Question 2: What are the indicators of educational achievement in a country?
Answer:
Education makes a person well equipped with skills. An educated person is more skillful and productive than an uneducated person. Consequently, the former enjoys higher income earning capacity than the latter. Therefore, the prime indicator of educational achievement is the income earning capacity of an individual. Besides this, there are other essential indicators whose scope is even wider. These are:
1. Adult Literacy Rate: This rate indicates the percentage of the literate adult population who are aged 15 years and above. The word literacy in this context is confined only to the ability to read and write. It provides a measure of the stock of literate persons within the adult population. This rate is expressed in terms of percentage. Higher the percentage of adult literacy rate, higher the educational achievement in a country. This rate is the most important indicator for a country as it indicates the percentage of the population that can participate in the economic activity of the country.
2. Youth Literacy Rate: This rate indicates the percentage of literate people between the age of 15-24 who can read and write. It denotes the stock of literate population within the youth population. This is an important indicator of educational achievement in a country. This is because of the fact that majority of a country's population is not able to continue their education till this age. Therefore, higher the youth literacy rate, higher will be the achievement of a country in terms of education.
3. Primary Education Completion Rate: This rate indicates the percentage of students completing the last year of primary school. Primary education includes students of the class group 1 to 8 in the age group of 6-14 years. It includes basic education in reading, writing and mathematics along with an elementary understanding of other subjects such as history, geography, natural sciences, social sciences, art and music. Lower primary education completion rate leads to lower youth literacy rate and, hence, lower adult literacy rate.
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