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Education Index by Country 2024

Education is a fundamental part of modern human society and with good reason. The easier educational opportunities are to access in a country and the more educated that society is overall, the greater the overall well-being of that country’s society.

However, accurately measuring and tracking the average level of education from country to country can be challenging, The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) regularly publishes a Human Development Index (HDI) that includes an Education Index. The purpose of the Education Index is to lend insight into the comparative educational development of countries around the world.

Here's a closer look at some of the countries with the highest overall Education Index scores, as well as some key determining factors that can affect these numbers.

Countries with the Highest Education Index Scores Worldwide

As of 2023, the following countries have the highest scores on UNDP’s Education Index.

Additional countries with reasonably high scores include Greece , the United Kingdom , Switzerland , Slovenia , Canada , Ireland , the United States , Lithuania , and Latvia .

Conversely, populations in areas with limited access to quality schooling scored much lower overall. Examples include multiple nations across Africa , such as Chad , Niger , and South Sudan .

Factors Potentially Impacting Education Index Scores by Country

Naturally, a country’s educational system can be fairly complex, so numerous factors can come into play and affect scores one way or the other. The following are some key examples to be aware of.

Access to Quality Education

There are numerous subfactors that can impact a population’s actual access to quality education in the first place. Examples include but may not be limited to regional obstacles, gender disparities, and various inadequacies or inequalities within the educational system itself.

Cultural Values

Not all countries have the same values regarding education, culturally speaking. In many countries, a good education and academic achievement are indeed vitally important, valued, and encouraged. However, in other nations or regions, getting married and starting a family may be of greater concern.

Economic Standing

On average, wealthier countries tend to have significantly better education systems. There’s more capital to invest in educational infrastructure, adequate training for educators, student resources, and so forth. The same goes for countries with ample governmental support for education.

Greater financial investment typically goes hand in hand with a better-educated society overall.

• Values for 2021 were calculated using official data and an external tool and should be considered educated estimates.

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Human Development Index (HDI)

The HDI was created to emphasize that people and their capabilities should be the ultimate criteria for assessing the development of a country, not economic growth alone.

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The Human Development Index (HDI) is a summary measure of average achievement in key dimensions of human development: a long and healthy life, being knowledgeable and having a decent standard of living. The HDI is the geometric mean of normalized indices for each of the three dimensions.

The health dimension is assessed by life expectancy at birth, the education dimension is measured by mean of years of schooling for adults aged 25 years and more and expected years of schooling for children of school entering age. The standard of living dimension is measured by gross national income per capita. The HDI uses the logarithm of income, to reflect the diminishing importance of income with increasing GNI. The scores for the three HDI dimension indices are then aggregated into a composite index using geometric mean. Refer to Technical notes for more details.

The HDI can be used to question national policy choices, asking how two countries with the same level of GNI per capita can end up with different human development outcomes. These contrasts can stimulate debate about government policy priorities.

The HDI simplifies and captures only part of what human development entails. It does not reflect on inequalities, poverty, human security, empowerment, etc. The HDRO provides other composite indices as broader proxy on some of the key issues of human development, inequality, gender disparity and poverty.

A fuller picture of a country's level of human development requires analysis of other indicators and information presented in the HDR statistical annex.

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The United Nations Statistics Division collects data on literacy, educational attainment and school attendance from national statistical offices around the world and disseminates them in tabular form in special issues of the United Nations Demographic Yearbook . These official statistics provided by countries are derived from population censuses. In addition, the Statistics Division compiles and makes available online some statistics and indicators on illiteracy and education, derived from both population censuses and administrative systems, through its Social Indicators website and Statistics and indicators on women and men website. The major sources of these statistics and indicators are the United Nations Statistics Division and the UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS) the statistical branch of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) .

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• Illiteracy - html
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• Table 4a Primary education - html
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• Table 4e Teaching staff - html

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International Standard Classification of Education 1997, (ISCED) , (ICD-10) Custodian: WHO

The UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS) is the main international agency responsible for the development of conceptual and methodological frameworks for the collection of internationally comparable statistics and indicators on education.

Concepts and definitions

Source: Principles and Recommendations for Population and Housing Censuses, Rev 1

• A. Literacy
• B. School attendance
• C. Educational attainment
• D. Field of education and educational qualifications

A. Literacy (paras. 2.145.- 2.149.)

A literate person is one who can, with understanding, both read and write a short, simple statement on his or her everyday life. An illiterate person is one who cannot, with understanding, both read and write such a simple statement. Hence, a person capable of reading and writing only figures and his or her own name should be considered illiterate, as should a person who can read but not write as well as one who can read and write only a ritual phrase that has been memorized.

B. School attendance (paras. 2.150.- 2.152.)

School attendance is defined as attendance at any regular accredited educational institution or programme, public or private, for organized learning at any level of education at the time of the census or, if the census is taken during the vacation period at the end of the school year, during the last school year.

