SPECIAL ARTICLES_Literacy in India and China.pdf

SPECIAL ARTICLE S Literacy in India and China Jean Dreze Jackie Loh This paper examines recent census-based evidence on literacy achievements in China and India. China is found to he far ahead of India in the field of basic education. In particular, China is close to the elimination of illiteracy in the younger age groups, while India is nowhere near achieving that goal Educational disparities follow similar patterns in both countries, but tend to be sharper in India. Chinas lead in basic education was established during the pre-reform period, based on a strong commitment to the widespread and equitable provision of schooling facilities at an early stage of development. This contrast in educational achievements in China and India is crucial in assessing their respective development experiences and reform programmes. Introduction feature of China s development experience , on the part of respondents to overstate or jus t a s the persistence o f widesprea d understate their literacy status . Second, COMPARISON S between India and China illiteracy i s one o f India s most serious investigators may have their own reasons to have often been made in the development social failures . In this paper, w