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A comparative investigation of the mid-century status of educational leaders in the Middle East
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A comparative investigation of the mid-century status of educational leaders in the Middle East
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Content
A COMPARATIVE INVESTIGATION OP THE MID-CENTURY STATUS
OF EDUCATIONAL LADDERS IN THE MIDDLE EAST
A Thesis
Presented to
the Faculty of the School of Education
The University of Southern California
In Partial Fulfillment
of the Requirements for the Degree
Master of Science in Education
by
Thomas Sinclair Geraty
June 19 5 6
UMI Number: EP55630
All rights reserved
INFORMATION TO ALL USERS
The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted.
In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript
and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed,
a note will indicate the deletion.
UMl
Oisâsîtaîion F\ibi
UMI EP55630
Published by ProQuest LLC (2014). Copyright in the Dissertation held by the Author.
Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC.
All rights reserved. This work is protected against
unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code
ProQuest LLC.
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P.O. Box 1346
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Ed ^6 Gt $ Sê
' This thesis, w ritte n under the direction o f the
C hairm an o f the candidate's Guidance Com m ittee
and approved by a ll members o f the Comm ittee,
has been presented to and accepted by the F a cu lty
o f the School o f E ducation o f the U niversity o f
Southern C a lifo rn ia in p a rtia l fu lfillm e n t o f the
requirements fo r the degree o f M a ste r o f Science
in Education.
D ate.
Dean
Guidance Committee
Chairman
I TABLE OP CONTENTS
! CHAPTER PAGE ,
I. INTRODUCTION 1 <
I
Analysis of the major and subordinate '
problems 1 ;
The problem 1 |
Sub-problems . 2 I
The scope of the study..................... 3
General nature of the problem . 3 ’
Type......................... 3
Sources of data and method............... 4
Procedure ................................ 5
Statement of limitations of techniques
employed .................................. 5
Significance of the study ................. 5
Definition of terms ....................... 7
Educational ladder ....................... 7
Mid-century ....................... 8
Middle East ............... 8 j
Status .................................... 8
Organization of the thesis 9 ■
II. REVIEW OP THE LITERATURE ON THE MIDDLE EAST . 10
Selected current literature 10 '
CHAPTER
Problematic threads .....................
Interpreters— people .....................
Interpreters--organizations .............
Books, periodicals and publications . . .
Selected research studies .................
Typical research studies .................
Greater future through educational
research.......................... . .
III. ORGANIZATION OF EDUCATIONAL STRUCTURE IN THE
MIDDLE EAST .... .......................
E g y p t ......................................
Background and structure .................
The educational ladder .........^.........
Higher education .........................
Iran........................................
Background and structure ...........
The educational ladder ...................
Higher education ..........................
Iraq........................................
Background and structure .................
The educational ladder ...................
Higher education ..........................
ili I
page;
10 ;
1 3!
141
I
isj
16
. 3
I
261
I
2 8!
I
2 9:
34
39;
4l'
41
50;
51!
I
53:
53!
561
6 1:
iv
CHAPTER PAGE
Israel......................................... 62
!
Background and structure ................... 62|
The educational ladder..................... 6 7}
I
Higher education............................ 681
Hashemite Kingdom of the Jordan ............. 69j
Background and structure.......... 69
The educational ladder ..................... 72!
i
Higher education............................ 73i
Lebanon,...................................... 7 3I
Background and structure................... 7 3'
The educational ladder..................... 77i
I
Higher education............................ 79,
S y r i a ............................. 8 0
The educational ladder..................... 83|
Higher education............................ 8 5!
Turkey ....................... ........ 86
1
Background and structure ................... 8 6
The educational ladder ..................... 89
I
Higher education............................ 90!
I
IV. RECENT TRENDS AND EDUCATIONAL IMPLICATIONS . . . 9k\
I
General...................................... 94|
E g y p t ........................................ 95,
Iran........................................... 9 7'
V ;
CHAPTER PAGE :
Israel...................................... 98
Lebanon 99 !
S y r i a ...................................... 99
Turkey 100 i
I
Summary 101 }
V. SUMMARY......................... 103
The problem and procedure.................. 103
The problem and its importance IO3 ;
The procedure IO3 |
Findings 104 ,
Conclusions IO8 ;
Recommendations............................ 110
General.................................. 110
Specific Ill '
E g y p t .................................... 112
Iran 112 ,
. *
Iraq 113 |
Israel Il4 '
Hashemite Kingdom of the Jordan 114 ;
Lebanon II5 .
Syria ............................ II5
Turkey II6 j
I
BIBLIOGRAPHY 117 I
LIST OF TABLES :
TABLE PAGE i
I. Distribution Spread of Doctoral Dissertations i
on Education in Countries of the Middle '
East 1 9 1 4 - 1 9 5 4 18 !
I
II. Time Span of Doctoral Dissertations on !
Education in Countries of the Middle |
i
East 1 9 1 4 - 1 9 5 4 19 !
1
III. Topical Distribution of Doctoral Dissertations j
I
on Education in Countries of the Middle
East 1 9 1 4 - 1 9 5 4.............................. 22 ,
IV. Decade Expansion of Iraqi State Education . . 57 '
LIST OP FIGURES ‘
I
FIGURE PAGE :
I
1. Educational. Ladder and System of Egypt ..... 42 |
2. Educational Ladder and System of I r a n ... 52 |
3* Educational Ladder and System of I r a q ... 63 |
4. Educational Ladder and System of Israel .... 7 0 |
5 . Educational Ladder and System of the Hashemite ^
Kingdom of the Jordan 74 ;
6 . Educational Ladder and System of Lebanon .... 8l
7 . Educational Ladder and System of Syria 87 I
8 . Educational Ladder and System of Turkey .... 92 j
I
9. Comparative Ladders of the Middle East 93 '
CHAPTER I
!
INTRODUCTION I
i
i
The Middle East like a giant smoldering keg in the j
jarsenal among the nations of the world is an area of inter- j
jnational focus. Through past millennia military campaigns
jand political intrigues have caught the attention of both
i
ihistorians and statesmen. !
I I
! Currently, the horizons of the Middle East are some- I
I ;
what befogged by coolly calculated pacts, military juntas, |
I
jsocial unrest, economic grumblings, and the rising heat of ;
I I
Inationalism and irredentism. Much attention has been given,'
I i
* ' 1
! apparently, to the physio-political complex of the Middle ;
! '
IEast ; but less focus, possibly, has been made on the educa- *
Itional patterns in the same geographical area of the world. ‘
; I. ANALYSIS OP THE MAJOR AND SUBORDINATE PROBLEMS
I 1
The problem. The purpose of this study was to ^
Ianswer the following questions: ;
1 . Whatj specifically, are the educational ladders !
!in the Middle East, and how does the ladder of one country |
compare with that of another? !
2
2. Since some changes have been made through the
years in the educational organization, what is the mid-
century status of the educational programs in the respec
tive countries of the Middle East?
Sub-problems. In the evaluation of the educational
programs of the Middle East and with the information in
the comparative study as disclosed by the various coun-
I tries, a number of pertinent questions arise. Such ques- j
I tions, which may be regarded as sub-problems, include the |
I following: I
I . :
I 1. Upon what educational philosophy does each coun-
I ;
I try seem to be building its program? ;
2. What subjects and courses have more weight than j
I
. others? I
i
3. What influence has the spiral system exerted j
upon various curricula? I
4. To what extent have classical interests con- '
!
trolled the curricula and courses? j
I
5* How conservative are any or all of the countries '
' I
I seen through the educational lenses? I
t
! ' j
i 6 . How may the academic credits of a transfer stu- j
dent be evaluated in the light of another system, or how i
; may they be reckoned? !
II. THE SCOPE OP THE STUDY
There are naturally many ramifications of an edu
cational system, and particularly is this true in the edu
cational organization and system of a country.
This study, nevertheless, will describe merely the
current educational format or pattern with the cognate
structure and organization of the educational program of
the following selected countries: Egypt, Iran, Iraq,
Israel, Hashemite Kingdom of the Jordan, Lebanon, Syria,
and Turkey. The geographical area will be limited to the
lands and territories which constitute these nations.
The present status of the educational program for
each country will be disclosed by the marshaling of perti-
! nent facts and the arrangement of information on the re-
i I
I spective countries. 1
! i
i '
I III. GENERAL NATURE OF THE PROBLEM
I :
A description of the general nature of the problem
: I
resolved itself into the subsequently divided features: j
Type. This study of the educational ladders of the
; Middle East involved an historical approach as a backdrop :
for the current setting, and a descriptive-survey technique!
was employed to see the actual educational patterns as
i 4
j they really exist.
j Sources of data and method. Although research has
I been done in the fields of comparative education, more
attention has been given to Asia, to the British Empire,
to Europe, and to North and South America than to the edu
cational systems of the Near and Middle East.
There is a paucity, therefore, of much printed data
on these lands for educational purposes. j
The investigator for this study reviewed books, |
surveys, and reports prepared by individuals and learned t
societies that were definitely conversant with the Near and
I
Middle East. Fortunately, some worthwhile periodicals and|
magazine articles have given considerable contribution to '
this investigation. In addition it has been a privilege
to review some dissertations, abstracts, and surveys of
educational research on the Middle East.
Having lived, a number of years in the Near and ;
Middle East, this researcher has had opportunities to col- |
lect firsthand information and has made personal observa- '
tions as he has traveled on numerous occasions and visited ■
government and private schools among all the Arab countries:
within the purview of this investigation. ■
I
The material available on the different countries |
was surveyed, and then a description in word and table
presents the status of education in the respective coun- i
tries. j
Procedure. According to the alphabetical listing j
of the countries, the investigation proceeded from one I
country to another, filling in bold relief the educational’
ladders and mid-century status of the educational systems j
in the selected countries of the Near and Middle East. j
I
IV. STATEMENT OP LIMITATIONS OP TECHNIQUES EMPLOYED j
I !
; !
! Since the references and source materials are j
I I
I necessarily confined entirely to the English language, |
! :
I there is naturally some limitation to the presentation.
I However, there is sufficient information available to give|
; I
I a composite picture. It is even true that some observa- i
1 . :
I tions are not easily procurable in the Arabic language |
, medium. :
! I
1 I
I V. SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY :
i I
One appreciates but little, perhaps, the tremendous;
problems of general and special education in the different
I
‘ countries of the Middle East. Both time and energy for
consideration and insight are factors needed to make a
j superficial view, and a repetition of the same factors :
I with a sympathetic and patient attitude will deepen the !
6 ;
■ impressions. It will take more than impressions, however, ,
. to meet the needs of the peoples in the lands covered by
this investigation. The impressions bespeak expressions.
i
Of great significance is a"comparative study of the
educational systems of the Near and Middle East, making
I more clearly aware to the researcher and inquirer the cur- ,
I i
I rent issues and organic development of his own and other |
I I
I systems. It emphasizes the difficulties and struggles of j
I I
I that part of the world in coping with the hurdles of eco- j
I nomic instability, feudalism, illiteracy, and nationalism. '
The study makes one wonder what the conditions and reasons j
I I
; have been for the great disparity between brilliant levels |
and contributions of the past and with the present in
i
' culture and education for such areas and successors of the ;
I
I Egyptian, Babylonian, Medo-Persian, Grecian, and Greco- j
I
Roman Empires.
A concomitant value of such an investigation is a |
better evaluation of academic credits of individuals
studying under the different educational ladders of the !
■ Middle East. Such information is of particular importance
I for offices of admission in educational institutions when
I applications of foreign students are involved.
' The educational programs of the Near and Middle
I
I East are of significance also even if for only an
7
intelligent appraisal of education and culture in lands
which of recent date have been capturing newspaper head
lines , radio newscasts, and television commentaries. It
helps keep one alert to developing patterns of organic |
I
society. |
I
VI. DEFINITION OP TERMS ;
J
Throughout the current investigation frequent use '
of several terms or expressions necessitates a common
understanding and interpretation. |
I
Educational ladder. The educational ladder is an |
expression or term to signify the educational system in j
I
which each academic or formal level of education is suc-
t
ceeded by a higher level of formal education, such as in ^
I
the following sequence: elementary school. Junior high j
I
school, senior high school; and sometimes junior college, !
senior college, and university. It generally includes
elementary and secondary education. The ladder, or educa-j
I
tional plan, may be expressed also in numerals, such as:
8-4; 6-3-3; 6-4-4, thus representing the years in elemen- ;
tary education and the breakdown in years for secondary
education, respectively.
Mid-century. This investigation limits the mid
century as the midway point or part of the twentieth
century, focusing on the decade with 1950 as the center.
Middle East.
The 'Middle East' is a political rather than a
geographical term and came into general use as a con
sequence of the establishment of the British Middle
East Command and corresponding civilian, organizations
during the Second World War. The strict geographical
rule was formerly to distinguish between the Near
East, comprising Greece, Bulgaria, Turkey, the Levant,
and Egypt, and the Middle East, Arabia, Mesopotamia,
Persia, and Afghanistan. * .
The selected states and territories presented in this in
vestigation and known as the Middle East comprise the fol
lowing countries or nations; Egypt, Iran (Persia), Iraq
(Mesopotamia), Israel, Hashemite Kingdom of the Jordan,
Lebanon, Syria, and Turkey.
Status. The word status in this study is used to
mean the condition, position, and state of educational
affairs.
^Royal Institute of International Affairs, The
Middle East ; A Political and Economic Survey (London:
Oxford University Press, 195?), P. 1.
VII. ORGANIZATION OF THE THESIS
This chapter has introduced the investigation by
analyzing the problems, by describing the general nature
of the problems, by presenting a statement of the techni
ques employed, significance of the study, and a definition!
I
of the various terms and expressions. j
Chapter II deals with a review of the literature on;
the Middle East and a survey of current literature and re-;
1
search studies with somewhat of an evaluation of the same.;
Chapter III presents a brief description of the ed-'
I !
j ucational structure of each country with some background. ,
; In addition the chapter discloses some pertinent facts and'
i
, an accompanying chart or table of the educational ladder :
I
1 of each country. '
I i
I Recent trends and educational implications for the '
! I
! respective countries in the Middle East characterize ;
I I
Chapter IV, and Chapter V caps the Investigation, with sum-'
I marial and concluding statements. I
i There follows a general but comprehensive biblio-
!
I graphy which will prove both of value and interest for ■
one who desires to study further into the intricacies and |
developing solutions of the educational problems in the !
I Middle East. 1
CHAPTER II
REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE ON THE MIDDLE EAST
I. SELECTED CURRENT LITERATURE
Problematic threads. Various strains of warp and
woof have come down through the centuries to the modern
day Near and Middle East.
One case in point has been the influence of the ;
persecuted, pious, and rigidly believing Hanbalite ibn- '
Taymiyah. I
. . . So ibn-Taymiyah, who had succeeded his father j
as teacher in Damascus in 1282, also became suspect of j
heresy as the result of an answer to a question put to i
him from Hama; he contradicted the Shafi'ite doctrine '
and was removed from office. The Shafi'ites summoned |
him in I3 0 5 before their tribunal in Cairo and sen- ,
tenced him to prison. When his former patron, the
sultan al-Malik an-Nasir, came to the throne for the
third time, he gave him the office of Hanbali teacher
in the madrasah founded by him and took him along with
him to Damascus in I3 1 3. But in I3I8 ibn-Taymiyah ;
aroused new irritation by a fatwa concerning divorce, i
and now even his patron could no longer protect him, I
although after five months he was released from the |
imprisonment he had been sentenced to and could resume j
his teaching. In July of I3 2 6, however, his enemies ,
secured his arrest once again on the basis of an opin- |
ion he had handed down as early as 1 3IO concerning |
visits to prophets' and saints* burial places. In the!
citadel of Damascus he was able to keep up his liter- I
ary activity, at least in the beginning, but when paper
and pen were denied him he died of grief at the insult]
on September 2 9, I3 2 9. While his contemporaries had j
attempted to use force in suppressing his doctrine, it
llj
lived on nevertheless in the restricted milieu of his !
school, and four hundred years later gave an impetus j
to the Wahhabi movement and so to the Islamic modernism!
of the present day I
Another sturdy thread in every fabric of the coun
tries surveyed in this investigation has been the primary
place of religion. It is more than an occasional value.
! It ranks first in art, literature, politics, and society.
I One who can speak with much experience behind him has de-
j scribed this religious frame of reference in the Near and
I
j Middle East;
I I
I You cannot deal with Iraq or Palestine or Egypt or |
! Saudia without dealing with Allah. He is present in i
' every battle, as an. ally, and sits at every conference ;
! table as champion. He witnesses every bargain in the '
! bazaar. He, and not the doctor, heals every disease,
or He sends death in spite of the doctor.
Allah's name is breathed into the ear of every new
born infant and is the last word on the lips of the
j graybeard as Azrael takes his soul.- And in all the ;
I intervening years, Allah's name is uttered every wak
ing hour and is muttered in every dream. And all this;
not simply out of habit, but because Allah is a great ,
j and, indeed, desperate reality which the Arab cannot
I escape. Be he saint or sinner, monarch or minion,
I prince or pauper, to an Arab Allah is always right
' there.^
-^Carl Brockelmann, History of the Islamlc Peoples
(London; Routledge and Kegan Paul, Ltd., 1952), pp.È3 7-
3 8.
^John Van Ess, Meet the Arab (New York; The John
Day Co., 19?3), p. 2 9.
12 !
