primary and secondary education in the west bank and...

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PRIMARYAND SECONDARY

EDUCATIONIN THE WEST BANKAND GAZA STRIP

OVERVEWOF THE SYSTEM

AND NEEDSFOR

THE DEVELOPMENTOF THE MINISTRY

OF EDUCATION

UNITED NATIONS EDUCATIONAL, SCIENTIFIC AND CULTURAL ORGANIZATIONPARIS

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PREFACE

For more than four decades UNESCO has been a partner of the Palestinians ineducation. This has included the monitoring of the situation of schools and universities in theOccupied Territories and efforts to prevent the closure of educational institutions as well assupporting the UNRWA-UNESCO Department of education, financing fellowships forPalestinians to study abroad, organizing seminars on major issues confronting the educationof Palestinians, supporting the development of distance education at university level andevaluation of textbooks used in schools and supervision of examinations.

Following the signing of the Declaration of Principles, on 13 September 1993 inWashington, Mr Yasser Arafat, Chairmanof the Palestinian Liberation Organization and MrFederico Mayor, Director General of UNESCO, signed a Memorandum of Co-operation inGranada on 9 December 1993 and a Plan of Action in Tunis on 30 April 1994 which specifythose areas in the field of education in which further co-operation with UNESCO isrequested.

The Palestinian Authority (PA) came into being on 4 May 1994 and created a“Ministry” of Education and Higher Education within several months. On 28 August 1994Israel transferred authority for education in the West Bank and Gaza Strip to the PA.

In response to the agreement UNESCO has developed a number of education projectsand sought donor support. A UNESCO mission to the West Bank and Gaza Strip took placefrom 23 October to 13 November 1994 to review the situation of education in these areas andelaborate various projects for developing and strengthening the “Ministry” of Education.

The mission composition included Mr J. Beynon of UNESCO, Paris, as missionleader, Mr I. Maslamani, of UNESCO-UNRWA Department of Education, Mr J. Viste(USA), consultant on educational planning and finance, Mr E. Aho (FIN), consultant oneducational structures and administration and Mr A. Rahim Selamat (Malaysian secondedofficial) who covered issues related to educational quality .

The UNESCO mission coincided with project identification missions from the WorldBank, UNICEF, Italy and France. The concurrence of these missions greatly facilitated co-ordination of donor efforts.

The mission helped focus a list of ten PA priorities around the five followingobjectives:

1. Improving the quality of basic and secondary education.

2. Providing access to education for all marginalised groups who have missedschool.

3. Offering equity to those young people who have learning deficiencies.

4. Increasing the relevance of education to social and economic changes takingplace in the Palestinian communities.

5. Ensuring an efficiently managed educational system.

This report is an attempt to assemble the available data on education in the West Bankand the Gaza Strip, to analyse this data and to outline project areas which would be attractiveto external donors. The scarcity of reliable statistics has been a major handicap in providinga substantiated basis for developing projects. It has also been taken into account that thesituation in the West Bank and Gaza is changing rapidly. For these reasons most projects areof one or two years duration. They are designed to collect the needed data and to lay theinstitutional foundations for follow-up. The report also includes a number ofrecommendations to the PA for shaping the “Ministry”, including defining its purposes andfunctions.

UNESCO would like to express its gratitude to the PA for the support it receivedfrom all levels throughout the mission. Special recognition is due to Mr Yasser Amro,“Minister” of Education and the dedicated staff of the newly created “Ministry”. The closeand constant co-operation received from the other agencies present at the time of the missionwas outstanding and will contribute substantially toward the development of a coherent, longrange vision for the development of education in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The Palestinian “Ministry” of Education started operating in August 1994 after theresponsibilities for education in the West Bank and Gaza had been transferred from theIsraeli government to the newly established Palestinian Authority (PA). This freshly created“Ministry” is facing an enormous task. The Palestinian education system, which hashistorically been one of the most respected in the Arab world, has suffered tremendouslyduring the past decades of conflict. The quality of the education provided has deterioratedand the educational facilities are in no condition to accommodate the rising number ofstudents. Teachers need training, and a whole new educational structure as well as a genuinePalestinian curriculum need to be developed, since before the transfer of education to the PAthe West Bank and Gaza had two different educational systems and curricula, neither ofwhich were their own choice or addressed their specific needs.

