Browsing by Author "Schwendeman, Jennifer"

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    Gender parity and the 'usual suspects' in South African education
    (2011) Schwendeman, Jennifer
    It has been shown that educating girls has powerful externalities, which, if scaled, can act as a catalyst for socioeconomic development. However, there are many gender inequality factors that prohibit girls from accessing and succeeding in educational pursuits. This report explores the South African example, looking specifically at the Cape Area Panel Study, to find whether these gender inequality factors are present and if so, what effect they are having on educational outcomes.
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    Gendered Educational Participation and Attainment in South Africa
    (2014) Schwendeman, Jennifer
    Across much of the developing world, and in sub-Saharan Africa in particular, there are large gender disparities in educational participation and achievement. Educating girls has powerful externalities, which, if scaled, can act as a catalyst for socioeconomic development. It is therefore important to understand the reasons for the widespread gender disparity in education. South Africa appears to be unusual in that it has successfully achieved gender parity in educational enrolment. This paper finds that South Africa's gender parity in enrolment is not as unique as it might seem. Whilst it is distinctive geographically, in comparison with most African countries, it is not so distinctive economically. Other middle-income countries in Africa and elsewhere tend also to have achieved gender parity in education. Over time, also, South Africa seems to be a typical middle income country in terms of its gender disparity in education. The paper also demonstrates that girls' success in terms of educational enrolment and attainment is matched by girls' superior test scores and record in grade progression.