I
Ignorance is one thing and, although related, illit-;
i
eracy is another. The illiteracy problem of many peoples,
and especially of the female masses, stalks as a great fac
tor of void in the Middle East. A survey puts two great j
problems before a literate world: I
Perhaps the most fundamental educational problem i
facing the Arab world today is the double problem of
putting every child of elementary school age in school
and of liquidating illiteracy. 8
Though it may seem strange, the Arabic language is
also another common problem throughout the Middle East.
!
True, there are minorities who may not speak the language î
and there are Iran and Turkey which have their own nationa]!
I
tongues. I
Typical of the classical language problem through
out the Near and Middle East is the situation of the teach
ing of the Arabic language and literature in Egypt, since
classical Arabic is to be taught in all the recognized
schools of the various Arab countries:
We have our own particular problems with the teach- ;
ing of Arabic as the mother tongue. Our mother tongue
is not so simple to impart as, say, English in EnglandJ
The divergency between the spoken and written language
in Egypt is so great that most of our children, speak
^Roderic D. Matthews and Matta Akrawi, Education in
Arab Countries of the Near East (Washington, D. C.: Amer
ican. Council on Education, 19?9), p. 5??*
13 !
and think in one way, whilst they read and write in !
almost another. The two channels of language, the j
colloquial and the classical, may meet in most vocabu-’
laries, but even so the grammatical rules governing !
the construction of the written tongue necessitates i
so many inflexions and inversions when spoken as to :
make classical Arabic almost incomprehensible to an I
Egyptian ten-year-old. . . . j
I
So long as colloquial Arabic is the tongue spoken
in the home and so long as it is a medium by which a
majority of the subjects in the school curriculum are
taught, it will always be the principal living langu
age. Correct classical Arabic will stand alone as an
unwanted luxury. Our young people will not take to
such a luxury unless it is forced upon them, and wilL
not care whether they acquire mastery over it or not
I
Interpreters— people. As we surveyed the recent j
I
literature of the mid-century dealing with the Middle East,;
we have found the following persons of no mean stature : '
Matta Akrawi Majid Khadduri
Bayard Dodge George E. Kirk
Walter C. EelIs Habib Amin Kurani
John Van Ess Charles Malik
Philip K. Hitti Roderic D. Matthews j
Mohammed Fadhel Jamali Arthur H. Moehlman i
I. L. Kandel Martena Tenney Sasnett
George Gamp Keiser Costi K. Zurayk j
I
These individuals, a list by no means exhaustive, j
I
through voice, pen, and project or by speeches, articles,
books, and research have been ably articulate. They have
?Ahmad Khaki, "The Teaching of Arabic," Bulletin of;
the Egyptian Education Bureau (Cairo: May, 1947), PP. 45T'
W T
14 !
served well to interpret the life, times, conditions, and ,
thought of the Middle East. Their contributions have been'
found in print, in periodicals and research of learned 1
societies, in volumes on comparative education, and in j
original studies. I
t
I
Interpreters— organizations. Several learned and !
professional societies, humanitarian agencies, and govern-|
ment organizations, besides the ministries and departments j
of education, have studied continuously conditions and j
problems among the Arab countries and the State of Israel.|
Among such well known organizations have been the
following:
American Council on Education
"Institute of International Education, Incorporated ;
International Bureau of Education ,
International Institute of Teachers College, Colum-:
bia University
Middle East Institute '
Royal Institute of International Affairs
United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural
Organization (UNESCO).
Diffusion of knowledge, studying and resolving of
problems for solution, interpretation of life and thought, i
and the improvement of society and her institutions for
I
the countries of the Middle East have been some of the |
concerns and burdens of these organizations. I
j
They have shared their wisdom by panel, institute, |
15
colloquium, survey, and publication. They still continue
to serve.
Books, periodicals and publications. Popularly and
scholarly written books on the Middle East have been giv
ing background and problems as they have developed. Many
are interestingly readable.
Exemplary journals, periodicals and publications
which contained educational information of countries in
the Middle East include: I
Arabweek (weekly)
London Times Educational Supplement (weekly)
Middle East Report (bi-weekly) '
The Islamic Review (monthly) ,
The Middle East Journal (quarterly) j
!
The International Bureau of Education (Geneva) pub
lishes an excellent resume of educational reports in its
annual International Yearbook of Education; the Institute ,
of International Education, Incorporated (New York), a ,
well illustrated monthly. The News Bulletin; and UNESCO |
(Paris), its fully documented World Handbook of Educa- |
tional Organization and Statistics. j
I
Current information of an educational nature is
thus readily and reliably available. Besides, of course, <
are numerous publications and reports of ministries and j
i
departments of education in their vernacular.
16
II. SELECTED RESEARCH STUDIES
This investigator consulted a number of indices,
surveys, and compilations of master's theses and doctoral
dissertations
Very significant it is that extended research is
reaching out from domestic problems in home bases into
study areas of foreign lands.
One writer sharpens the focus in these words:
More than 150,000 doctoral degrees have been con
ferred by American universities and colleges, 98 per
^Arnold H. Trotier and Marian Harman (eds.), Doc
toral Dissertations Accepted by American Universities.
21 vols. (New York: H. W. Wilson Co., 193?-195?); Walter
Crosby Eells, "American Doctoral Dissertations on Foreign
Education," Higher Education, XII:2 (October, 1955)^ PP*
1 9 - 2 2; Walter Crosby Eells, American Doctoral Disserta
tions on Education in Countj?ies of the Middle East (Wash-
ington, D. C.: The Middle East Institute, 1955); f * A.
Lamke and Herbert M. Silvey (eds.). Master's Theses in
Education, Nos. 1-4 (Cedar Falls, Iowa: Iowa State Teach
ers College, 1 9 5 1-1 9 5 5); Mary Loise Lyda and Stanley Brown
(compilers). Research Studies in Education: A Subject
Index (Boulder, Colorado ; University of Colorado, 19?1-
1951> 1 9 5 3); Stanley B. Brown, Mary Loise Lyda, and Carter
V. Good (compilers). Research Studies in Education: A
Subject Index (Homewood, Illinois: Phi Delta Kappa, Inc.,
1 9 5 1-1 9 5 2, 1 9 5 3); Stanley B. Brown, Mary Loise Lyda, and
Carter V. Good, Research Studies in Education : A Subject
Index (Bloomington, Indiana: Phi Delta Kappa, Inc.,
195?)*
17 I
I
cent of them in the present century. Of this number
more than 1 5 ,0 0 0 represent research In the field of ,
education. While most of these deal primarily with i
educational conditions and policies in the United ■
States, it is significant that more than one thousand i
of them have been concerned with various phases of |
education in foreign countries. I
Almost two hundred of the dissertations on foreign
education relate to education or educators in the
countries of the Middle East. . . . ,
j
It is true, however, that more overseas students j
are engaged in research on problems of their respective |
fatherlands, and post-war international developments and
travel have been awakening keener interest in the Middle i
East; hence, there is an increasing volume of research as ,
Tables I and II give evidence.
The largest number of dissertations dealing with
education in Middle Eastern countries (in the broad use of:
the term Middle East, not used as such in this investiga- ;
tion), almost one-half of the total, is concerned with
education in India. The countries of Egypt and Israel are,
second and third, respectively, in volume of research :
studies
In studying the comparable statistics of the past ;
j
with 1 9 5 4, this investigator noted that dissertations on
^Eells, 0£. cit., p. 2
7
Cf. Ibid.
l i l
TABLE I
DISTRIBUTION SPREAD OP DOCTORAL DISSERTATIONS ON EDUCATION
IN COUNTRIES OP THE MIDDLE EAST 1914-1954
Country
Complete or Major
portion Partial*
Total
Number
Egypt
27
1 28 1
Iran 12 1
13
Iraq 14 1
15
Israel 22 1
23 i
Lebanon 1 1
2 i
Syria 4 0 4 j
Turkey
_ 7
2
9 ;
87 7
94
*SeveraI dissertations cover two or more countries . !
For example, there are twenty-eight dissertations on educa
tion in Egypt, twenty-seven devoting all or a major part
of their treatment to Egypt, and one other which deals ‘
with the country only partially. These partial ones are !
shown in the second column. '
L , . _
19
TABLE II
TIME SPAN OP DOCTORAL DISSERTATIONS ON EDUCATION IN
COUNTRIES OP THE MIDDLE EAST 1914-1954
Year
com
pleted Egypt Iran Iraq Israel Lebanon Syria Turkey
Total
number
1914 1 1
1915
1 9 1 6
1917
1 9 18
1 9 19
1 1
1 9 2 0
1921 1 1
1 9 2 2
1 9 2 3
1 1
1 924
1 9 2 5
1 9 2 6
1 9 27
1928
1 9 2 9
1 1 2
1 9 3 0
1 9 3 1
1 1
1 9 3 2 1 1
1 9 3 3
2 2
1934 3
1 1
5
1 9 3 5
1 9 3 6 2 2
1937 3 3
1 9 3 8 1 1 2
19 39 3 3
1 9 4 0 1 1 2
1941 1 1
1 9 42 1 2 1 4
1 9 4 3 1 1
1944
20
TABLE II (continued)
Year
com
pleted Egypt Iran Iraq Israel Lebanon Syria Turkey
Total
number
1 9 4 5
1946 1 1
1 9 47
1 2 1 4
1948
1 9 49 3
1 1
5
1 9 50 2 I 2 1 6
1 9 5 1
4 2 1
7
1 9 52 2 1 1 4
1 9 5 3
4 2 1 1 8
1954 5
1 4
7
2
19
Totals
27
12 14 22 1 4
7 8 7
. 21 i
education in countries of the Middle East increased from |
approximately one-fifth to over one-third of all foreign i
I
research. India, that had led first place for the coun
tries of the so-called Middle East, still held the same
ordinal position; but her ratio of studies to the rest of
the Middle East for 1954 as compared with that previously,
fell from one-half to approximately one-third.^
As figured from a survey of master's theses written
on education in 1954, 24 per cent of the foreign and in
ternational subject-content theses were prepared on India i
I
and about 15 per cent on the Middle East proper. Although*
no doctoral dissertations were found for the Hashemite
Kingdom of the Jordan, in studying the surveys and indices ;
for education, yet one master's thesis was written in 1954'
on education for that country.^
Educationists must be encouraged to see foreign,
returned, and overseas graduate students grappling in. re- '
search with problems of their own. countries--re-evaluation!
I
of aims and objectives, reorganization of administration, '
improvement of supervision, functionalization of curricu- ;
lum, upgrading of personnel, and others. Table III
^Brown, Lyda, and Good, oj^. cit. (1954), pp. 2-4.
^Lamke and Silvey, ojg_. cit. (No. 4), pp. 100-02.
L
H
H
M
I
54
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00 ro h - o \ VA
4^ rH rH rH
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o •H
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o \ c
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en 1 C V J rH Jd- O C V J
o M U rH
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o ce
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40 40
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C 00 0 C d •H E h O c d o 0 o c d A C 3
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s A u :3 P 4 A 4 -5 •H m o s A 5
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54 E h 54
_ - - — 23!
I graphically displays the topical distribution of the doc- ;
I I
I toral dissertations. i
i The decade of this investigation alone produced to
date 63 per cent of all doctoral dissertations on education
! in the selected countries of the Middle East.
I
The year 1954, or the 1953-1954 academic year, as
Table II bears witness, was a banner year in research
studies for that part of the world. During that year there
; were more studies prepared than during any previous single
; year, and in this investigation it was ascertained that the
year 1954 contributed almost one-fourth of the doctoral
I research studies on education in countries of the Middle
. East which have been prepared to date.
I
I Typical research studies. Typical of the research :
I studies on problems in this part of the world are two dis- |
I
sertations of 1954 prepared for solutions of problems in ■
Iraq. !
I
Al-Jalili^^ selected current practices in American
public education that might have appreciable significance
Abdul Razzak al-Jalili, ”A Study of Public Educa
tion in Iraq, With Suggestions for Its Reorganization^"
(unpublished Doctor of Philosophy dissertation. The Uni
versity of Southern California, Los Angeles, 1954), x +
2 6 3 pp.
L .
I 24 I
I
; for Improving the educational programs in the public
i
I schools of Iraq. He further described, analyzed, and eval-'
! !
! uated the status of education in Iraq using the current ,
i practices in American, public education as a frame of refer-!
I I
: ence, offering suggestions for adapting and introducing |
! into Iraqi public education selected practices found to be '
I effective in American public education. The researcher i
I . ;
lists seventy-two recommendations under the following
headings for the enhancing of the Iraqi public school pro-:
gram:
1. The general educational situation
2. Educational administration and supervision
3. Educational finance
4. Curriculum construction and methods of teaching
i
I 5* Guidance
I 6 . Teacher training
! '
; Among the many principles evinced al-Jalili recom-
I I
; mended decentralized educational administration, community-
school cooperation, functional reconstruction, democratic j
supervisory functions to replace present inspectoral func- i
tions, improved teaching methods, guidance services, and
I
: the provision for in-service teacher training. ;
Another researcher from the Middle East,
25
Alzobaie,^^ took a practical study, particularly because
of the fact that the Arab lands lack standardized tests in I
I
the vernacular. He offered suggestions for the construe- ;
tion. of an intelligence test to be employed in Iraq. In |
I I
I the preparation of such an. instrument the test-maker should
* keep in mind the difficulties of the language, sampling,
I validity, and the principles involved in adapting any test ;
I
i to another culture. |
; I
Alzobaie surveyed different types and specific ;
j intelligence tests, attempting also to find out how sub- ■
tests of standardized tests have been adapted for use in
* cultures other than the American culture.
I Two well known intelligence tests were subjected to'
I
! analysis by a committee of five Iraqi graduate students.
i
j The purpose of Alzobaie was to obtain their individual and j
j collective evaluations on the suitability of each test '
item in the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children and |
1
: the Stanford-Binet for the cultural and social conditions
in Iraq. Such an analysis the researcher hoped would be i
i
of some help in. adapting or developing an intelligence test
Abdul Jalil Alzobaie, "intelligence Test Develop-i
ment With Special Reference to a Test for Use in Iraq," j
(unpublished Doctor of Education dissertation. The Uni- *
versity of Southern California, Los Angeles, 1954), x + 1
326 pp. i
26
for school children in Iraq.
If such worthy research is made on many— or all-^of
the educational problems of countries in the Middle East
by indigenous or foreign students, improved educational
programs and systems may be helpfully planned and inevit
ably enhanced.
Greater future through educational research. The
Middle East deserves such attention and study. The times
demand it. The past, present, and future of the countries'
in the Middle East may be glorious.
Believing that these lands have been and are very :
organic and fluid, a current author struck off the keynote :
Older than the Umayyid Mosque is the city of Damas-'
eus, perhaps the oldest urban settlement in the world.|
What story could be told by its many layers of rubble,
each of them the burial ground of a defunct culture?
This was the great workshop of history, of which |
Damascus is the center. |
I
Today again the Middle East is in the very center
of history.
Crossroads the area was in the past and crossroads !
it is again. At the intersection of East and West, it|
is the hub of the great aviation route between Orient|
and Occident. It is the site of two of the world’s ;
most important waterways, the Straits and the Suez i
Canal. The Middle East is known to be the world’s ;
richest petroleum well; and the role of oil as the ;
lubricant not only of global economics but also of
strategy needs no stress. i
L
27
In a world deeply fissured by diplomatic and ide
ological conflicts, the importance of the Middle East
today is even greater than in the past. It is the re
gion which is of the utmost importance both to the
western world and to the Soviet Union. Possession of
this region may mean all the difference between vic
tory and defeat. The area is the site of one of his
tory’s great conflicts, between dominant minorities
in many of its states and unhappy majorities. Also
the Middle East is the site of the western-minded State
of Israel, thus creating a problem by inviting compar- ;
isons.
With a tremendous history and a future which appears
to be fraught with potentialities, the world faces the
Middle East with awe. There mankind’s history began.
Will it be the scene of a new rejuvenation, another
beginning? Or will the Middle East hasten the end of
one phase of mankind’s life? Were the burning bush
and the thundering mountains graphic illustrations of
the endless span of history? Truly, it is a world
without end.l^
i
I What a challenge for educational research with the
I
I rising and swelling tides of youth in the march among the
i lands of the Middle East.*
^^Emil Lengyel, World Without End: The Middle East
(New York: The John Day Co., 1953), P* 6l.
CHAPTER III
ORGANIZATION OP EDUCATIONAL STRUCTURE IN THE MIDDLE EAST
The educational angles of the Middle East cut not
only geographically from the sparkling straits of the
Bosphorus to the Nile in flood and from the hinterlands
of Persia to the snow-capped Lebanon, but they cross also
chronologically in time the storied centuries of the past
and the fleeting moments of the present.
As though thirsty for knowledge and eager to find
a cup of cold water, the peoples of the Middle East from
mountain, plateau, plain, and desert, have contributed to
art, astronomy, literature, mathematics, medicine, poli
tics, and to the physical sciences.
Many Muslim peoples have obeyed implicitly their
Prophet’s command: "Seek after knowledge, even if it be
in China."
Undoubtedly, the remoteness of the Par East was
what the original tradition had in mind. They who sought
knowledge and learning were to count nothing too distant
to pursue or too far to investigate, if it would give them
further light. They did not want to grope in darkness.
The educational network of intricate patterns forms
29
a huge crazyquilt of design throughout the Middle East. A
glimpse at the educational program of each nation will
prove of more than passing interest. :
I. EGYPT
Background and structure. Not far east of the three;
I famous pyramids of Giza flows the life-giving Nile River. |
i Through the centuries it has found its way from the contri-|
! !
i butary waters of the Kagera and Victoria Nyanza, assuring ;
vegetation and life along its fertile banks to the muddy
I
' delta.
