This handbook is an important reference work in understanding education systems in the South Asia region, their development trajectory, challenges and potential. The handbook includes the SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) countries for discussion---Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka---while also considering countries such as Myanmar and the Maldives that have considerable shared history in the region. Such a comparative perspective is largely absent within the literature given the present paucity of intra-regional interaction. South Asian education systems are viewed primarily through a development lens in terms of inequalities, challenges and responses. However, the development of modern institutions of education and the challenges that it faces requires cultural and historical understanding of indigenous traditions as well as indigenous modern thinkers and education movements. Therefore, this encompassing referenc e work covers indigenous education traditions, formal education systems, including school and preschool education, higher and professional education, education financing systems and structures, teacher education systems, addressing huge linguistic and other diversities, and marginalization within the formal education system, and pedagogy and curricula. All the countries in this region have their own unique geographical, cultural, economic and political character and histories of interest and significance, and have responded to common issues such as overcoming the colonial legacy, language diversity, or girls’ education, or minority rights in education, in uniquely different ways. The sections therefore include country-specific perspectives as far as possible to highlight these issues. Internationally renowned specialists of South Asian education systems have contributed to this important reference work, making it an invaluable resource for researchers and students of education interested in South Asia.

In the mountains of the Northern Pakistan, Tajikistan and Afghanistan School and schooling are both symbolic of wider ranging cultural and political battles over morals, modernity, development, gender and the rule of law. Educational Policies in Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Tajikistan: Contested Terrain in the Twenty-First Century is about both the normative battles over the purpose of education, as well as about the structural impediments to providing instruction in those remote and challenging locations where it is attempted. The analytical frames in this collection come primarily from the social sciences and comparative education. Contributors examine education, policy, processes and structures in the broader socio-cultural, religious and economic context of three countries sharing somewhat similar colonial and post- colonial legacy and current uprising of extreme religious positions and a drive to social-cohesion.

This publication describes the key issues facing the school education system in Pakistan, highlights the challenges, and suggests some possible directions for reform---with a focus on two provinces: Sindh and Punjab. While average years of schooling in Pakistan have increased along with life expectancy and per capita income, inequality remains high and, by other education measures, the record remains dismal. Illiteracy is widespread and almost 23 million children aged 5–16 are not in school---a worrying statistic for a country whose current workforce is young, mostly unskilled, and poorly prepared for productive employment.

Washington seems to be in a season of worrying--some might say "obsessing"--About the education system in Pakistan. The 9/11 Commission, whose final report has become a fixture on the bestseller lists, has highlighted the links between international terrorism and Pakistan's religious seminaries, or "madaris", and recommended that the United States support Pakistani efforts to improve the quality of the education it offers its young. The The American government, with the U.S. Agency for International Development as the lead agency, plans to spend tens of millions of dollars this year alone on primary education and literacy programs in Pakistan. The international donor community has been active on this front for decades, but has significantly expanded its activities in recent years. But most of all, Pakistanis themselves have raised the alarm and encouraged this newfound interest in their schools. This volume explores an issue that Pakistanis themselves have identified as vital to their national well-being. Essays include: (1) Educating the Pakistani Masses (Shahid Javed Burki); (2) Education, Employment and Economic Development in Pakistan (Ishrat Husain); (3) Challenges in the Education Sector in Pakistan (Salman Shah); (4) Reform in Higher Education in Pakistan (Grace Clark); (5) Against the Tide: Role of The Citizens Foundation in Pakistani Education (Ahsan Saleem); (6) Reasons for Rage: Reflections on the Education System of Pakistan with Special Reference to English (Tariq Rahman); (7) Education Sector Reforms in Pakistan: Demand Generation as an Alternative Recipe (Jonathan Mitchell, Salman Humayun, and Irfan Muzaffar); (8) Report for Congress on Education Reform in Pakistan; (9) Education in Pakistan and the World Bank's Program (Michelle Riboud); (10) The Punjab Education Sector Reform Program 2003-2006; (11) Pakistan's Recent Experience in Reforming Islamic Education (Christopher Candland); and (12) Pakistan: Reforming the Education Sector. An introduction by Robert M. Hathaway is included. Individual papers contain tables, charts, notes and references.

Over the last three decades, a significant amount of research has sought to relate educational institutions, policies, practices and reforms to social structures and agencies. A number of models have been developed that have become the basis for attempting to understand the complex relation between education and society. At the same time, national and international bodies tasked with improving educational performances seem to be writing in a void, in that there is no rigorous theory guiding their work, and their documents exhibit few references to groups, institutions and forces that can impede or promote their programmes and projects. As a result, the recommendations these bodies provide to their clients display little to no comprehension of how and under what conditions the recommendations can be put into effect. The Education System in Mexico directly addresses this problem. By combining abstract insights with the practicalities of educational reforms, policies, practices and their social antecedents, it offers a long overdue reflection of the history, effects and significance of the Mexican educational system, as well as presenting a more cogent understanding of the relationship between educational institutions and social forces in Mexico and around the world.

The need to reform secondary-level education to prepare young people for new economic realities has emerged. In an age of constant career changing, cognitive flexibility is a top-priority skill to develop in today’s students. This shift requires methodological innovation that enhances children’s natural abilities as well as updated, focused teacher education in order to prepare them adequately. Educational Reform and International Baccalaureate in the Asia-Pacific is a collection of innovative research that examines the development and implementation of IB curricula. Highlighting a wide range of topics including critical thinking, student evaluation, and teacher training, this book is ideally designed for educators, curriculum developers, instructional designers, administrative officials, policymakers, researchers, academicians, and students.