The current crisis the Palestinian education system is facing also presents a greatopportunity. The Palestinians have the possibility to design an education system and acurriculum tailored to suit their cultural, social and economic needs and to meet the demandsof the world’s rapidly changing economic markets. New and innovative approaches can beemployed to most effectively address the problems. However, the magnitude of the task issuch that the Palestinians will need external assistance to successfully handle it. Thus theinternational community has the unique opportunity to assist the Palestinian people indeveloping a genuine education system while at the same time contributing to laying thefoundation for a stable and lasting peace in the Middle East.

This report attempts to provide an overview of the educational situation in the WestBank and Gaza. It displays the problems which need to be addressed and outlines short-termobjectives for the next two years. Some interim solutions to problems that require immediateaction are proposed. The main aim, however, is to build up the Palestinian capacity, overthe next two years, to prepare a long-term strategy for developing the Palestinian educationsystem.

1. The Peace Accords and the Establishment of the Palestinian Authority

On 13 September 1993 the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) and Israel signedthe Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements (DOP) in WashingtonD.C. and thereby recognize their mutual legitimate and political rights and pledge to strive fora peaceful co-existence in dignity and security and for a lasting just and peaceful settlement oftheir conflict in accordance with UN Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338. In theAgreement on the Gaza Strip and Jericho Area (Gaza-Jericho Agreement) signed on 4 May 1994in Cairo the parties also agreed to establish a Palestinian Interim Self-Government Authority (thePA) to which the Israelis would hand over authority in the fields of education, culture, health,social welfare, direct taxation and Value Added Tax (VAT) on local products as well as tourismfor the territory of the Gaza Strip and the Jericho area. The transfer of authority was furtherextended to the West Bank in the Agreement on Preparatory Transfer of Powers andResponsibilities (Transfer Agreement) signed on 28 August 1994 in the spheres of education,culture, health, social welfare, tourism, direct taxation and VAT on local products.

The PA was established by the end of May 1994 and the powers and responsibilities forthe West Bank and Gaza Strip were transferred to the PA in accordance with the Gaza-JerichoAgreement and the Transfer Agreement. The PA consists of a body of twenty-four members (Alist of the members is included in Annex V.) The PA has executive, legislative and judiciaryfunctions as specified in the above mentioned agreements.

2. The Education System in the West Bank and Gaza Strip

The Palestinian education system is divided into primary, secondary and highereducation. Higher education is currently provided by eight universities, offering courses of atleast four-year duration, and twenty community colleges, offering courses of two-year durationin such fields as teacher training, paramedical studies, technical studies and commercial andbusiness administration.

The structure and curricula of the basic education system are different in the West Bankand Gaza Strip due to the fact that in the course of the military conflicts following theproclamation of the state of Israel in 1948, the Gaza Strip came under Egyptian administrationand the West Bank was united with the Jordanian East Bank. Egypt and Jordan respectivelyintroduced their education systems and curricula in the two areas. The Israeli CivilAdministration introduced some modifications to the education systems after the occupation ofthe West Bank and Gaza Strip in 1967 but essentially continued to adopt the respective systemsuntil authority was handed over to the PA in May and August of 1994. Consequently, theJordanian curricula are taught in the West Bank while the Egyptian curricula are taught in Gaza.Neither curriculum was adapted to the Palestinian history, culture or human resource needs. Inthe West Bank the basic education cycle comprises grades one to ten and the secondary cyclegrades eleven to twelve, while in Gaza grades one to nine constitute the basic cycle and ten totwelve the secondary cycle. The PA has started working on the unification of the two systemsand plans to introduce a system with grades one to ten as primary and grades eleven to twelveas secondary school.

