lOMoARcPSD|16866728
Education and Development
Issues in International Development Studies (School of Oriental and African Studies)
Scan to open on Studocu
Studocu is not sponsored or endorsed by any college or university
Downloaded by Rick Kibet (
[email protected])
lOMoARcPSD|16866728
LECTURE NOTES
Education and Development
Introduction
There have been improvements in the field of education (measured by enrolment rates and
literacy rates in developing countries since the end of the Second World War. Improvements in
education have positive knock-on effects, including poverty reduction and improved health care.
For example, literate women can read labels on medicines and food, thus making an informed
choice about diet and when to administer medicine.
Moreover, a virtuous circle occurs, since improvements in health lead to improvements in
education from effects, such as increased enrolment at schools (less children off sick) and
students being better able to learn when free from disease (a study in NE Brazil showed that
children with bad eyesight were 27% behind the average gain in achievement in the school).
However, improvements vary greatly between countries (China, Kerala, Sri Lanka, Cuba and the
Middle East have done better than Sub-Saharan Africa, for example) and within countries (the
poor and women are groups which have not shared proportionately in the gains, for example).
Thus there is a need to examine the education policies of each nation-state and how these are
mediated by economic structure, natural resources available, political commitment, ability to
implement policies and socio-cultural factors (gender relations, religion, for example).
Role of Education in Developing Countries
Overall the role of education in developing countries has been based on bringing about
modernization. In many developing countries, the police, the military and the education system
are the most modern spheres.
Key aspects concerning the role of education in developing countries
(i) Education is seen as being self-evidently good as it plays a civilising role and a
modernising role.
(ii) Education in developing countries will lead to intellectual self-sufficiency and from
there to the total self-reliance of developing countries. The educated elite in developing
countries will be able to make their own decisions about goals and the means to achieve
them. In short, based on these two points, education will lead to liberation.
Development of Education Policies in Developing Countries
From the 1960s to the 1980s the education system in developing countries was designed to –
(i) Create a new state through institutional structures based on the expansion of enrolment.
(ii) Eliminate illiteracy.
(iii) Produce a well-trained and functional class of middle and higher level manpower, which
would spearhead the drive to economic independence.
(iv) Develop a literate and self-reliant cadre of new elites to boost the standing of developing
countries.
lOMoARcPSD|16866728
But main problems have been –
(i) Variable quality of education provided.
(ii) A group of unemployed and angry graduates has been created.
(iii) Confusion over the language of instruction (ex-colonial languages for neutrality – India,
national language – Pakistan or mixture – Tanzania)
Literacy and the Language of Instruction in Education
Functional illiteracy remains a big problem in developing countries. Drop-out rates remain
high for several important reasons –
(i) Seeking/taking a job.
(ii) Escaping rural boredom.
(iii) Seeking the anonymity of urban life.
Nigeria, Kenya, Zambia, Uganda and Zimbabwe have all continued to use English as the
medium of instruction in schools. It is less expensive than transferring to an indigenous national
language, which would require the expense of new books etc, retraining of teachers. In Tanzania
primary education is in Kiswahili and secondary education in English - 95% of students at
primary cannot speak any English.
Overall the problem has been that the quantity of education provided has increased but the
quality of the education in developing countries is often poor –
(i) Primary education could be expanded with more emphasis on vocational education. But
problem is that vocational education lacks status.
(ii) Education could be transferred to the private sector. But poverty means many parents
cannot afford to pay for private education.
Theories of Education
Modernizaton Theory
Main assumption – education will lead to economic growth.
Basis for assumption –
Post-colonial backwardness of developing countries is often maintained by traditional authority
figures (puppet leaders under colonial regimes) and/or the new Western-educated elites. Thus
Modernization theory stresses the need to move to a technical-functional theory of education.
It does this by correlating literacy rates with GNP per capita rates, based on the premise that
rising GDP per capita will lead to a corresponding increase in literacy rates.
Main tenets of Modernization theory
(i) Economic growth needs technical development.
(ii) Technical development needs new skills.
(iii) Schools equip people with these skills.
