Gross intake ratio to the last grade (primary education, lower secondary education)

Definition

SDG Indicator 4.1.3: Total number of new entrants into the last grade of primary education or lower secondary general education, regardless of age, expressed as a percentage of the population at the intended entrance age to the last grade of primary education or lower secondary general education.

The intended entrance age to the last grade is the age at which pupils would enter the grade if they had started school at the official primary entrance age, had studied full-time and had progressed without repeating or skipping a grade.

Data source

Administrative data from schools on enrolment and repeaters or new entrants by grade; population censuses and surveys for population estimates by single year of age; administrative data from ministries of education on the structure of the education system.

Source definition

UNESCO Institute for Statistics

Calculation method

The number of new entrants in the last grade of the given level of education, regardless of age, is expressed as a percentage of the population of the intended entrance age to the last grade of that level of education.

Note: If data on new entrants are not collected directly, they can be calculated by subtracting the number of pupils repeating the last grade from total enrolment in the last grade.

Data required

New entrants to the last grade of each level of education (or enrolment minus repeaters in the last grade); population of the intended entrance age to the last grade of each level of education and data on the structure (entrance age and duration) of each level of education.

Interpretation

A high ratio indicates a high degree of current primary education completion.

Limitations

This is a gross measure and may therefore exceed 100% if there are large numbers of pupils who entered school either early or late and/or who have repeated earlier grades. The fact that the GIR can exceed 100% also makes it more difficult to interpret than the completion rate.

Compared to the completion rate, the gross intake ratio to the last grade does not indicate how many children complete the last grade, only how many children enter that grade. If students in the last grade leave school before graduation, the gross intake ratio to the last grade overestimates completion.

Purpose

This is a proxy measure of primary or lower secondary completion. It reflects how policies on access to and progression through the early grades of primary or lower secondary education impact the final grade of the given level. It also indicates the capacity of the education system to cater for the completion of the population of the intended entrance age to the last grade of the given level of education. It assumes that pupils entering the last grade for the first time will eventually complete the grade and hence the given level of education.

Quality standards

Accurate data on new entrants to the last grade of primary and lower secondary education are critical for quality assurance for this indicator. The UIS ensures standard setting and quality control of corresponding data collected from countries and maintains the global database used to produce this indicator.

Types of disaggregation

By sex and level of education.