Education is provided for by the PA, UNRWA and the private sector. The PA operates750 primary and 271 secondary schools in Gaza and the West Bank. UNRWA which onlyprovides primary schooling operates 260 schools of which 157 are in the Gaza Strip. There are59 private primary schools and 46 private secondary schools in the West Bank and Gazatogether. Thus there are 1,386 basic and secondary schools of which 1,090 are in the West Bankand 296 in the Gaza Strip. An estimated 609,352 students (373,311 in the West Bank and236,041 in the Gaza Strip) are enrolled in these schools. (For a more detailed breakdown seetables in Annex II.)

The secondary cycle consists of two alternative streams, one literary/scientific, onevocational. However, in the 1993/1994 school year only 2,272 students out of 66,909 studentsenrolled in the secondary cycle have chosen the vocational stream, leaving a significantimbalance between the two streams.

3. Educational Administration

The system of educational administration is divided into a central, a regional and adistrict level. At the central level is the “Ministry” of Education which was established inAugust 1994 after the transfer of authority from the Israeli Civil Administration to the newlyestablished PA in the sphere of education. The main technical office of this “Ministry” issituated in Ramallah (West Bank) one other office is in Gaza and one in Jericho. The“Ministry”, as an administrative unit created by the PA, is responsible for educationallegislation, and such executive functions in the field of education as policy making, budgeting,monitoring, evaluation and the issuing of certificates on the central level.

The “Minister” of Education heads ten Departments, each of which have an office inRamallah and in Gaza and are headed by ten Director Generals. The “Minister” is assisted bythe Deputy “Minister”, who in turn is assisted by two Assistants to the Deputy “Minister”, onefor West Bank and one for Gaza Affairs. The Assistant to the Deputy “Minister” for GazaAffairs heads the Gaza Regional Directorate for Education with two subordinate DistrictEducation Directors. The Assistant to the Deputy “Minister” for West Bank Affairs has hisoffice in the West Bank and also manages legislation and statistics in the “Ministry” ofEducation. Nine District Education Directors are subordinate to him. (See Chart in Annex I ofthe Report.)

The education system is divided into two regions: Gaza and the West Bank. The GazaStrip has its own regional office which contains part of the ten directorates of the “Ministry”.This was necessary because Gaza and the West Bank still have two distinct education systemsand because of regional distances and travel restraints.

There are eight districts in the West Bank and two in the Gaza Strip. The most importantfunction of the District Education Directorates is the supervision of schools; other functions areadmission of students, appointments/transfer of teachers, training of teachers, building andmaintenance of schools, collection of school data, provision of textbooks and schoolequipment/furniture, supervision/licensing of private schools and monitoring the expendituresof school contribution funds. The districts, whose structure dates back to before the Israeliadministration, thus play an important role within the Palestinian educational system, especiallyconsidering their experience and expertise in supporting the schools in their every-day tasks.This decentralization is an important asset for an effective functioning educationaladministration, allowing the central level to concentrate on policy issues, and for a democraticeducational system.

so that

Educational data has not been regularly and uniformly collected over the las decades,the data available is not always reliable.

Educational Finance

It is estimated that the total expenditure in all levels of education amounts toapproximately US$170 million per year. Of this amount about 80 per cent is spent on primaryand secondary education. In 1991 the largest contributor after the Israeli Civil Administration,which spent approximately US$ 58 million on education, was UNRWA with US$52 million.

The rest was contributed by external international and bilateral aid programmes, from NGOsand the Diaspora.

The source of 50 per cent of the public expenditures were tax revenues obtained fromincome tax, VAT and customs and excises. The rest was obtained from fees and charges suchas school fees or education taxes levied by the municipalities.

The “Ministry” of education intends to budget the sum of approximately US$350 perstudent per year for recurrent costs. This compares to the amounts both Jordan and UNRWAspend per student. At current enrolment levels this would require an annual budget of US$140-150 million. However, the annual budget could rise to over US$200 million depending onincreases in student enrolment as a result of Palestinians returning from the Diaspora.

In addition to this recurrent budget the “Ministry” has estimated that it needs anotherUS$100 million as capital investment for school construction, rehabilitation and maintenanceas well as for the purchase of equipment. Another estimated US$7 million will be needed forcurriculum development and teacher training projects.