(iv) This leads to further demands for these skills, so schools have to improve to meet this
demand.
lOMoARcPSD|16866728
Overall
For Modernization theorists, a developed education system is a pre-condition of economic
growth and investment in education. It is also the most effective way to create economic growth.
If this is to work there needs to be a move from –
(i) particularism to universalism
(ii) ascription to achievement
(iii) diffuseness to specificity
Education must be an open, non-discriminatory system. In this way education will prove the
superiority of technical rationality over traditional values. Schools create ‘modern’, ‘rational’
individuals and therefore societies. Education in developing countries should thus be brought by
aid from governments in developed countries and supranational organisations. These agents are
the major carriers of the technical-functional theory of education.
Critique
Educational aid may have ulterior motives and be a dimension of foreign policy. It may also
lead to brain drain and pro-Western views.
Dependency Theory
Dependency theorists regard Western style education in developing countries as cultural
imperialism. For Dependency theorists, education in developing countries is determined by the
needs of Western capitalism. Thus, education - together with the media and MNCs – creates a
servitude of mind amongst people in developing countries, through the perpetuation of Western
structures, content and forms of education. For example, publishing houses in the west dominate
developing countries developing countries and thus control which educational books are
published. Thus, in direct opposition to Modernization theory, Dependency theorists believe that
the emphasis on creating Western-style education systems and policies in developing countries
leads to dependent growth.
Critique
Dependency theorists argue that the education system in developing countries cannot be
improved without a (socialist) revolution. This puts too much emphasis on external factors. Even
intermediate level changes, such as changing teaching to local languages (from English or
French, for example) are seen as ineffective by Dependency theorists.
Alternative Theories of Education
Paolo Freire developed the concept of education leading to ‘conscientization’. Awareness raising
should be created through education. Education is used to raise people’s consciousness of their
situation of oppression. Freire’s arguments are set out in his book – Pedagogy of the Oppressed.
It is argued that education will thus produce liberated individuals, who will bring a peaceful end
to capitalism.
lOMoARcPSD|16866728
Critique
External factors have been underplayed in these alternative views. The reaction of the
establishment is likely to be hostile. They will often not fund or support such education policies.
Freire was exiled from Brazil but continued to work in Chile.
Other Possibilities for Education in Developing Countries
(i) Use education to create authentic national development. This needs enlightened
leadership with political will. There is also a need to match educational achievement to
the prevailing economic structure in order to create jobs. Compare East Asian Miracle
(EAM) examples with Africa – they had similar levels of investment in education in the
1960s but African countries did not provide jobs through strong economies, while EAM
examples did link education systems to economic structures well, in general, and thus
provided jobs for people coming through the education system.
(ii) There could be a move back to a pre-colonial education system.
This is often based on an overly romantic view of a golden age.
Theories of Education: Overview
Both Modernization and Dependency theories are based on economic reductionism.
(i) They underplay the internal contexts of the countries in which education takes place
(ii) They regard education as playing same role everywhere and being received in the same
way everywhere – this underplays internal economic, political and cultural factors
existing in countries adopting education systems.
However, there is a still a belief in mainstream development that education policies are the key
to development in developing countries –
(i) It will lead to modernity.
(ii) The belief in the ‘more education the better’ philosophy remains strong.
(iii) The belief that providing more education will lead to more jobs remains strong.
(iv) The belief that providing more education will lead to greater egalitarianism remains
strong.
Education in Developing Countries: Key Problems
Brain drain
This leads to a huge economic loss for developing countries, as the best people leave to help the
economies of developed countries. The brain drain thus also leads to a great boots for the
economies of developed countries. The production of technically qualified graduates outstrips
the demand for them in developing countries.
Appropriacy
Development clearly requires an effective education system to operate in developing countries.
The problem is that education creates problems for states, as well as solving problems and
lOMoARcPSD|16866728
leading to development. It is hard to predict or control the effects of education in developing
countries. States in developing countries often try to limit the availability of education or to
channel it to ‘neutral’ areas, which will not lead to challenges to the state. Both of these efforts
have proved ineffective. Education transmits both conservative and revolutionary ideologies.
