WHY IS LITERACY NOT ALWAYS A GUARANTEE FOR QUALITY OF LIFE
Keywords:
literacy, quality of life, migrationAbstract
The claim that literacy is closely linked with the general well-being of people and society is hardly disputable. It enables individuals to acquire the skills that will help them improve their quality of life (QL). Looking closer at the relationship of literacy and quality of life, this study found evidence suggesting that variation in the quality of life begin to emerge once a country reaches a literacy rate beyond 90%, which means that this variation happens only when 10% of the citizens are not functionally literate. Data indicate that the largest variance in the quality of life is noted in countries with 95% literacy as in the case of Turkey and Malaysia. This phenomenon is explained by certain socio-demographic theories one of which is the propensity of the literate people in a developing country, like the Philippines, to migrate to other countries for better employment. This migration pattern brings out ambiguous results. Some will find good jobs that can help generate increased income for the family dependents; others fall prey to various forms of work crisis which greatly affect the quality of life not only of the migrants themselves but also of the left behind families.
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