It is expected that the long-term revenue for supporting the education system will besecured through tax collection. Nonetheless, the revenue currently available does not appear tobe sufficient to meet the needs of the education system, so that substantial external inputs willbe required for recurrent budget substitution as well as for capital investment and projectfinding.

5. Problems Facing the Education System in the West Bank and Gaza Strip

5.1. Quality of Education

The Palestinians have always had a reputation of maintaining a high quality educationsystem. Lately, however, it seems that this may no longer be true. International educationalachievement testing results have shown that Palestinian students are lagging behind incomparison with students in neighboring countries, especially in areas such as maths andscience.

Many factors have led to the decline in the quality of education. One reason is the lossof school time during the Intifada resulting from frequent school closures, curfews and otherrestrictions. In addition, the learning environments are generally in poor to very poor condition,due to lack of financial resources for maintenance or construction. In the West Bank schoolshave been set up in rented buildings which were not constructed for this purpose. Many schoolsoperate on double or triple shifts. Classes are overcrowded with up to thirty-five students in oneclassroom allowing each student less than 1 m2 instead of the minimum of 1.5 m2 per student.The student/teacher ratio is at about thirty-five students per teacher in the Gaza Strip and attwenty-five in the West Bank.

Public schools are often without any specialised facilities such as science rooms orlaboratories, arts and crafts rooms or libraries and also lack science tools and other teaching

equipment. Teachers have to rely mainly on the chalkboard and rote teaching since there is verylittle teaching equipment which would allow teachers to use more creative methods.

The teaching staff is, for a large part, not sufficiently qualified. More than 65 per centof the teachers have the teacher training diploma provided by the community colleges after acourse of two-year duration and therefore often do not have sufficient knowledge of theirsubjects. There has been no significant in-service teacher training to improve and update theirknowledge of either subject or teaching methods during the past twenty-seven years.

Finally the Palestinians in the past had to use two different curricula developed for othercountries. These curricula were not sensitive to the cultural, social or economic needs of thePalestinian people and they had no influence on them. Furthermore any information which theIsraelis deemed harmful for the Israeli state was barred from the curricula and the textbooks.Thus in some areas like history and chemistry there are serious deficiencies in the subject mattertaught to the students.

5.2. Relevance

There is little correlation between the educational system and human resources neededin the current labour market for the creation of a healthy Palestinian economy in the future.Historically, the education system was academically oriented providing basic literary andnumeracy skills to the majority of the population and a highly regarded higher education for therest. During the past twenty-seven years of occupation, however, the highest demand was forunskilled or semi-skilled labour. Thus today 50 per cent of the labour force has ten or moreyears of education but only 15 per cent hold high or mid-professional jobs. The highestunemployment rates are among university graduates.

In addition the educational system has shifted from a well balanced one to one entirelydominated by literary, social science and humanity studies at secondary as well as tertiary level.This coincides with a rising demand in vocational, technological and scientific knowledge intoday’s modern economies. Even in the West Bank’s and Gaza’s strained economies technicaland technological graduates meet no employment problems. There is thus a need forstrengthening vocational education at the secondary level and in the community colleges,especially in the technological fields. At university level the natural science subjects need to bestrengthened. This means that the insufficient teaching facilities and material for the relevantcourses need to be upgraded and the teaching staff needs to be trained, since at this point thereare significantly fewer qualified teachers in the vocational, technological and scientific fieldsthan in the social science and literary fields. In the long term the “Ministry” needs to makesome policy decisions as to how it can better adjust the education system to the Palestinianhuman resource needs.

5.3. Equity, Access and Internal Efficiency

The type and quality of education provided in the West Bank and Gaza variessignificantly between the two as well as within these two areas. The most obvious reason arethe two different curricula used in the two areas. Secondly the different agencies providingeducation in the occupied territories have different resources available which results in

differences in the quality of education they offer. Especially UNRWA schools are often betterequipped and have more qualified teachers since they have more resources for equipment andcan afford to pay their teachers US$600 instead of US$300 like public schools. Private schoolsvary in the education they offer and so do many public schools, Generally, better education isavailable in urban than in rural areas.