For the purposes of 1997 rev of ISCED (UNESCO) and based on the revised definition, education is taken to comprise all deliberate and systematic activities designed to meet learning needs. Instruction in particular skills, which is not part of the recognized educational structure of the country (for example, in-service training courses in factories), is not normally considered "school attendance" for census purposes.

C. Educational attainment (paras. 2.153.- 2.157.)

Educational attainment is defined as the highest grade completed within the most advanced level attended in the educational system of the country where the education was received. If required, data on educational attainment can take into account education and training received in all types of organized educational institutions and programmes, particularly those measurable in terms of grade and level of education or their equivalent such as programmes in adult education, even if the education and training were provided outside of the regular school and university system. For international purposes, a "grade" is a stage of instruction usually covered in the course of a school year.

• ISCED level 0: Pre-primary education
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• ISCED level 2: Lower secondary education
• ISCED level 3: (Upper) secondary education
• ISCED level 4: Post-secondary education
• ISCED level 5: First stage of tertiary education (not leading directly to an advanced research qualification)
• ISCED level 6: ISCED level 6: Second stage of tertiary education (leading to an advanced research qualification)

D. Field of education and educational qualifications (paras. 2.158.- 2.164.)

(i) field of education.

• 0 1 Basic programmes
• 0 8 Literacy and numeracy
• 0 9 Personal development
• 1 4 Teacher training and education science
• 2 2 Humanities
• 3 1 Social and behavioural science
• 3 2 Journalism and information
• 3 4 Business and administration
• 4 2 Life sciences
• 4 4 Physical sciences
• 4 6 Mathematics and statistics
• 4 8 Computing
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• 7 6 Social services
• 8 1 Personal services
• 8 4 Transport services
• 8 5 Environmental protection
• 8 6 Security services
• 9         99 Not known or unspecified

(ii) Educational qualifications

Qualifications are the degrees, diplomas, certificates, professional titles and so forth that an individual has acquired, whether by full-time study, part-time study or private study, whether conferred in the home country or abroad, and whether conferred by educational authorities, special examining bodies or professional bodies. The acquisition of an educational qualification therefore implies the successful completion of a course of study or training programme.

According to national needs, information on qualifications may be collected from persons who have reached a certain minimum age or level of educational attainment. Such information should refer to the title of the highest certificate, diploma or degree received.

Collection and dissemination of data through the Demographic Yearbook system

The United Nations Statistics Division collects data on educational attainment, literacy and school attendance through the Demographic Yearbook Population Census Questionnaire .

• Table 10. Population 10 years of age and over by literacy, age and sex
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• Table 12. Population 5 to 24 years of age by school attendance, age and sex

These tables are disseminated through the Demographic Yearbook . Nine issues of the Demographic Yearbook covering the special topic of censuses included information on literacy, educational attainment and school attendance. These were the 1993, 1988, 1983, 1979, 1973, 1971, 1964, 1963 and 1956 issues. Print copies of the Demographic Yearbook can be purchased through the UN Publications Order Form.

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• Exponential growth rate: the growth rate, r, between two points in time calculated from the equation r = ln(pn/p0)/n, where pn and p0 are the last and first observations in the period, n is the number of years in the period range, and ln is the natural logarithm operator. This growth rate is based on a model of continuous, exponential growth between two points in time. It does not take into account the intermediate values of the series.
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UNDP Human Development Reports: Education Index

A global education index from 1980 - 2013 calculated using mean years of schooling and expected years of schooling. Data in the tables are those available to the UNDP Human Development Report Office as of 15 November 2013, unless otherwise specified.

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A global education index from 1980 - 2013 calculated using mean years of schooling and expected years of schooling.

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Global Education Monitoring Report

Statistical Tables

2023 - technology in education: a tool on whose terms.

Most data in the statistical tables come from the UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS). Where the statistical tables include data from other sources, these are mentioned in footnotes. The most recent UIS data on pupils, students, teachers and education expenditure presented in the tables are from the March 2023 release and refer to the school year or financial year ending in 2021.2 These statistics refer to formal education, both public and private, by level of education. The statistical tables list 209 countries and territories, all of which are UNESCO Member States or associate members. Most report their data to the UIS using standard questionnaires issued by the UIS itself. For 46 countries, education data are collected by the UIS via the UIS/OECD/Eurostat (UOE) questionnaires.

Statistical Tables ( PDF ) ( Excel )

2021 - Non-state actors: Who chooses? Who loses?

Most data in the statistical tables come from the UIS. Where the statistical tables include data from other sources, these are mentioned in footnotes. The most recent UIS data on pupils, students, teachers and education expenditure presented in the tables are from the February 2021 release and refer to the school year or financial year ending in 2019. These statistics refer to formal education, both public and private, by level of education. The statistical tables list 209 countries and territories, all of which are UNESCO member States or associate members. most report their data to the UIS using standard questionnaires issued by the UIS itself. For 46 countries, education data are collected by the UIS via the UIS/OECD/Eurostat (UOE) questionnaires.