I
I Symbolic of the educational system of Egypt is the I
! ■ I
; historic waterway. Whereas most Arab countries of the '
! Middle East made a clean break with the educational poli- ;
t
I cies of the Ottoman Turks and mushroomed up after World War^
I, the educational patterns in general of Egypt date back :
more than a century. In fact, the religious system of ed
ucation in Egypt represented by the University of al-Azhar
and its associated schools harks back to the tenth
centuryIt is a long history.
^"al-Azhar," Encyclopedia of Islam (Leyden, 1913)
I, pp. 5 3 2-3 9.
3ol
UNESCO paints the backdrop briefly:
j The full story of modern educational effort in Egypt |
j would go back to Napoleon's invasion, of the country, and
I the background would extend, of course, to the rise of
} Mohammed in the 7th century and on into ancient times. ;
; Since our presentation can do no justice to historic '
developments in any of the areas on which we touch in I
I this account, we must be content with the statement
that there were strong influences after l8 82 which I
tended toward a sharp separation of the native (village)
schools from the primary and secondary schools for the
more privileged classes--a bar to Fundamental Education'
which is always hard to overcome. Since 1925 Egyptian
nationalism and educational reform have been parts of
one general movement. The difficulties due to over
population, small land holdings, lack of industrializa-;
I tion, disease, and peasant apathy are reported to be
i appalling; yet they are being attacked in various ways
i by national leaders
j Looking back further into the past one is reminded
i
I of the second greatest city of the Graeco-Roman world,
I Alexandria, founded in 332 B.C. by Alexander the Great as a
I Greek political center and naval base. It was a place of
I education and culture. !
i
1 In Egypt Alexander built the great port of Alexan
dria in order to take Mediterranean trade away from
I Phoenician Tyre. This it did, and under the Ptolemies
I it became the most powerful Hellenic center of commerce'
in the world. For centuries it rivaled Athens in the
field of culture. Ptolemy I founded the great library
containing 700,000 volumes, a museum, and institutions I
for the study of mathematics, philosophy, geography, *
p
UNESCO, Fundamental Education : Common Ground for
All Peoples (New York: The Macmillan Coll 19^7), pp. 120,
121.
31'
I medicine, and astronomy. In the Christian era it be-
! came a great center of ecclesiastical learning and is
j still the see of a Greek Orthodox patriarch. Alexan-
I dria through the centuries has maintained its Hellenic
i character, and today a populous and thriving Greek
I community of bankers, brokers, cotton merchants, and
I businessmen contribute greatly to its prosperity.3
I
: Education in Egypt, as in all the other Arabic
I I
I Speaking countries, is highly centralized. The Ministry of;
I I
■ Education was founded in 1 8 3 6 -1 8 3 7 by Muharamed All, first
: viceroy of Egypt. At first it had a very strong French
■ influence, and later with British occupation, the Ministry
i received the British influence. In 1923, however, the
I Ministry passed into purely Egyptian hands.
i
I For a brief sketch of Egyptian education it may be
I best to consider first the Ministry of Education, the *
I agency which administers the essentially Egyptian edu- |
! cation and has nominal control at least over all other ;
; forms of education within the country. The Ministry . |
j is highly organized to care for a variety of activities!
besides providing schools and schooling for the young, {
I since under its direction are the National Library, the!
; Royal Opera House, and the Museum of Modern Art, as |
! well as departments for the various stages and types |
i of formal education. The Minister is a political ap- |
! pointee whose fortunes are tied to those of the Prime !
: Minister— thus, according to the pattern established |
over the years, no Minister should expect to hold of- I
fice for any length of time, since the average life of I
a Cabinet has been about a year and a half. He is ,
directly responsible to Parliament; for general educa- !
tional policy he may have the aid of the Supreme I
^Ernest Jackh (ed.), Background of the Middle East
(Ithica, New York; Cornell University Press, 1952), pp.
4 7, 48.
327
j
Educational Council; his approval is required for all ■
major policies and expenditures as well as for new |
appointments and promotion of personnel. In practice j
the power of the Minister is very great; one Egyptian !
educator regards the Ministry as a form of "benevolent
despotism." He remarks : "In his endeavor to follow
the general line of policy.dictated by whatever Cabinetj
is in power, every new Minister,of Education mixes his *
machinery with politics and starts his educational j
achievement by drastically and unscrupulously purging
and liquidating 'undesirable* higher officials, and |
often headmasters and teachers . "4^
In addition to the Ministry of Education other cen- |
tral agencies concerned with education have been: |
1. The Ministry of Interior, conducting through ■
provincial councils, the councils' elementary schools of
the provinces. ‘
2. The Ministry of Social Affairs maintains schools 1
and asylums for poor and orphan children and conducts in- ;
8titutions for the training of social workers. It has |
sponsored a wide rural and urban anti-illiteracy campaign, j
3* The Directorate of Railways conducts a number of !
I
elementary schools under the professional supervision of I
i
the Ministry of Education. |
I
4. The University of al-Azhar with its primary and j
Secondary schools and colleges administers the ancient
C. Worth Howard, "Education in Egypt Footnote of ;
' Today," Nationalism in the Middle East, Sixth Annual Con- i
fere nee on Middle East Affairs,. March 21-22, 1952 (Washing-|
ton, D.C.: Middle East Institute, 1952), pp. 40-41. '
331
Muslim system of education. .
i
5. Charitable, private, sectarian, lay, and re11- ;
giou8 bodies or groups maintain private schools. |
The Royal Institute of National Affairs surveyed theI
i
educational scene;
. . . In 1933 education was made compulsory for all
children between seven and twelve years of age, primary
education was made free in 1944 and secondary education
in 1 9 5 0. Compulsory education, however, still remains '
an aspiration rather than an achievement. . . . It is ‘
possible that about 7 0 per cent (of the population) are-
still illiterate.
In 1 9 51 elementary and primary schools were amalga- ■
mated into a unified system of basic education and
most private schools were taken over by the state.
Private schools, such as those for racial and religious
minorities which still remain, are not given any state :
aid or encouragement.
. . . Despite the efforts made, it is believed that 1
schooling can still provide for less than half the
children of school age. . . . j
In Egypt the proportion of university graduates to ;
the total population is eleven times as great as in I
Great Britain. . . . |
- ^ j
There are five purely Egyptian universities. . . .^ j
As regards school fees Matthews and Akrawi have }
I
written:
^Royal Institute of International Affairs, pp. cit.,
! pp. 249, 2 5 0.
34
Although all fees in elementary schools were abol
ished in 1 9 2 5 when compulsory elementary education was 1
launched, primary and secondary schools continued to
charge fees. In 1943 the Ministry of Education, to
promote "equality of opportunity, abolished fees in
primary schools altogether and increased the number of
free places in secondary schools, agreeing to compen
sate private schools for the loss of revenues derived
from fees
The educational ladder. In this educational mosaic ,
• the Egyptian educational system has been, virtually a two-
ladder system with each ladder pursuing its respective ,
I
! course. They may be referred to as the "elementary school
I ladder" and the "primary school ladder."
I
I The general category of elementary schools through-
I I
I out Egypt includes the kuttabs (age-old Muslim ungraded |
, school) or maktabs (graded and with better physical facil- '
^ I
j ities, the standard elementary schools), which are lower |
I elementary schools with a strong religious bias, some of |
’ which are being converted into rural schools for communi-
t
1 ties with an emphasis towards the study of agriculture and |
i
rural industries. These national elementary schools do not'
prepare pupils for higher schools except for the compara- '
tively small number who attend later the religious schools
' of al-Azhar, a larger number who transfer to the national
^Matthews and Akrawi, pp. pit., p. 17.
35
primary schools, and a few who go on to some vocational or
I
i teacher-training schools. There are three types of ele-
I
I mentary schools offering four, five, and six years of !
I schooling. !
i I
I Only Egypt has attempted to keep and reorganize |
: this local native school, making it the standard graded j
I I
; elementary school (maktab) for the nation.
1 !
I The elementary schools, being free of tuition, are
I attended by the children of the great masses of Egyp- ,
I tian people. The primary schools have until recently :
! been fee schools, as have the higher schools and col
leges to which they lead, so that only the minority
capable of paying fees could send their children to ;
the primary schools. Thus the distribution of pupils |
between the two types of public schools has been on a i
class basis ...» '
I
The other ladder, primary school, articulates with |
its attendant kindergartens (incorporated by law No. 14-3 i
for 19 51 into general primary education), secondary j
schools, vocational and cultural schools, universities, and
I I
' other higher institutions. j
j i
I Secondary education is divided into two stages, a j
four-year and five-year preparatory course for boys and '
I
girls, respectively; and a three-year secondary. The J
' I
, preparatory stage ends with a government examination held i
^Matthews and Akrawi, pp. cit., p. 23.
I 36 i
I yearly, and successful students are issued a "certificate
I
!'of preparatory studies." The secondary stage proper em-
: ' I
braces three years of study. Studies in the first year of ^
; I
; this stage are those in common, but the second and third ,
I ;
' years are divided into two sections, the literary and sci
entific. At the conclusion of the third year the Ministry
; I
of Education holds a public examination, and students who ;
i pass successfully the examination are awarded the "general |
I ;
I secondary certificate." '
I ;
For admission to the universities of Egypt the
secondary certificate is the minimum requirement, although
some faculties, notably engineering and medicine, will give
' I
I priority consideration to applicants who have ranked high- I
I est in the certificate examinations. I
t I
! If a boy graduating from a primary school wishes a ;
i ‘ '
! more practical type of training than a secondary school |
i offers, he may elect an intermediate vocational school. :
I A law was passed in 1949 which opened the "dead
end" road of the elementary school program. It allowed !
the more able elementary school children the opportunity of
sitting for primary school examinations. If they passed
successfully, they could then pursue a secondary school
, curriculum. A chance was thus offered a peasant's son to j
I ;
I obtain a secondary and higher education, if he had the !
37 ;
I
ability and will. I
' After almost a century of dual educational ladders |
I I
j in Egypt, the nation is now working toward a single ladder |
I rising from a free school with equal opportunities for all.'
I Laws 210 and 211, of 1953, helped to reorganize primary and
! secondary education, respectively. ■
i i
; Our survey would be incomplete without an observa- ^
1 I
' tion on education for girls.
. . . In 1 9 20 it is recorded that only 28 girls were
enrolled in the government secondary schools; this is
not to say no other Egyptian girls were receiving edu-,
cation of the secondary level, for private schools '
conducted principally under French and American aus- j
pices were doing important work for girls. However,
by 1 9 5 1 1 2 ,8 1 0 girls were in attendance at 45 govern
ment schools especially developed for them, and 3,440 '
were enrolled in the 14 embroidery schools, which are
really technical schools to prepare girls either for
employment or for teaching needlework and embroidery
in primary and elementary schools. Two girls * colleges
which give a post-secondary program were credited with
an enrollment of 784. Women are admitted to practi
cally every faculty of the universities ; for instance,
in 1 9 4 5 -4 6 there were three women in the Faculty of
; Engineering and 462 in the Faculty of Medicine— df
course, that is including the nurses.
. . . It is forbidden to have boys and girls to
gether in secondary classes, but coeducation in the
kindergarten and university level is acceptable.^
It is interesting to note that in the 1953-1954
' school year 244,757 girls were in attendance at primary
^Howard, op. cit., p. 47*
; 38
I
: schools and 6 8 ,1 8 5 were enrolled in preparatory and second-
; ary s c h o o l s !
I I
! After the 1951 educational law the pre-primary edu-
I
I cation was incorporated in the primary schools. The pre-, ;
j I
I primary had been conducted usually for children without
parental care. The kindergarten generally consisted of
i
; three years, the last two of which were similar to the
I
! first two years of the primary years elsewhere.
Entrance requirements commonly made for primary ed-;
ucation are reading, writing, and simple arithmetic. Pour !
years of Arabic language, mathematics, and science are in- i
eluded in the curriculum. A public examination is admin- I
i
istered at the end of the four years of study, and pupils I
: from private institutions may also sit for this examina-
' tion. Upon the successful passing of this examination a ;
j primary school certificate is issued. j
The secondary education is divided into two parts, j
i ■ !
j the preparatory stage of four years and the secondary
' proper stage of three years. This may be followed by a
one-year orientation course. The general course for boys
^International Bureau of Education, International
Yearbook of Education 1954 (Geneva: International Bureau
: of Education, 1 9 5 4),p. l48.
I 39.
j in the preparatory stage consists of four years for the j
I boys and five for the girls. j
The general course of the preparatory stage termin- :
; ates with a government or public examination (thaqafath),
• for which both government and private school students are '
: eligible. A spiral system exists in mathematics and ;
: social studies, Successful students who pass the examina- :
I tion are issued a "Certificate of Preparatory Studies." |
I ' ‘
I The one-year orientation course is divided into ;
; I
three curricula, one of which is elected by the students i
I I
I literary, science, or mathematics. At the end of the |
I I
orientation year students are examined in the field of !
I I
I their specialization. All students, regardless of the cur-|
■ riculum selected, however, are examined in the Arabic and ;
!
; English languages. A passing number of marks is varied
j with the course or field of study. A final secondary j
■ school certificate is issued upon the successful completion
I of the entire examination. Subjects emphasized are : j
i Arabic language and literature, arithmetic, Egyptian so- I
ciology, life and physical sciences, music, and physical I
; education.
Higher education. Besides the American University ;
j
j of Cairo and the Victoria College in Alexandria, there are |
' I
I I
five purely Egyptian universities. I
I 401
! The oldest In the country is al-Azhar (founded under!
; the Patimate Caliph, al-Muizz before 975 A.D.). Originally;
I
; its curriculum consisted only of the Muslim religious ^
; teaching, but currently its faculties offer Islamic law, ;
1 Islamic theology, Arabic letters and philosophy. '
The Cairo (formerly the Fuad I) University was '
I founded in 1 9 0 8 and has faculties in medicine, law, sci- 1
i '
I ence, arts, engineering, agriculture, commerce, veterinary '
j science, and a College of Arabic Studies • The Ibrahim Uni-
! I
j versity in Cairo was founded in 1950, and agriculture, |
I i
j arts, engineering, commerce, law, education, medicine, and ]
I I
! science constitute its faculties. I
I
i In 19 42 the Alexandria University was opened, and i
' it is a growing institution. The Mohammed Ali University,
I founded in 1952 at Assiut, is to provide undergraduate and i
! graduate studies for Upper Egypt. j
As an example of what has been accomplished in !
I '
! Egypt of recent date, we cite the following of one who was j
not educationally blind: '
. . . The story of Egyptian education in these lat- '
ter days since the gaining of independence and a con- ;
stitution is dramatic. . . . One should understand that;
education must be on the march in the land of the Phar-j
aohs. Budget figures alone do not attest this fact;
new schools established, teachers employed, and stu- I
dents enrolled are significant evidence of something
I going on. That this should be true is inevitable when j
I the Minister of Education proclaims: "To pursue |
J
41
knowledge is, like water and air, and inalienable right
to which every citizen is entitled, " and also when, this
same Minister, Dr. Taha Hussein Pasha, famed, blind, *
literary figure of the Arab world, replied to protests '
about the difficulties of providing free education:
"it is not my business to provide all that /finance^,* »
all I have to do is ask, and it is up to the Minister ;
of Finance to find the money." This zealous Minister, ;
who relinquished his post in January with the fall of !
the Cabinet of which he had been a member, can boast
of great educational advances in his two years of of- ,
fice--extension of free education through the second
ary, increase in enrollments, recruitment of teachers i
by the thousands, doubling classroom space in the ;
second year over that of the year before. Under him
the goal was set of refusing no one who applied for
admission to a school. . .
II. IRAN I
Background and structure. As Demavend pushes up |
1 8 ,6 0 0 feet beyond Teheran's northeastern skyland and as
the numerous underground channels burrow from the snow
capped mountain ranges to the dusty little villages bring- j
t
; ing cool waters, so Iran, has ever stood out quite prom- ,
■ inently in her cultural or educational contributions in \
I the Middle East.
Persian poets like Hafiz and Omar Khayyam have been
famous, and besides such literary personages there have
been other intellectuals.