Basic education in Gaza and the West Bank is compulsory for all students. A tuition feeof 60 Shekels for basic education and 80 Shekels for secondary education is levied in publicschools but is generally suspended for those who cannot afford to pay it.Due to the lack of statistical data the extent to which access is a problem is not known. It isestimated that the inscription rate for the basic cycle is 102 per cent and 80 per cent for thesecondary cycle. Indicators on internal efficiency are currently not available. The literacy rateamong school aged children is estimated at approximately 100 per cent. Thus in the first yearsof schooling there appears to be no problem with access. However, female students drop outmore often during the first nine years of schooling than their male companions and are muchless likely to go onto secondary school and university/community college. This is mostly dueto family pressure or economic restraints or - in rural areas - to the absence of secondary orhigher education institutions in the vicinity coupled with the unwillingness of parents to allowtheir daughters to travel to another town on their own and/or with the absence of publictransportation.

Access is limited for those who are disabled or who have learning deficiencies andcompensation education programmes for those who left the formal education system at one pointare extremely limited. This is especially problematic when considering the large number ofstudents who dropped out during the Intifada and would now like to continue their education.

6. Recommendations

In the light of the above mentioned problems facing the education system in the WestBank and Gaza and taking into consideration the priorities set by the “Ministry” of education,the following recommendations

6.1. Donor Co-ordination

can be offered:

6.1.1. The “Ministry” of Education should move away from listing emergencypriorities and instead define its needs through a comprehensiveprogramme approach based on an analyses of data on the education sectorand related areas.

6.1.2. The “Ministry” should further develop its mechanism for mobilizingextended donor support for education. The committee on donor co-ordination should be reinforced with a small secretariat, preferably fromwithin the educational planning directorate.

6.2. Raising the Quality of Education

6.2.1. The “Ministry” should make the development of a Palestinian curriculuma top priority. The Palestinian curriculum should:

be a unifying mechanism for the two regions,

enable Palestinians to be competitive in the regional and globaldevelopment scenarios, which includes a high level of scientificand technological competency,

be driven by quality standards,

be developed through community participation and

6.2.2.

6.2.3.

6.2.4.

6.2.5.

6.2.6.

6.2.7.

6.2.8.

provide relevant education to all Palestinians irrespective ofgender, ethnicity, religion, affiliation, national origin or socio-economic status.

In view of the long time it takes to develop an entire curriculum the“Ministry” should begin with the short term objective of developingsupplementary material on Palestinian culture for each grade level.

In consonance to the development and printing of textbooks other learningmaterials like wallcharts, video- and audiotapes and computer-softwareshould be developed for use in classrooms. Teachers should be given themeans and to produce their own teaching/learning materials and bemotivated to do so.

Library, science and sport materials and equipment should be madeavailable on a modest basis but to all schools with first priority to thosewhich are poorest and most in need but which also demonstratewillingness to mobilize local resources to the degree they can afford.

District level school supervisors should provide leadership to schools onhow to use these materials and on the introduction of modem, dynamicteaching methods.

Teacher-training needs to emphasis both training in teaching methods andimprovement of knowledge of subject matter. The “Ministry” shoulddevelop its capacity to set training standards and to provide overallleadership to both in-service and pre-service training.

Teacher-training programmestraining needs assessments.

Teacher training programmes

should be based on soundly executed

should be carried out by those existinginstitutions (universities and community colleges) which prove theirability to meet the standards set by the “Ministry”

6.2.9. Teachers should be encouraged to pay their long-term training costs andupon completion of training be given incentives for promotion and careergrowth.

6.2.10. School building standards need to be developed and a complete census ofbuildings, sites and furniture should be conducted. A systematicprogramme to repair existing schools up to an acceptable and dignifiedstandard and to build new classrooms or whole schools should be drawnup. This work should be an integral component of an eventual schoolmapping activity.

6.2.11. The first priority for new construction should be to relieve overcrowding,to eliminate triple shifts, to add space for libraries, science facilities andphysical education and to replace the most inadequate or dangerous rentedfacilities.

6.2.12. The “Ministry” needs to develop its capacity to mobilize the privatesector to execute school construction programmes according to thestandards set by the “Ministry”.

