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Zimbabwe belongs to the top African countries in terms of [...] education Zimbabwe does not seem to be listed in the recent TIMSS data. http://nces.ed.gov/tim

Zimbabwe belongs to the top African countries in terms of [...] education Zimbabwe does not seem to be listed in the recent TIMSS data. http://nces.ed.gov/timss/table07_3.asp http://nces.ed.gov/timss/table07_3.asp Where are you getting your information from? This TIMSS page shows 1992 reading-score data for 14-year-olds for Nigeria (401), Zimbabwe (372), and Botawana (330): http://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d96/d96t402.asp http://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d96/d96t402.asp

markessien 18y ago
From the Wikipedia page on Zim: "Zimbabwe has an adult literacy rate of approximately 90% which is amongst the highest in the world." Bob Mugabe may have his faults, but he also took Zimbabwe really far.
- gravitycop 18y ago
  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_literacy_rate http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_literacy_r... Because definitions and data collection methods vary across countries, literacy estimates should be used with caution.
  - markessien 18y ago
    That does not mean that Zimbabwe does not have a very high literacy rate - it is well known that it does because of the government policy towards education. Compared to the rest of Africa, the Mugabe government has been pretty good, and it was generally praised a lot till the land redistribution exercise started, after which the media portrayal suddenly swung the other way. Many people who are aware of Zimbabwe only studied the country post 2001, and those that did have their information sources mostly from sensationalist U.S or U.K based papers. They do not attempt to balance their understanding by reading alternative points of views.
    - gravitycop 18y ago
      Zimbabwe does [...] have a very high literacy rate - it is well known that it does because of the government policy towards education. Government policy does not corellate at unity with outcome. There are other factors. Would you agree that there is probably a siginificant brain drain occurring right now in Zimbabwe? http://news.google.com/news?q=zimbabwe+%22brain+drain%22 http://news.google.com/news?q=zimbabwe+%22brain+drain%22 Would a brain drain likely affect the literacy level of a nation?
      - markessien 18y ago
        I don't think the brain drain from Zimbabwe is any larger than any other African country, or any country that were facing similarly tough economic times. The farm seizures affected less than 3000 farm owners, and those people typically did not employ highly skilled labour, so the effect that had was not so significant on emigration of university-level people. I'm not sure what exactly your point is - are you saying that farm seizures in some way affected the level of education in the country?
        gravitycop 18y ago
        are you saying that farm seizures in some way affected the level of education in the country? Yes, if you mean the real attained education levels, rather than simply credential levels.
        markessien 18y ago
        Of 3000 people when the entire population is over 20 million?
        gravitycop 18y ago
        the entire population is over 20 million? Maybe. The World Factbook says it was 11,350,111 last July. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/zi.html#People https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/... The Factbook also notes a population growth rate of -0.787% (despite a birth rate more than twice that of the United States), and adds: there is an increasing flow of Zimbabweans into South Africa and Botswana in search of better economic opportunities (2008 est.) The Factbook also says of 569,685 refugees (IDPs; Internally Displaced Persons) https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/zi.html#Issues https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/... in the country, that they result from: MUGABE-led political violence, human rights violations, land reform, and economic collapse Below that, in the (Trafficking in persons) section, it notes: large scale migration of Zimbabweans to surrounding countries - as they flee a progressively more desperate situation at home - has increased

markessien 18y ago

From the Wikipedia page on Zim: "Zimbabwe has an adult literacy rate of approximately 90% which is amongst the highest in the world." Bob Mugabe may have his faults, but he also took Zimbabwe really far.

gravitycop 18y ago
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_literacy_rate http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_literacy_r... Because definitions and data collection methods vary across countries, literacy estimates should be used with caution.
- markessien 18y ago
  That does not mean that Zimbabwe does not have a very high literacy rate - it is well known that it does because of the government policy towards education. Compared to the rest of Africa, the Mugabe government has been pretty good, and it was generally praised a lot till the land redistribution exercise started, after which the media portrayal suddenly swung the other way. Many people who are aware of Zimbabwe only studied the country post 2001, and those that did have their information sources mostly from sensationalist U.S or U.K based papers. They do not attempt to balance their understanding by reading alternative points of views.
  - gravitycop 18y ago
    Zimbabwe does [...] have a very high literacy rate - it is well known that it does because of the government policy towards education. Government policy does not corellate at unity with outcome. There are other factors. Would you agree that there is probably a siginificant brain drain occurring right now in Zimbabwe? http://news.google.com/news?q=zimbabwe+%22brain+drain%22 http://news.google.com/news?q=zimbabwe+%22brain+drain%22 Would a brain drain likely affect the literacy level of a nation?
    - markessien 18y ago
      I don't think the brain drain from Zimbabwe is any larger than any other African country, or any country that were facing similarly tough economic times. The farm seizures affected less than 3000 farm owners, and those people typically did not employ highly skilled labour, so the effect that had was not so significant on emigration of university-level people. I'm not sure what exactly your point is - are you saying that farm seizures in some way affected the level of education in the country?
      - gravitycop 18y ago
        are you saying that farm seizures in some way affected the level of education in the country? Yes, if you mean the real attained education levels, rather than simply credential levels.
        markessien 18y ago
        Of 3000 people when the entire population is over 20 million?
        gravitycop 18y ago
        the entire population is over 20 million? Maybe. The World Factbook says it was 11,350,111 last July. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/zi.html#People https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/... The Factbook also notes a population growth rate of -0.787% (despite a birth rate more than twice that of the United States), and adds: there is an increasing flow of Zimbabweans into South Africa and Botswana in search of better economic opportunities (2008 est.) The Factbook also says of 569,685 refugees (IDPs; Internally Displaced Persons) https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/zi.html#Issues https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/... in the country, that they result from: MUGABE-led political violence, human rights violations, land reform, and economic collapse Below that, in the (Trafficking in persons) section, it notes: large scale migration of Zimbabweans to surrounding countries - as they flee a progressively more desperate situation at home - has increased