Data Visualization

Blog of the Data Visualization & Communication Course at OSB-AUB

This is my favorite part about analytics: Taking boring flat data and bringing it to life through visualization” John Tukey

Children being out of school

Children being out of school

The top five nations in terms of the number of children who are not in school are India, Nigeria, China, Ethiopia, and Bangladesh. This ranking is based on a variety of criteria, including population size, educational infrastructure, economic situations, and social dynamics. Let’s quickly go through some of the factors that make these nations known for having large proportions of school-age children who are not attending:India: The number of children who are not in school is greatly increased by the size of the Indian population. Despite initiatives to increase access to education, issues including poverty, poor infrastructure, and cultural norms in some areas have hampered efforts to guarantee universal education.

Nigeria: Nigeria deals with issues including poverty and regional inequalities. Many kids are not attending school, especially in the country’s northern regions, due to issues including insecurity, cultural norms, resource scarcity, and poor educational infrastructure.

China: Despite significant improvements in educational access, China’s size implies that even a tiny percentage of out-of-school children can result in massive absolute numbers. The problem is exacerbated by economic differences between rural and urban areas, migration trends, and the difficulty of accessing high-quality education in remote places.

Ethiopia: Ethiopia has several socioeconomic issues that limit children’s possibilities for schooling. Particularly in rural and marginalized populations, poverty, poor infrastructure, conflicts, and cultural barriers might make it difficult to obtain education.

Bangladesh: Despite recent progress, Bangladesh still has challenges in ensuring that all children have access to education. The goal of universal education is challenged by issues including poverty, child labor, societal standards, gender inequities, and a lack of resources.

While these five nations are emphasized as having high rates of out-of-school youth, it’s crucial to keep in mind that several other nations all over the world deal with comparable challenges.

 

One striking aspect of this visualization is the gender disparity within the out-of-school population. The data reveals that 55.86% of these children are female, while the remaining 44.14% are male. This significant difference suggests that girls face additional barriers to accessing education, contributing to their higher representation in the out-of-school population.

 

The time aspect of the visualization is another important discovery. It suggests that 1971 stands out as a significant turning point, denoting the height of youngsters not attending school. This observation allows us to examine the progress made over the years in addressing this issue and implementing educational reforms.

Additionally, the graphic highlights a recurrent pattern where females had more children out of school than males throughout the course of the studied years. This pattern underlines the critical need for specific interventions and policies to overcome the ongoing gender disparities that prevent girls from achieving educational success. It is also significant to notice that, in addition to the gender gap, the data visualization also demonstrates the average number of “kids being out of school” has been progressively declining over time.

This result shows that, despite persistent gender inequities, attempts to address the problem of out-of-school children have had beneficial results. To advance toward attaining universal access to education, it emphasizes the significance of consistent investment in education and targeted activities meant to reach the most vulnerable groups, notably females.

By recognizing this declining trend in the average number of children out of school, we can acknowledge the impact of educational policies and interventions that have been implemented to improve access and reduce barriers to education. However, it is crucial to remain vigilant and address the underlying factors contributing to gender disparities and ensure that every child, regardless of their gender, has equal opportunities to receive a quality education.

To sum it up, while the visualization highlights a decreasing average number of children being out of school over the years, the persistence of gender disparities emphasizes the need for continued efforts to bridge the gap and provide equal educational opportunities for all children, ultimately fostering a more inclusive and equitable society.

Out Of School Children

Out Of School Children

Meet Denis Mukwege, medicine graduate, founder of the the Panzi Hospital in Bukavu, a 2018 Nobel prize winner for his effort “to end the use of sexual violence as a weapon of war and armed conflict.”

Now meet Thato Zungy,  a school dropout, grew up to face prison after being addicted to drugs and being involved with gangsters

Two different educational backgrounds, Two different paths, Two different influence on the society 

Due to the huge benefits that it brings to the individual development and the society as a whole, Education is a crucial matter that pushed UNICEF to declare a national emergency to deal with the shocking 80 million children dropping out of school without completing the basic schooling, despite the global efforts to promote primary education

The map below shows the top 40 countries with the highest average of Children out of school. As shown, 38 out of the 40 countries are in Africa, with Somalia recording the highest average of all (83.92)

Despite the efforts that some government make to promote primary education, some countries still witness a high average of dropouts from primary schooling. The bar chart shows the percentage of expenditure on primary education out of the government expenditure on education compared to the average children out of school. Haiti is among the top countries in Average Expenditure on primary education out of the government expenditure on education (64.9%), and still, its ranked 7th in the world with the highest average of drooped out(54.40%)

According to the UNICEF wars and disasters, discrimination based on gender, child marriage are factors that keep the children out of schools. Poverty is also considered a main barrier to education, where children are forced into employment at a very young age to accommodate the living demands. Going back to Somalia example, 43.5% of children aged 7-14 are working instead of being at school. Same with the Haiti example, despite the huge expenditure on primary education, 35.60% of children are in employment.

Solving this issue requires the collaboration of the government, schools and community

  • On a government level, increase the number of schools to avoid crowded classes and implement legislation that protects the right of education for every child. According to UNESCO and UNICEF new policies should focus on the most marginalized children to easy the access to education and improve its quality. This can be achieved by gathering information about the children, their addresses and if they attended school or are likely to do so.
  • On a community level, awareness should be spread especially among parents by showcasing the downside of dropping schools and its effect on the society
  • On a school level, Systemic Renewal must be adopted which is the continuous process of assessing goals and objectives associated to school policies, practices, and organizational structures as they have a direct impact on a wide group of learners.

Implementing those steps will have its reflection on the society by reducing the rate of crimes and violence and poverty, economic growth, and equality among genders as well as inspiring good health.

Children Out of School: Some Insights

Children Out of School: Some Insights

According to UNESCO, about 258 million children and youth are out of school for the school year ending in 2018. The total includes 59 million children of primary school age, 62 million of lower secondary school age and 138 million of upper secondary age. This is a major humanitarian challenge that all countries have united to address by anchoring it within SDG number 4: Quality Education.

Every Child deserves the opportunity to learn. In this Dashboard, we tried to show visualizations that highlight the reality behind Children Out Of School.

Poverty is a barrier that keeps children out of schools.

The gap between males and females attending schools was equal to 14% in 1970 and decreased to reach 2% in 2018. For girls in some part of this world, education chances are still restricted.

Data Source: World Bank Data