Changes in the Level of Education of the Population in Rural Areas

Abstract

This paper aims at presenting the role of human capital in the development of the rural areas. The research is based on the secondary data collected by the Central Statistical Office. The author has analysed the gross enrollment ratio, differences between voivodships in children attending primary school were observed and in the time perspective the value of this indicator decreased. The author draws attention to the role of demography and education, which are the determinants of the rural development. Education, professional qualifications and experience determine the quality of the human capital. The higher the level of education, the higher the quality of the human capital is. The conducted analysis has shown that the number of people educated in university increased. Moreover, a number of people who are educated in the secondary school or on a lower level is decreasing. In the analysed period (2007-2016) a number of citizens between 3 and 18 years old has decreased, resulting in a fall of the gross enrollment ratio for the elementary schools.