A problem in developing countries is that if the standard of education in is high enough it will
expose people to ideas which could undermine the state as well as support the state and create
development. Education can extend, develop and exploit. The main problem is how to bring
about self-directed development.
Demand outstrips supply
There are far too many graduates in a lot of developing countries for the jobs available. This can
be dangerous. Colombia and Sri Lanka are examples of countries where graduates have joined in
the civil conflict. Often their educational attainment means that they have good organisational
and technical skills.
Credentials
Schools do not provide qualifications but instead produce credentials, which provide cultural
currency. This means that they provide the holders with entry to prestigious levels of
employment. This confirms the high social status of the holder, not their ability to do the job.
Thus, education in developing countries leads to the reproduction of elites, who have access to
wealth, which provides access to the best schools, universities and then to power.
These ‘credentials’ are often empty of useful content or knowledge that are related to the social
needs of developing countries and are thus harmful.
Education and Rates of Return Analysis
Linked to the Washington and Post-Washington Consensus.
Criticised for reductionism. Increasingly seen as a panacea in developed countries and
developing countries for solving problems of social and economic advance. A big part of the
PWC Human Capital approach but does not analyse how any education system is the outcome of
historically and socially evolved socio-economic practices and is inevitably specific to each
country. This must be reflected in research rather than the calculation of rates of return to
education and corresponding allocation of finance , which characterises the PWC approach.
PWC reduces education analysis to the individual incidence of costs and benefits.
It is still based on view that investment in education can bring excellent returns - better than
returns on investment in physical capital. Stresses economic indicators and labour market
outcomes rather which ignores the diversity, complexity and richness of the education process.
PWC approach to education is still based on human capital theory - that education can raise
productivity of the poor. Rates of return analyses justify investment in education, though
mentions of globalization and democratization are mentioned. Rates of return analyses are
gaining in strength under the PWC - 1995 World Bank educational policy review mentions rates
of return 30 times, the 1980 report once.
The moral and social impact of education is not faced, nor is the potential they could have for
remedying the social dislocations of modernization and restoring social cohesion.
lOMoARcPSD|16866728
Education and the Millennium Development Goals 2000-2015
Education For All (EFA) Initiative
Six targets for educational development were set out at the World Economic Forum in Dakar in
2000, based around the framework of achieving Education For All. The six goals are known as
the Dakar Goals and two of them – UPE by 2015 and eliminating gender disparities by 2005
were adopted as MDGs.
There are moves to decentralize education under the EFA initiative. Local communities need
empowerment and greater accessibility to education. There is thus a need to improve local
government services and to do capacity building at the local level. In reality, decentralization is
not working. The poorest districts lack resources. There has been de-concentration not
decentralization with no change in enrolment rates as a result. There has also been a trade-off
between the quantity of education provided and the quality. The problem is how to effectively
measure education qualitatively.
Universal Primary Education (UPE) Initiative
Key problem in reaching targets, such as those set by the MDGs, is achievement of quantity
trade-off against low quality.
UPE Issues
1. Over concentration on increasing enrolments at expense of emphasis on distribution –
geographically and by groups (gender, class, for example). This affects access and
participation – where females are targeted this will have a strong correlation with
improved nutrition and health.
2. Emphasis on quantitative targets at expense of quality. Defining improving quality is
difficult as definitions, values and differentiated outcomes are difficult to resolve and to
generalise across countries and cultures.
3. Prioritisation – should attempts to prioritise UPE be made at the expense of improving
enrolment at secondary and tertiary levels?
4. Interaction between goals is not recognised. For example, if UPE is to be achieved then
more primary teachers need to be trained. This will be difficult from a small base of
secondary graduates, so there should be coordination of the UPE with increased
secondary school provision.
