Jacob Pelletier
Senior, Political Science and Sociology double major.Member of the Mobilization of Volunteer Efforts (MOVE) and the Student Global AIDS Campaign at Saint Mike's. Upon graduation will be doing health work for the Peace Corps. Hopes to go to grad school to pursue his education in the field of Political Science.
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| Photo Courtesy of Jason de Pecol |
Target A: Ensure that, by 2015, children everywhere, boys and girls alike, will be able to complete a full course of primary schooling
Goal 2 of the MDGs simply states to achieve universal
access to primary education. While this may seem like a simple goal to achieve,
a variety of factors continue to influence affective policy measures. This is
especially true when the only target listed for the goal is to ensure that by
2015 each and every boy and girl will be able to complete a full course of
primary education. With this narrow focus on such a broad issue. The goal
itself overlooks many other factors that contribute to providing a quality
education over just allowing for children to be enrolled. And while this goal
may have made some of the most progress with over 90% enrollment for developing
regions, the overall success is misleading as the goal itself does not provide
any measures for retention or the benefits that this education provides for the
individual as well as the greater community (UN Website, 2013). The even larger
issue will be now that the easiest advances in education have been made around
the world, how the goal will begin to address the hardest to reach final 10% of
the world’s children.
Historical Development
A goal providing universal access to primary education is
not something entirely new. Education has been used as a form of poverty
alleviation in many industrialized societies so it is only natural to try and
move this successful program to developing countries. What comes with educating
a population is not only enhancing the worth of the human capital in a region,
but it also allows for a new ideology to be introduced into society where
sustainability, social cohesiveness, equity and stability come together in a
centralized location (Jones 2007, 35). By providing an ideological emphasis to
the benefits of education, economic development becomes something that
education helps provide instead of an expectation. By only focusing on economic
prospects for many of these goals, other advances in the quality of life are
being overlooked. When looking at where the emphasis on universal primary
education originated, many international agreements supported this achievement
before its inclusion in the MDGs. The first major inclusion of this philosophy
was in the UN Conventions on the rights of the Child in 1989. This created the
first declaration of human rights for every person under the age of 18 and
included education as a human right for this population. This looked at the
success of economic development when providing educational opportunities, but
also discussed some larger political accomplishments that could be achieved
(Johnston 2011, 97).
The
first time that the goal of achieving universal primary education was
established happened a year later with the Jomtien Declaration at the 1990
World conference on Education for All. This conference was hosted by United
Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) as a way to
address the growing needs of providing primary education and reducing
illiteracy rates by the end of the decade. Hopes for achieving this standard
were high as the intended target for the goal was to be completed by the year
2000. But as the formation of the MDGs adopted this goal in their Millennium
declaration, it is obvious that the goal set out by the Education for All
conference was not achieved. In fact, achieving primary education has been
incorporated into two of the goals as Goal 3 on gender inequality also aims to
reduce the gender gap in all levels of education by 2005. However this goal has
also not been met even with the resounding world support over the past few
decades. “These targets reflect, then, a long-standing, shared commitment by
national governments, civil society groups and international agencies,” (Johnston
2011, 97). But the challenges that this type of public expenditure creates
prevent many from pursuing education as a sustainable way to develop. Instead
many debates focus on the economic, political or social implications that
providing primary education could achieve. In the long run the failure of this
goal over a few decades reveals that this is a much harder goal to achieve even
with its resounding support from around the world. This is especially true when
looking at the problems associated with achieving this goal as poverty
alleviation and gender inequality are major contributors to education
inequalities amongst the developing world.
Current Status
As of 2010, the MDG goal of providing universal primary
education appears to have made great strides but will still fall short by the
2015 deadline. While enrolment in primary education has reached 89 percent in
the developing world, the pace of progress is insufficient (UN 2010, 18). For the target date of 2015 to be
reached, “every child in every country would need to be currently attending
school” (UNDG 2010, 6). Unfortunately, to date, not every school-age child is
enrolled in primary school. In turn, “Projections
based on recent progress in school enrolments show that at least 56 million
primary-age children are still unlikely to be in school in 2015,” (UNDG
2010, 7). However, major changes have occurred in regards to increasing
enrolment and narrowing the gender gap in even the poorest regions around the
world. According to the United Nations, “Though
enrolment in Sub-Saharan Africa remains the lowest of all regions, it still
increased by 18 percentage points—from 58 per cent to 76 per cent—between 1999
and 2008. Progress was also made in Southern Asia and Northern Africa, where
enrolment increased by 11 and 8 percentage
points, respectively, over the last decade,” (UN 2010, 19). Specific case
studies highlight what contributing factors have led to these advances. For
example, in Burundi, the abolition of school fees led to a “threefold increase
in enrollment since 1999, reaching 99 percent in 2008,” (UN 2010, 19). Thus,
while MDG 2 has made great strides in terms of enrolment and narrowing the
gender gap, there is still work to be done with evidence of regional and
economic disparities.
