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The World has Made Substantial Progress in Increasing Basic Levels of Education

The World has Made Substantial Progress in Increasing Basic Levels of Education

Access to education is now seen as a fundamental right – in many cases, it’s the government’s duty to provide it.

But formal education is a very recent phenomenon. In the chart, we see the share of the adult population – those older than 15 – that has received some basic education and those who haven’t.

In the early 1800s, fewer than 1 in 5 adults had some basic education. Education was a luxury; in all places, it was only available to a small elite.

But you can see that this share has grown dramatically, such that this ratio is now reversed. Less than 1 in 5 adults has not received any formal education.

This is reflected in literacy data, too: 200 years ago, very few could read and write. Now most adults have basic literacy skills.