Israel’s Literacy Rate Among Lowest of Highly Developed Nations

While there is plenty for Israel to be proud of in terms of its education, it lags in literacy rate behind most of the other nations in the world considered to be “highly developed.” Israel’s literacy rate was most recently estimated to be approximately 97 percent, which would be good for a tie for 78^th in world rankings with countries such as American Samoa, Northern Mariana Island, Montserrat, and the islands of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha, and just above Albania and Aruba.

This doesn’t exactly put Israel in elite company. This map highlights literacy rates around the world in a color-coded fashion that’s easy to read and understand. Red is the highest literacy rates, and the lighter the orange and yellow, the lower the literacy rates. The lowest rates are represented in green, with dark green being the lowest.

As the map demonstrates, most highly demonstrated countries rank above 98.5 percent, with a couple exceptions here and there (notably Spain and China). Clearly there is a lot of work to be done in Israel. There are some statistics for Israel to be proud of in terms of its education. Six of the country’s universities rank in Asia’s top 100 schools, with four ranking in the world’s top 150, according to rankings by the Shanghai Jiao Tong University Academic Ranking of World Universities. Israeli universities are also highly ranked for science and engineering-related subjects, as well as social sciences. However, while collegiate level academics are doing well in Israel, there are plenty of problems in the elementary and secondary levels of schooling. Part of that comes in a lack of national funding for education. Israel spends less on each student than do countries like Mexico and Norway. Israel also ranked 33^rd out of 65 countries in reading achievement and 40^th in math and science on recent Pisa examinations. Part of Curt Landry Ministries’ commitment to Israel with our safe house ministry is ensuring that children throughout the nation have a safe space where they can live, learn and grow in their education. Without your support, these safe houses would not be possible. Contact us today for more information about the effects of our safe houses and how you can contribute. RESOURCE: http://world.bymap.org/LiteracyRates.html