Editing Literacy (section)

=== Gender ===
[[File:Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, male (%), OWID.svg|thumb|upright=1.4|Adult literacy rate, male (%), 2015<ref>{{Cite web |title=Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, male (%) |url=https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/adult-literacy-male |access-date=15 February 2020 |website=Our World in Data}}</ref>]]
[[File:Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, female (%), OWID.svg|thumb|upright=1.4|Adult literacy rate, female (%), 2015<ref>{{Cite web |title=Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, female (%) |url=https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/adult-literacy-female |access-date=15 February 2020 |website=Our World in Data}}</ref>]]
[[File:Figure 4 Progress towards gender parity Reading the past writing the future.svg|thumb|upright=1.4|Gender parity indices in youth literacy rates by region, 1990–2015. Progress towards gender parity in literacy started after 1990.]]
According to 2015 data collected by the [[UNESCO Institute for Statistics]], about two-thirds (63%) of the world's illiterate adults are women. This disparity was even starker in previous decades, and from 1970 to 2000, the global [[gender gap in literacy]] decreased significantly.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Dorius |first1=Shawn F. |last2=Firebaugh |first2=Glenn |date=1 July 2010 |title=Trends in Global Gender Inequality |journal=Social Forces |volume=88 |issue=5 |pages=1941–1968 |doi=10.1353/sof.2010.0040 |issn=0037-7732 |pmc=3107548 |pmid=21643494}}</ref> Around the year 2013, however, this progress stagnated, with the gender gap holding almost constant over the last two decades.<ref name="UNESCO-2015" /> In general, the gender gap in literacy was not as pronounced as the regional gap; that is, differences between countries were often larger than gender differences within countries.<ref>{{Cite report |url=http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTWDR2012/Resources/7778105-1299699968583/7786210-1315936222006/chapter-3.pdf |title=Gender Equality and Development: World Development Report |date=2012 |publisher=The World Bank |issue=114 |location=Washington, D. C. |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190412075924/http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTWDR2012/Resources/7778105-1299699968583/7786210-1315936222006/chapter-3.pdf |archive-date=2019-04-12 |chapter=Education and Health: Where do Gender Differences Really Matter?}}{{Moved resource|date=September 2023}}</ref>

[[Sub-Saharan Africa]] has the lowest overall literacy rate and the widest gender gap: 52% of adult women and 68% of adult men are literate. A similar gender disparity exists in [[North Africa]], where 70% of adult women are literate versus 86% of adult men. In South Asia, 58% of adult women and 77% of adult men are literate.<ref name="UNESCO-2015" />

The 1990 World Conference on [[Education for All]], held in Jomtien, Thailand, brought attention to the literacy gender gap and prompted many developing countries to prioritize women's literacy.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Agnaou |first=Fatima |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PWz6mAEACAAJ |title=Gender, Literacy, and Empowerment in Morocco |year=2004 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-415-94765-7}}</ref>

In many contexts, female illiteracy coexists with other aspects of gender inequality. [[Martha Nussbaum]] says illiterate women are more vulnerable to becoming trapped in an abusive marriage, given that illiteracy limits their employment opportunities and worsens their position when [[intra-household bargaining|negotiating within the household]]. Moreover, Nussbaum links literacy to the ability for women to effectively communicate and collaborate with one another "to participate in a larger movement for political change."<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Nussbaum |first=Martha C. |date=1 January 2004 |title=Women's Education: A Global Challenge |journal=Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society |volume=29 |issue=2 |pages=332–333 |doi=10.1086/378571 |issn=0097-9740 |s2cid=144593937}}</ref>

==== Challenges of increasing female literacy ====

Social barriers can limit opportunities to increase literacy skills among women and girls; making literacy classes available can be ineffective when it conflicts with the use of the valuable limited time of women and girls.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Hill |first1=M. Anne |last2=King |first2=Elizabeth |date=1 July 1995 |title=Women's education and economic well-being |journal=Feminist Economics |volume=1 |issue=2 |pages=21–46 |doi=10.1080/714042230 |issn=1354-5701}}</ref> School-age girls may face more expectations than their male counterparts to perform household work and care for younger siblings.<ref name="World-Literacy-Foundation-2015" /> Generational dynamics can also perpetuate these disparities; illiterate parents may not readily appreciate the value of literacy for their daughters, particularly in traditional, rural societies with expectations that girls will remain at home.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Al-Mekhlafy |first=Tawfiq A. |url=http://siteresources.worldbank.org/EDUCATION/Resources/278200-1099079877269/547664-1099080014368/DID_Girls_edu.pdf |title=Girls' Education in the 21st Century: Gender Equality, Empowerment, and Economic Growth |publisher=The World Bank |year=2008 |editor-last=Tembon |editor-first=Mercy |place=Washington D. C. |chapter=Strategies for Gender Equality in Basic and Secondary Education: A Comprehensive and Integrated Approach in the Republic of Yemen |editor-last2=Fort |editor-first2=Lucia |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190824222436/http://siteresources.worldbank.org/EDUCATION/Resources/278200-1099079877269/547664-1099080014368/DID_Girls_edu.pdf |archive-date=2019-08-24}}{{Moved resource|date=September 2023}}</ref>