5. In some countries UPE is clearly unattainable without resorting to implausible actions,
such as attracting back many who missed out on primary education. Thus, the technical
specifications of the goals are flawed.
lOMoARcPSD|16866728
Education and the Sustainable Development Goals 2015-2030
Goal 4 (out of 17 in total) – Quality Education
Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning
opportunities for all http://www.sdgfund.org/goal-4-quality-education
Since 2000, there has been enormous progress in achieving the target of universal primary
education. The total enrolment rate in developing regions reached 91 percent in 2015, and the
worldwide number of children out of school has dropped by almost half.
There has also been a dramatic increase in literacy rates, and many more girls are in school than
ever before. Progress has also faced tough challenges in developing regions due to high levels of
poverty, armed conflicts and other emergencies. In Western Asia and North Africa, ongoing
armed conflict has seen an increase in the proportion of children out of school. This is a worrying
trend.
While sub-Saharan Africa made the greatest progress in primary school enrolment among all
developing regions – from 52 percent in 1990, up to 78 percent in 2012 – large disparities still
remain. Children from the poorest households are four times more likely to be out of school than
those of the richest households. Disparities between rural and urban areas also remain high.
Achieving inclusive and quality education for all reaffirms the belief that education is one of the
most powerful and proven vehicles for sustainable development. This goal ensures that all girls
and boys complete free primary and secondary schooling by 2030. It also aims to provide equal
access to affordable vocational training, and to eliminate gender and wealth disparities with the
aim of achieving universal access to a quality higher education.
Goal Targets
• By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys complete free, equitable and quality primary and
secondary education leading to relevant and Goal-4 effective learning outcomes
• By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys have access to quality early childhood
development, care and pre-primary education so that they are ready for primary education
• By 2030, ensure equal access for all women and men to affordable and quality technical,
vocational and tertiary education, including university
• By 2030, substantially increase the number of youth and adults who have relevant skills,
including technical and vocational skills, for employment, decent jobs and
entrepreneurship
• By 2030, eliminate gender disparities in education and ensure equal access to all levels of
education and vocational training for the vulnerable, including persons with disabilities,
indigenous peoples and children in vulnerable situations
• By 2030, ensure that all youth and a substantial proportion of adults, both men and
women, achieve literacy and numeracy
lOMoARcPSD|16866728
• By 2030, ensure that all learners acquire the knowledge and skills needed to promote
sustainable development, including, among others, through education for sustainable
development and sustainable lifestyles, human rights, gender equality, promotion of a
culture of peace and non-violence, global citizenship and appreciation of cultural
diversity and of culture’s contribution to sustainable development
• Build and upgrade education facilities that are child, disability and gender sensitive and
provide safe, nonviolent, inclusive and effective learning environments for all
• By 2020, substantially expand globally the number of scholarships available to
developing countries, in particular least developed countries, small island developing
States and African countries, for enrolment in higher education, including vocational
training and information and communications technology, technical, engineering and
scientific programmes, in developed countries and other developing countries
• By 2030, substantially increase the supply of qualified teachers, including through
international cooperation for teacher training in developing countries, especially least
developed countries and small island developing states
World Bank (2018) The Human Capital Project
Link to The Human Capital Project (Including full index ranking countries on page 32)
https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/bitstream/handle/10986/30498/33252.pdf?sequence=4&isAllowed=y
Link to project website
https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/immersive-story/2018/08/03/investing-in-people-to-build-human-capital
Link to video explaining index
http://www.worldbank.org/en/publication/human-capital
Link to document explaining the methodology for the Human Capital Index
http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/300071537907028892/pdf/WPS8593.pdf
Case Study – Sierra Leone
The case of Sierra Leone highlights some of the issues set out above. Firstly, many children
missed out on primary education because of the civil war in the country from 1991 to 2002. It is
very difficult to attract these people back into primary education; they fear ridicule and as they
are older than classmates and are often traumatised in some ways by the war.
Females, rural dwellers and the physically and mentally disabled are also left out of enrolment at
primary education level. Many were disabled during the civil war, 90% of all primary school
buildings were destroyed and 66% of the population is classed as living in extreme poverty.