When
looking at more recent progress with MDG 2, the results are disheartening. With
the amazing leaps that have been made since the early 200s in regard to this
goal, it would be expected that this goal may be achievable in the future. What
is becoming apparent is that as more children are being enrolled in school, the
ones left out of the system are those where public infrastructure is the
farthest away or non-existent. “Between 2008 and 2011, the number of
out-of-school children of primary school age fell by only 3 percent…
Sub-Saharan Africa is home to more than half the world’s out-of-school
children,” (UN 2013, 15). What these figures demonstrate is how hard it is
becoming to try and raise the poorest people out of poverty. As advances have
been made to increase enrollment, household poverty remains the most important
factor in preventing children from attending primary school. This factor is
especially striking as variations amongst countries have affected the success
of these programs, and even regional differences within countries contribute to
this problem. “In countries with school attendance rates above 80%, children
from poor households are heavily over-represented among out-of-school children.
They account for more than 40% of the non-attending school population in
countries like Cameroon and Kenya,” (Johnston 2011, 103). The struggle of
providing primary education will only continue unless issues revolving around
poverty alleviation are addressed. This is only heightened in many Sub-Saharan
countries as population continues to increase dramatically and strain the
resources that are already available.
Though enrolment statistics have risen,
infrastructure and adequate staffing still need to be put in place. To meet the
MDG Goal 2, countries need to hire enough teachers and provide adequate
classrooms and supplies to support the level of need. “Between now and 2015,
the number of new teachers needed in sub-Saharan Africa alone equals the
current teaching force in the region,” (UN 2010, 19). Enrolment in primary
education is only the first step as retention rates are influential in seeing
whether the educational system is being affective. According to the United
Nations, “In half the countries in sub-Saharan Africa with available data, more
than 30 per cent of primary-school students drop out before reaching the final
grade” (UN 2010, 19). This retention issue affects
marginalized populations most acutely. According to the United Nations, “Even in several countries in Latin America, approximately
one-fifth of children do not reach the last grade of the primary cycle” (UNDG
2010, 7). The result of the failure to achieve
universal primary education has led to a “large number of illiterate youth and
adults (UNDG 2010, 7). When looking at how
retention rates have changed in recent years, the staggering fact is that they
have not for the most part. “Among the 137 million children who entered first
grade in 2011, 34 million are likely to leave before reaching the last grade of
primary school: This translates into an early school leaving rate of 25 per
cent- the same level as in 2000” (UN 2013, 16). While the primary education
goal may focus on enrollment rates, do these statistics truly matter when
students are not staying in school to benefit from the education? When looking
at how to increase retention rates a variety of factors contribute to the problem
such as educational infrastructure, vulnerable student populations, gender,
economic, and regional disparities. Overall, a reformatting of the education
goal needs to be created in order to address the issue of quality education
instead of just getting people to attend the first few days of class.
Successes and Challenges
Retention of students is highly dependent upon
qualified and knowledgeable staff. According to the ILO, “Teacher to pupil ratios and teachers’ skill levels,
motivation and sense of professional responsibility are among the major factors
influencing repetition rates, student performance and other quality indicators.
Yet there is a decline in teachers’ working conditions and salaries and a
consequent global shortage of teachers” (ILO 2010, 1). When looking at how the
teacher population is being affected by the goal, the problem many of the
health goals are having with providing adequately trained and invested
professionals is becoming an issue. Often the teachers working in these areas
are severely overworked without having many of the resources necessary to
effectively teach a class. This problem is only exasperated as many teachers
are instructing children on a variety of skill levels at the same time.
“Interviewees repeatedly cited the dichotomous problem of low enrollments in rural and remote areas necessitating the combination of two or three grade levels as one class and at the same time large classes due to lack of teachers to teach the combined grades and lack of supporting infrastructure the combination of an amalgam of grades with many children taught by untrained teachers tends to commit these schools to poor educational quality,” (Kivunja and Wood 2012, 28).
As the stress that is put on teachers only increases with the swelling class size, having inadequate training also provides a problem. Teachers need support before and during their careers in order to benefit the students completely. With this, an understanding of a variety of skill levels is needed to teach these classes affectively especially with the lack of resources that already create a problem. “Only one of the four schools visited had a teacher trained in multigrade actually teaching,” (Kivunja and Wood 2012, 27). A final issue that is being seen in the teacher population is a similar “brain drain” that is happening with many doctors in these areas. “The problem of teacher shortage is exacerbated because teachers are reluctant to accept appointment in rural and remote areas,” (Kivunja and Wood 2012, 19). Without having affective teachers actually going to these rural populations to teach, the shortage will only continue as well as provide another factor in the disparities between rural and urban populations.
