similar pattern to the one found among those aged 25 to 59: Chile (61%) and Argentina (54%) are the only countries where more than half of the young people have attended school for at least ten years. In contrast, in countries like the Dominican Republic, Paraguay, Mexico, Brazil, El Salvador, Honduras, and Costa Rica, less than one-third of the population have ten years of schooling or more. All the countries reported a drop in the proportion of individuals with five years’ schooling or less, meaning that the education profile across the entire region has improved. Similarly, the countries’ education profiles have evolved at different rates, which is probably due in part to their different education policies. While over the space of one generation Chile managed a 71-percent reduction in the proportion of its people with five yeas of formal education or less, over the same period the corresponding reduction in Brazil was only 26 percent. Unlike the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean, the USA and Canada have vast experience in analyzing the social impact of education in economic terms. Thus, those countries’ indicators for employment and unemployment rates broken down by educational levels help explain the benefits that higher levels of education offer individuals and society alike. The social impact of education can be seen in many areas beyond the job market, such as health, social engagement, institutional development, and social and individual welfare. For that reason, in conjunction with Mexico’s Ibero-American University (UIA), the PRIE is developing indicators that are relevant to the region and that reflect the different components of the social impact of education. Download 0.58 Mb. Share with your friends:
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