E DUCATIONAL A TTAINMENT AND L ITERACY

Tables 5.2.1 and 5.2.2 present a detailed distribution of educational attainment among Cambodian women and men, according to background characteristics. The general pattern evident in Table 5.2.1 indicates a decrease in the proportion of women with no schooling from the oldest to the youngest cohorts.

Men, with the exception of those in the 40-44 age group, exhibit the same pattern (Table 5.2.2). The data presented in Tables 5.2.1 and 5.2.2 provide evidence of an increase in educational attainment among the youngest age cohort. For example, 68 percent of women age 15-19 have attended secondary school, as compared with only 58 percent of women age 20-24. A similar trend is seen in young men, with 66 percent of those age 15-19 and 62 percent of those age 20-24 having attended some secondary school.

Table 5.2.1 Educational attainment: Women

Percent distribution of women age 15-49 by highest level of schooling attended or completed, and median years completed, according to background characteristics, Cambodia 2014 Battambang/Pailin 10.0 35.1 7.9 36.6 5.1 5.3 100.0 5.6 1,333 Kampot/Kep 8.5 39.9 7.4 37.3 3.9 3.0 100.0 5.2 770 Preah Sihanouk/Koh Kong 9.6 38.8 9.6 32.3 4.0 5.6 100.0 5.2 422 Preah Vihear/Stung Treng 23.7 45.1 7.1 19.7 2.2 2.1 100.0 2.8 462 Mondul Kiri/Ratanak Kiri 34.5 32.9 6.0 23.8 1.4 1.3 100.0 2.3 372

1 Completed 6th grade at the primary level

2 Completed 12th grade at the secondary level

Urban women have higher levels of education than rural women. Almost two-thirds of urban women have attended at least some secondary school, as compared with only about one-third of rural women. Tables 5.2.1 and 5.2.2 show great variation in education across provinces. Mondul Kiri/Ratanak Kiri has an exceptionally low level of educational attainment among women (35 percent of women having no formal education) whereas Siem Reap has the lowest level among men (21 percent of men having no formal education). By contrast, only 4 percent of women and less than 1 percent of men in Phnom Penh have no schooling. Median number of years of education completed is highest in Phnom Penh (7.6 for women and 9.9 for men).

50 • Respondent Characteristics

Educational attainment rises dramatically with wealth quintile. Twenty-eight percent of women in the lowest quintile have no formal education, as compared with 4 percent of women in the highest wealth quintile. The percentage of women who have attended some secondary school increases from 15 percent in the lowest wealth quintile to 67 percent in the highest. The pattern of variation in educational attainment by wealth among men is similar to that among women.

Table 5.2.2 Educational attainment: Men

Percent distribution of men age 15-49 by highest level of schooling attended or completed, and median years completed, according to background characteristics, Cambodia 2014 Battambang/Pailin 2.3 29.9 9.0 46.3 5.7 6.8 100.0 6.7 405 Kampot/Kep 6.1 33.9 8.0 40.6 8.7 2.7 100.0 6.1 241 Preah Sihanouk/Koh Kong 4.7 29.0 8.1 39.5 8.2 10.5 100.0 6.7 120 Preah Vihear/Stung Treng 11.7 53.1 0.8 26.6 1.5 6.4 100.0 3.7 112 Mondul Kiri/Ratanak Kiri 16.4 36.9 6.3 30.8 3.9 5.7 100.0 4.6 134 Highest 0.6 11.1 4.3 46.3 12.5 25.2 100.0 9.2 1,171 Total 6.2 33.6 8.1 38.3 6.1 7.6 100.0 6.0 5,190

1 Completed 6th grade at the primary level

2 Completed 12th grade at the secondary level

The 2014 CDHS assessed literacy levels among respondents who had never been to school or who had attended only primary school by asking them to read all or part of a sentence in whatever language they chose. Those with at least some secondary education were assumed to be literate. Literacy results are shown in Tables 5.3.1 and 5.3.2.

Table 5.3.1 shows that 76 percent of women are literate, and Table 5.3.2 shows that 84 percent of men are literate. For women, those in the younger age groups are more likely to be literate than those in the older age groups. Literacy increases from 62 percent among women age 45-49 to 90 percent among women age 15-19. For men the negative relationship between literacy and age is less evident. The percentage of men who are literate is highest at age group 15-19 (89 percent). It decreases gradually to 76 percent among those age 35-39; then it reverses its pattern and is 83 percent among men age 40-49.

Table 5.3.1 Literacy: Women

Percent distribution of women age 15-49 by level of schooling attended and level of literacy, and percentage literate, according to background characteristics, Cambodia 2014

Secondary school or

higher

No schooling or primary school

Total Percentage

1 Refers to women who attended secondary school or higher and women who can read a whole sentence or part of a sentence

Ninety-one percent of women residing in urban areas are literate, as compared with 73 percent of their rural counterparts. Similarly, urban men show higher rates of literacy than rural men (95 percent and 82 percent, respectively). Differences in literacy across provinces are marked, with the highest literacy rate among women in Phnom Penh (91 percent) and the lowest among women in Mondul Kiri/Ratanak Kiri (53 percent). Among men, literacy is also highest in Phnom Penh (96 percent) and lowest in Preah Vihear/Stung Treng (76 percent). Literacy levels increase along with wealth status among both women and men. For example, literacy levels increase from 55 percent among women in the lowest wealth quintile to 93 percent among women in the highest wealth quintile and from 67 percent among men in the lowest wealth quintile to 98 percent among men in the highest wealth quintile.

Women’s overall literacy rate has continued to increase since the 2000 CDHS (67 percent in 2000 versus 69 percent in 2005, 74 percent in 2010, and 76 percent in 2014). The difference in the literacy rates among Cambodian men between 2010 (83 percent) and 2014 (84 percent) is very minimal.

52 • Respondent Characteristics Table 5.3.2 Literacy: Men

Percent distribution of men age 15-49 by level of schooling attended and level of literacy, and percentage literate, according to background characteristics, Cambodia 2014

Secondary school or

higher

No schooling or primary school

Total Percentage

1 Refers to men who attended secondary school or higher and men who can read a whole sentence or part of a sentence