These regional disparities in education are not
only limited to the amount of adequate teaching staff. The following excerpt
from the UN acknowledges the gains but highlights these regional discrepancies,
“Even as the number of school-age children continues to rise,
the total number of children out of school is decreasing—from 106 million in
1999 to 69 million in 2008. Almost half of these children (31 million) are in
sub-Saharan Africa, and more than a quarter (18 million) are in Southern Asia”
(UN 2010, 19). Thus, the majority of
school-aged children not enrolled in primary school are located in Sub-Saharan
Africa and Southern Asia. This factor in the developing world is only
compounded by inequalities between the urban and rural populations within these
countries. Research shows that rural children represent a high concentration of
those children not enrolled in primary school. According to the United Nations,
“Household data from 42 countries show that rural children are twice as likely
to be out of school as children living in urban areas. The data also show that
the rural-urban gap is slightly wider for girls than for boys. But the biggest
obstacle to education is poverty” (UN 2010, 20).
Thus, those living in rural areas, girls in particular, have less access to
education. One solution that is being present for this problem is increasing
the availability of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in these
regions. This is also a target to MDG 8 where developed nations will help
provide access to these influential advancements. “Despite the recognized
benefits of supporting learning through the use of ICTs, several writers refer
to the digital divide that exists within and among countries and more
specifically, the lack of access to computers and internet in rural parts of
India and African countries,” (Kivunja and Wood 2012, 20). By increasing
the availability of these resources to these rural populations, not only will
the students be able to benefit from these added resources but so can the
teachers and larger part of the community.
While the gender gap in general has decreased,
there are regions where the male to female ratio is still vastly
disproportionate. The proportion of girls who are out-of-school has “decreased
from 57 per cent to 53 per cent globally between 1999 and 2008. In some
regions, however, the share is much larger; in Northern Africa, 66 per cent of
out-of-school children are girls” (UN 2010, 19). Likewise, the lower the girl’s
socioeconomic class, the more likely she is to be out of school, “Girls in the poorest 20 per cent of households have the
least chance of getting an education: they are 3.5 times more likely to be out
of school than girls in the richest households and four times more likely to be
out of school as boys in the richest households,” (UN
2010, 20). Several case studies illustrate the discrepancy, “In Turkey, for instance, 43 per cent of Kurdish-speaking
girls from the poorest households have fewer than two years of education, while
the national average is 6 per cent. In Nigeria, 97 per cent of poor
Hausa-speaking girls have fewer than two years of education” (UNDG 2010, 15). Thus, in order to achieve universal primary
education, regional and gender disparities need to be addressed.
Another discrepancy that has come to the surface
is that children with disabilities are vastly under-represented in primary schools
world-wide. According to the United Nations, “Even in some countries that are
closer to achieving the goal of universal primary education, children with
disabilities represent the majority of those who are excluded. In Bulgaria and
Romania, net enrolment ratios for children aged 7 to 15 were over 90 per cent
in 2002, but only 58 per cent for children with disabilities,” (UN 2010, 20).
Specific case studies highlight the underrepresentation, “In Malawi and the
United Republic of Tanzania, being disabled doubles the probability that a
child will never attend school, and in Burkina Faso the risk rises to two and a
half times,” (UN 2010, 20). Thus, children with disabilities are being
underserved and in some cases, forgotten.
Though the United Nations has made great strides
towards universal primary education with the implementation of MDG 2, gender,
regional, and economic disparities still exist and are keeping the goal from
reaching its mission of access for all by 2015. Above all, poverty is the
leading factor. “With 166 million children aged 5 to 14 engaged in labour in
2004, child labour remains a barrier to education,” (UNDG 2010, 15). Other barriers
include a teacher shortage, gender discrepancies, and socioeconomic conditions.
In turn, even though some of the poorest countries have made great leaps and
bounds to increase access to primary education, MDG 2 is not projected to be
achieved. When looking at the success of this goal the question also arises if
more than just primary education should be the focus of the goal. The benefits
from education in general allow for great advancements for the individual to be
achieved, but often successive level of educational achievement is also needed
to achieve the greatest returns.
“Thus, enrollment from primary to middle school yielded a modest
return averaging about 4 percent per year in this period, compared to no
education. Returns from middle to secondary school
(compared to primary) were larger, averaging about 11 percent, while university four-year degrees earned a
return (over secondary certificates) which averaged about 16 percent per
year,”(Johnston 2011, 107).