. . . al-Khwarizmi, Persian by nationality, pro
duced (c. 8 3 0) a book in mathematics, entitled al-Jabr
which was the first of its kind. Another Moslem ;
scholar of Persian origin, al-Razi (Lat. Rhazes, 8 6 5- ■
9 2 5) distinguished for the first time in the history ;
6— 5— 1 Plan
Chrono-
! logical
Age
17
16
15
Hi
13
12
11
10
8
Orientation Year
Literary I Mathematical! Scientific
Academic
Secondary
Vocational
or
Technical
Years
in
School
12
11
10
8
FIGURE 1
EDUCATIONAL LADDER AND SYSTEM OF EGYPT
I of medicine between measles and smallpox. Ibn-Sina '
(Lat. Avicenna, 9 8O-IO3 7), son of an Assassin from ;
Bukhara, produced a medical work al-Qanun (The Canon) !
in which he recognized the contagious nature of tuber-
I culosis. . . * ^
With her Anglo-Iranian oil concessions measuring
I Î
' some 1 0 0 ,0 0 0 square miles, Iran has been in the focus of
■ attention for many years. |
I I
I Unfortunately, however, her school systems have not |
I
I kept pace in the same proportion with certain technological*
!
j developments. This is not to minimize the sincere attempts'
' I
I to ameliorate the health and education conditions. Migra- i
j tions, population pressures, and wars have made for con- j
I I
I siderable instability. Persia (Iran) became a battleground
! for Turkish, Russian, and British forces. Persia during
! World War 1 emerged from the war in a state of chaos.
j Since then there have been political and diplomatic prob-
j lems--both foreign and domestic--which have kept the con-
: j
‘ stitutional monarchy on edge. i
I I
I The Ministry of Education with its centralized con- |
' trol on the schools throughout the empire is doing its 1
I best to educate a better, more informed, literate citizen- j
|ry. On December 24, 1953, It was announced that the gov- j
I :
. ernment "had embarked on a seven-year school construction '
I ^^Philip K. Hittij "The Arab Caliphate: Its Rise
; and Decline" in Ernest Jackh, op_. cit., p. 100.
program under which 400 primary and secondary schools
12
would be erected." This has been particularly gratify
ing, since the two main obstacles to the achievement of the
aim of compulsory universal education--a law passed in ‘
1 9^3--have been the shortage of buildings and teachers. :
A cross-section of educational activities is well I
presented in one report: ;
I
Private schools have to follow the official course ^
of studies and use official textbooks, and permits to ;
open such schools have to be obtained from the Minis- i
try of Education. The Ministry of Education runs a |
number of teachers * training colleges and schools of j
music and dramatic art. i
The ministry is also in charge of public monuments,
museums, and archaeological works. Educational and
public health projects are in part financed by the
proceeds of religious endowments (waqfs). The Min
istries of National Economy, of Posts, Telegraphs and
Telephones, of Roads, of Finance, and of Agriculture,
run technical schools; the Ministry of Health runs a
school of nursing. The Ministry of Defense runs sec
ondary schools, an Officers' Training College, and a
Staff College. The University of Teheran, founded in
1935, has faculties of Art, Medicine, Law, Engineer
ing, Agriculture, and Theology. It is independent of
the Ministry of Education. In 1948 the University of
Tabriz was founded, with faculties of Arts and Medi
cine, and a medical college was opened in Shiraz in
1 9 5 2. There is also a National Library in Teheran.
French influence in the educational system is con
siderable, and until recently French was taught as a
192 .
^^The Middle East Journal, 8:2 (Spring, 195^), P«
^5;
second language in most schools. Since 1941. however, j
the teaching of English has increased. . • !
Many Western people are surprised to learn that
I
Arabic is not the language of Iran (Persia). The Persian
language is known as Parsee. |
To appreciate some of the problems in Iran, one j
must realize that there are some 40,000 villages scattered,
across the endless stretches of mountain ranges, barren ;
land, and salt deserts. In many of the mud-hut villages
established hundreds of years ago there have been no
1
schools established. This is a major reason why approxi- j
mately 9 5 per cent of the countrymen and women are illiterr
ate. I
!
A foreign educator serving in Iran for the United
States cooperative organization with that country has |
written of the current educàtional situation: j
Despite political turmoil and economic instability 1
there is concern for better educational facilities j
throughout the country. j
Iran is a potentially rich nation. Its people are
highly intelligent. Its natural resources are plenti
ful and have hardly been tapped. Its agriculture can
be abundantly productive. Its industries can be ex
panded from their present infancy to full maturity.
These potentials can only be reached by a people that
are healthy, well fed, well clothed and well housed.
They must have the advantages of a full life to be
l^Royal Institute of International Affairs, op.
cit., p. 3 9 5-
: 46 ;
i happy and productive. Only with education is this pos
sible.
j
There is an awakening to the fact that education can
be the solution to disease, poverty, unrest and the
; other social problems that have gripped Iran for cen-
j turies.
I '
' This growing awareness of the need for better edu
cation for all the people of Iran has been apparent
I for the past twenty-five years. Since 1950 there has
I been a further push given to the willingness of the
I centralized Iranian Government to establish more and j
I better schools. In that year Point Pour came to Iran, j
' As in all Point Pour programs, education is one of the j
I principal divisions. I
I :
! There are two major programs directed toward the j
I goal of improving the education in this country. In |
one, more and better school buildings are worked for. !
I In the other, more and better-prepared teachers are be-;
I ing trained. Working with, and for the Ministry of j
I Education, the American Point Pour educational techni- '
I cians have given assistance that has resulted in im- i
i proved schools and a brighter prospect. . . .
^ Of particular interest is an outstanding experiment |
I with nomadic tribespeople in southern, Iran. While visiting
! !
: in Teheran, Iran, during September, 195^, the investigator .
j
^ of this study visited with Hoyt J. B. Turner, Chief of the ;
I 1
I Education Section, United States Operations Mission to
Iran. While at the office a copy of the seven-page report
, was given to the writer, from which merely the introductory
Stewart B. Hamblen, "Schools for Better Living in
Iran," Institute of International Education News Bulletin,
29:5 (February, 1954), pp. 5ff•
47 '
I
' paragraphs are quoted. Later in the report details of the
techniques of organization and methods of instruction were ^
, presented. !
; The road and countryside were crowded with Iranian j
j tribesmen on horseback dressed in their native, color-i
I ful costumes. Herds of cattle, sheep and goats were !
i moving slowly in clouds of dust, stopping from time to
! time to nibble at sprigs of grass. Following the en- ,
tourage were pack animals buried under bundles of i
tents, supplies and family belongings. The nomadic |
Qashqae tribes of Shiraz were on the move again. They j
were going from their southern winter valleys to their <
summer grazing mountain lands. !
For centuries, these people have fought the pre- !
vailing conditions— drought, floods, disease and j
death— in search of a meager living from the natural !
habitat. Through migrations they have avoided extreme i
heat and cold and found the best pastures for their |
hundreds of sheep and goats. This year, there is
something different, in the entourage. It is a large ^
number of pack animals carrying to their summer camp- *
ing ground a few school supplies and a red tent, sym
bolic of the "little red schoolhouse." This is one of '
the portable schools that the United States Operations ;
Mission to Iran has helped the tribes organize in the ;
Pars Ostan. !
t
Children of these tribesmen, more than one thousand I
of them, can now read and write as a result of having j
attended the tribal schools during the past year. This;
program of tribal education, was initiated almost a year
ago as a pilot demonstration project in an effort to i
assist the Iranian government to raise the social and
economic standard of living of their nomadic people. i
i
At present, there are approximately two million no- ;
madie people in Iran, comprising six major tribes, i
similar in many respects, but each with its own eus- ■
toms, dress and habits of living. The Kurds are in |
the northwestern area of Iran in the Hermanshah- I
Rezaieh Ostans ; the Arabs are in the southwestern part ;
of the country in the Khuzistan province; the Qashqae j
are in the south central part along the Persian Gulf; |
48
the Baluchis are in the southwestern part also along
the Persian Gulf; the Bakhtiaris are located in the
eastern central part of the country; and the Turkomans
live in the northeastern section.
These tribesmen are lovers of the outdoors. They
are great horsemen, sportsmen and hunters, They live,
for the most part in tents made from the hides and hair!
of animals. Their chief source of income is their !
livestock, which they graze in low valleys during the
winter and return to the upper hill country in hot ;
summer months where they live in more or less permanentj
villages. Their life is simple. The children learn 1
from their parents how to make goat hair tents, to tend!
the flocks, to make mast (yogurt), to hunt, and to !
assist in the chores around the camp j
The nationwide school building program initiated by !
the Ministry of Education has sought to capture the cooper
ation of the local constituencies.
The compulsory education act contains regulations
concerning school buildings. In the towns the munici
pality is required to include credits for school build
ing in its budget, and the inhabitants are invited to
form themselves into committees for the purpose of col
lecting money for school building. In the villages thel
landowners are required to build a school or to place I
a part of their income at the disposal of the Ministry I
of Education (which pays half the cost of building),
through their bank. I
I
The problem is one which is far from being solved, |
as the existing regulations have been so far applied j
only here and there. . . . !
^Hoyt J. B. Turner, "Portable Schools for the
Tribes of Iran," A Report prepared for the United States
Operations Mission to Iran (Teheran, Iran : USOM-Iran,
1 9 5 4), pp. 1, 2. (Typewritten.)
49i
The public certainly does not lack good will in the |
matter, but in view of high building costs and the
large number of schools required, goodwill has proved ;
inadequate. Some years ago in Teheran, for example, !
in order to provide 1 0 0 of the 3 0 0 primary schools that'
the town needed, the Ministry of Education divided the ,
town into 100 districts, and in each one formed a com
mittee of the inhabitants to collect the funds neces- ■
sary to build a school, the required land having been i
granted by the government or the municipality. Despite
the goodwill with which these committees went to work, j
only one of them managed to get a school completely
built. A few finally made over an unfinished building j
to the Ministry of Education. The majority of the com
mittees were unable to collect enough money even to be-j
gin construction. ,
Given the general level of income in Persia, the sys
tem of voluntary contributions to school building will j
not work. ° |
Teacher shortage, it is repeated, has been an acute '
' j
j problem. Roughly, the ratio has been two to one, as far aSj
■ men and women teachers respectively are concerned in the !
I j
' primary s c h o o l s . '
I I
I Persia possesses twenty-six primary normal schools !
j and one higher normal school. In order to encourage j
I young persons to take up teaching, the Ministry of Ed- i
I ucation offers free board at the primary normal !
I schools, and makes a special grant to students attend- j
I ing the higher normal s c h o o l . ;
^^International Bureau of Education, International |
Yearbook of Education 1953 (Geneva: International Bureau !
of Education! 1953), PP• 284, 2 8 5.
1
^^International Bureau of Education, o£. cit., p.
^ ^ I b i d . ;
!
■ 286.
: 50
Yearly and summer in-service training courses and j
I scholarships have subsequently been instituted and intensi-i
I Tied to help qualify stronger teachers. Headmasters, in- |
!
spectors, and further training courses are upgrading teach-;
I ing personnel at the local level. j
The educational ladder. Primary education consists *
of six years of schooling with emphasis on the fundamental
subjects of reading, national language, and arithmetic. |
Vocational education given in rural and vocational !
i
schools has been given much consideration of late. A plan j
has been arranged so that classes in the upper grades of I
primary school in rural areas will be transformed into j
classes giving^instruction in agriculture. j
I
' Three-year regional agricultural schools, moreover, ;
I are to be set up, at which the best pupils from the 1
I 6th-year agricultural classes may receive more advanced}
I instruction, enabling them to pass the competitive en- j
trance examinations into the agricultural normal !
i s c h o o l s . I
I i
I Secondary education is a six-year program divided j
I into three states: three years of lower secondary, two j
! years of intermediate secondary, and one year of specialty ^
^^International Bureau of Education, International
Yearbook of Education 1954 (Geneva: International Bureau
of Education, 1954), p. 2 5 7.
î 51-
in literary, mathematical, or scientific lines. It is
i quite largely built on a spiral system in geography, his-
I
I tory, mathematics, and science. Much emphasis is given to
these courses.
The first government secondary examination is given
at the end of the fifth year. A diploma is issued to
students who do not intend to continue their education.
In the final year of the secondary school program
students may specialize in the natural sciences, physics-
mathematics, literature, or commerce, and qualifying ex
aminations will then be given in the field of their spe
cialization.
! Higher education. The minimum entrance requirements'
I are the completion of the six-year secondary school pro- '
; '
j gram and a presentation of the diploma of Secondary School i
; Studies. |
1 ;
I The University of Teheran (1934) and the University i
I of Tabriz (1947) have prescribed courses in their cur- !
' ricula. !
52:
6*—
IChrono-
j logical
! Age
18
17
16
15
Ik
13
Literary Mathematical Scientific
Ihyermediate Secondary
Lower Cycle of Secondary
Years !
in I
School I
12
ir
10
12
11
10
8
Primary
Rural
Primary
FIGURE 2
EDUCATIONAL LADDER AND SYSTEM OF IRAN
53 .
; i
III. IRAQ
I I
> i
j Background and structure. The land "between the
rivers," as Mesopotamia, the' old name for Iraq, means,
flourished during the golden years of the Assyrian, Baby- ;
I
I Ionian, and Medo-Persian dynasties. Iraq is a nation
I rightly boasting a rich heritage of charm and traditions |
I of ancient and highly organized civilizations. Archaeolog-j
I !
I ical excavations and mighty ruins bear noble evidence. j
I
This country encloses within its boundaries what is i
believed to be the cradle of civilization,— the place |
where history may have dawned. Many people hold that i
in it is what was once the Garden of Eden, even if ;
some authorities do dispute the exact location of that j
utopian place. The capital of the kingdom is Baghdad, '
the foremost city of old Mesopotamia. This was the !
home, particularly in the ninth century, of great I
scholars and rich merchants. It was the center of i
Islam when that religion represented a high civiliza- |
tion; the great city of the celebrated Arabian Nights; j
the ancient gateway to Persia, Turkey,' and Arabia; j
the most important point of the old route from the East
to the West. Even now it is a fascinating city, but it
retains nothing of the old pomp and magnificance of !
which it boasted centuries ago. Today its^glory, as -
does that of Peking, belongs to the past. I
i
Standards of living have changed throughout the I
I
territory between the Tigris and the Euphrates Rivers. '
I Wealth and poverty, health and sickness, fertility of land •
pA
Edgar W. Knight, Twenty Centuries of Education
(Boston: Ginn and Co., 1940), p. 571.
54'
and barren soil may be seen not too far apart in. Iraq. !
Socio-economic factors, vicious arrangements of agricul- j
I
tural tenancy, disease, superstition, and illiteracy have '
p I
played havoc throughout the country.
Some of these conditions are old and stubborn; some
result from Ottoman rule, which was viewed by competent
observers as unsuitable to Mesopotamia. The Turks had |
held that country for centuries prior to the World War,
but even the Turks themselves must have known that
their system of administration was a failure there. .
Conditions prevailing in Iraq for many years prior
to the World War were therefore chaotic and full of
evils ....
Under a joint declaration of the French and British
governments to the occupied Arab territories, before
the armistice in November, I9 1 8, Iraq was liberated. .
. . <
Then, in April, 1920, England accepted the responsi
bility of a mandatory for Iraq, under the Covenant of 1
the League of Nations. This provided that certain |
communities formerly belonging to the Turkish empire I
had reached a stage of development where they could be I
provisionally recognized as independent nations, sub- j
I ject to advice and assistance, until they were able to ;
I make their way alone. 1
I In 1 9 3 1 England reported to the League on the pro- I
j gress of Iraq as a mandate during the decade. . . ;
i ’ I
■ In this constitutional hereditary monarch with a i
I representative government, there are a number of |
Chapter Five.
22
p 1
•'•Royal Institute of International Affairs, op_. cit.,
Knight, o£. cit.. pp. 569, 570.
55'
I ministries . Among these ministries is education . The Min-
; ister of Education, a cabinet member, is the supreme head,
1
! and he is responsible for the administration of the Ministry
i
of Education and of all the schools through his Director- ;
General of Education and other associate officers. He is j
president of the Advisory Council on Education.
The Director-General of Education, however, is the
real administrative head of the Iraqi government-school
system. He is expected to be a man of experience in edu-
i
cational administration and classroom instruction. He is j
responsible to the Minister for the proper administration j
and supervision of all the schools in the country. ;
I
Educational legislation for the nation may be summedj
up thus : j
In general, education in Iraq is governed by the
provisions of the Public Education Law of 1940. The |
law defines the functions of the Ministry of Education |
as the founding and maintenance of government schools
! of all types and levels; the supervision of private and
I foreign schools to direct them toward the general goals
I of the government schools; the organization of youth, j
I particularly through military training, scouting, and !
. physical education; and finally, the fostering of sci- |
I entific and literary movements, the spread of general I
I culture, and the liquidation of illiteracy. The law !
classifies the schools into primary, secondary, and î
I higher institutions; according to purpose into schools j
I of general culture and professional or vocational
j schools; and according to control into government, pri-|
I vate, and foreign schools. The law sets forth in a
i general way the conditions for admission of students to!
I the various kinds of schools and of their promotion j
! from one school level to another. It authorizes the ,
56 I
Ministry of Education to declare attendance compulsory '
in those localities where adequate primary-school fa- ;
cilities exist. It defines the level of training re
quired for teachers in each type of school, makes pro
visions for sending students abroad for study, and lays
down rather careful stipulations for the supervision of
private and foreign schools.^3
Iraq has developed to such an extent that it has
passed a law of universal and compulsory primary education
where facilities permit. The services of the educational
I program have been limited by a shortage of schools and
I
I trained teachers, especially in many villages.
i
j The rapid expansion of primary and intermediate ed-
i
: ucation, however, has been commendable. Note the decade
' pii
I expansion in Table IV. ;
Much credit, too, should be given the oil companies.
' They have conducted for a number of years major training
and educational programs including general education to re-
! I
1 duce and eliminate illiteracy and have offered technical >
I I
' and vocational education.
! I
I The educational ladder. Usually the kindergartens j
I i
, are private or foreign. Some are connected with junior !
schools."
