Inexcusable absence: why 60 million girls still aren't in school and what to do about it

Nearly three-quarters of girls who do not go to school come from excluded groups – minority language, cultural or religious groups, or communities in rural or remote areas. Through an analysis of international data and an extensive review of empirical studies, this book identifies the range of factors that either increase or decrease the likelihood of girls being out of school, and assesses the evidence from around the world on effective strategies to increase successful participation of girls in education. Throughout, it highlights the ways in which gender inequality intersects with different types of exclusion to exacerbate disadvantage.

Recognising the need to consider the cultural and other contexts, it identifies the following initiatives that have proven effective in improving girls’ participation in and outcomes from education:

• locally available schools, possibly through the creation of community schools
• non-formal schools or distance education to reach children who have missed out on schooling
• effective bilingual programmes where students do not speak the main language of instruction
• preschools for underserved children
• compensatory in-school programmes
• materials and teacher training for transitioning into a national language in upper-primary grades
• outreach to engage parents and communities in the oversight of schools, and engaging parents in establishing a supportive environment for learning
• transportation and busing, ensuring that parents feel that their daughters will be safe in the journey to and from school
• conditional cash transfers to households to defray the costs of sending their children to school, scholarships and school feeding programmes

It also observes that separate schools for minority ethnic or cultural groups, or for girls, have tended not to work in many countries because these schools suffer from poor quality.

The report offers suggestions for donors on how they might most effectively support developing countries to implement such initiatives, such as:

• establishing a trust fund for multilateral programmes targeted at excluded girls that supports experimentation, innovative programmes, alternative schooling options, and the basic inputs for effective schools
• expanding the knowledge base about what works to improve the school participation and achievement of excluded girls through a girls’ education evaluation fund, as well as funding monitoring and evaluation
• creating demand by financing the compensatory costs associated with reaching excluded children; promoting outreach programmes for parents; building partnerships for conditional cash transfers; and providing school meals, scholarships for girls, and school stipend programmes for books and supplies