Lesson 3 - Page 2 - How does education affect fertility rates in different places?

The education of women plays a significant role in the issue of population growth. Many studies have found a significant correlation between education and fertility - as literacy improves, fertility rates tend to decrease (Figure 2). Other studies show that fertility rates tend to be lower in countries where women have access to decent jobs, good health care, and family planning resources - all attributes of economic development.

Figure 2. Women's education and family size in selected countries, 1990s (Population Reference Bureau 2001).

There can be large disparities in fertility and literacy rates between the developed and developing regions of the world (Figures 3 and 4). Although overall access to basic education has been on the rise in many developing countries, the poor are still less likely to have access to education. In many countries, most children from the poorest households have no schooling. While the "gender gap" in education has narrowed over the last decade, many inequities remain in developing regions such as South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa, where nearly one-third of women lack any formal education compared to 18 percent of men in the year 2000 (Population Reference Bureau 2003). In contrast, the literacy rates for men and women in Italy are 98% and 96%, respectively. More women between the ages of 20 and 25 pursue degrees than men. Additionally, there are more women than men in Italy's workforce. In 2003, Italy's total fertility rate stood at 1.26 (CIA World Factbook 2003).

Figure 3. A comparison of female literacy and fertility in developing countries. Source: UNFPA 2003

Figure 4. A global comparison of female literacy rates and total fertility rates. Source: Population Reference Bureau 2003

Geographers studying population in less developed countries have discovered evidence of the influence of social, cultural and economic factors on fertility rates. Kalipeni (1995), for example, found that many Africans are not yet choosing to have smaller families because they view children as an essential connection betwen the past and the future. Because of high infant mortality, parents have many children in hopes of raising a few to maturity.

In many rural and urban areas of less developed countries, child labor is essential for supporting the household and the farms. Furthermore, in countries that have no pension plans and retirement incomes, parents see children as their only source of economic security. A World Bank study in 1984 revealed that over 80% of the surveyed parents in India and Thailand expected to be supported in their old age by children. Almost 20 years later, this expectation has not changed.

Let's compare two stories to see how some families in different countries are coping with family planning decisions. The first story is about a rural family in Africa:

Mary, a Kenyan farmer, has just had her third son. The father of Mary's children works in a distant city and visits the family only several weeks a year. He supports himself with his earnings and buys occasional nonessentials for the family. Mary tells an interviewer that three children are enough for happiness and so today, at age 29, she is having surgery that will prevent conception. She owns only one cow and a small piece of land that can't be further divided, so all she can provide for her children is an education. Mary says that she can afford to educate only three children.

Such attitudes are spreading in Kenya, where food, health care, and jobs are in short supply. Mary plans to augment her farm income by starting a sanitary pit toilet business. She has applied for a small loan (U.S. $150) for this purpose. The success of her business could mean that her children will become well educated and that she herself will gain prestige. If Mary accomplishes her goals, she could become a role model for other women seeking to limit their families so that they become sel-sufficient owners of small businesses.

Adapted from Jeffrey Goldberg, The New York Times Magazine, March 2, 1997: 39; and World resources, 1996-1997 (New York: Oxford University Press, 1996). In Pulsipher & Pulsipher (2002)

The second story is about a rural family in Brazil:

Jair is a fazendero, known in Brazil as the owner of a ranching system. As southern agriculturalists or gauchos, Jair, his wife Marilena and their three children came to Uberlandia and the Triangulo Mineiro in the state of Minas Gerais, migrating from Rio Grande do Sul. They found land that were able to rent and eventually buy, after five years of intensive work to create pasture areas. However, they started to shift to sugarcane and soybean production in their 350 hectares due to special incentives offered by the state government. This change brought about more work and economic development. They eventually had two more children during those good years.

Jair and Marilena learned about family planning through local agencies, but did not pay too much attention to contraceptive methods as the majority of couples in this rural area. Both of them believe that life should be fully enjoyed and no restrictions must obscure this sentiment. They say, children are God's blessing. Besides, they add, our children will look after us once we get very old.

(Adapted from Osvaldo A. Muniz, Rural Electrification and Innovation of Electrical Equipment in Minas Gerais, Brazil. Report submitted to the World Bank. 1992

Collaborative Learning Activity 3.1 - How does the education of women affect population growth in India?

In the next activity, your team will take a closer look at relationships between literacy and fertility in different parts of India, the second most populous country in the world and one where literacy and fertility rates vary considerably. Your team will create graphs to analyze relationships between population density, growth rates, and literacy rates.

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