The primary school program is the same throughout '
^3Matthews and âkrawi, o£. cit., pp. 1 2 8,1 2 9. |
oh '
-Royal Institute of International Affairs, go. cit . 1 ,
; p . 2 7 3 . . .. — _
57
TABLE IV
DECADE EXPANSION OP IRAQI STATE EDUCATION
Year
Elementary
Number of
schools
education
Number of
teachers
Number of
students
1 9 2 0 -2 1 8 8 486 8 ,0 0 1
1 9 3 0 -3 1
3 1 6
1 ,3 2 5 3 4 ,5 1 3
1940-41
735 3 ,5 2 5
9 0 ,7 9 4
1 9 5 0 -5 1
1,101
6 ,3 6 7
1 8 0 ,7 7 9
Secondary education
Number of Number of Number of
Year schools teachers students
1 9 2 0 -2 1
3
34 110
1 9 3 0 -3 1 19 129
2,082
1940-41
56 4 7 2
1 3 ,9 6 9
1 9 5 0 -5 1
121
9 99 2 2 ,7 0 7
58 I
i
the nation. Although there are many separate schools for '
boys and girls, coeducation is becoming an accepted prin- |
I
ciple and practice. A certificate is issued upon the sat-:
isfactory passing of the primary school government examin- |
ation. I
The boys and girls are taught in separate secondary j
schools. The five-year course is given two parts, the j
three years of the intermediate and the remaining two of '
1
the preparatory. I
Arabic language and literature, mathematics, his- '
!
tory, and the sciences are stressed. ;
Of the educational structure of the county, an. Iraq ;
spokesman has offered the following statement:
Iraq's educational system has three stages. The
first is the primary stage, with a duration of six
years. The second is the secondary stage, with a dur
ation of five years, divided into a three-year inter- ;
mediate section and a two-year preparatory section.
The third is the higher education stage. According !
to their aims, the country's educational establishments
are of two kinds: those offering general education and
those offering specialized education. i
Private and foreign schools in Iraq, in accordance
with Education Law No. 57 of 1940, are subject to the
supervision of the Ministry of Education.
Primary and secondary education is free to all -
Iraqis, irrespective of sex, race, or religion. For
higher education, students are usually required to pay t
a modest fee each year. All teacher-training estab- i
lishments, including the two training colleges, provide
I 5 9 !
! . :
j free training, and maintain boarding students at the
I expense of the government. i
I In the preparatory section on the secondary level ;
! {
I students may elect either a literary curriculum or a sci-
I entific curriculum. j
I State vocational training on a secondary level may I
' ■ I
be divided as industrial, commercial, nursing and domestic |
!
science. Among other vocational establishments are the I
Iraq State Railways workshop training school in Baghdad
and the Iraq Petroleum Corporation technical training cen- I
I
ter in Kirkuk. An Institute of Pine Arts in Baghdad gives '
instruction in drama, music, painting, and sculpture for
both general students and prospective art teachers. '
The government examinations at the different levels
on the educational ladder is a tremendous task.
In about the middle of the school year subject com- :
mittees, composed of inspectors, specialized inspec
tors, and teachers--usually of schools of a higher
level than that for which questions are being set, and
of the teachers colleges--are formed to devise ques
tions for the various levels. Final sets of questions •
are sent in sufficient number and in sealed packages
to each examination center to be opened only by the |
director of the center and on the day of the particu- '
lar examination. The number of examination centers for
^^International Yearbook of Education 1951 (Geneva:
International Bureau of EducationX, p. 157.
60
each level is determined on the basis of statistics
provided by the provincial directors of education.
Details of arrangements for staffing the centers are
usually left to the provincial directors. The spe
cialist marking committees are appointed usually on
the basis of two committees for each subject on each
level per center--though some subjects, Arabic and
English for instance, occasionally need more. The
directors of education or of the examination centers
give each student a number which corresponds with the
number of a seat in the examination hall.
The examination in a specific subject takes place
simultaneously in all centers. The examinations are
timed, usually two to three hours being allowed for
six or seven questions. The director of the center
collects and counts the books and sends them in sealed ,
packages to the correction, center. Correction centers ,
for intermediate and preparatory levels are in
Baghdad. Correction of the primary examinations is
decentralized, each province having its own c e n t e r . ,
The public school system is entirely supported by
the central government. The provincial and municipal
authorities do not contribute to the school fund, except
for occasional assistance to poor students or for expansion
and repair of school facilities made possible by limited
solicitations from private citizens of a locality. '
With the 1 9 5 1 -1 9 5 2 school year UNESCO offered to
I
undertake a fundamental education campaign in the rural
districts of IraqAfter thorough study of the ■
^^Matthews and Akrawi, o£. cit.. p. I3 6.
^^International Yearbook of Education 1953. p. 213
61 ;
principles and program involved, the Ministry of Education :
approved it. The teams working on the projects have suc
cessfully trained Iraqi teachers in fundamental-education ,
I
!
programs as well as bringing to the rural areas the offer- i
ings— the teaching of reading and writing and the improve- |
i ment of the hygienic, social, and economic conditions of
j the life of the local populace.
j The school medical service is a development which j
! I
i is a worthwhile contribution with its staff of doctors, j
I dentists, pharmaceutical chemists, hygiene teachers, and j
! nurses. Each liwa (a district division of the nation) has '
I its own clinic, with some liwas having more. The World
; Health Organization has cooperated with these special
s e r v i c e s . j
Higher education. The higher educational institu
tions, some of them being coeducational, are all under gov-
j ernment control. For a number of years there has been a
I I
! study in process of developing and combining a number of
colleges in Baghdad into a worthwhile university. Iraq has
had some worthwhile teacher training institutions : the
' Elementary Teachers Training College for Women, the Queen
28
International Yearbook of Education 1952, p. l69• '
' ............... " " 62]
'Allyad College, and the Higher Teachers College. Although!
there is no strong university as yet in, Iraq, yet higher !
I
education is possible in separate colleges of university ,
level, a minimum entrance requirement being the possession j
of a Secondary School Certificate. [
!
I
IV. ISRAEL I
!
Background and structure. The territory which ;
I
j constitutes present-day Israel and the adjacent lands j
I northward, southward, and eastward has had through the ;
I centuries a very distinctive educational influence. The
i
' Hebrew education at home and at school has been well known '
I during the synchronous periods of Babylonia, Medo-Persia,
Grecia, and Rome.
The educational experiences and contributions of
Abraham, Moses, Daniel, David, Isaiah, and others cannot
easily be forgotten. !
i I
During the last century in general and during the :
last decade in particular, new phases and problems of edu- *
cation have come in to present a different picture. Since
the setting up of the new Israeli State, new facets have
appeared.
Moehlman has set off the problem of Israel in a
I clear manner: '
6— 3— Plâu
iChrono-
llogical
1 Age
1
Years
in
School
19 Orientation Year
Primary
Teachers
Training
College
Rural
Teachers
College
or
Technical
School
12
18
Preparatory
Literary Sc ientific G ommerc ial
11
17
Health
School
10
16
9
15
Intermediate 8
Ik 7
13
6
12
5
11 k
10
3
9
2
8 1
FIGURE 3
EDUCÂTIOML LADDER AND SYSTEM OF IRAQ
64 I
Israel should constitute a special study in itself, '
since it is an enclave with a population made up of |
immigrants from the more advanced cultures of the Old '
and New Worlds. Prom the Arab point of view, Israel |
represents an intrusion of another religion and cul
ture into a fundamentally Mohammedan area. The govern-j
ment and people of Israel have a firm, effective ex- |
ternal policy, but within the country there are dis- |
tinct conflicts between the orthodox religious and the *
liberal, modern elements, and there is a wide range in 1
economic and political belief |
I
Israel, like the neighboring Arab nations, is suf- [
i
fering from the same shortages— school accommodations,
equipment, and teachers. She has been helping to solve
the teacher shortage, nevertheless, with the Ulpanim, spe- i
cial intensive courses in Hebrew given in training colleges
in Israel. It has for students, immigrants who had ob
tained a secondary or university education before coming to
Israel. I
Mosha Yuval, speaking in a symposium at the Fourth :
Annual Conference on Middle East Affairs, stated a very {
unique concern of the new state of Israel:
Our Ministry of Education is hard pressed to keep up
with the speed of immigration. Unfortunately, owing
to the fact that in Europe and other countries which •
are the major source of immigrants to Israel Jews for j
the last ten years were in no position to attend schools
or to conduct any educational activities, the percentage
Arthur H. Moehlman and Joseph S. Roucek, Compara- ,
tive Education (New York: The Dryden Press, 1953), P* 450.;
65 '
of qualified teachers among the newcomers is lower than
that required to look after the children of school age i
who come with them. A high percentage of the young I
newcomers also requires special psychiatric treatment, ‘
or the application of special methods, as a result of i
their experiences during the war in concentration
camps or in wandering across Europe.3^ j
i
Under the British Mandatory Government, Palestine j
I
had an efficient Department of Education; nevertheless, the
percentage of children between six and fourteen years of I
age not attending school was quite high. One of the first |
I laws promulgated by the new Government of Israel was the j
t
I ,
! compulsory education law, which went into effect on Septem
ber 12, 1 9 4 9.
Writing of the situation of the schools in. Israel,
one observer explains that the:
i
Core of the struggle between the religious groups 1
and the other parties is the school system. It had its
i roots in the mandatory regime when the British provided
! so little education that the Jews had to take matters
! into their own hands. Today there are four main trends
1 of elementary schools in the land of Israel.
I :
j In 1 9 5 2 the most important of them were the labor i
1 schools, which aimed to provide the student with a !
Socialist orientation and the elements of manual train-?
ing, in addition to general education. The Jews re
ceived no technical training in many countries and
they need a large number of skilled craftsmen. These
schools enrolled about 3 7 »3 psr cent of the students.
5 Middle East Institute, Americans and the Middle ;
East : Partners in the Next Decade. Fourth Annual Confer- '
ence on Middle East Affairs, March I7-1 8, 1950. (Washing- |
ton, D. C.: Middle East Institute, 1950), p. 15* i
66 !
Then there were the nonideologlcal, general schools ;
teaching about 32.7 per cent of the student body. i
They provided education without any special religious
or political bias. j
I The school of the Mizrachi had about 18.5 per cent 1
of the students, and they provided education with a j
I pronounced religious trend. They accepted all those j
I who wished to register, while the Agudath schools ac- ;
I cepted only those children whose parents were strictly j
I religious.31 I
I The new education act has brought about a needed {
I reorganization:
I The "state Education Law" was passed by the Knesset, j
the Israeli parliament, in August, 1953* It replaces
I the former four trends, general labour, religious !
I (Mizrahi), and ultra-religious (Agudat Israel), which '
were to a large extent controlled by political parties, '
, by a State system of schools comprising two types of
primary schools and teachers colleges, state schools,
; and religious schools. Both these types are now en
tirely under the control of the Ministry of Education
and Culture and have been freed from the influence of
political parties. The former general and labour
schools have become State schools and the former re- !
I ligious and a part of ultra-religious schools have be-
I come State religious schools. The other ultra-reli-
j gious schools seceded and have become "recognized"
schools ....
I
j The aims of State education are defined in clause 2 1
j of the State Education Law as being "to base primary ;
education in the State on the values of Jewish culture '
and the achievements of Science, on love of the home- 1
land and loyalty to the State and to the Jewish people,j
on practice in agricultural work and in handicraft, on ,
training for pioneering, and on striving for a society
3lEmil Lengyel, World Without End: The Middle East ;
(New York: The John Day Co., 1953), PP* 396-08. !
67 !
built on freedom, equality, tolerance, mutual assis- ;
tance, and love of mankind.”32 i
Special school services, including school psychol- ^
ogy service, have been a great asset to the various j
schools.33 I
Curriculum revision has been a serious attempt for |
some time and various important conferences and symposia
are making the curriculum development possible on both the|
elementary and secondary levels.
The educational ladder. The kindergarten, is gen
erally a one- or two-year course offered as pre-school
preparation. These kindergartens accept children at four ■
years of age, although some do so at three. According to '
the February, 1954, amendment, education at the kinder- !
garten level, 5^5 years, though compulsory, is no longer ,
entirely f r e e . 34
There are three alternatives for elementary educa- |
tion, depending upon the area or the elected system:
32%nternational Bureau of Education, International
Yearbook of Education, 1954, p. 203.
33ibid., p. 206.
3^Ibld.. p. 203.
68 !
I
4 years (with 8 secondary) j
6 years (with 2 years intermediate and 4 years :
secondary) ,
8 years (with 4 years secondary) i
The systems remain side by side, although the nation
i
is endeavoring to unify all systems to one program, into I
j 6——6 or into 6— 3“”3* j
j The secondary school education, which is fee-paying,|
I will depend largely upon the first step of the ladder. See
I i
i foregoing statement on elementary education. The final
1
! government examinations are administered in the school
I leaving subjects for the secondary level. Upon the satis-
1
factory passing of the examination a secondary school
diploma is issued.
Pull agricultural schools on the secondary level
j with examinations may permit students to take the special
j secondary school leaving examination, thus admitting them ■
I only to the faculty of agriculture. |
: I
j I
1 Higher education. A secondary school diploma or
school leaving certificate is required for admission to a |
school of higher education.
Higher education is provided at the Hebrew Univer-
, sity in Jerusalem, which has four strong faculties: Human
ities, Science, Medicine, and Law. It also has a School of
I I
I Agriculture. Specialized and technical training may be
69
obtained at the Institute of Technology, the Haifa Tech
nic on, a technical college of university standard, which
has also a technical high school and a nautical school.
Teacher training schools are also available.
V. HASHEMITE KINGDOM OP THE JORDAN
Background and structure. The period between the
two World Wars was largely due to the public educational
system of what is now known as the Hashemite Kingdom of
the Jordan. The Turks before World War I had only a small
group of five-grade elementary schools in larger towns for
boys; there were no girl schools. Little attention was
paid to things educational in this area as far as the
Ottoman Empire was concerned.
The amirate of Transjordan in 1921 ushered in a
small school system; and in 1950 when the Eastern and
Western Bank regions of the River Jordan were united, the
educational systems of the two banks were likewise joined.
An extensive study of the former regulations, curricula,
textbooks, and practices have been made with the view to
adopt the best for the Hashemite Kingdom.
There is a demand for more schools, well qualified
teaching personnel, and improved instruction.
70
8— 4 Plan
phrono-
iogical
1 Age
Years j
in
School
17
Secondary
12
16 11
10
% :
9
13
Primary
8
12
7
11 6
IP ;
5
9 4
8
3
7
2
6 1
FIGURE 4
EDUCATIONAL LADDER AMD SISTEM OF ISRAEL
71 '
i
The Minister of Education is the supreme authority !
in the Ministry of Education, which is charged with the |
direction, supervision, and inspection of all government- |
operated schools and with supervision and inspection of j
non-government schools• The Minister, a Cabinet member, j
I is assisted by a Director General and the latter in turn ^
! by three district inspectors. i
I
I ' I
Like other countries, most of the financial support^
is borne almost wholly by the central treasury of the
government.
The regulations governing education of the nation
cover elementary, secondary, and specialized education.
Elementary education is free, and it is compulsory for
boys in those areas designated by the government. j
Private schools may be opened and operated with the'
I
approval from the Ministry of Education. |
Consideration of education in. the Hashemite Kingdom!
of the Jordan would be incomplete without consideration of I
I
the private schools: |
I
Prior to the introduction of a State system of edu-I
cation, "kuttab” was the predominant type of school.
Any person in a village who happened to know how to ,
read and write, opened a kuttab to which small boys !
went to read and memorize the Koran and learn a little:
arithmetic and writing. The number of kuttabs is de- j
creasing rapidly, but some still exist in the small i
! ? "
I villages with no modern school. Kuttabs have always
I been purely Islamic schools. They are of very ancient
! origin, and have always rendered a great service to *
I education. . . . j
I Some UNWRA schools were established to cater for !
I the educational needs of refugee chil dr en .35 |
! The Islamic Scientific College may expand into !
! I
I higher education facilities for the Hashemite Kingdom of j
I I
I the Jordan. j
I
I Public examinations for the elementary school were '
I
! first instituted in 1944-1945 and they were open to any
' who desired to sit for them. Muslim boys take an examina
tion in religion and non-Muslims have a substitute subject.
For those who are ready for the secondary-school certifi- ,
cate another public examination is given to them. Examin
ations by the government are administered once each year.
The educational ladder. The primary cycle has six ,
i
grades. The program of studies consists of religious in- j
I
struction, Arabic, English (introduced in the fifth !
class), arithmetic, hygiene, nature study, agriculture, !
i
geography, history, and physical education.
The intermediate secondary cycle has three years.
33international Bureau of Education, International
Yearbook of Education 1952 (Geneva: International Bureau
of Education! 1952), p. 193*
I 73
I Pupils must be under sixteen years of age to enter this
I cycle. The courses include: religious instruction,
I Arabic, English, mathematics, natural science, social
! studies, and vocational education. A major of the cycle
I aim is a vocational bias for guidance and training.
I
j Schools in agricultural communities have an agri- !
I cultural emphasis; in cities and towns, a commercial or j
technical; and girls schools, the home arts. i
The higher secondary cycle runs for two years
' longer, preparing students to sit for the Jordan secon-
dary-education certificate.
Higher education. Since there are no schools of
I higher education, matriculation students study abroad,
j The government departments even organize educational mis- '
' sions for study in neighboring Arab countries. Teacher j
! I
: training is being worked on locally, and the country is j
I endeavoring to build a college for teachers.
VI. LEBANON
i
I
Background and structure. Lebanon--land of ancient
wooded hills, glinting ski slopes, warm sandy beaches,
gateway to the East and springboard for the West, cross- ‘
I
i roads for tourists— offers something to all people. Its i
6— 3— 2 Plan
74
Chrono-
jlogical
! Age
Years
in
School
17
Higher Secondary
11
16
10
15
Intermediate Secondary
9
14 8
13 7
12
Primary Cycle
6
11 5
10 4
9 3
8 2
7
1
6
FIGURE 5
EDUCATIONAL LADDER AND SYSTEM OF THE
HASHEMITE KINCH)QM OF THE JORDAN
75
emblem is the lovely cedar, a symbol of the splendor of
the past and one of life and growth.
