10 barriers to education faced by children living in poverty (2023)

Why world citizens should care

Education is a basic human right. But many children still don't have a chance to learn, especially if they live in poverty or if they are girls. You can join us to take action on this matter.Here.

Children living in poverty face many obstacles in accessing education. Some are obvious, like not going to school, while others are more subtle. Like the school teacher who didn't have the training to help children study effectively.

This can be improved through better access to educationhealth and longevity of a society,economies grow, it is includedcombat climate change. However, in many developing countries, a number of factors can limit children's access to education. Language barriers, gender roles and reliance on child labor can hamper progress in providing quality education. The world's most vulnerable children from disadvantaged communities are more likely to be out of school. This includes girls and boys with disabilities,

Here are 10 of the biggest global learning challenges the world needs to take action on now.world goal: Quality education for 2030.

1. Lack of funding for education

Girls walk to a UNRWA school in Gaza City on August 29, 2018 on the first day of the school year. Hundreds of thousands of Palestinian children are starting their school year in Gaza amid a major budgetary crisis for the UN agency that funds many schools.
Girls walk to a UNRWA school in Gaza City on August 29, 2018 on the first day of the school year. Hundreds of thousands of Palestinian children are starting their school year in Gaza amid a major budgetary crisis for the UN agency that funds many schools.
Image: Felipe Dana/AP

Developing countries cannot rely solely on their own funding for education; More outside help is also needed.

Only 20% of educational aid goes to low-income countries,in accordance withthe Global Partnership for Education (GEA). But it costs an average of $1.25 per day per child in developing countries to provide 13 years of education.

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If every developing country invested just 15 cents more per child, it could make a difference. There is currently a $39 billion gap to provide quality education for all children by 2030. GPEto promoteDeveloping countries contribute 20% of their national budget to education and spend 45% on primary education.

2. Have no teacher or have an untrained teacher

Teacher effectiveness was found to be the most important predictor of student learning. GPE is determined to address the current global teacher crisis.

There are not enough teachers to achieve universal primary or secondary education. And many of the teachers currently working are untrained. As a result, children do not receive proper education. There are 130 million children in school who are not learning basic skills such as reading, writing and arithmetic.

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The UN appreciates this worldwide69 million new teachersare needed to achieve universal primary and secondary education by 2030. To provide all children with primary education, 25.8 million teachershave to be recruitedIn one in three countries, less than three quarters of teachers are now trained to national standards.

3. No classroom

The students try to draw the teacher's attention to a question in Sudanese.
The students try to draw the teacher's attention to a question in Sudanese. The girls sit outside in the sweltering heat after their classroom, made of local materials, collapsed in a recent storm.
Bild: Kelley Lynch/GPE

Without the right environment, a child cannot learn. In many sub-Saharan African countries, children are often crammed into overcrowded classrooms, crumbling classrooms, or studying outdoors. They also lack textbooks, school supplies, and other tools they need to excel.

In Malawi, for example, there are an average of 130 children per class in first grade. The problem is not only the lack of classrooms, but also of all the basic facilities one would expect from a school, such as running water and toilets.

For more information, see:Nigeria says it has the most out-of-school children in the world

In Chad, only one in seven schools has drinking water and only one in four has a toilet; Also, only a third of the existing toilets are only for girls, which is a real drag and obstacle for girls to go to school.

When girls do not have access to safe toilets, they are often harassed or attacked when trying to find private accommodation. Girls also miss school or drop out of school when their menses start if they don't have sanitation or hygiene items to manage their periods with pride and dignity.

4. Lack of educational materials

Outdated and worn textbooks are often shared among six or more students in many parts of the world. In Tanzania, for example, only 3.5% of all sixth graders used a textbook exclusively. In Cameroon, in second grade, there are 11 elementary school students for every textbook and 13 for every math book. Workbooks, worksheets, readers, and other basic materials to help students learn their lessons are scarce. Teachers also need materials to help them prepare their classes, share them with their students, and guide their classes.

For more information, see:Half of all refugee children do not go to school: why this is a big problem

5. The exclusion of children with disabilities

Visually impaired student reads Braille in Rio de Janeiro, Friday, September 2, 2016.
Visually impaired student reads Braille in Rio de Janeiro, Friday, September 2, 2016.
Bild: Silvia Izquierdo/AP

Although education is a universal human right, denial of access to school is common for the world's population.93 to 150 million childrenwith disabilities In some of the poorest countries in the worldup to 95%of children with disabilities do not go to school.

Students with disabilities have lower attendance rates and arefurtherLikelihood of not attending school or dropping out before completing elementary school. You will be suspended or expelled against payment of a feemore than doublethe rate of their non-specialist peers.

A combination of discrimination, a lack of teacher training in inclusive teaching practices and a lack of accessible schools make this group particularly vulnerable to being denied their right to an education.

