SDG Indicator 4.2.4: Enrolment in (a) pre-primary education and (b) early childhood educational development of the official age group for the specific category of early childhood education expressed as a percentage of the population of the official age for the respective category.
Administrative data from schools or household survey data on enrolment; population censuses or surveys for population estimates by single year of age; administrative data from ministries of education on the structure (entrance age and duration) of each category of early childhood education.
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Number of pupils enrolled who are of the official age group for a given category of early childhood education expressed as a percentage of the population of the official age for the respective category.
Enrolment by single years of age in pre-primary education and early childhood educational development; population estimates by single year of age; and data on the structure (entrance age and duration) of each category of early childhood education.
A high NER for a specific early childhood education category denotes a high degree of coverage of pupils of the official age population for that category. The theoretical maximum value is 100%. Increasing trends can be considered as reflecting improving coverage at the specified category of early childhood education. When the NER is compared with the GER, the difference between the two highlights the incidence of under-aged and over-aged enrolment. If the NER is below 100%, then the complement, i.e. the difference with 100%, provides a measure of the proportion of children not enrolled at the specified category of early childhood education. However, since some of these children could be enrolled in the other category of early childhood education or in primary education, this difference should in no way be considered as indicating the percentage of pupils not enrolled.
Difficulties may arise when calculating an NER that approaches 100% if the reference date for entry to the specific category of early childhood education does not coincide with the birth dates of all of the cohort eligible to enrol at this category.
Although the NER cannot exceed 100%, values slightly over that ceiling (e.g. 105%) can be obtained reflecting inconsistencies in the enrolment and/or population data.
To show separately the extent of coverage in each of the categories of early childhood education (pre-primary education and early childhood educational development) to the official age group corresponding to the respective category.
NER at each category of early childhood education should be based on enrolment of the relevant age group in all types of schools and education institutions, including public, private and all other institutions that provide educational programmes at the specific category.
The UIS sets standards, develops questionnaires and quality control protocols for country data reporting, and maintains the global database on the structure of education, and enrolment data by age. The United Nations Population Division (UNPD) produces and maintains population data. National population data that comply with UIS quality standards can also be used.
By sex from administrative sources; and by sex, location and income from household surveys.