How Activism Will Enforce Girls' Education Worldwide, Which Will Reduce The Total Human Population

Of the 796 million people who are illiterate around the world, girls consist of an alarming two thirds of that population. Over the course of history women have been subjected to substandard conditions, stripping them of socio-economic freedoms. The crisis associated with the rising population is primarily attributable to a lack of educational opportunities available to women, thus an initiative to adequately educate all women would decrease the total human population. Investing in girls' education is the most valuable course of action to reduce the total human population as educated women are frequently childless, desire no children at all, and educated women maintain lower fertility rates than uneducated women; through activism supporters of women's rights would urge countries to prioritizes girls education as it combats the pressing issue of human population growth. 

Educated women postpone childbearing until they reach the age where they become infertile. The anatomy of a female entails that peak fertile years span between late teenage years to late twenties. From thirty years and onward fertility decreases, and eventually fertility becomes highly unlikely. Fortunately, research reveals that educated women prefer to begin childbearing in their thirties. A survey by Pew Research Center in the United States displays that 54% of women with a masters degree or higher wait until they have completed their twenties to have a child. Contrarily, the data exhibits that 79% of women who have not attended college have their first child before the juvenile age of 25. Higher education for women is only possible if conditions for them are improved. 

Further, it is unequivocally evident that women who have received a formal education have a lower total fertility rate than women that have not received such education. According to Unicef, a humanitarian centered organization, education is vital especially for girls as it ultimately results in a far more conducive lifestyle for them. Educated women often desire very few or no children at all, as reported by the Pew Research Center. Experts report, “among mothers, those with more education have fewer children than those with less education” (Pew Research Center 2015). As data demonstrates, 23% of women with a masters degree have only one child, 20% have 2 to 3 children, 8% have four or more children, and 49% have no children at all. 

Educated women are generally career oriented people with an understanding of the economy. In the United States 45% of educated women prefer to have no children at all, in order to pursue industrial related endeavors without the financial burden of raising a child. Of the educated women in the US 48.5% obtain law degrees and 47.5% obtain medical degrees. The increasing rate of women in leadership positions caused by education allows them to live successful lives. As the data indicates, life beyond caretaking exists for women. Conversely, women without formal schooling lack the educational life that takes up the majority of their educated counterparts' life. Thus, the women without any formal education resort to governing large families to occupy their life. Higher education is a possibility for women to thrive, yet it is unjustly discouraged and neglected. Despite the substantial benefits educating women worldwide offers, individuals as well governments fail to invest in girls education.

The data undeniably supports the sentiment that educated women have a lower fertility rate, if continuous effort to educate all women proceed in the next year the total population will decrease. Considering that the total population is nearing 8 billion people, there is an urgency to educate girls globally. Educating girls worldwide would result in an array of positives, however the convolutions reside in the execution process. Women have been particularly disregarded in the political world to the extent that many attempts at liberation have been shut down. Accordingly, supporters of the movement to educate girls must persevere, and fulfill a method of which cannot be put to end. Such a method is activism, a conflict-free, and resilient way to achieve goals. 

Oppressive factors in countries lead to the deliberate neglect of women, however there once was a time when women were trapped economicaly, socially, and politically, yet empowerment and activism allowed progress to occur. Currently, 129 million girls do not receive an education worldwide, nevertheless the statistics regarding women will change as they have in the past. In Africa, 33% of girls do not attend school, and in countries such as South Sudan the government only uses 2.6% of its budget for education. Subsequently, Africa’s fertility rate is unsurprisingly 4.7, their high fertility rate is directly correlated to the lack of education among women. Constant activism from those around the world would challenge the circumstances in regions like Africa, and prompt the government to see the need for education. 

Works Cited

American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. (2020, October). Having a Baby After Age 35: How Aging Affects Fertility and Pregnancy. https://www.acog.org/womens-health/faqs/having-a-baby-after-age-35-how-aging-affects-fertility-and-pregnancy

Jones, S., & Global Citizen. (2015, June 2). 7 times activism changed the world that you may never have heard of. https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/content/7-times-activism-changed-the-world-that-you-may-ne/

Livingston, G., & Pew Research Center. (2015, January 15). For most highly educated women, motherhood doesn’t start until the 30s.  https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2015/01/15/for-most-highly-educated-women-motherhood-doesnt-start-until-the-30s/

Livingston, G., & Pew Research Center. (2015, May 7). Childlessness Falls, Family Size Grows Among Highly Educated Women. https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2015/05/07/childlessness-falls-family-size-grows-among-highly-educated-women/

Plan International. (2021, September 6). Other Factors Contributing To Adolescent Pregnancy. How Does Teenage Pregnancy Affect Girls? https://plan-international.org/sexual-health/teenage-pregnancy 

Unicef. (2021, June). When we invest in girls’ secondary education. https://www.unicef.org/education/girls-education

Warner, J., Ellmann, N., Boesch, D., & Center for American Progress. (2018, November 20). The Women’s Leadership Gap. https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/women/reports/2018/11/20/461273/womens-leadership-gap-2/