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Social Exclusion and the Gender Gap in Education

Author: Maureen Lewis, Marlaine Lockheed
Date: 2008
Size: 40 pages (204 KB)

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Summary

Why is there still a gender gap in education in some countries? This policy research paper for the World Bank Human Development Network Chief Economists Office reviews gender in education and tests the relevance of ethno-linguistic fractionalisation (ELF) in explaining cross-country differences in learning and school attainment.

Evidence from cross-country studies, household surveys, and anthropological observation shows that educating women provides multiple pay-offs for households and societies. Despite a sharp increase in the share of girls who enrol in, attend, and complete various levels of schooling, a gender education gap remains in some countries. These gaps are especially severe in countries where historically women have been marginalised, and where they are ‘doubly disadvantaged’ through also being socially excluded. Economic and psychosocial obstacles to schooling exist where girls are impoverished, from ethnic minorities, lower castes or remote communities.

ELF captures the degree of racial and linguistic difference within 190 countries, and was developed originally to explain the drivers of economic growth. It is highly correlated with other measures of social exclusion. The study applies ELF to the analysis of gender education gaps for the first time, and finds that:

• ELF explains national learning outcomes but only when national income measures are excluded
• Greater within-country heterogeneity is associated with lower rates of primary school completion and larger gender gaps
• Large rural population and high labour force participation by women negatively affect school completion and the gender gap
• Factors which positively affect girls’ school completion rate are a socialist history and high national income
• Education expenditure is unrelated to the gender gap in primary school completion.

Despite research over the past decade on how to reach poor children and those from socially excluded groups, little is known about how to reach socially excluded girls. ELF analysis suggests that getting and keeping socially excluded girls in school entails different approaches and higher costs. Cultural variations, linguistic differences and the special needs of girls drive up costs because they require new methods tailored to each group.

Policies need to improve and diversify the supply of education, and create incentives for households to send girls to school. Specific issues to consider include:

• Policies that appear fair on the surface may be subtly biased against girls from excluded groups – examples include requiring schools to teach in majority language and policies on single sex schools or co-education.
• Parental concerns for girls’ safety mean that nearby community schools and non-formal alternative schools are more attractive alternatives to formal schools located at a distance. Country evidence shows that programmes that respond to parents’ safety concerns are effective.
• School quality matters more for excluded girls than for boys and children from mainstream families.
• Conditional cash transfers, scholarships, and school feeding programmes provide incentives for parents from socially excluded groups to send their girls to school.

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Source: Lewis, M. and Lockheed, M., 2008, 'Social Exclusion and the Gender Gap in Education', World Bank, Washington DC
Author: Marlaine Lockheed , mlockheed@cgdev.org