2020 - Inclusion and education: All means all

Most data in the statistical tables come from the UIS. Where the statistical tables include data from other sources, these are mentioned in footnotes. The most recent UIS data on pupils, students, teachers and education expenditure presented in the tables are from the September 2019 release and refer to the school year or financial year ending in 2018.4They are based on results reported to and processed by the UIS before July 2019. For a limited number of indicators and countries, the UIS updated its database in February 2020 and these updates are also reflected. These statistics refer to formal education, both public and private, by level of education. The statistical tables list 209 countries and territories, all of which are UNESCO Member States or associate members. Most report their data to the UIS using standard questionnaires issued by the UIS itself. For 46 countries, education data are collected by the UIS via the UIS/OECD/Eurostat (UOE) questionnaires.

Statistical Tables (EXCEL)

2019 - Migration, displacement and education: Building Bridges, not walls

The most recent UIS data on pupils, students, teachers and education expenditure presented in the tables are from the September 2018 education data release and refer to the school or financial year ending in 2017. They are based on results reported to and processed by the UIS before July 2018. These statistics refer to formal education, both public and private, by level of education. The statistical tables list 209 countries and territories, all of which are UNESCO member states or associate members. Most report their data to the UIS using standard questionnaires issued by the UIS itself. For 49 countries, education data are collected by the UIS via the UIS/OECD/Eurostat (UOE) questionnaires.

2017/8 - Accountability in Education: Meeting our commitments 

The most recent UIS data on pupils, students, teachers and education expenditure presented in the tables are for the school year or financial year ending in 2015. They are based on results reported to and processed by the UIS before the end of March 2017. A small number of countries submitted data for the school year ending in 2016, presented in bold in the tables. These statistics refer to all formal education, both public and private, by level of education.

Statistical Tables  (ZIP EXCEL)

2016 - Education for people and planet: Creating Sustainable Futures For All

The most recent data on pupils, students, teachers and education expenditure presented in these statistical tables are the reference school and financial years ending in 2014.  They are based on survey results reported to and processed by the UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS) before the end of March 2014. Data received and processed after that date are published on the UIS website and will be used in the 2016 Global Education Monitoring Report.

Statistical Tables for year ending 2014 - long version

Introduction  - Introduction Table

Metadata for literacy statistics related to Statistical Table 10 . Information per country on the source of literacy data, the most recent year statistics are available, and the definition of literacy as used by each country.

2015 - Education for All 2000-2015: achievements and challenges

Statistical Tables for year ending 2012 - long version  |  français

Full introduction

Metadata  for literacy statistics related to Statistical Table 2. Information per country on the source of literacy data, the most recent year statistics are available, and the definition of literacy as used by each country.

2013/4 - Teaching and Learning

Statistical Tables - long version  |  français  (ZIP EXCEL)

Introduction

2012 - Youth, Skills & Work

Metadata  for literacy statistics related to Statistical Table 2.  Information per country on the source of literacy data, the most recent year statistics are available, and the definition of literacy as used by each country.

2011 - Conflict

2010 - marginalization.

Metadata  for literacy statistics related to Statistical Table 2A. Information per country on the source of literacy data, the most recent year statistics are available, and the definition of literacy as used by each country.

2009 - Governance

Metadata  for literacy statistics related to Statistical Table 2A.  Information per country on the source of literacy data, the most recent year statistics are available, and the definition of literacy as used by each country. -  français

GMR 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2003/4 | 2002

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Global Education

By Hannah Ritchie, Veronika Samborska, Natasha Ahuja, Esteban Ortiz-Ospina and Max Roser

A good education offers individuals the opportunity to lead richer, more interesting lives. At a societal level, it creates opportunities for humanity to solve its pressing problems.

The world has gone through a dramatic transition over the last few centuries, from one where very few had any basic education to one where most people do. This is not only reflected in the inputs to education – enrollment and attendance – but also in outcomes, where literacy rates have greatly improved.

Getting children into school is also not enough. What they learn matters. There are large differences in educational outcomes : in low-income countries, most children cannot read by the end of primary school. These inequalities in education exacerbate poverty and existing inequalities in global incomes .

On this page, you can find all of our writing and data on global education.

Key insights on Global Education

The world has made substantial progress in increasing basic levels of education.

Access to education is now seen as a fundamental right – in many cases, it’s the government’s duty to provide it.

But formal education is a very recent phenomenon. In the chart, we see the share of the adult population – those older than 15 – that has received some basic education and those who haven’t.

In the early 1800s, fewer than 1 in 5 adults had some basic education. Education was a luxury; in all places, it was only available to a small elite.

But you can see that this share has grown dramatically, such that this ratio is now reversed. Less than 1 in 5 adults has not received any formal education.