For more information, see:72 policies for students with disabilities have been repealed by the US Department of Education.

6. Being the "wrong" gender

A Pakistani girl lines up with boys for the morning assembly where they sing the national anthem at a school in Islamabad, Pakistan October 11, 2013. In Pakistan, the Taliban prevent more than 25 million children from going to school.
A Pakistani girl lines up with boys for the morning assembly where they sing the national anthem at a school in Islamabad, Pakistan October 11, 2013. In Pakistan, the Taliban prevent more than 25 million children from going to school.
Image: Anja Niedringhaus/AP

Simply put, gender is one of the main reasons children don't get an education. Despite recent advances in girls' education, a generation of young women has been left behind. More than 130 million young women around the worldare notcurrently enrolled in the school. One in three girls in the developing worldhouse sebefore the age of 18 and usually drop out of school when they do.

For more information, see:Leaders warn girls' lack of education will lead to 'disasters'

Keeping girls in school benefits them and their families, but poverty forces many families to choose which of their children to send to school. Girls are often left out because they believe that raising a girl is less worth raising than a boy. Instead, they are sent to workforced to marry, or forced to stay at home to look after siblings and do household chores. Girls also miss school days every year or are embarrassed to attend classes because they do not have proper menstrual hygiene education or sanitation facilities in school to control menstruation.

7. Living in a conflict or conflict-prone country

First graders attend a secret school in besieged Eastern Ghouta in rural Damascus in the Syrian Arab Republic.
First graders attend a secret school in besieged Eastern Ghouta in rural Damascus in the Syrian Arab Republic. Here, children work together at desks while colorful paintings and cartoons adorn the walls.
Bild: Amer Al Shami/UNICEF

In every war there are heavy casualties and education systems are often destroyed. Children exposed to violence are at higher risk of school failure and dropping out. The impact of the conflict should not be underestimated. Almost 250 million childrenyou livein conflict-affected countries. There are more than 75 million children and young people between the ages of 3 and 18at the momenturgently needed educational support in 35 crisis-affected countries, with girls in conflict zones 90% more likely to drop out of secondary school than elsewhere.

For more information, see:UN: Nearly a billion children will be out of work if educational aid remains stable

Teachers and students often flee their homes during conflicts and the continuity of learning is severely affected. A total of 75 million childrenThey had interrupted their educationpunctuated by conflicts or crises, including natural disasters that destroy schools and the surrounding area. Less than half of all refugee children worldwide attend school,in accordance withto the UN refugee agency. It is worrying that education has been a very low priority in humanitarian aid to conflict-affected countriesslightly lessMore than 3% of global humanitarian aid went to education in 2016.

Without support, conflict-affected children miss opportunities to reach their full potential and rebuild their communities.

8. Distance from home to school

Two girls return home after visiting a makeshift learning center set up at a local mosque in Srinagar, Indian-controlled Kashmir, October 20, 2016.
Two girls return home after visiting a makeshift learning center set up at a local mosque in Srinagar, Indian-controlled Kashmir, October 20, 2016.
Image: Dar Yasin/AP

For many children around the world, the journey to school takes up to three hours in each directionit's not weird. This is too much for many children, especially those who are living with disabilities, are malnourished, ill, or have to work from home. Imagine having to go to school at 5am every day hungry only to come back at 7pm. Many children, especially girls, are also exposed to violence on their long and dangerous journeys to school.

9. Hunger and Malnutrition

The impact of famine on education systems is grossly underestimated. Being severely malnourished to the point of impairing brain development can mean missing four years of school. It is estimated that around 155 million children under the age of five are affectedestimatedbeDwarf. Stunting, poor growth, and poor development that children experience due to poor infection and insufficient stimulation can affect a child's cognitive abilities, as well as their focus and concentration in school. As a result, stunted children are 19%least likelyable to read by the age of eight. On the other hand, good nutrition can be a crucial preparation for good learning.

For more information, see:Worst places for education around the world

10. Education Expenses

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights makes it clear that every child has the right to free primary education, so that poverty and lack of money are not an obstacle to schooling. In many developing countries, governments have announced the abolition of school fees in recent decades and as a result have seen an impressive increase in the number of children attending school.

For more information, see:Bloomberg just donated $1.8 billion to help low-income students pay for college

But for many of the poorest families, school is still too expensive and children are forced to stay at home and do chores or work alone. Families remain trapped in a generational cycle of poverty. In many African countries, education is theoretically free. In practice, “informal fees” force parents to pay for “mandatory items” such as uniforms, books, pens, tutoring, exam fees, or school building support funds. Elsewhere, the lack of functioning public (government-funded) schools means that parents have no choice but to send their children to private schools. Although these schools are "inexpensive," they are unaffordable for the poorest families, who risk being left destitute in their efforts to improve their children's lives through education.

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