Report Calls on International Community to Meet Education Goals

 

Children entering school now should finish secondary school by 2030. But if current trends continue one in six will not be in school in 2030 and only sixty percent will be finishing their secondary education.

Leaders are meeting from July 9 through July 18 at the High-Level Political Forum¹ (HLPF) – the United Nations' official platform for examining the 2030 Agenda² for Sustainable Development. They will be measuring progress on education for the first time since 2015.

Silvia Montoya is Director of the UNESCO Institute for Statistics³ and Manos Antoninis is Director of the Global Education Monitoring Report. They say the world does not seem close to meeting the Sustainable Development Goal for education ("SDG 4") – which aims for all girls and boys completing free, fair and high-quality primary and secondary education - by 2030. So, the two experts say, “business as usual for education must come to an end.”

If the goal is not met the world will have failed a generation of children, they add.

A new report from their groups tells about progress toward each SDG 4 education target, from early childhood education to adult literacy⁴. Montoya and Antoninis say that the world’s countries need to make some changes to meet education goals.

Get children into school

Starting children’s education with preschool is best, the report says. This helps older children attend school. In many countries, more children are in early childhood programs. But in poor countries, the number of children aged⁵ six -17 who are not in school has gone down. In 2030, 16.7 percent, or 225 million young people, will not be in school.

Help children complete secondary school

The experts say children also must be supported in completing secondary school. The goal of all children completing primary school was set for 2015, but it will not be met by 2030. The percentage of children completing secondary education in low-income countries is less than half of the world-wide rate.

Deal with earnings⁶ inequality

Differences in earnings lead to big differences in education. Four percent of children from the poorest families complete upper-secondary school in low-income countries. Just two percent of the poorest girls -- compared to 36 percent of those from the richest families -- complete upper-secondary school. The UNESCO officials say earnings inequality must be dealt with.

Push for reading and raise learning ability

Montoya and Anoninis note a strong connection between reading ability and learning rates. Around 20 percent of youth and 30 percent of adults will still be unable to read in low-income countries by 2030. Learning rates will not increase in middle-income countries if reading ability rates remain the same. In French-speaking African countries, rates will drop by almost one-third in 2030.

Increase spending

One in four countries does not meet two of the SDG 4 goals. One is to provide at least 4 percent of Gross⁷ Domestic⁸ Product (GDP) on education. The other is to use 15 percent of their total government spending on education. Financial support for education has not grown since 2010, the report says. Contract employees are replacing trained teachers in sub-Saharan Africa, hurting the quality of education. Countries need to find and train more teachers.

Collect and examine more information on education

More data is needed to supervise⁹ progress in education. Montoya and Antoninis say that “data are a necessity – not a luxury – for every country, which is why partners are making the call to #FundData.”

The UNESCO report authors ask the international community meeting in New York this week to compare their plans for the next ten years with their earlier promises.

Montoya and Antoninis said they hope that the world leaders will “hear this warning” and act to meet the still possible development goal.

I’m John Russell. And I’m Jill Robbins.

Words in This Story

sustainable – adj. able to be used without being completely used up or destroyed

equitable¹⁰ – adj. just or fair : dealing¹¹ fairly and equally with everyone

generation – n. a group of people born and living during the same time

commit – v. to say that (someone or something) will definitely do something

literacy – n. the ability to read and write

challenge – n. a difficult task or problem

1 forum   

n.论坛，讨论会

参考例句：

• They're holding a forum on new ways of teaching history.他们正在举行历史教学讨论会。
• The organisation would provide a forum where problems could be discussed.这个组织将提供一个可以讨论问题的平台。

2 agenda   

n.议事日程，记事册

参考例句：

• We now proceed to the next item on the agenda.我们现在着手讨论下一项议题。
• If there is no objection,the agenda is adopted.如果没有意见，议程就通过了。

3 statistics   

n.统计，统计数字，统计学

参考例句：

• We have statistics for the last year.我们有去年的统计资料。
• Statistics is taught in many colleges.许多大学都教授统计学。

4 literacy   

n.识字，有文化，读写能力

参考例句：

• I can't believe that he failed the literacy test.我无法相信他识字测试不及格。
• The literacy rate there is the highest in Central America.那里的识字率居中美洲之首。

5 aged   

adj.年老的，陈年的

参考例句：

• He had put on weight and aged a little.他胖了，也老点了。
• He is aged,but his memory is still good.他已年老，然而记忆力还好。

6 earnings   

n.工资收人；利润，利益，所得

参考例句：

• That old man lives on the earnings of his daughter.那个老人靠他女儿的收入维持生活。
• Last year there was a 20% decrease in his earnings.去年他的收入减少了20%。

7 gross   

adj.全部的，粗俗的，肥胖的；vt.获得...总收入

参考例句：

• The gross weight of the box of chocolates is 500 grams.那盒巧克力的全部重量是500克。
• I consider this a gross oversight on your part.我把这件事看作是你的一大疏忽。

8 domestic   

adj.家里的，国内的，本国的；n.家仆，佣人

参考例句：

• This is domestic news.这是国内新闻。
• She does the domestic affairs every day.她每天都忙家务。

9 supervise   

v.监督，管理，指导

参考例句：

• We must supervise and speed up the fulfilment of assigned tasks.已经布置了的工作，应当认真督促检查。
• Tomorrow he will supervise all the pupils taking the English examination.明天全体学生考英语，他将担任监考。

10 equitable   

adj.公平的；公正的

参考例句：

• This is an equitable solution to the dispute. 这是对该项争议的公正解决。
• Paying a person what he has earned is equitable. 酬其应得,乃公平之事。

11 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。