This is reflected in literacy data , too: 200 years ago, very few could read and write. Now most adults have basic literacy skills.

What you should know about this data

• Basic education is defined as receiving some kind of formal primary, secondary, or tertiary (post-secondary) education.
• This indicator does not tell us how long a person received formal education. They could have received a full program of schooling, or may only have been in attendance for a short period. To account for such differences, researchers measure the mean years of schooling or the expected years of schooling .

Despite being in school, many children learn very little

International statistics often focus on attendance as the marker of educational progress.

However, being in school does not guarantee that a child receives high-quality education. In fact, in many countries, the data shows that children learn very little.

Just half – 48% – of the world’s children can read with comprehension by the end of primary school. It’s based on data collected over a 9-year period, with 2016 as the average year of collection.

This is shown in the chart, where we plot averages across countries with different income levels. 1

The situation in low-income countries is incredibly worrying, with 90% of children unable to read by that age.

This can be improved – even among high-income countries. The best-performing countries have rates as low as 2%. That’s more than four times lower than the average across high-income countries.

Making sure that every child gets to go to school is essential. But the world also needs to focus on what children learn once they’re in the classroom.

Millions of children learn only very little. How can the world provide a better education to the next generation?

Research suggests that many children – especially in the world’s poorest countries – learn only very little in school. What can we do to improve this?

• This data does not capture total literacy over someone’s lifetime. Many children will learn to read eventually, even if they cannot read by the end of primary school. However, this means they are in a constant state of “catching up” and will leave formal education far behind where they could be.

Children across the world receive very different amounts of quality learning

There are still significant inequalities in the amount of education children get across the world.

This can be measured as the total number of years that children spend in school. However, researchers can also adjust for the quality of education to estimate how many years of quality learning they receive. This is done using an indicator called “learning-adjusted years of schooling”.

On the map, you see vast differences across the world.

In many of the world’s poorest countries, children receive less than three years of learning-adjusted schooling. In most rich countries, this is more than 10 years.

Across most countries in South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa – where the largest share of children live – the average years of quality schooling are less than 7.

• Learning-adjusted years of schooling merge the quantity and quality of education into one metric, accounting for the fact that similar durations of schooling can yield different learning outcomes.
• Learning-adjusted years is computed by adjusting the expected years of school based on the quality of learning, as measured by the harmonized test scores from various international student achievement testing programs. The adjustment involves multiplying the expected years of school by the ratio of the most recent harmonized test score to 625. Here, 625 signifies advanced attainment on the TIMSS (Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study) test, with 300 representing minimal attainment. These scores are measured in TIMSS-equivalent units.

Hundreds of millions of children worldwide do not go to school

While most children worldwide get the opportunity to go to school, hundreds of millions still don’t.

In the chart, we see the number of children who aren’t in school across primary and secondary education.

This number was around 260 million in 2019.

Many children who attend primary school drop out and do not attend secondary school. That means many more children or adolescents are missing from secondary school than primary education.

Access to basic education: almost 60 million children of primary school age are not in school

The world has made a lot of progress in recent generations, but millions of children are still not in school.

The gender gap in school attendance has closed across most of the world

Globally, until recently, boys were more likely to attend school than girls. The world has focused on closing this gap to ensure every child gets the opportunity to go to school.

Today, these gender gaps have largely disappeared. In the chart, we see the difference in the global enrollment rates for primary, secondary, and tertiary (post-secondary) education. The share of children who complete primary school is also shown.

We see these lines converging over time, and recently they met: rates between boys and girls are the same.

For tertiary education, young women are now more likely than young men to be enrolled.

While the differences are small globally, there are some countries where the differences are still large: girls in Afghanistan, for example, are much less likely to go to school than boys.

Research & Writing

Talent is everywhere, opportunity is not. We are all losing out because of this.

Access to basic education: almost 60 million children of primary school age are not in school, interactive charts on global education.

This data comes from a paper by João Pedro Azevedo et al.

João Pedro Azevedo, Diana Goldemberg, Silvia Montoya, Reema Nayar, Halsey Rogers, Jaime Saavedra, Brian William Stacy (2021) – “ Will Every Child Be Able to Read by 2030? Why Eliminating Learning Poverty Will Be Harder Than You Think, and What to Do About It .” World Bank Policy Research Working Paper 9588, March 2021.

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Education overview

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Education is vital to meeting the Sustainable Development Goals

Every child learns. The Sustainable Development Goals are interdependent and achieving SDG4 – ensuring inclusive and equitable education for all by 2030 – will have transformative effects on other goals. SDG4 spans a spectrum of education levels, from pre-primary to youth and adult education. It emphasizes learning outcomes, skills acquisition, and equity in both development and emergency settings. UNICEF advocates high-quality, child-friendly basic education for all, in line with the ambition of the Global Education 2030 Agenda. To meet the vision brought forth by the Education 2030 Framework of Action and SDG4, UNICEF released its own Education Strategy 2019–2030 , ‘Every Child Learns’, outlining three distinct goals: (1) Equitable access to learning opportunities; (2) Improved learning and skills for all; and (3) Improved learning and protection for children in emergencies and fragile contexts.

