Fw: [IPCRI-Peace-Teachers] GN Online Educational reform is inevitable in Arab world.htm

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Subject: [IPCRI-Peace-Teachers] GN Online Educational reform is inevitable in Arab world.htm





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         News Opinion People... You & the...     
           
               
              
             Dubai:Wednesday, February 18, 2004      
     
          
             
            
               

                  Educational reform is inevitable in Arab world 
                  |By Mona Dokainish, Special to Gulf News | 18-02-2004 
                  Print friendly format | Email to Friend 

                  A conference entitled Arab Education: Reality and Means for Development, which opened yesterday in Beirut, is an attempt by officials and educators to find means of improving the educational system in the Arab world.

                  For development to occur in the region, the UNDP Arab Human Development Report 2002 insists on a balance of knowledge throughout the region. 

                  The effectiveness of education, according to the Unesco Arab State Regional Report 2002, is measured by how many students complete all levels of schooling and by how many of them move up without repeating. 

                  Unesco Institute for Statistics surveyed 19 Arab countries in the region. At the primary level very few students drop out before the fifth grade. The lowest rate of repeaters at the primary level is found in Jordan and the highest rate is found in Tunisia.

                  At the secondary level 22.5 million students enrolled in 1999-2000. However more than 7 per cent of them find themselves repeating a grade. In Iraq the number of repeaters at the secondary level reaches 27 per cent, while in the Maghreb countries the repeaters reach 20 per cent.

                  Even though the report shows that more students are enrolling and staying in school, the greatest problem lies in the curriculum. The system places emphasis on some subjects, while neglecting others.

                  The Unesco report shows that the majority of Arab students study Business, Social Science and Law. Very few study agriculture or servicea, such as Education. Language courses are undervalued. Language in public schools is taught at a lower level than that of private school. 

                  Unless students attend a private school, the knowledge in foreign language is weak. The AHDR 2003 claims that the majority of the population is fluent in Arabic alone. The language barrier explains the delay in computer knowledge, as most of the information is available in English. 

                  Only 0.6 per cent of Arabs use the Internet and only 1.2 per cent of Arabs have access to computers. 

                  Teaching techniques are also poor. Many students seek private tutoring, which has become indispensable in order to obtain a higher grade in public examinations. A result is that privilege students who can afford the tutors have the chance to outstanding professional careers. Quality education is for the privileged alone.

                  Such is the case for the overall system. A private education system exists for the minority of the population, while the majority attends state education systems of lower quality. 

                  According to Unesco, about 79 per cent students enrolled at the primary level attend private schools. In Morocco, Palestinian Territories, Qatar and Bahrain the pre-school stages of education is only provided by the private sector, making it difficult for the majority of children who cannot afford to attain such a benefit. 

                  Education in the region has become a means for social stratification rather than a means of achieving social advancement.

                  Such a setback has resulted in a high illiteracy rate in the region, especially among women. 

                  About 65 million Arab is illiterate. Iraq has the highest illiteracy rate in the area at 61 per cent of the population and Jordan is the lowest at 12 per cent of the population. Female illiteracy rate highest is the highest in Iraq, Morocco and Yemen.

                  At every level of education women numbers are less than the men. The Unesco Arab State Regional Report shows that at the primary level five million children enter school. However a large majority of them are boys. 

                  At the secondary level, about 47 per cent of the children enrolled are girls. Before advancing the educational system at any level, the above issues have to be addressed first.        
                    

                  · Qorei denies resignation threat
                  · Educational reform is inevitable in Arab world
                   



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