A [[World Bank]] and [[International Center for Research on Women]] review of academic literature concluded that [[child marriage]], which predominantly impacts girls, tends to reduce literacy levels.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Wodon |first=Quentin |display-authors=etal |date=September 2015 |title=Child Marriage and the 2030 Agenda: Selected Findings from Early Research |url=http://www.costsofchildmarriage.org/publication/child-marriage-and-2030-agenda |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230404061325/https://www.costsofchildmarriage.org/publication/child-marriage-and-2030-agenda |archive-date=2023-04-04 |website=The Economic Impacts of Child Marriage}}</ref> A 2008 analysis of the issue in Bangladesh found that for every additional year a girl's marriage is delayed, her likelihood of literacy increases by 5.6%.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Field |first1=Erica |last2=Ambrus |first2=Attila |date=1 October 2008 |title=Early Marriage, Age of Menarche, and Female Schooling Attainment in Bangladesh |journal=Journal of Political Economy |volume=116 |issue=5 |pages=881–930 |citeseerx=10.1.1.662.7231 |doi=10.1086/593333 |issn=0022-3808 |s2cid=215805592}}</ref> Similarly, a 2014 study found that in sub-Saharan Africa, marrying early significantly decreases a girl's probability of literacy, even after accounting for other variables.<ref>{{Citation |last1=Nguyen |first1=Minh Cong |title=Child Marriage and Education in Sub-Saharan Africa |date=September 2014 |url=http://allinschool.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/OOSC-2014-QW-Child-Marriage-final.pdf |editor-last=Wodon |editor-first=Quentin |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160629180823/http://allinschool.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/OOSC-2014-QW-Child-Marriage-final.pdf |chapter=Impact of Child Marriage on Literacy and Education Attainment in Africa |place=Washington D. C. |publisher=World Bank |archive-date=29 June 2016 |last2=Wodon |first2=Quentin}}</ref>   Therefore, a 2015 literature review recommended marriage postponement as part of a strategy to increase educational attainment levels, including [[female education|female literacy]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Parsons |first1=Jennifer |last2=Edmeades |first2=Jeffrey |last3=Kes |first3=Aslihan |last4=Petroni |first4=Suzanne |last5=Sexton |first5=Maggie |last6=Wodon |first6=Quentin |date=3 July 2015 |title=Economic Impacts of Child Marriage: A Review of the Literature |journal=The Review of Faith & International Affairs |volume=13 |issue=3 |pages=12–22 |doi=10.1080/15570274.2015.1075757 |issn=1557-0274 |s2cid=146194521 |hdl-access=free |hdl=10986/23530}}</ref>

==== Gender gap for boys in developed countries ====

While women and girls comprise the majority of the global illiterate population, in many [[developed countries]], a literacy-[[gender gap]] exists in the opposite direction. Data from the [[Programme for International Student Assessment]] has consistently shown the literacy underachievement of boys within member countries of the OECD ([[Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development]]).<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Watson |first1=Anne |last2=Kehler |first2=Michael |last3=Martino |first3=Wayne |date=1 February 2010 |title=The Problem of Boys' Literacy Underachievement: Raising Some Questions |journal=Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy |volume=53 |issue=5 |pages=356–361 |doi=10.1598/JAAL.53.5.1 |issn=1936-2706 |s2cid=35301500}}</ref> In view of such findings, many education specialists have recommended changing classroom practices to better accommodate boys' learning styles and removing any gender stereotypes that may create the perception that reading and writing are feminine activities.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Senn |first=Nicole |date=1 November 2012 |title=Effective Approaches to Motivate and Engage Reluctant Boys in Literacy |journal=The Reading Teacher |volume=66 |issue=3 |pages=211–220 |doi=10.1002/TRTR.01107 |issn=1936-2714}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last1=Manitoba Education |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7ZHAAAAACAAJ |title=Me Read? No Way!: A Practical Guide to Improving Boys' Literacy Skills |date=January 2006 |publisher=Government of Manitoba |isbn=978-0-771-13506-4}}</ref>