Education data

Are children really learning exploring foundational skills in the midst of a learning crisis.

The State of Global Education: From crisis to recovery

Education for children with disabilities

Ensuring equal access to education in future crises: Findings of the new Remote Learning Readiness Index

Education disrupted: The second year of the COVID-19 pandemic and school closures

How are children progressing through school? An Education Pathway Analysis

Which children have internet access at home? Insights from household survey data (blog post)

How many children and young people have internet access at home?

Georgia education fact sheets

What Have We Learnt? Findings from a survey of ministries of education on national responses to COVID-19

EduView Dashboard

COVID-19: Are children able to continue learning during school closures?

Promising practices for equitable remote learning: Emerging lessons from COVID-19 education responses in 127 countries

Guidelines for adapting the Foundational Learning Module to non-multiple indicator cluster household surveys

MICS – Education Analysis for Global Learning and Equity

A Future Stolen: Young and out-of-school

Fixing the Broken Promise of Education for All – Findings from the Global Initiative on Out-of-School Children

Suriname education fact sheets

UNICEF strategic plan country and regional education profiles

Lao PDR education country report

Notes on the Data

Definition of indicators.

Gender parity index – The ratio of female-to-male values of a given indicator. A GPI of 1 indicates parity between the sexes.

Literacy rate – Total number of literate persons in a given age group, expressed as a percentage of the total population in that age group. The adult literacy rate measures literacy among persons aged 15 years and older, and the youth literacy rate measures literacy among persons aged 15 to 24 years.

Out-of-school population – Total number of primary or lower secondary-school-age children who are not enrolled in primary (ISCED 1) or secondary (ISCED 2 and 3) education.

Pre-primary school gross enrolment ratio – Number of children enrolled in pre-primary school, regardless of age, expressed as a percentage of the total number of children of official pre-primary school age.

Primary school gross enrolment ratio – Number of children enrolled in primary school, regardless of age, expressed as a percentage of the total number of children of official primary school age.

Primary school net attendance ratio – Number of children attending primary or secondary school who are of official primary school age, expressed as a percentage of the total number of children of official primary school age. Because of the inclusion of primary-school-age children attending secondary school, this indicator can also be referred to as a primary adjusted net attendance ratio.

Primary school net enrolment ratio – Number of children enrolled in primary or secondary school who are of official primary school age, expressed as a percentage of the total number of children of official primary school age. Because of the inclusion of primary-school-age children enrolled in secondary school, this indicator can also be referred to as a primary adjusted net enrolment ratio.

Secondary school net attendance ratio – Number of children attending secondary or tertiary school who are of official secondary school age, expressed as a percentage of the total number of children of official secondary school age. Because of the inclusion of secondary-school-age children attending tertiary school, this indicator can also be referred to as a secondary adjusted net attendance ratio.

Secondary school net enrolment ratio – Number of children enrolled in secondary school who are of official secondary school age, expressed as a percentage of the total number of children of official secondary school age. Secondary net enrolment ratio does not include secondary-school-age children enrolled in tertiary education, owing to challenges in age reporting and recording at that level.

Survival rate to last primary grade – Percentage of children entering the first grade of primary school who eventually reach the last grade of primary school.

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• Learning and skills
• Remote learning and digital connectivity

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Education For All

Education is the basic building block of every society. It is the single best investment countries can make to build prosperous, healthy and equitable societies. Article 26 of the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that “Everyone has the right to education.” Today however, 57 million children remain out of school. Education is not only a right, but a passport to human development that opens doors and expands opportunities and freedoms. Sustainable Development Goal 4: Ensuring Inclusive, Equitable, and Quality Education and the Promotion of Lifelong Learning Opportunities for All , recognizes several impediments for universal education and attempts to address them through targets to increase the number of scholarships to students in developing nations and create educational facilities that are gender sensitive and disability inclusive.

Sustainable and shared economic development increasingly depends on the capacity of governments to implement policies targeted at marginalized groups and remove barriers to ongoing learning and entry into the labor market. Notwithstanding the significant achievements over the past decade, women and girls still have the least access to education and training, and specific policies are urgently needed to address these challenges.

Those who leave school at an early age are vulnerable to unemployment, poverty, early marriage, and pregnancy. Some of the factors that fuel drop-out rates include poverty, gender, disability, family catastrophes, war and conflict, as well as perceived low return on investment for education. Developing alternative learning opportunities that take into account these reasons for high drop-out rates are necessary to provide young people appropriate opportunities to consolidate their basic knowledge and competencies, and equip them with the relevant skills needed to obtain employment, become business owners and entrepreneurs or engage in other productive work.

