Global Education Monitoring (GEM) Report
Context: According to UNESCO's Global Education Monitoring (GEM) Report, women constitute only 35% of STEM graduates worldwide—a figure that has remained stagnant over the past decade.
Important Pointers:
GEM Report: It is an annual report published by UNESCO to monitor progress on SDG 4 (Quality Education).
Publisher: The report is published by UNESCO.
Purpose: It tracks global education trends and provides policy recommendations.
Observations:
Leaders as Agents of Change: Education leadership involves influencing collective efforts toward equity, quality, and inclusion in learning.
Role of Education Leaders: Leaders must define purpose, plan for change, and balance outcomes with inclusive goals.
Lack of Funding: 4 in 10 countries allocate less than 4% of GDP to education, below global standards.
Out-of-School Children: 251 million youth are out of school globally, with only a 1% drop since 2015.
Access to Education in South Asia: While progress is seen, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan still have the largest out-of-school populations.
Recommendations:
Leadership Development: School principals should be empowered with autonomy for effective school management.
System Leadership Capacity: Education officials need training to act as transformative system leaders.
Climate Change Education: Environmental education should begin early and span subjects beyond science.