Ancient monuments, pagan temples, and medieval
I
I castles reflect the past; bazaars, markets, and farms are
I busy with the present; and schools, colleges, and universi-
I
I ties prepare for the future.
Two writers vividly present the singular position
of Lebanon in its educational status:
Two unique features of education in Lebanon distin-;
guish it from education in the rest of the Arab world.
Lebanon has the highest rate of literacy among the
Arab states. It is estimated that between 70 and 75
per cent of the children of primary-school age are
attending school--a considerably higher rate than in
the neighboring countries. This rate would have been
higher had it not been for the addition to Lebanon
after World War I of some regions which were much less
advanced educationally than the original Mount Lebanon.
Many village communities in Lebanon have what amounts
to or approximates universal literacy.
The second remarkable fact is that this comparative
ly advanced stage has been accomplished largely through
the efforts of private and foreign schools rather than;
through publicly supported schools. . . .35 ,
There are almost as many private schools in Lebanon/
as government schools, and the foreign schools operate
without difficulty
3^Matthews and Akraw, ap.» cit., p. 407.
3fRoyal Institute of International Affairs, op.
cit., p. 483'
76
Of the types of schools, two observers have writ
ten :
Higher education is conducted entirely in foreign
institutions. Secondary education is shared between
private and foreign schools, the Lebanese Ministry of
National Education having no complete secondary
schools. Primary education is conducted in all three
types of schools--public, private, and foreign— with
the public schools in the third place in enroll
ments
Of itself the Lebanese government educational sys
tem is incomplete, but with the complementary systems of |
I
; private and foreign schools— mostly French and American-
; British types--it becomes a complete, but diversified,
I program.
I Following World War I and the assumption by France
i of the mandatory over Lebanon, education in the exist-
; ing schools which had until then followed their own
! curricula and organization tended to follow the French ;
; system. Public education during the years of the man-
I date was limited largely to the primary level. State j
I responsibility for public education has, however, in- !
' creased since the declaration of independence in 1944 j
I and now reaches the university level. i
I Article 10 of the Lebanese Constitution of May 23, |
I 1 9 2 6, guarantees freedom of teaching, provided it does ,
not transgress upon public order or morals and is not |
disrespectful of any religion or sect. It also guar- -
antees the rights of the religious denominations to
establish their own schools provided they are estab
lished in conformity with the regulations laid down by
the State.39
38Matthews and Akrawi, loc. cit. 1
39uneSCO, World Survey of Education, Handbook of Edi
ucational Organization and Statistics (Paris : Les Petits-,
Fils de Leonard DANEL, 1955), pp. 4l6, 41?. I
77;
A general re-organization of the Lebanese Ministry ,
of Education and Fine Arts was undertaken at the beginning!
1
of 1 9 5 3. !
. i
The Minister of National Education and Fine Arts is;
the administrative head for the government educational sys-
I
tern and is thereby a member of the Council of Ministers, ,
which is responsible to Parliament. The Director General I
of the Ministry ably assists the Minister and articulates :
with the directors of various departments in. the Ministry.
Relative to finance for the public structure, the
statement has held true for a number of years : "The sup
port of public education comes almost entirely from the
central budget of the government. . . .
More recently--
. . . The new decrees lay down, however, that where i
future primary schools are involved the local author- '
ities and the community shall participate by providing:
the school building and equipment while the central '
administration provides the teaching staff and pays j
its s a l a r i e s ;
The educational ladder. The ladder provides for a ^
kindergarten of two years which is followed by a primary I
school of five years, ending with the primary studies
certificate examination. '
40Matthews and Akrawi, o£. cit., p. 4ll.
'^UNESCO, loc. cit.
781
After successfully passing that examination the |
pupils may then proceed to the seven-year secondary school
or to the four-year higher primary school and then into the
technical or vocational schools.
I
Arabic is the teaching medium in the primary schools
i
in which pupils study Arabic, object lessons, arithmetic, |
history, geography, religion, drawing, singing, physical I
education, and a foreign language, English or French.
There is coeducation in the early years. In fact,
if no girls’ schools are available, girls up to twelve
years of age may enroll in the school for boys.
Spiral systems exist in Lebanon, The higher pri
mary schools cover the same subjects as in the primary
school at a more advanced stage, with the addition of bi- ,
ology, chemistry, physics, and mathematics. A government
examination is administered at the end of the fourth year. !
Secondary education is entirely private, except for I
the model school which the Ministry of National Education |
started in 1949 to serve as an institution of the latest
teaching methods. On the secondary level, teaching is in
Arabic, except possibly for mathematics, science, and the
foreign languages. The first four years of secondary are
general; the fifth and sixth years, divided into two
I
streams; literature or science ; the seventh year, into '
79!
philosophy or mathematics.
Government examinations are administered to termin-j
ate the secondary education level. Some revisions in the j
I
examination schedules and content are being made. How- !
ever, in the decade of this investigation the examination i
program was a public or government examination, both oral ;
and written— the baccalaureate examination. Part I--admin-:
istered at the end of the sixth year, secondary. The bac-‘
calaureate examination. Part II, was administered at the '
end of the seventh year, secondary. Students who success-’
fully passed the examination were awarded the secondary
education baccalaureate.
' Higher education. The Lebanese Ministry of Na
tional Education and Pine Arts is sponsoring a new insti- ;
tution, the Lebanese University, founded in 1951• It has «
a higher teachers’ institute in three sections: artistic,|
I
literary, and scientific. In 1952 an institute of statis-,
tics was started with an economic section of agriculture, |
I
commerce, finance, industry, and a social section of demo-j
graphy, health, and labor.
Two well known universities are the American Uni
versity of Beirut (founded in 1866) with its faculties of ;
arts and science, engineering, medicine, pharmacy, nursing;
! 8o|
I ;
I its institute of music; and its primary and secondary
!
j sections— and the Université St. Joseph (founded in 1875) ;
I with its faculties of dentistry, medicine, law, engineer- !
I I
j ing, oriental literature, philosophy, and theology. !
I I
' Among other institutions of higher learning in the I
! I
country, privately operated are: Lebanese Academy of ,
! I
; Arts, Middle East College (with liberal arts), and the ;
, I
Higher School of Letters. '
VII. SYRIA
I
! Among the many places of interest to the traveler
I in Syria two vignettes are not easily forgotten: the
I great Syrian desert and the equally famous oasis-capital,
! the ancient and modern city of Damascus.
i In the educational history of this country two 1
I
, legal instruments likewise cannot be easily forgotten: !
I
The new Syrian constitution of October 5, 1950, de-,
! fines in Article 28 the objectives of education; to
! bring up a sturdy new generation, healthy in body and '
mind, believing in God, sound in morals, instructed
in and proud of the Arab cultural heritage, conscious
of their rights and duties, working for the public
good and imbued with a spirit of solidarity and
fraternity. . . .
Law No. 121, of December 21, 1944, defines the
functions of the Ministry of Public Instruction and
prescribes its activities. All educational regula
tions and programmes are based on this law.42
^%NESCO, op. cit., pp. 592, 593. j
81
K—.5— 7 Plan K— i i . — 3 Plan
Chrono
logical
I Age
Years
in
School!
17
Secondary
Technical or Teacher
Training Schools
12
16 11
15
10
14
Higher Primary
9
13
8
12
7
11 6
10
5
9 4
8 Primary
3
7
2
6 1
K
K
F IGURE 6
EDUCATIONAL LADDER AND SYSTEM OF LEBANON
82
The Syrian educational program experienced days of
an unsettled educational climate: ■
. . . As Syria was under French mandate prior to
World War II, the educational system had been gradually,
shaped after the French model with a twelve-year ladder!
of general education. . . . While instruction was in !
Arabic, French occupied a prominent place in the cur
riculum. . . .
I
With the declaration of independence of Syria in j
1941. . . it was natural that the new Syrian government'
should wish to pursue a national policy in education,
free from French influences, and calculated primarily
to develop a Syrian-Arab type of education.43 ^
1
As in other Arab countries the administration of
i
public education is centralized, controlled, and financed
largely by the Ministry of Public Instruction. The Minis- '
try comprises a central directorate headed by a secretary- !
I general, who is assisted by directors of divisions and de- <
;partments.
I As to different types of schools, it is interesting i
I
to see a trend: j
In Syria, most of the schools are run by the state ,
and of the private schools (which are mainly Christian):
those run by foreigners are now finding it difficult to
disarm the suspicions of the Government.
1
UNESCO tabulated its findings on the private schools'
^^Matthews and Akrawi, cit., pp. 325, 326.
^^Royal Institute of International Affairs, pp. cit.L
pp. 482, 483. i
i 83:
' I
i as follows :
I
I
Private schools play an increasingly important role !
in education. The Ministry maintains a director, three
inspectors at Damascus, two at Aleppo, and an adminis-
I trative staff for the purpose of supervising and con-
i trolling these schools. Private primary and secondary |
I schools have to follow official curricula, but they arpi
; allowed to teach supplementary subjects fixed by law. ^'
Primary education is compulsory; and education in
: all public or government schools is free on both the ele- i
mentary, or primary, and secondary levels,
: The educational ladder. Different types of primary
I schools offer different instruction beyond basic education,
! depending upon the aims and objectives of the type of
I school. They may be classified as; (l) general primary, ,
I(2) rural agricultural, (3) orphan schools, (4) elementary ,
'schools, and (5) tribal schools.
The general primary school is the type for articula-'
Ition with the higher academic schools. Its curriculum con-i
isists of Arabic, religion, civic and moral teachings, ge- |
ography and history (from third year), arithmetic, drawing,
nature study, music, physical education, manual training or■
domestic science.
^5uNESC0, loc. cit.
84 j
The rural agricultural schools resemble the general j
primary schools; however, the fourth and fifth years con- |
tain, agriculture, with class recitation and laboratory. j
I i
I The orphan schools have the same objectives of the !
I
I general primary schools, but in addition the children learn
,a craft, trade, or vocation.
The elementary schools offer four years adapted to
,the life in small villages.
The tribal schools for nomadic peoples offer the
jbasic studies; and then in the fourth and fifth years, in-
;struction adapted to the conditions of desert and nomadic
!
I life.
i
I Secondary and vocational education, though on the
I secondary level, are separated in the school system. The
jgeneral secondary program is divided into two stages:
I
; complementary or intermediate schools and preparatory edu
cation schools.
I The general secondary program embraces four years
and leads to a general continuation certificate. Arabic
language and literature, Arabic culture and history, and
,mathematics are given much weight. The general secondary
curriculum follows the spiral system of the primary school
subjects but with the addition of a foreign language,
I mathematics, and science.
I j
! Preparatory education schools provide definitely |
; college and university preparatory programs of study. The
: course with two streams, literary and scientific, leads to
!
I a baccalaureate. |
1 Vocational, technical, and teacher-training schools
! have their specific and respective curricula. '
! Higher education. The Syrian University provides a !
I well balanced program for students who desire collegiate
I ;
■ and university studies. Faculties are available in arts ■
I !
and letters, science, law and economics, engineering, medi
cal education (medicine, dentistry, pharmacy), and teachers,
I college. i
; As a further development, the Syrian Ministry of
I National Education was happy to make the following in its
I 1
1 1 9 5 3 -1 9 5 4 report: 1
f I
; At the close of the period under review a new faculty
! of Mohammedan law was opened at the Syrian University. ;
j The duration of studies is four years. The new faculty
has the following four departments : (a) Mohammedan ■
legislation; (b) beliefs and philosophy; (c) law; (d)
education, language, and sociology. It awards a first ,
degree in law. Formerly known as the higher normal 1
school, the faculty of education will henceforth in- !
elude a special department for higher studies and re- 1
search, in which teachers of pedagogy at the primary 1
normal schools and primary inspectors will receive their
training; the faculty will award a first degree in ed- •
ucation comprising the four following higher certifi
cates : (a) preparatory work; (b) educational ;
i “■ ^ 86 ;
! psychology; (c) sociology; (d) p e d a g o g y :
! I
I Another institution of no mean repute is the Arab ,
I ^
Academy which is a learned organization for the study and
1 promulgation of orientalism and Arabic and Islamic culture
I
I
iand arts and sciences.
VIII. TURKEY
Background and structure. Turkey has long been a
country of learning. Important centers have existed
through the years, and the lands and shores of Asia Minor
have been blessed with a rich heritage.
A briefing presents the contemporary history in
these words :
Until 1 9 23 modern education, apart from a small
group of officials and army officers, had been confined
largely to the non-Muslim minorities; for the rest ed
ucation meant religious education. When the medreses
(religious schools; were closed the new educational
system followed the European model. The Introduction
of the Latin script in 1928 made the teaching of read
ing and writing much simpler and diverted attention
from Islamic to European culture. The main problem has
been, and still is, to provide enough school buildings
and teachers.^7
^International Bureau of Education, International
Yearbook of Education 1954 (Geneva: International Bureau
of Education! 1954), pp. 3O0, 3 0 9.
I
^^Royal Institute of International Affairs, 0 2, . cit..
pp. 5 2 3, 524. i
87
Chrono
logical
' Age
17
16
15
14
13
12
11
Preparatory
Education
Literary 1 Scientific
0 onç>lementary
or
Intermediate
Schools
Technical
Commercial
Schools
Trade
Schools
(ecoles de
metiersT
Years
in I
School
12
11
10
8
10
General
Primary
Orphan
Schools
Rural
Agricultural
Tribal
Schools
FIGURE 7
EDÜCÂTIOML LADDER AND SYSTEM OF SYRIA
88 I
All education in Turkey comes under the jurisdiction;
I
of the Ministry of National Education. The Minister is
supported with two under-secretaries and five directorates-
general. The Minister is assisted at the policy level by
; I
I the Supreme Council of Education, meeting once every three :
years and by a Board of Education and Training, the Board
functioning as a permanent advisory body particularly on
■ technical problems.
j For administrative purposes the country is divided i
! <
■into 63 vilayets, or provinces. Each provincial authority ,
has an educational section with primary school inspectors. i
Provincial budgets provide funds for the primary schools |
1
within the province. ;
!
; Aware of the primordial role of education and in-
?
Istruction in the material and spiritual improvement of ^
iTurkey, the government Ministry provides an Education Con- 1
ference every four years to re-evaluate the educational '
program, to make necessary revisions, and to chart the |
future. This provision is to be complimented. j
The Fifth Congress of Education convened February 5,'
1 9 5 3, for a ten-day conference to study several important
problems in primary teaching. Taking national and local
needs into careful consideration, it endeavored to study
I .
i these problems in the light of the latest ideas and methods.
: 89
! i
i Of this Conference an official report stated: j
: 1
. . . The matters it discussed covered a wide field, j
, including fundamental education, the organization of i
: primary and secondary education, the new teacher train-|
I ing curricula, teachers* conditions of service, pupils * '
I mental and physical health, and curricula and teaching
; methods• They were examined in the light of both past i
: experience and present contingencies, in contrast to
previous sessions, the Conference showed a marked trend,
toward envisaging educational problems in relation to
; economic and technological conditions, and paid close
attention to those conditions in drawing, up plans to :
' fulfil the new tasks of education. . . j
I
I The educational ladder. The primary school educa-
Ition offered in government schools is both compulsory and |
I
free. For-a child who has school facilities available, :
/
education for him is compulsory between the ages of 7 and ^
112 years ; for one who had no schooling advantages until 12 j
'years of age, he is to continue until his sixteenth birth-
I day. I
I I
I Enrollment in the primary schools accounts for ap- I
proximately 80 per cent of the urban children and about '
'55 per cent of the r u r a l . j
Standard curricula are prescribed for primary !
; 3 1 5-3 1 8.
49
2i Q
^^International Bureau of Education, op,, cit.. pp
UNESCO, World Survey of Education, pp. 6 0 6-6 0 9.
; 90
schools; however, local conditions are taken into account
for adaptation and need.
! In the intermediate school of three years the
1
I standard curricula provide both general and scientific sub-
■jects and appropriate vocational training for boys and
girls. Those who wish may continue to secondary education
50
in a lyceum or technical school.
I The main function of the upper secondary schools is
f
'to provide a preparatory program for advanced schools and
j universities.
I
I Higher education. Turkey has colleges and univer-
Isities of varying faculties. Among these should be listed
I
I Robert College (founded in I8 6 3) and the universities
iAnkara, Ataturk, Istanbul, and Technical.
i A survey presented the facilities of three univer-
,sities in Ankara and Istanbul:
i Istanbul has long been a seat of learning. The
modern Istanbul University, reorganized under Ataturk,
was founded in 1 8 6 9. It now has faculties of Arts,
Science, Law,- Economics, Medicine, and Forestry. Istan
bul also possesses a Technical University. Ankara
University was constituted out of several distinct
bodies in 1948, and now includes faculties of Arts,
50ibid.
911
I
1 Science, Agriculture, Veterinary Science, Medicine, |
j Political Science, Law, and Theology. All three uni- |
I versities have employed a number of foreign instructors
: and many of the present staff have attended European
or American universities. Although Istanbul University
now has about 12,000 students, an average of less than ;
1,000 students per annum have graduated from this uni- |
I versity. There are also teachers * training colleges,
i naval and merchant marine colleges, a school of den
tistry, a school of fine arts, a school of commerce,
and a conservatoire. Almost all ofcthese institutions
are located in Ankara and Istanbul.