Please review our SDG Hubs page and in particular the information related to our Hub for Goal 4: Quality Education.

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Education index.

Title English:  Education Index Definition English:  The Education Index is measured by the adult literacy rate (with two-thirds weighting) and the combined primary, secondary, and tertiary gross enrollment ratio (with one-third weighting). The adult literacy rate gives an indication of the ability to read and write, while the GER gives an indication of the level of education from kindergarten to postgraduate education. Title Arabic:  مؤشر التعليم Domain:  International Instruments Subject:  Corporate Names/Bodies InformationType:  Title SourceSymbol:  TD/B/58/4 Link:  Education Index

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of 19-year-olds

are still in primary school in Haiti due to late enrolment

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living in rural areas in low-income countries transition to lower secondary education compared to 91% of those in urban areas

of the poorest

poorest in sub-Saharan Africa complete lower secondary school compared to 70% of the richest

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Make 2024 a ‘turning point’ for education, UN deputy chief urges

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The UN Deputy Secretary-General on Thursday called for a transformation in learning, stressing that receiving a good education represents hope for all future generations.

Addressing a high-level education on education convened by the European Union (EU) in Brussels, Amina Mohammed paid tribute in particular to the children of Gaza , who have had no education for over six months, and where there have been  direct hits on 212 schools .

“Today, the light for Gaza and the children of Gaza, is out . We need a commitment to try to light that candle again for the children and the people of Gaza. Education is hope. Education is the future,” she said.

Building momentum

This year will see a series of meetings that will build on the  Transforming Education Summit convened by the UN in September 2022 in response to a global crisis in education, after more than 90 per cent of the world’s children lost access to the classroom during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In September this year, world leaders will gather to forge a new international consensus as part of the  Summit of the Future . 

 Ms. Mohammed called for two specific outcomes on education at the Summit. 

“First, we need a clear recognition from world leaders of the urgent need to transform and invest in education as a global imperative ,” she said.

“Second, we need major breakthroughs on issues that are critical for education, including reform of the international financial architecture, strengthened digital cooperation and a new agenda for peace .”

Education a human right

Without additional measures, an  estimated 84 million children and young people will still be denied access to the classroom by 2030, and approximately 300 million students will lack the basic – and vital – numeracy and literacy skills.

“Education is a fundamental human right. Investing in education is the greatest investment we can make in our common future , in peace, and sustainable development, and particularly in gender equality,” Ms. Mohammed stressed.

Contemporary education systems across the world are beset by challenges, including access, equity, relevance and digital inequality – which could leave billions of people behind, she added.

“I know that we can make 2024 a turning point for education. Let’s get to it.”

Spotlight on violence against women

During her visit to Brussels , the Deputy Secretary-General also chaired the Governing Body meeting of the  Spotlight Initiative , the world’s largest targeted effort to eliminate violence against women and girls.  

The UN initiative is in partnership with the (EU) and other stakeholders and responds to all forms of violence against women and girls . 

Its programmes across 30 countries and regions, focus on domestic and family violence, sexual and gender-based violence and rising rates of femicide, together with human trafficking. 

Since 2019, the initiative has resulted in more than 2.5 million women and girls accessing gender-based violence services , and two million men and boys have been educated on positive masculinity.

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Encyclopedia of Quality of Life and Well-Being Research pp 2013–2015 Cite as

Education Index

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Human Development Report (HDR)

The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) Education Index is published in the context of the Human Development Report (HDR), and it is one of the three components of the Human Development Index (HDI).

The new Education Index (since the 2010 HDR) is calculated as the simple geometric average of two indicators: mean years of schooling and the expected years of schooling (UNDP 2010 , 2011 ). Past versions of the Education Index differed from the current one in all three key issues: indicators, weights, and functional form (UNDP 2009 ).

Description

Since its introduction in the first HDR in 1990, the HDI has attracted great interest in policy and academic circles, as well as in the media and national audiences around the world (UNDP 1990 ). The HDI popularity can be attributed to the simplicity of its characterization of development – an average of achievements in health, education, and income – and to its underlying message that...

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Barro, R. J., & Lee J. W. (2010). A new data set of educational attainment in the world, 1950–2010 . NBER Working Paper, N° 15902.

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Durlauf, S., Johnson, P., & Temple, J. (2005). Growth econometrics. In P. Aghion & S. Durlauf (Eds.), Handbook of economic growth (pp. 555–677). Amsterdam: North Holland.

Klugman, J., Rodríguez, F., & Choi, H-J. (2011). The HDI 2010:New controversies , old critiques . Human Development Research Paper 2011/01.

UNDP. (1990). Human development report 1990. Concept and measurement of human development . New York: Oxford University Press.

UNDP. (2009). Human development report 2009. Overcoming barriers: Human mobility and development . New York: Palgrave Macmillan.

