Bringing Girls Back to School
BY
April 6, 2021
This joint post has been produced by speakers following a conversation organized by WISE on the occasion of the International Day of Women, on the consequences of the pandemic on girls’ and women’s education. The following summarizes their contributions and highlights recommendations.
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he returns to schooling are especially high for women. That is, the earnings increment associated with more education is in fact higher for women than for men. One additional year of schooling and women’s wages go up 12% (compared with 10% for men).
However, the schooling gains of girls and women are under threat. Prior to the COVID-19-induced school closures, girls were staying in school longer and learning more than at any other time. The longstanding disadvantage for girls in terms of enrollment had been declining. In some cases, this led to a “reverse gap” where girls outperform boys in both enrollment rates and learning outcomes