, School welfare services have been multiplied, and ;
I thousands of the populace are entering in enthusiastically
I into the adult education programs. Literacy and under-
I
I standing are within the pale of possibility. ;
i :
I t
I I
^iRoyal Institute of International Affairs, loc.
i cit.
5— 3— h Plan
92
pbrono-
jlogical
: Age
ïears
in
School
18
Upper Secondary
(lise)
12
17 11
16 10
15 9
lit
Intermediate (ortaoku)
or
Secondary
8
13
7
12
6
11
Primary
5
10 .
k
9
3
8
2
7
1
FIGURE 8
EDUCATIONAL LADDER AND SYSTEM OF TURKEY
93
Years
of
Study EGYPT IRAN IRAQ ISRAEL JORDAN LEBANON SYRIA TURKEY
12
Orieh-
tation
Higher
Sec.
Orien
tation Prep.
11
Inter
med
iate
Pre Secon
dary
Higher
Secon
dary
Educ.
Upper
Secon
10
Secon
dary
para
tory
Secon
dary
dary
9
! ' .. ....
Lower
Sec.
Inter
med
iate
Secon
dary
Inter
med
iate
8
med
iate Inter
med
iate
7
6
Pri
mary 5
I t Pri Pri Pri Pri
Pri
mary
General
Primary
Pri
mary 3
mary mary mary mary
2
1
6-5-1
6—3—2—1 6-3-2-L 8-it 6—3—2
K 5-7 5-it-3 S-3-i»
NOTE: The doiable lines represent divisions of educational levels.
FIGURE 9
COMPARATIVE LADDERS OF THE MIDDLE EAST
CHAPTER IV I
i
RECENT TRENDS AND EDUCATIONAL IMPLICATIONS
I. GENERAL
t
The patterns and systems of education in the coun
tries of the Middle East are beginning to reflect, with ^
less than the customary lag, the major needs of the eco-
; nomic, political, and social life. Societies are in a '
state of flux; and the fields of education, too, are be- '
ginning to burst their old worn casts. j
I
The larger numbers of schools and students have beenj
I
very encouraging. A Lebanese educationist observed the
trend of extension in these words:
. . . In every Arab country important steps have
been taken for the expansion of educational opportun- i
ity. New schools have been established. School en- |
rollment has increased at a rapid rate. For example, |
in the past ten years in Lebanon the school enrollment .
increased by about ^0 per cent, in Syria by 111 per |
cent, in Iraq by I38 per cent, in Egypt by 70 per cent,,
and in Jordan by 280 per cent. Syria is spending as •
much as 17 per cent of its total budget on education, ;
in Egypt and Lebanon 10 or 11 per cent and in Iraq I3 !
per cent. . . .1
' ^Habib Kurani, "Evolution in Education," Evolution
in the Middle East ; Reform, Revolt, and Change, Seventh
Annual Conference on Middle East Affairs, March 6-7, 1953
j (Washington, D. C.: Middle East Institute, 1953), P* 8 .
95|
The 1 9 5 0 law which decreed free education for all toi
the end of the secondary school stage marked a turning I
point in the history of Egyptian education. This decree of;
free education for all has brought fresh financial obliga- I
tions to the government in, general and to the Ministry of
Education in particular--and this is typical of the situa- '
tion that obtains throughout the Middle East. j
The UNESCO International Yearbook of Education 1954 *
I
traces in detail for the year then closing the progress, |
trends, and accomplishments of education in most of the |
countries of the world. |
Among the countries of the Middle East that contri- |
j ' '
buted to the annual survey and report were the following
'six nations ; Egypt, Iran, Israel, Lebanon, Syria, and
; Turkey.
i I
In brief but objective outline each country reveals ;
; its educational progress for 1 9 5 3 - 1 9 5 4 !
II. EGYPT !
I
Administration. A new law was passed for decentral-|
ization, the educational zones being made entirely re
sponsible for the administration of primary education.
^Royal Institute of International Affairs, o£. cit.
96 I
Provision was made for the establishment in every zone :
of a committee of primary educational personnel. The ;
powers of zone controllers and principals were in- ^
creased. The Ministry of Education ruled to supply in
dependent schools with some qualified teachers.
I
Compulsory and free education. The educational j
zones were divided into sections of a maximum of thirty
primary schools each under an inspector.
Primary education. The nursery-infant schools were
incorporated into the general primary education. A
law was passed dividing the primary courses into three
two-year stages and providing for the establishment of
post primary schools.
Secondary education. Preparatory and secondary ■
schools increased by 37 to a total 2 7 3, catering to !
many more pupils . Secondary education was divided into'
the preparatory stage of four years and for secondary
education proper, three years. Second foreign language
omitted in the preparatory. Music, hygiene, and art
were introduced as courses. Military training was also
added. Religion as a study is required for promotion
to a higher grade.
Vocational education. Steps were taken to set up a
committee of educators and landowners to reform the
agricultural program in school. Commercial education
curricula were also revised. A representative commit
tee suggested that industrial centers should be estab
lished for both general and vocational education, that
factories should be encouraged to establish trade
schools on their own premises.
Teaching staff. Teacher training curricula and ;
study plans were revised, the details of the respective'
curricula for teacher training to be arranged for '
locally. I
97
III. IRAN
Admlnistra11on. The directorate of education in the
provinces was divided into two sections: one admin
istrative, the other concerned with technical problems.
Compulsory and free education. The national budget
Is 14 per cent of the State budget for 1954. A com- I
mittee and a budget were set up in 1954 for the estab- j
lishment in the 1954-1955 school year of mobile schools:
for the nomads in Iran.
Primary education. Primary enrollments increased
8 per cent and the number of teachers increased by
2,426. A curriculum reform committee was appointed to
re-evaluate the curriculum for the primary schools.
Secondary education. Enrollments increased by l8
per cent, and school and teachers by 42 and 2 9 0, re
spectively. Committees were appointed to reform the
secondary education curriculum. Final examinations
for Parts I and II of the baccalaureate were placed
under the control of the secondary school headmasters.
Vocational education. It was decided to set up re- |
gional agricultural schools. Work has continued on the!
transformation of sixth and seventh primary classes
into agricultural classes. Similarly, fifth and sixth j
grade classes in urban areas are to be transformed intoi
vocational classes.
Higher education. Heads of faculties in committee i
are to study the improvement and expansion of higher ,
education. The enrollments on the level of higher
education increased 10 per cent during the year, as
compared with the previous year. !
Teaching staff. Teachers have been awarded salary I
increases. Teacher training for rural primary and j
secondary teachers, technical, vocational, and physical;
education is under consideration. ■
98 !
I
I
IV. ISRAEL
Administration. A council of education and a board
of religious education were set up. The central ad
ministrative units were re-organized.
Compulsory and free education. The Ministry of Ed
ucation and Culture had as a budget for 1954-1955 S I
30,884,000, and local authorities and public bodies
will spend approximately an equal amount. An amendment
Although the kindergarten stage is still compulsory,
yet it is no longer free.
Primary education. As a result of unifying the j
previous four school networks or systems, the number of
primary schools decreased with the enrollment increase. 1
A new primary curriculum has been drawn up, three- ;
fourths of the subjects of which form a core for all !
the schools and one-fourth is elective. !
Secondary education. The number of secondary
schools increased from 69 to 8 5, and enrollments for
the same increased from 14,115 to 16,000. The question
of changing the ladder from the 8-4 to 6 - 6 was debated.
I
I
Vocational education. Progress was made with de
veloping four-year agricultural schools of two types, 1
one of which giving access to the university as a ;
whole, the other to the faculty of agriculture only. |
i
Teaching staff. Teacher colleges were regrouped ]
into state and state-religious establishments. The .
fusion of the four systems made it possible to dismiss j
incompetent or unqualified teachers, but left unsolved !
the problem of a shortage of qualified teaching per- |
sonnel. I
99!
V. LEBANON
Administration. A new procedure for the appointment:
of headmasters and headmistresses of primary and senior,
primary schools was adopted.
I
Compulsory and free education. The national educa- '
tion budget in 1954 was" &L 2,5^5 ^ 2 0 0 over 1953*
Primary education. Some four hundred new primary
teachers were appointed.
Secondary education. ^-Proposed curricular changes on'
the secondary level were examined by special committees,
and were then submitted to headmasters of secondary '
schools for their criticism.
Higher education. A new professorship was estab
lished in the economics of Arabic countries. This, of
course, was In the Lebanese University.
Teaching staff. A law was passed requiring candi
dates for primary teaching posts to hold normal school
diplomas; and should the supply fall short of the de
mand, the baccalaureate Part I or II, or the supple
mentary normal school certificate, or the equivalent,
would be required.
VI. SYRIA
Administration. The Ministry of National Education
budget amounted to £ S 36,604,000, or 17*5 per cent of
the State budget total.
Compulsory and free education. Efforts were made to
extend elementary or primary facilities in more rural
places for better literacy. Local constituencies
100
henceforth are to be responsible for building and re- I
pairing urban and rural primary, elementary, and i
nursery-infant schools.
Primary education. There has been an increase over !
the last school year of thirty-one schools.
Higher education. A new faculty of Mohammedan law
was opened at the Syrian University with four depart
ments . In the same university the faculty of educa
tion will include a special department for Higher
Studies Research.
Teaching staff. Teacher training courses were or
ganized for rural teachers of agriculture and for men
and women teachers of physical education. The maximum
number of teaching-hours for secondary teachers has
been reduced.
VII. TURKEY
Compulsory and free education. The Government ex
penditures alone for education throughout the country
was ST 2 6 3,346,7 2 3 in 1954, a substantial increase
over the previous year.
Secondary education. The secondary schools in- '
creased by 33 to a total number of 432 and the lycees j
by 5 to a total of 68. The secondary curricula were i
revised. Teaching methods were increasingly based upon!
observation and experimentation. !
Vocational education. New technical and vocational
schools were opened in both urban and rural areas.
Higher education. Rapid progress was made with the
preparation for establishing Ataturk University in the
eastern part of the country.
101 ;
Teaching staff. A new normal school was opened, j
bringing the total number of normal schools in the :
country to three. ;
VIII. SUMMARY I
The spirit of nationalism has definitely affected j
! the educational program. A case in point is quite sympto- |
matic throughout the various countries : |
According to a recent survey, the most important
change in the elementary curriculum of Iraq has been
the shift from world history and geography to Arab
history and national geography. This trend has also
been followed in other Arab countries. Although it is
considered a sound principle of learning to begin with
the child's more immediate environment, this shift is
very likely due to the demands of the nationalists.
The same influence is seen in the practice of restrict
ing the school singing in Iraq almost entirely to na
tional songs.3
Noticeable trends in education of the countries of
the Middle East may be epitomized for the decade with such
a miscellany;
Raised standards of education, quantitatively and
qualitatively.
Educational missions in different countries.
Extension of facilities for both elementary and
secondary education.
Provision and plans for higher education.
Improvement in. school buildings, equipment, and
textbooks.
Upgrading of teaching personnel through pre-induc
tion, in-service training, and overseas
scholarships.
Slow releasing of centralized responsibilities.
Strengthening of the rural schools in addition to
the urban.
3Arthur Henry Moehlman and Joseph S. Roucek. Compar-i
ative Education (New York; The Dryden Press, 1953;s P . 4611
University of Southern California Uliraft
102
Literacy campaigns.
Re-evaluating of educational philosophy in the dif
ferent countries.
Slow re-organization of curricula to allow for more
practical courses.
More respect for vocational education.
More conscious need for better educated and trained
teachers.
Static and organic status of Arabic language teach
ing in different schools.
Sensing inadequacy of present educational systems,
feeling need for reform and reorganization.
Free education for the masses.
Compulsory education plans.
Elimination of dual system of education for the pri-
! vileged few and the great masses of population.
; Increasing number of government and public schools. '
! Nationalism in some places misusing schools as propat
i ganda and strike agencies. ;
I Changing physical atmospheres in customs, habits,
! and attitudes.
I Significantly, three sets of waves have sent their
I I
I repercussions throughout the nations of the Middle East, and
I
: the ebb and flow effects of the tides have been appreciable
I
in the human masses of the various lands. The sets of waves
j have occurred in the following sequence: first the politi- I
,cal; second, the economical and social; and third, the in-
:tellectual and moral.
I Research in education has been optimistically on the
increase, which fact augurs well for the future. Progress '
; will continue inevitably in the challenging fields of edu- -
cational administration and supervision, guidance and coun-;
seling services, tests and measurements, curricula planning '
and revision, philosophy and psychology of education, ,
'teacher training, and in methods of teaching.
CHAPTER V
SUMMARY
I. THE PROBLEM AND PROCEDURE
The problem and its Importance. This investigation
endeavored to present the educational ladders of the Mid-"
I ■
I die East, comparing them, and also to describe the mid-
I century status of the educational programs of the coun-
I tries. Some of the sub-problems considered throughout the
I study included the courses emphasized in national curricu- |
I la, the conservatism and liberalism of educational prac-
' tice, and the national philosophy and thinking of educa-
I tion.
i
j It is imperative to survey the background somewhat
I of the Middle East to appreciate the present situation,
t
I struggles, and problems of education in lands of the Middle
I East. A study of the current status with the educational
i
' trends will help an observer to be prepared better for
■ future economic, political, and social developments in
I lands of the Middle East. ■
I i
The procedure. Data and information were gathered ^
; I
i by reviewing books, reports, and current literature on the I
104
;
Middle East. Some surveys of research and original research
' studies were also investigated.
Pertinent information for describing the educational.
I
; programs was presented under the respective countries and |
! '
I the various educational systems were outlined in appro- |
!
I priate divisions. i
Trends and implications were subsequently outlined
in a chapter.
I II. FINDINGS '
I ^ I
I The educational programs and systems of the selected!
j countries of the Middle East have reasons for their exis-
i :
: tence. Some forms have been developed and later revised =
I
i from grass-roots needs while other systems have been struc-’
; I
! tured largely by protectorate powers.
I
Each country seems to have awakened to the need of :
I developing a literate citizenry, an informed population to
I the issues of the nations, and an educated body of youth !
' to assume responsibilities for the future.
The anti-illiteracy campaigns and the adult educa- !
; tion programs, particularly in Egypt, Iran, Syria, and in
Turkey, are worthy projects.
Great obstacles are readily identified in a
L -
105 !
!
majority of these countries in the Middle East— political
I
cross-currents, disease, ignorance, illiteracy, national- ;
ism, poverty, superstitions, and traditions. :
i
With physical, social, and intellectual environments
at the crossroads in the Middle East, the most important I
question is: Which road will the countries of this stra- i
tegic region follow? A choice of some kind is rapidly be-I
ing forced upon them by their internal evolution and by the
impact of world pressures without. !
Most of the systems of education in that part of j
the world have had a six-year elementary program and a j
five- to six-year secondary school program, the latter ;
especially undergoing revisions and reorganization. I
Israel has had an 8-4 plan similar in structure to ,
the traditional educational ladder in the United States, !
i
except for the fact, of course, that Israel has had several
t
systems or types of schools in simultaneous operation. '
! _ I
! Singularly enough, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq have had ai
I terminal year of orientation on the secondary school level ;
as a pre-college or pre-university preparation, with the j
three elective curricula— literary, mathematical, and sci-|
entific. I
: Egypt has sponsored a two-ladder system with pro- ;
I vision for both the elementary and primary school i
i I
106 ;
sequences.
Iran and Syria have promoted successful educational
programs for tribespeople and nomadic segments of their
society.
Egypt and Turkey have both made provisions for
adult education in their countries.
Although in close proximity to each other, Lebanon
offers more freedom toward private and foreign secondary
schools than does Syria. The influences of the French ed- |
ucational system, as another observation, are strongly feltj
in these two countries . j
There is a developing attitude to eliminate infant-
1
I classes and kindergartens from the official ladders of the I
' \
i educational systems in some countries in the Middle East, '
!
although formerly they have been a definite part in their |
educational patterns.
The Hashemite Kingdom of the Jordan has reflected ;
British educational influences in its curricula. Un- j
, fortunately, as yet Jordan has not been able to provide a |
; national university for its Arab school population. |
I All the selected countries of the Middle East are
I I
I definitely becoming more nationalistic in their educational.
programs so that a philosophy of realism is developing.
i I
I Materialism and technology are gaining a stronger hold. '
I 107
I The countries appreciate their need of educational pre- :
I '
I paredness and group culture if they are going to have their
j peoples— youth and adults— maintain respect for their ;
fatherland and their respective heritage and simultaneouslyi
forge ahead for the development of both individuals and I
nations. Each country wants literacy and development, al- |
though economics and finance have been retarding factors j
in the Middle East.
Subjects like Arab history and culture, Islamics,
j and history of the Middle East are taught with as much j
I conscious design as are courses in plane geometry and |
i
; physics. ;
: Arab grammar and morphology, rhetoric, formal compo-
!
I sition, reading and memorization, declamations, and history;
j of Arabic literature are included in the curricula of
I
I secondary schools in the .Arab countries. More emphasis,
I :
' apparently, is given to the formal literary patterns and i
i ;
I declamations than to the creative oral and written composi-,
! ;
tion fields .
1
Using the Arabic language as a teaching medium has ;
I ,
I brought difficulties of understanding and usage between ;
I i
i teachers and students because of the cleavage existing be-
I tween the classical Arabic language and the common parlance:
I !
i of the vernacular and the dialects .
i i
; 108
I Modern trends in the Middle East are transmuting
, some classical strongholds into modern, practical, and or-
; ganic teaching materials.
