Literacy Rate

3 Key excerpts on "Literacy Rate"

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  eBook - PDF

  Social Linguistics and Literacies

  • Rowela S. Basa(Author)
  • 2020(Publication Date)
  • Society Publishing

    (Publisher)

  THE STATUS OF LITERACY IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES 7 CONTENTS 7.1 Introduction ..................................................................................... 150 7.2 Reasons Why Developing Countries Have Low Literacy Rates ......... 150 7.3 Factors Behind Low Literacy Rates In Developing Countries ............ 153 7.4 The Impact Of Illiteracy In Developing Countries ............................. 158 7.5 How The Government And A Donor Can Promote Literacy In Developing Countries .............................................................. 164 Social Linguistics and Literacies 150 7.1 INTRODUCTION Literacy is basically the ability of a person to read and write. It plays a crucial role in a country as it empowers its citizens by equipping them with skills making them eligible to good job opportunities. This generally boosts the economy of such a country. The Literacy Rate of a country is a key determinant when categorizing whether a country is developed or is developing. The level of literacy is measured in terms of the level of education. The Literacy Rate of a country is reflected by its economy. Take the case of developed countries such as Germany and France, the economies of these countries are stable. This is because a large percentage of its population is educated with most of them having gone through institutions of higher learning, therefore, they have been able to acquire and create job opportunities that has brought revenue to their countries. This is not the same case for developing countries. Developing countries have low Literacy Rates. This indicates that a large percentage of its population does not know how to read and write and this is reflected in their economies. Take examples of some countries in Africa, their economies are not stable and they tend to have high levels of poverty.

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  India: Cultural Patterns And Processes

  • Allen G. Noble(Author)
  • 2019(Publication Date)
  • Taylor & Francis

    (Publisher)

  2 The Spatial Variation of Indian Literacy Gurdev S. Gosal

  For a nation to benefit from modern science and technology, and to enjoy an active cultural life as well, a large proportion of its population must be literate and educated. Though education by itself cannot induce socio-economic advancement, its absence impedes progress. A certain minimum level of literacy is a requirement for a people to break the grip of social and economic backwardness. An investigation of areal variations in literacy contributes to an understanding of regional disparities in levels of socio-economic progress. A study of literacy in spatial perspective assumes significance in a country such as India, which has about one-seventh of the world's population, and which is attempting to achieve socio-economic development in the context of a democratic system.

  Progress in Literacy

  In 1971, with only 29.46 percent of its people (39.45 percent of the males and 18.72 percent females) able to read and write with understanding, India had one of the world's predominantly illiterate populations [1 ]. Except for some countries in Africa, very few areas with sizeable population have Literacy Rates as low as in India. Even if children below 5 years of age are excluded, India's Literacy Rate comes to only 33.84 percent.

  Although these figures are low, they do represent an advance when compared with those of the preceding decades. From 1901 to 1931 the rate of literacy increased from 5.35 to 9.50 percent (Table 2-1

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  Language Mapping

  Part I. Part II: Maps

  • Jürgen Erich Schmidt(Author)
  • 2011(Publication Date)
  • De Gruyter Mouton

    (Publisher)

  32. Geolinguistics of literacy 627 32 . Geolinguistics o literacy 1. Literacy before 1850 2. The International Adult Literacy Survey 3. The Literacy proficiency index 4. Literacy and age 5. Literacy and sex 6. Literacy and second-language immigrants 7. Global enclaves of literacy proficiency 8. References Mass literacy is one of the social forces that has reshaped human existence in the last two centuries, along with geographic mobility, urbanization, increased life expectancy and global communication networks. In developed nations, literacy is viewed as the inevitable result of education and training, and in those same nations access to education is considered, for the first time in history, an inalienable right. Literacy is so pervasive that it is usually taken for granted. In Canada, for instance, the bureau of national statistics says, “Common sense would suggest that literacy is treated as a ‘cultural given’ for most adults in our society. While there are a number of adults who are unable to read at all, they are usually considered anomalies in the advanced economies” (Statistics Canada 1996: 13). It is hard to imagine, in a milieu in which literacy is treated as a cultural given, that it was relatively uncommon throughout most of human history. For centuries it was treated as a luxury. It is now viewed as a necessity because cultural and social well-being beyond mere survival depend upon information, and information diffuses mainly through reading and writing. Under these postmodern conditions, withholding or limit-ing literacy can be a tool of oppression. Literacy must be viewed as a right of citizenship, and concomitantly a responsibility. There are still large gaps in literacy proficiency be-tween developed and undeveloped nations, and between privileged and underprivileged social strata. Willms (1999: 9) says, “Literacy is an instrument of economic and social power.

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