UNDP. (2010). Human development report 2010. The real wealth of nations: Pathways to human development . New York: Palgrave Macmillan.

UNDP. (2011). Human development report 2011. Sustainability and equity: A better future for all . New York: Palgrave Macmillan.

UNESCO Institute for Statistics. (2011). School-life expectancy . http://www.uis.unesco.org/i_pages/indspec/tecspe_sle.htm . Accessed 2 May 2012.

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Saisana, M. (2023). Education Index. In: Maggino, F. (eds) Encyclopedia of Quality of Life and Well-Being Research. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-17299-1_840

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The Education Index is measured by combining average years of schooling for adults with expected years of schooling for children, each receiving 50% weighting. The Education Index is a component of the Human Development Index .

Education index Source: United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Year: 2018

Why we need global minimum quality standards in EdTech

While EdTech tools have proliferated since the COVID-19 pandemic, we still lack a globally standardized way to measure their impact. Image:  REUTERS/Michael Kooren (NETHERLANDS - Tags: SOCIETY EDUCATION SCIENCE TECHNOLOGY)

.chakra .wef-1c7l3mo{-webkit-transition:all 0.15s ease-out;transition:all 0.15s ease-out;cursor:pointer;-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;outline:none;color:inherit;}.chakra .wef-1c7l3mo:hover,.chakra .wef-1c7l3mo[data-hover]{-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;}.chakra .wef-1c7l3mo:focus,.chakra .wef-1c7l3mo[data-focus]{box-shadow:0 0 0 3px rgba(168,203,251,0.5);} Natalia Kucirkova

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.chakra .wef-1nk5u5d{margin-top:16px;margin-bottom:16px;line-height:1.388;color:#2846F8;font-size:1.25rem;}@media screen and (min-width:56.5rem){.chakra .wef-1nk5u5d{font-size:1.125rem;}} Get involved with our crowdsourced digital platform to deliver impact at scale

Stay up to date:.

• The lack of universal monitoring standards for EdTech quality and impact hinders progress towards education for all.
• Ensuring that we meet the UN's Sustainable Development Goal 4 by 2030 requires clear minimum quality standards for EdTech.
• Policy-makers need to move toward a multidimensional impact measurement and management across the EdTech sector.

The UN’s Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 4 is a commitment to "ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all." It is a global imperative. Meeting SDG 4 will rely on scaling the impact of high-quality educational technology (EdTech) the world over.

However, a glance at the standards for impact assessments, such as the IRIS+ metrics catalogue or the Impact-weighted framework , reveals quality metrics tailored for social, environmental and financial impact only — the EdTech sector lacks universal monitoring standards for its quality and impact. Why, and what can be done about it?

EdTech investors rarely ask for measures of learning effects when making their investments. Instead, they favour EdTech solutions with large user bases, prioritizing profitability over educational efficacy. Global agencies, such as UNESCO, report that the industry's lack of accountability, characterized by scaling without evidence of positive impact, has resulted in the widespread distribution of low-quality products in schools.

After the COVID-19 pandemic and the widespread adoption of online learning, many national government committees, expert groups and reports have been tasked with addressing the question of digital education. Parents and educators require clarity on the best technology for their children, but without robust accountability frameworks, trust in governments’ approaches is elusive.

Meanwhile, the industry defines its own quality standards: numerous commercial and non-profit certifications, quality awards and badges are available, ranging from research-grounded ones like ESSA badges to pedagogical reviews such as ISTE , and even purely commercial options akin to pay-for-play schemes. Adopting these for national EdTech catalogues faces a significant hurdle: the lack of local evidence on the impact of specific solutions.

Much of the existing evidence stems from US-based platforms tailored to US student populations, lacking contextual fit elsewhere. Moreover, smaller startups struggle with the financial burden of rapid evaluation cycles, disadvantaging them against larger curriculum providers with robust infrastructure for data-driven impact insights. This dilemma complicates the balance between local innovation and the demand for rigorous impact standards and high-quality EdTech.

Have you read?

These 5 key trends will shape the EdTech market upto 2030

Why EdTech must prioritise research and innovation from the Global South

Opinion: edtech has not lived up to its promises — here's how to turn that around, multiple definitions of quality in edtech.

Globally, the EU has been at the forefront of technology regulations and harmonized systems, but an EU EdTech quality framework is yet to be formulated. Currently, states have varying understandings of quality even for the same hardware, resulting in diverse policies across EU member states. For example, as a precautionary step in the absence of positive evidence, many governments have implemented ad-hoc policies, such as banning entire hardware like phones and tablets from schools.

The lack of shared language on quality EdTech is not confined to EU states. Even within individual clearinghouses, different criteria are followed for evaluating the impact of various interventions, resulting in differing recommendations for what works in education. Furthermore, numerous evaluation frameworks exist: A systematic literature review has identified 65 academic and industry evaluation frameworks, each emphasizing different aspects of EdTech effectiveness and efficacy.

