Gross intake ratio to Grade 1 of primary education

Definition

Total number of new entrants in Grade 1 of primary education, regardless of age, expressed as a percentage of the population at the official primary school entrance age.

Calculation method

Divide the number of new entrants in Grade 1, irrespective of age, by the population of official school entrance age, and multiply the result by 100.

Data required

New entrants in Grade 1 of primary education (or enrolment minus repeaters in Grade 1); population of the official primary school entrance age.

Data source

School register, school survey or census for data on new entrants by age; population census or estimates for primary school entrance age population.

Interpretation

A high GIR indicates a high degree of access to primary education. As this calculation includes all new entrants in Grade 1 (regardless of age), the ratio can exceed 100%, due to over-aged and under-aged children entering primary school for the first time.

Limitations

A high GIR may be the effect of a backlog of over-aged children who have not entered school when they were at the official primary school entrance age.

Purpose

To indicate the general level of access to primary education. It also indicates the capacity of the education system to provide access to Grade 1 for the official school entrance age population.

Quality standards

Data on population used in deriving this indicator should refer strictly to the official school entrance age. Care should be taken not to include repeaters in Grade 1 in the calculation, since this will lead to an inflated GIR.

Types of disaggregation

By sex.