Sierra Leone needs massive donor assistance if UPE is to be achieved; 50% of its budget is
donor financed. The special circumstances of countries like Sierra Leone are not taken into
account by the targets, which are uniform. One international NGO – Plan Sierra Leone – has had
a huge impact on providing resources to the primary education sector. Without this variable,
progress would be very slow.
Target goals are set by people removed from the realities of situations. There should be separate
time-frames for countries, depending on their circumstances.
lOMoARcPSD|16866728
Education and Gender
A virtuous circle is needed - raising income thus improving access to education (particularly for
females) which then leads to improving access to health care. Education for females is important
as they look after nutritional status of children and have the most contact with health service
providers.
Benefits of female education – empowers females – they demand health services, for examples
and are able to make informed choices in life. A study of 36 countries during the 1980s showed
that on average for each additional year of schooling completed by a female the U5MR dropped
by 8 per cent. In Pakistan the U5MR is 34% higher amongst the poorest 20% of the pop
compared to the richest 20%.
Conclusion
For Mayor and Binde in ‘The World Ahead: Our Future in the Making’ – there is a need to
promote lifelong learning (prioritising females) and the universalisation of basic education. In
addition, the excluded must be included, and an appropriate mix of academic, technical and
vocational education in national languages should be provided.
A plurality of methods, contexts and places are needed for education. Students should be made
aware of the methods and objectives of education – it should not just be learning facts.
IT should be used in education and made available to all in developing countries.
Education should both develop and train individuals and build societies.
Civic education – encouraging civil responsibility – is thus necessary. No one culture should
have hegemony.
Studies clearly show a link between lack of education, poverty and poor health in developing
countries. Poverty exposes the poor to infectious and parasitic diseases to which the rich in the
same countries are not exposed. There is a correlation between levels of GDP and Life
Expectancy figures to some extent - higher the GDP higher the life expectancy, in general.
However there are exceptions – some poor countries have invested in –
(i) Education – particularly female education – which has positive effects on child health.
(ii) Health spending – particularly targeted on Primary Health Care.
(iii) An even distribution of food supplies.
Case Studies in this regard –
China, Kerala, Sri Lanka, Costa Rica, Vietnam, Cuba and some ex-USSR republics.
lOMoARcPSD|16866728
Benefits of Female Education – Overall Points
(i) It empowers females – educated females demand health services.
(ii) It allows females to make informed choices.
(iii) Educated females demand timely treatment for their children and other relatives – the
biggest plus is the swift response to diarrhoea on the part of educated females.
(iv) The education of females has cumulative benefits, which are transmitted over
generations.
Benefits of Female Education – Empirical Evidence
A study of 36 countries during the 1980s showed that on average for each additional year of
schooling completed by a female the U5MR dropped by 8 per cent. In Pakistan the U5MR is
34% higher amongst the poorest 20% of the population compared to the richest 20%.
Furthermore, the U5MR is 60% higher amongst those in the poorest 20% with no education
compared to those who have some education.
It is important to have integrated education and health projects. There is no point concentrating
largely on education if many of the poor children going to school are ill. For example, 40% of
students at primary school in developing countries lack adequate protein and vitamins and 40%
suffer from anaemia. In Tanzania, 75% of children suffer from anaemia. Poor sanitation leads to
water-borne diseases at school. Females suffer the most as girls take more time off school to tend
sick relatives than boys.
Kerala – Bihar Comparison
In Kerala females live 24 years longer than they do in Bihar, despite the two states having the
same economic level.
Literacy amongst females in Kerala – 86%
Literacy amongst females in Bihar – 25%
Alternatives for Africa
Post-colonial education in Africa has in general mimicked its colonial predecessor. It has filled
the needs of elites, which recreates the colonial past. There are fewer European teachers now and
a ‘modern African education’ is developing. However, economic crises are leading to high
drop- out rates and great inequality. Alternative and non-formal education systems cannot close
the gap – as these are seen as second class systems. In Africa there is a choice between having a
large illiterate and uneducated population governed by a tiny elite and having a broadly educated
population in search of economic opportunity. The emergence of civil society is leading to
greater demands for education, but how such demands can be met is problematic.
