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New methods for comparing literacy across populations : insights from the measurement of poverty

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  • Kevin Denny

Abstract

This paper analyses levels of low literacy across twelve countries using the International Adult Literacy Survey. We go beyond existing work that only looks at the proportions below certain critical levels of literacy. Using methods developed for the measurement of poverty we calculate measures of literacy that are sensitive to the distribution of literacy within those defined as illiterate. This reveals a different pattern of the extent of literacy problems across countries and within some populations. These measures should be useful to policy makers who need to allocate resources to alleviate low literacy and numeracy.

Suggested Citation

  • Kevin Denny, 2000. "New methods for comparing literacy across populations : insights from the measurement of poverty," Working Papers 200007, School of Economics, University College Dublin.
    • Handle: RePEc:ucn:wpaper:200007
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    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10197/919
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    Cited by:

    1. Giorgina Brown & John Micklewright & Sylke V. Schnepf & Robert Waldmann, 2007. "International surveys of educational achievement: how robust are the findings?," Journal of the Royal Statistical Society Series A, Royal Statistical Society, vol. 170(3), pages 623-646, July.
    2. Tommaso Agasisti & Sergio Longobardi & Vincenzo Prete & Felice Russo, 2018. "Multidimensional poverty measures for analysing educational poverty in European countries," Working papers 73, Società Italiana di Economia Pubblica.
    3. Juan-Francisco Sánchez-García & María-del-Carmen Sánchez-Antón & Rosa Badillo-Amador & María-del-Carmen Marco-Gil & Juan-Vicente LLinares-Ciscar & Susana Álvarez-Díez, 2019. "A New Extension of Bourguignon and Chakravarty Index to Measure Educational Poverty and Its Application to the OECD Countries," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 145(2), pages 479-501, September.
    4. Hati, Koushik Kumar, 2012. "Can Poverty be Educated Out?," MPRA Paper 57374, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    5. Rolf Aaberge & Andrea Brandolini, 2014. "Multidimensional poverty and inequality," Discussion Papers 792, Statistics Norway, Research Department.
    6. Agasisti, Tommaso & Longobardi, Sergio & Prete, Vincenzo & Russo, Felice, 2021. "The relevance of educational poverty in Europe: Determinants and remedies," Journal of Policy Modeling, Elsevier, vol. 43(3), pages 692-709.
    7. Brown, Giorgina & Micklewright, John & Schnepf, Sylke V. & Waldmann, Robert, 2005. "Cross-National Surveys of Learning Achievement: How Robust are the Findings?," IZA Discussion Papers 1652, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    8. María-del-Carmen Sánchez-Antón & Rosa Badillo-Amador & María-del-Carmen Marco-Gil & Juan-Vicente LLinares-Ciscar & Susana Álvarez-Díez & Juan-Francisco Sánchez-García, 2022. "Analysis of the Educational Poverty in Spain by Subjects, Regions and Gender," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 162(2), pages 829-861, July.
    9. Azevedo,Joao Pedro Wagner De, 2020. "Learning Poverty : Measures and Simulations," Policy Research Working Paper Series 9446, The World Bank.
    10. Micklewright, John & Schnepf, Sylke V., 2006. "Inequality of Learning in Industrialised Countries," IZA Discussion Papers 2517, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    11. James Foster & Joel Greer & Erik Thorbecke, 2010. "The Foster–Greer–Thorbecke (FGT) poverty measures: 25 years later," The Journal of Economic Inequality, Springer;Society for the Study of Economic Inequality, vol. 8(4), pages 491-524, December.
    12. James E. Foster & Joel Greer & Erik Thorbecke, 2010. "The Foster-Greer-Thorbecke (FGT) Poverty Measures: Twenty-Five Years Later," Working Papers 2010-14, The George Washington University, Institute for International Economic Policy.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Literacy; Numeracy; Poverty; Education policy; Literacy; Education and state; Poverty;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I31 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - General Welfare, Well-Being

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