Italy: Primary education, pupils (% female)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2017, Italy's primary education, pupils (% female) fell 0.73 percentage points on 2016 (from 48.51% to 47.78%).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1987 to 2016), the average change was −0 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.31 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 2.4 standard deviations below that average, so it was unusually large compared with the rest of the record.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 0.7 percentage points in 1993 and the biggest yearly fall was 1.34 percentage points in 1995. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2008 to 2017 there is no clear straight-line trend: a straight line explains 9% of the movement over 10 observed years, so the value is moving around more than it is heading anywhere.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

How it compares

In 2017, Italy had the 64th highest value of the 68 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to Italy in the 2017 ranking

• Brazil — 61st of 68: 47.91%
• Philippines — 62nd of 68: 47.89%
• Sudan — 63rd of 68: 47.79%
• Eswatini — 65th of 68: 47.64%
• British Virgin Islands — 66th of 68: 46.91%
• Liechtenstein — 67th of 68: 46.53%

What this measures

Female pupils as a percentage of total pupils at primary level include enrollments in public and private schools.

Limitations: The percentage of female enrollment is limited in assessing gender parity, because it's affected by the gender composition of population. Ratio of female to male in enrollment rate provides a population adjusted measure of gender parity.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.

All 47 values

Primary education, pupils (% female) in nearby economies

• Albania — 47.42% (2018)
• Andorra — 47.84% (2018)
• Armenia — 46.71% (2018)
• Austria — 48.51% (2017)
• Azerbaijan — 46.31% (2018)
• Belarus — 48.52% (2018)
• Belgium — 48.87% (2017)
• Bosnia and Herzegovina — 48.54% (2018)
• Bulgaria — 48.47% (2017)
• Croatia — 48.75% (2017)
• Cyprus

More education data for Italy

• Primary school starting age (years) — 6 (2025)
• Primary education, duration (years) — 5 (2025)
• Lower secondary school starting age (years) — 11 (2025)
• Secondary education, duration (years) — 8 (2025)
• Primary education, pupils — 2.63 million (2023)
• Secondary education, pupils — 4.61 million (2023)
• School enrollment, primary (gross), gender parity index (GPI) — 1 (2020)
• School enrollment, primary and secondary (gross), gender parity index (GPI) — 0.99 (2020)
• School enrollment, secondary (gross), gender parity index (GPI) — 0.99 (2020)
• School enrollment, preprimary (% gross)

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
• Data analysis examples: 6 worked from one dataset — 3 min read
• Real change or random noise? A plain guide to reading your numbers — 2 min read

Questions people ask

What is Italy's primary education, pupils (% female)?

47.78% in 2017, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1971?

It is down 0.64 percentage points from 48.41% in 1971. The highest value was 49.56% in 1994 and the lowest 47.78% in 2017.

How does Italy rank?

64th highest of 68 economies with data for 2017.

Is the latest change in primary education, pupils (% female) unusual for Italy?

In 2017, Italy's primary education, pupils (% female) fell 0.73 percentage points on 2016 (from 48.51% to 47.78%). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1987 to 2016), the average change was −0 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.31 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 2.4 standard deviations below that average, so it was unusually large compared with the rest of the record.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SE.PRM.ENRL.FE.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Stat Bulk Data Download Service, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), uri: https://uis.unesco.org/bdds, publisher: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS) Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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