I
j The spiral system in mathematics, social studies,
! and science has been strong and profitable in these disci
plines . The British and French educational systems have
indubitably contributed to this permanency.
Among these selected countries of the Middle East,
Turkey and Israel assume the broad educational and con
structive lead for liberalism, reform, change, and pro
gress . The other countries follow, in sequence with varying
degrees because of their conservatism and opportunities.
In computing scholastic credits and grades of trans
fer students from one country in the Middle East to an
other, the use of comparative charts of curricula and edu
cational levels is much simplified with a knowledge of the
Îeducational ladders and systems extant.
i
! III. CONCLUSIONS
Economic, political, and social life in the Middle
j East must definitely serve as a frame of reference for the
* problems and status of education in the countries under
I
'investigation.
I
109
The currents and cross-currents of newsworthy
events, the strategic location of this crossroads between
East and West, the growth of tourism, the increasing number
of indigenous students doing graduate work abroad--all are ;
salutary factors to encourage a widening stream of researchj
studies on education in countries of the Middle East.
i
As these countries are economically and financially |
able, they will better meet their educational needs by |
more qualified teaching personnel, improved methods and |
techniques, and more adequate physical plants and equip-
I ment. i
i
The educational ladders and systems of the Middle
I East are indeed varied and the current status and problems
! decry their need for continuous study and improvement.
I The countries of the Middle East are coming to re- j
I alize that their youth need a broad, general, and compre- !
I hensive education. They want this for their national
j ;
I school population in general and for their rural population,
i i
; in particular, the latter having had less opportunity for i
i I
study. Education in the Middle East is being keyed more to^
I the needs of the masses of population as a base and then is:
I ;
‘ reaching on up through to the vertex of the social pyramid. '
110
IV. RECOMMENDATIONS
General. A sagittal view of the educational needs
in the Middle East from the mid-century status would in
clude the following as general recommendations;
Administration and supervision:
Work toward decentralization.
Provide more professional training.
Upgrade teachers.
Use democratic supervision.
Strive for more local finance.
Curriculum and instruction:
Offer less classical curricula.
Provide more practical courses.
Continue to revise textbooks.
j Provide technical and vocational education.
I Liberalize the physical education program.
! Make provision for more laboratory and shop
I experience.
Provide better articulation between educational
: levels.
Physical plants ;
!
i Provide for new schools and school sites,
i Enlarge the present campuses.
I Build appropriate school buildings.
Give attention to the physical and sanitary
features.
Furnish more adequate equipment and supplies.
Furnish laboratories and stockrooms for science
courses.
I General:
' Sponsor wider literacy campaigns.
Broaden the educational aims.
Plan to provide some comprehensive secondary
i schools.
I Give more attention to rural education.
Ill
Gradually provide more coeducational opportun!- '
ties.
Offer adult education classes .
Expand special school services.
Build more teacher training institutions.
Plan for greater research and its implementa
tion .
Specific. Although it is true that attention may
have to be focused increasingly on meeting the needs of the
societies and security of the countries in the Middle East,
it is hoped that this will not mean that the best interests]
I
of the students individually will be forgotten, ignored, '
i
or even submerged in the interests of their respective t
I
countries. Whether national, local, or independent ele- |
ments were initiating their movements and activities is j
beside the question, but on too many occasions in some *
I
cities and villages in countries of the Middle East, school'
children have entered into political rallies, strike
marches, and socio-economic demonstrations. They should '
i I
not in the future thus jeopardize their school days, which j
' j
] time lost on such occasions has not been regained. |
' ' I
It is further hoped that governments will not j
, through textbooks and other teaching materials encourage '
j shortsighted, provincial, and narrow vision— in the inter
ests of so-called patriotism, nationalism, and propaganda--'
I to the exclusion of broad, unprejudiced, and international !
! understandings. i
! 112
• I
Egypt. Egypt should try to offer only one strong ;
; educational ladder, putting its emphasis on the primary
; I
! school type of basic education. It must be a practical i
i
one, however. The government must continue to attract |
qualified teachers of Lower Egypt— and from Upper Egypt, I
preferably--to teach in the town and village schools of I
Upper Egypt. The country should provide more comprehensive|
secondary schools, opening vocational and trade schools in |
urban areas. Further revision and re-writing of its text- I
books will enhance the Egyptian program of studies. The !
question of offering once again more foreign language study
should be re-considered. More special services for schools
! should be arranged for in the Egyptian school system.
: Iran. Iran must break down its classical and spiral;
’ . i
j system of courses of study sufficiently to offer a practi- I
; cal education for its masses. More vocational education is;
I I
jneeded. More attention may be given to adult education.
i I
j As more qualified Iranian educators are available in the '
nation to go to the many ostans, greater decentralization
jof the educational administration should exist. The gov-
'
I
I emmental, religious, and private and lay agencies would do
well to strengthen further the literacy endeavors. The
I educational work for the tribesmen should be a continuous.
113 i
growing program. More girls should be educated throughout
the country. The nation needs more strong teacher colleges;
I
in the southern parts of Iran as well as in and around i
!
Teheran, the capital.
Iraq. Although infrequently Iraq revises its ele-
J
mentary and secondary curricula, a continuous program of |
curriculum planning will be most helpful for the country. |
t
The Ministry of Education needs a better system for adult i
j
education. Some valuable educational research for Iraq j
!
has been made recently, and as soon as it is economically i
I
possible, implementation of the suggestive programs should |
accelerate improvement. Further decentralization of edu- ;
cational administration will be helpful. The national ex
amination system needs simplification. More projects and i
appropriate activities for the elementary school level and j
well-articulated co-curricular activities on the secondary ■
school level should be arranged. Supervised games and j
I organized sports on an intramural basis are needed as well !
1 i
; as calisthenics. Vocational and technical schools are j
! I
needed in northern and in southern Iraq. The country |
I ' ;
1 should have a national university when administrative and |
teaching personnel and financial budgets permit. '
I __
114,
I I
I ;
I I s r a e l . W i t h t h e n u m e r o u s r e s e a r c h s t u d i e s w h i c h
!
I h a v e b e e n m a d e o n t h e e d u c a t i o n a l p h i l o s o p h y a n d p s y c h o l o g y '
I o f h e r n e e d s , I s r a e l s h o u l d s o o n p r o v i d e a r e - o r g a n i z e d , |
!
I s i m p l i f i e d , a n d c o o r d i n a t e d e d u c a t i o n a l s y s t e m f o r h e r ;
j
I p e o p l e s . M o r e v o c a t i o n a l e d u c a t i o n , a g r i c u l t u r a l a n d t r a d e '
I '
I s c h o o l s a r e n e e d e d t o h e l p t h e g r o w i n g s c h o o l p o p u l a t i o n j
I p r e p a r e t o m e e t t h e s o c i o - e c o n o m i c p r o b l e m s o f t h e c o u n t r y . I
I I
D e c e n t r a l i z a t i o n o f a d m i n i s t r a t i o n i s a l s o i m p e r a t i v e f o r |
e f f i c i e n c y . I s r a e l w o u l d d o w e l l t o r e v i s e t o a 6 - 6 p l a n . |
I
H a s h e m i t e K i n g d o m o f t h e J o r d a n . T h e e d u c a t i o n a l i
p r o g r a m a n d t e a c h i n g m a t e r i a l s s h o u l d b e f u r t h e r a d a p t e d t o !
(
t h e s p e c i f i c n e e d s o f J o r d a n . T h e t e x t b o o k s f o r t h e t e a c h - j
I
; i n g o f t h e f o r e i g n l a n g u a g e s , p a r t i c u l a r l y , s h o u l d b e j
! b r o u g h t d o w n t o t h e e f f e c t u a l l e v e l o f u n d e r s t a n d i n g a n d '
I e x p e r i e n c e o f t h e s t u d e n t s . M o r e e x p e r i m e n t s i n t h e s u e - j
I I
c e s s f u l o p e r a t i o n o f c o e d u c a t i o n a l s c h o o l s s h o u l d b e c o n -
I d u c t e d f o r t h e s c h o o l p o p u l a t i o n . V o c a t i o n a l , a g r i c u l t u r - |
I a l , a n d t r a d e s c h o o l s s h o u l d b e o p e n e d t h r o u g h o u t t h e j
! c o u n t r y . U n l e s s J o r d a n w a n t s t o l o s e m o r e o f h e r t a l e n t e d |
I
, y o u t h , h i g h e r e d u c a t i o n s h o u l d b e p r o v i d e d f o r w i t h i n t h e |
: k i n g d o m . S i n c e e d u c a t i o n a l r e s e a r c h a n d i m p l e m e n t a t i o n h a v e
I
! b e e n s a d l y n e g l e c t e d i n t h e H a s h e m i t e K i n g d o m o f t h e J o r d a n ,
t h e g o v e r n m e n t s h o u l d t r y t o i n i t i a t e i m m e d i a t e l y a p p r o p r i - !
a t e s t u d i e s . '
115 ;
L e b a n o n . L e b a n o n d e f i n i t e l y s h o u l d h a v e g o v e r n m e n t ^
s p o n s o r e d a n d g o v e r n m e n t - s u p p o r t e d s e c o n d a r y s c h o o l s j
t h r o u g h o u t t h e c o u n t r y . T h e e l e m e n t a r y a n d s e c o n d a r y !
s c h o o l c u r r i c u l a s h o u l d b e r e - e v a l u a t e d t o s e e i f t h e y a r e I
m e e t i n g t h e c u r r e n t n e e d s o f t h e p u p i l s a n d s t u d e n t s . |
M o r e v o c a t i o n a l , t e c h n i c a l , a n d a g r i c u l t u r a l s c h o o l s a r e
I
d e s p e r a t e l y n e e d e d . B e c a u s e o f t h e f a c t t h a t e d u c a t i o n a l |
i
p h i l o s o p h i e s a n d p a t t e r n s f r o m a b r o a d h a v e d o m i n a t e d t h e j
i
s e t - u p i n L e b a n o n w i t h t h e v a r i o u s p r o g r a m s , t h e L e b a n e s e ;
I
G o v e r n m e n t s h o u l d r e - d e f i n e i t s e d u c a t i o n a l p h i l o s o p h y a n d '
s e t u p i t s c o m p l e t e p r o g r a m s a c c o r d i n g l y , f o r t h e e l e - i
I
m e n t a r y , s e c o n d a r y , a n d h i g h e r e d u c a t i o n l e v e l s . j
I S y r i a . I t w o u l d b e w e l l f o r S y r i a t o f o s t e r a m o r e |
' t o l e r a n t a t t i t u d e t o w a r d f o r e i g n a n d p r i v a t e s c h o o l s i n
i !
j h e r c o u n t r y , a t l e a s t u n t i l t h e M i n i s t r y o f N a t i o n a l E d u - i
I i
! c a t i o n i s a b l e t o p r o v i d e a d e q u a t e l y t h e n e e d s o f t h e I
I s c h o o l p o p u l a t i o n . A s i n I r a q a n d i n L e b a n o n , h e r n e i g h -
, b o r i n g c o u n t r i e s , S y r i a n e e d s t o e s t a b l i s h v o c a t i o n a l , ;
a g r i c u l t u r a l , a n d t r a d e s s c h o o l s f o r h e r y o u t h . T h e |
I
; t r i b e s p e o p l e a c t i v i t i e s a r e g o o d , b u t t h e a n t i - i l l i t e r a c y '
I c a m p a i g n s s h o u l d b e i n c r e a s e d . T h e u n i v e r s i t y o f f e r i n g s
i
s h o u l d b e e n r i c h e d i n D a m a s c u s .
1161
i ;
; Turkey. The republic needs to decentralize more its
I educational administration. Although the elementary and
j
I secondary curricula may be reviewed every three years by a ;
I
' national conference on education, the curricula planning
should be a continuous process and should thus be provided I
for, either in Istanbul or in Ankara, on an advisory basis .
and clearing house. Vocational education throughout j
Turkey should be more highly respected and provided for. j
I
Ataturk University should provide as many and as strong
!
faculties and schools as possible for the school popula- !
tions of eastern Turkey. i
I I
I Progress and growth are to be commended for the ed-1
* ucational programs of each of the selected countries in ;
I '
; the Middle East, but the educationists of these nations
I I
I should avail themselves of every research and technique to i
i I
I improve vitally their theory and practice. I
B I B L I O G R A P H Y
L.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
A. BOOKS
Brockelmanj Carl. History of the Islamic Peoples. London:,
Routledge and Kegan Paul, Ltd., 1952. !
I
Dorman, Jr., Harry Gaylord. Toward Understanding Islam. i
New York: Teachers College, Columbia University, 19^8 . |
Bells, Walter Crosby. American Doctoral Dissertations on
Education in Countries of the Middle East. Washing
ton, D. C.: Middle East Institute, 1955-
Jackh, Ernest (ed.) . Background of the Middle East. I
Ithica, New York: Cornell University Press, 1952. :
j
Knight, Edgar W. Twenty Centuries of Education. Boston: \
Ginn and Company, 1940. j
Lengyel, Emil. World Without End: The Middle East.
New York: The John Day Company, 1953*
Matthews, Roderic D. and Matta Akrawi. Education in Arab
Countries of the Near East. Washington, D. C.: !
American Council on Education, 1949. I
Moehlman, Arthur Henry and Joseph S. Roucek. Comparative ;
Education. New York: The Dryden Press, 1953*
Sasnett, Martena Tenney. Educational Systems of the World ;
Los Angeles; University of Southern California Press, ■
1952. ' !
I
Van Ess, John. Meet the Arab. New York: The John Day
Company, 1943.
I 119
: B. BOOKS: PARTS OP SERIES j
I
i !
i Brown, Stanley B., Mary Boise Lyda, and Carter V. Good
j (compilers)• Research Studies in Education ; A Subject
Index. Annual volumes. Homewood, Illinois; Phi Delta
Kappa, Inc., 1951-1952, 1953. |
I
Research Studies in Education; A Subject Index. :
y
Annual volume. Bloomington, Indiana: Phi Delta
Kappa, Inc.,1954.
Lamke, T. A. and Herbert M. Silvey (eds.). Master's
Theses in Education. Nos. 1-4. Cedar Falls, Iowa:
Iowa State Teachers College, I9 5I-I9 5 5.
Lyda, Mary Loise and Stanley B. Brown (compilers). Re
search Studies in Education : A subject Index. Perio
dic volumes. Boulder, Colorado: University of Colo
rado, 1 9 4 1-1 9 5 1, 1953-
C. PUBLICATIONS OF THE GOVERNMENT, LEARNED
SOCIETIES AND OTHER ORGANIZATIONS
International Bureau of Education. International Yearbook i
of Education. Annual volumes. Geneva: International'
Bureau of Education, 1951“195^« '
Khaki, Ahmed. "The Teaching of Arabic," Bulletin, of the I
Egyptian Education Bureau. Cairo (May] I94tJ,”T61 48. I
Middle East Institute. Americans and the Middle East ; |
Partners in the Next Decade. Fourth Annual Conference :
on Middle East Affairs, March 1 7-I8 j 1950* Washington,,
D. C.: The Middle East Institute, 1 9 5O. !
_______ . Evolution, in the Middle East ; Reform, Revolt and
Change. Seventh Annual Conference on Middle East Af
fairs, March 6-7, 1953- Washington, D. C.: The Middle
East Institute, 1953* i
Nationalism in the Middle East. Sixth Annual
Conference on Middle East Affairs, March 21-22, 1952.
Washington, D. C.: The Middle East Institute, 1952.
120 I
y Royal Institute of International Affairs. The Middle Bast;
A Political and Economic Survey. London: Oxford |
University Press" 195^ • <
I
United Nations -Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organ-j
ization. Fundamental Education. (Common Ground for j
All Peoples.) New York: The Macmillan Co., 194%. j
World Survey of Education. (Handbook of Educa- j
tional Organization and Statistics.) Paris: Les
Petits- Fils de Leonard DANEL, 1955*
D. PERIODICALS
Eells, Walter Crosby. "American Doctoral Dissertations on
Foreign Education,",Higher Education, XII:2 (October,
1955), 1 9-2 2.
Hamblen, Stewart B. "Schools for Better Living in Iran,"
Institute of International Education News Bulletin,
29:5 (February, 1954), 5ff.
■ fhe Middle East Journal, 8:2 (Spring, 1954).
I E. ENCYCLOPEDIA ARTICLES
I
I "al-Azhar," Encyclopedia of Islam, I, 532-539• Leyden:
I (n.n.), 1 9 1 3.
j
I F. UNPUBLISHED MATERIALS
al-Jalili, Abdul Razzak. "A Study of Public Education in
Iraq, With Suggestions for Its Reorganization." Un
published Doctor of Philosophy's dissertation. The
University of Southern California, Los Angeles, 1954.
X + 2 6 3 pp.
12 Ij
Alzobaie, Abdul Jalil. "intelligence Test Development With'
Special Reference to a Test for Use in Iraq." Unpub
lished Doctor of Education's dissertation. The Uni
versity of Southern California, Los Angeles, 1954.
X + 3 2 6 pp.
Turner, Hoyt J. B. "Portable Schools for the Tribes of
Iran." Teheran, Iran: United States Operations
Mission to Iran, 195^* (Typewritten).
unlvrsity of Southern Ca«fomto U M r#
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Geraty, Thomas Sinclair
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A comparative investigation of the mid-century status of educational leaders in the Middle East
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School of Education
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Master of Science
Degree Program
Education
Degree Conferral Date
1956-06
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University of Southern California
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