Page 46 - Igor Ž. Žagar in Ana Mlekuž, ur. Raziskovanje v vzgoji in izobraževanju: mednarodni vidiki vzgoje in izobraževanja. Ljubljana: Pedagoški inštitut, 2020. Digitalna knjižnica, Dissertationes 38
P. 46
r aziskovanje v vzgoji in izobr aževanju: mednarodni vidki vzgoje in izobr aževanja
One of the most worrying aspects of access to higher education in Slo-
venia is a pronounced gender gap with the proportion of women aged 30–
34 having attained higher education exceeding that for men by some 24.1
%. The gap amongst 25–34 years old was 23 % (Eurostat, 2019). At the same
time, the employment rate for tertiary educated women is below that for
men, and a gender gap in earnings remains, with tertiary educated women
between 25–64 years of age earning 83 % on average compared to men, al-
though this is higher than the OECD average of 75 % (ibid).
In addition, turning back to the region as a whole, a finding from the
EBRD Life in Transition Survey from 2016 (EBRD, 2016) shows what might
be termed subjective mobility, in terms of what percentage of adults agreed
that they have done better in life that their parents. High figures for Slove-
nia and Croatia stand in contrast to much lower figures for Bosnia-Her-
zegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro and, particularly North Macedonia (Fig-
ure 4).
What the data I have shown fails to do, as well as the neglect of inter-
sectionality, is to show the impact of quality of education, access to particu-
lar types of education, the transition from school to work, and so on. In ad-
dition, as a number of commentators stated during the “blockade” of the
Faculty of Philosophy in Zagreb in 2009 when demands for free higher ed-
ucation were combined with a call for greater equity, educational inequal-
ity starts very early, in pre-school in fact – and is cumulative over time. By
the time children reach 18 years of age, it is already too late.
Poverty, coping strategies and education
In this context, research carried out with colleagues in 2016/7 (Stubbs et al,
2017; Rubil et al, 2018), looking at the coping strategies of poor families -
those in receipt of social assistance, with school-age children - is highly rel-
evant here. This was an all too rare attempt to go beyond large-scale statis-
tical data to address the lived experiences of those living in poverty and the
ways they coped with this. Hence, education was only one of many issues
discussed but some observations can be made. In terms of general findings,
two thirds of our interview sample reported having problems with bills and
25 % had had one disconnection of a communal service, be it gas, electrici-
ty or water, in the last year. It is rare in our region, I would suggest, for so-
cial workers with clients with children who have arrears to negotiate with
gas or electricity companies not to disconnect.
46
One of the most worrying aspects of access to higher education in Slo-
venia is a pronounced gender gap with the proportion of women aged 30–
34 having attained higher education exceeding that for men by some 24.1
%. The gap amongst 25–34 years old was 23 % (Eurostat, 2019). At the same
time, the employment rate for tertiary educated women is below that for
men, and a gender gap in earnings remains, with tertiary educated women
between 25–64 years of age earning 83 % on average compared to men, al-
though this is higher than the OECD average of 75 % (ibid).
In addition, turning back to the region as a whole, a finding from the
EBRD Life in Transition Survey from 2016 (EBRD, 2016) shows what might
be termed subjective mobility, in terms of what percentage of adults agreed
that they have done better in life that their parents. High figures for Slove-
nia and Croatia stand in contrast to much lower figures for Bosnia-Her-
zegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro and, particularly North Macedonia (Fig-
ure 4).
What the data I have shown fails to do, as well as the neglect of inter-
sectionality, is to show the impact of quality of education, access to particu-
lar types of education, the transition from school to work, and so on. In ad-
dition, as a number of commentators stated during the “blockade” of the
Faculty of Philosophy in Zagreb in 2009 when demands for free higher ed-
ucation were combined with a call for greater equity, educational inequal-
ity starts very early, in pre-school in fact – and is cumulative over time. By
the time children reach 18 years of age, it is already too late.
Poverty, coping strategies and education
In this context, research carried out with colleagues in 2016/7 (Stubbs et al,
2017; Rubil et al, 2018), looking at the coping strategies of poor families -
those in receipt of social assistance, with school-age children - is highly rel-
evant here. This was an all too rare attempt to go beyond large-scale statis-
tical data to address the lived experiences of those living in poverty and the
ways they coped with this. Hence, education was only one of many issues
discussed but some observations can be made. In terms of general findings,
two thirds of our interview sample reported having problems with bills and
25 % had had one disconnection of a communal service, be it gas, electrici-
ty or water, in the last year. It is rare in our region, I would suggest, for so-
cial workers with clients with children who have arrears to negotiate with
gas or electricity companies not to disconnect.
46