Fragmented global approaches to EdTech standards

The multitude of considerations in EdTech quality may explain the currently disparate efforts by global agencies. The World Bank prioritizes cost-effective scaling of EdTech interventions across borders, the OECD emphasizes the international efficacy of specific EdTech products tailored for distinct learning outcomes (e.g., reading) and UNESCO leads efforts on the ethics of emerging EdTech tools (e.g., Generative AI) modelled after European standards.

Measuring various aspects of impact allows for diverse methods and assessments, but at some stage, consolidation is necessary to systematize the overall impact. This critical moment is long overdue. To tackle the global issue of low EdTech quality, the current disjointed approaches must be consolidated into a unified EdTech quality framework.

To realize this ambitious goal, global agencies should form an inter-agency that launches with the formulation of clear minimum quality standards.

Minimum quality standards of EdTech

Consensus must be reached regarding the minimum quality standards expected of EdTech. For example, all countries agree that manipulative features and advertisements in Edtech products sold to schools are unacceptable. Or that establishing a basic logic model for how the technology generates impact and grounding it in published research is crucial. They agree that involving teachers in the process and ensuring the platform meets certain pedagogical criteria is essential. Moreover, EdTech should not harm the planet and must comply with GDPR and human rights regulations.

The minimum standards can be the first step towards the bigger vision here: a multidimensional index for measuring EdTech impact globally. Such an index should incorporate weighted indicators across multiple impact areas and be interoperable with existing global impact metrics , so that it can inform systemic changes on states-level.

Towards a multidimensional EdTech impact index

Considering the various ways in which technology influences education and learners, at least five areas of quality should be examined:

1. Efficacy: The product’s performance in controlled experiments.

2. Effectiveness: Performance in real classroom settings.

3. Ethics: Implementation with regard to data safety.

4. Equity: Beneficiaries, including marginalized groups.

5. Environment: Local and wider environmental impacts.

These “ 5Es of impact ” are mutually reinforcing. For instance, it is imperative that equity and ethics aspects are embedded into efficacy and effectiveness models from the outset, especially concerning the cost-effectiveness question when technology scales, because this contributes to sustainability and replication across multiple environments.

Mandating data measurement without the necessary infrastructure would be futile. Therefore, the inter-agency's role should prioritize mobilizing regulators and investors to establish accountability mechanisms that clearly define and prioritize each aspect of impact across the value chain, involving users, investors and founders. Impact creation should be driven by academia-industry partnerships that can generate accurate and verifiable measures of outcomes. These measures can then feed into interoperable databases, facilitating the establishment of research-based certifications and quality badging.

With incentives and infrastructure mechanisms in place to embed impact metrics into products, the EdTech sector can transition from minimum quality standards to desirable, even exceptionally positive, quality in terms of its impact on users. With clear minimum quality standards readily available to educators and parents, the EdTech sector can proactively address emerging risks and act on demands for quality. Crucially, EdTech can move away from improvised impact measures to the development of impactful technologies from the outset.

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The Education Index

The Education Index is a composite indicator of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP). The index is considered as one of the key indicators of social development and is used to calculate the Human Development Index, issued as part of a special series of United Nations reports on human development.

The index measures a country’s achievements in terms of the educational attainment of its population in two main indicators:

Adult literacy index (2/3 weight). Index of the cumulative share of students in primary, secondary and tertiary education (1/3 weight). These two measurements of educational attainment are summarized in the final Index, which is standardized as numerical values ​​from 0 (minimum) to 1 (maximum). It is generally accepted that developed countries should have a minimum score of 0.8, although many of them score 0.9 or higher. When determining the place in the world ranking, all countries are ranked based on the Index of Education Level (see below the ranking table by country), where the first place corresponds to the highest value of this indicator, and the last to the lowest.

The educational level index, although it is a fairly universal indicator, has a number of limitations. In particular, it does not reflect the quality of education itself, which in some cases can be very low or significantly limited. Also, it does not fully show the difference in the accessibility of education due to differences in age requirements and in the duration of study. Indicators such as the average length of schooling or the expected duration of education would be more representative, but the corresponding data are not available in the statistics of most countries. In addition, the Index does not take into account students studying abroad, which may distort the data for some small countries.

Literacy data for the world’s population comes from the official results of national censuses and is compared with estimates calculated by the UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Currently, the Index covers UN member states, as well as some administrative territories with a special status, while the ranking table often has a smaller number of states, since countries that are unwilling or unable to provide statistics on this indicator are not included in the ranking. For developed countries, which most often do not include the question of literacy in the population census questionnaires, the literacy rate is assumed to be 99%. Data on the number of citizens enrolled in educational institutions are accumulated by the UNESCO Institute for Statistics on the basis of information provided by the relevant government agencies around the world. The index is updated every two years, however, reports with UN data are usually one year late, as they require international comparison after the publication of data by national statistical offices.

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