So as the focus on primary education continues to be key for the
international community, in order to achieve more beneficial success shift in
the focus may be necessary to look at the returns secondary and upper levels of
education can provide.
What if the U.S. was an MDG Country?
In order to gain a better understanding of
educational systems in general, a look at how the United States would be doing
in respect to MDG 2 provide interesting information. Compared with much of the
developing world, education as a human right has been established in many
industrialized countries. Public education in the U.S. exceeds that of what
would even be imaginable in many of the developing regions discussed earlier.
The fact that education through grade 12 is established for all citizens is an
amazing accomplishment in itself as MDG 2 is failing to provide universal
access to primary education. When looking at educational enrollment ratios for
the U.S., the OECD says the U.S. is at about 102% which counts for overage
participants going back to finish their education (The World Bank, 2013). This
ration is also not that far below the figure of 103% for all high income
countries (The World Bank, 2013). What this statistic shows is that much of the
industrialized world is actually helping to educate an even greater part of its
population by showing the importance of making sure each individual has the
chance to complete these critical years of schooling.
There are some current disparities between
populations within the U.S. Educational achievement in the public sector is
decreasing as private education is starting to become a larger industry for the
country. The inequalities seen in this area are strikingly higher when looking
at higher education enrollment rates as it is increasingly becoming an issue
where higher income students are attending colleges at a much greater rate than
students who fall under the poverty line. A statistic from a 1995 study showed
that only 3 percent of the students admitted to the top 146 universities were
families from modest backgrounds (Sacks 2003). This level of inequality is
becoming harder to overcome as admissions offices in colleges are becoming an
ever competitive industry and are using financial aid as a leveraging tool to
get students who may not need the extra financial help. “The danger is that the
increasing competition- to be selected and to be selective- will exacerbate the
widening inequalities that are raising the stakes in the first place,” (Reich,
2000). By perpetuating a system of inequality through emphasizing the
importance of admitting legacies, athletes and even those who can just provide the
money to attend college, this system of higher education is denouncing the
purpose of trying to raise people out of poverty and giving each person the
chance to succeed. Even though the U.S. would pass the MDG Goal 2, there are
still some apparent inequalities within the educational systems that are
preventing further advancements in this realm of society.
Where do we go from here?
When looking at the future of MGD Goal 2, it is
going to be a challenge in order to make sure universal primary education is
eventually achieved. An estimated $11 billion in aid annually is expected to be
needed in order to achieve the goal of universal access to primary education by
2015 (UN 2008). This amount has only increased as funding has not kept up with
the expected demands to enroll the growing number of children in the world. The
developed world needs to commit to the funding of these goals in order to see
their success. With the atrocious failure at which the developed world has
committed to provide developmental assistance equal to .7% of GDP, it is
obvious that providing funding is going to be the most important aspect when
looking forward. This is especially true as funding will be needed to create
the infrastructure and workforce needed to educate the population of children
in each area. However, funding must also be provided by the country itself and
not just the developed world. Rising the domestic spending is also going to be
needed as an increase of spending on education by 15 to 20 percent of national
budgets will be needed to sustain any advancement in education (UN 2008). Other
than funding the problems talked about earlier will also need to be addressed
in order to see significant changes. Support for higher educational systems,
educating teachers, poverty reduction and even providing transportation for
students are all factors that are contributing to the failure of this goal. In
order to provide education for every child, the basic needs of the population
must be met as well as providing adequate infrastructure and staffing to
provide this necessary service to the population.
Conclusion
MDG goal 2 is one of the best success stories for
the MDGs in totality, but along with many of the goals, it is not expected to
be achieved by 2015. Huge advances have been made in respect to providing
universal primary education to much of the world’s children, but as providing
education to the last 10% is becoming an increasingly harder issue, many faults
with the system are becoming apparent. Looking at how poverty, gender and
location affect school enrollment is something that has not been adequately
addressed until now, and an increasing population in much of the developing
world will continue to strain an already limited teacher population. Along with
these issues general target and wording of the goal also has to be addressed.
“The language surrounding EFA [education for all] is the language of idealism,
not simply because the MDG targets are ambitious but because the impossibility
of reaching the MDG education targets right across the developing world is now
a certainty,” (Jones 2008, 34). As this statement was made even before the 5
year countdown was made, the truth now cannot be more apparent. Universal
education will not be able to be achieved by 2015 and the goal of eliminating
the gender gap in education has already past. However, the success that has
already been made in respects to providing education is immense, and the sheer
amount of knowledge that the MDG project has been able to reveal about
discrepancies in educational attainment are necessary in order to move forward.
As the hardest to reach populations are now going to be the main targets for
this area of development, the information that the successes and failures of
this goal have provided will be influential in achieving universal access to
primary education in the future.
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