The World Bank estimates that 150 million children aged 6 to 11 worldwide are not in school. And in most of the world, only three out of four children who begin primary school are still there four years later. Millions of children who do attend school are languishing in settings where little learning is taking place, crowded into dimly lit classrooms with no chalkboard or books or pencils. In many countries, teachers are responsible for an unmanageable number of students. Many teachers spend the entire day at the front of the room dictating lessons, with little or no participation by students.
Teachers transmit facts and information that seems largely irrelevant to the children's lives.
And teaching materials in many instances reinforce stereotypes about girls and minority groups, compounding rather than helping to bridge divides in the community. Schools and school infrastructure are woefully underfinanced. Teachers' salaries worldwide continue to stagnate or in some instances are eroding. In some African countries, primary school teachers often receive less than half the amount of the household poverty line. The Growing Importance of Education Clearly education systems all over the world fail to guide and teach the world's children.