6.3. Equity and Access to Education

6.3.1. Research needs to be undertaken on the number of school aged childrenand youth who have not achieved an adequate level of schooling and ontheir specific deficiencies.

6.3.2. Non-formal education programmes for youth need to be started on anexperimental basis with NGOs.

6.3.3. Formal supplementary education programmes for children who are inschool but also need to receive classes to compensate for lost learningtime need to be envisaged by the “Ministry”.

6.4. Relevance

6.4.1. The Curriculum Development Project should address itself to thePalestinian culture on the one hand and future economic and socialdevelopments of the region on the other.

6.4.2. A specific policy for secondary level vocational education based on ananalysis of student demand, job availability, economic prospects, costsand public interest needs to be developed.

6.4.3. Innovation in cost effective technical/vocational education such as linkswith the industry need to be tried out on a pilot basis.

6.5. Educational Administration

6.5.1. The “Ministry” top officials should study a variety of approaches takenby countries for the organisation of educational administration.

6.5.2. A number of formal studies on policy issues should be conducted.

6.5.3. Once tentative concepts for long-term educational development of theWest Bank and Gaza Strip are developed, these should be presented to thepublic to mobilize their support and ideas.

6.5.4.

6.5.5.

6.5.6.

6.5.7.

6.5.8.

6.5.9.

6.5.10.

6.5.11.

The structure of the “Ministry” should respond to the vision for long-termdevelopment. A process of evaluation of the “Ministry”'s functions andstructure should be undertaken. This evaluation should be based on anaction plan drawn up to put the new vision into place.

In conceiving the structure, emphasis should be given to articulated rolesfor school level and central level administration. The central level shoulddeal with policy formulation. Support to the every day running of schoolsshould be decentralized to district level. This articulation should be basedon visits to a number of schools and discussion of their needs and theirviews of what administrative action they can best manage on their own.

The functions of the various directorates in the central “Ministry” needto be analysed and debated in order to eliminate ambiguities and overlaps.

Working relationships with other “Ministries” as well as with UNRWAand the private sector need to be developed.

A planning unit is urgently needed. Among its responsibilities this unitshould be undertake policy studies - directly or by contract - and givedirect advice to the “Minister” and the Council of General Education. Itshould develop a standardized budgeting process so as to forecastfinancial needs from both internal revenue and external sources.

A sound educational management information system (EMIS) needs to beput into place.

Once the school census is done and the EMIS working, a secondfeasibility study on school mapping should be undertaken.

A training programme in educational planning and management should beundertaken in order to develop the administrative capacity of the“Ministry” at central, district and school level.

7. Project Proposals for Areas of International Assistance

In order to tackle the challenging task of developing the Palestinian education system inaccordance with the social, cultural and economic needs of the people, the “Ministry” ofEducation is in need of external financial assistance and technical expertise. The internationaldonor community has shown great solidarity with the Palestinian people. The Palestinian“Ministry” of Education has created a co-ordination committee for the monitoring and co-ordination of donor assistance in order to ensure the optimal use of the assistance provided aswell as maximum transparency for the donor community.

The projects listed below have been developed according to the needs of the Palestinianeducation system and the priorities given by the “Ministry” and have been discussed among the“Ministry” and concurrent missions of UNESCO, UNICEF and the World Bank. Some of theprojects are already being implemented, negotiations about others are in process and for theremaining projects no concrete donor proposals have yet been articulated.

7.1. Projects Already Underway

The following projects are already being implemented:

Support to Curriculum Development in the West Bank and Gaza Strip - PreparatoryPhase (534/RAB/10)

Saudi Arabia

The funds for this project, which amount to US$300,000, are beingprovided by the Italian government

Funded Project for School Repairs in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank(505/RAB/10)

Saudi Arabia has provided US$2.5 million for this project.

7.2. New Projects

The followingpledged for some and

new projects are identified in this report. Funding has already beennegotiations are underway for others:

Support to Curriculum Development and In-Service Teacher Education

US$5,800,000

Educational Equipment and Materials

The Italian government has expressed interest to fund this project withUS$2 million.

Teacher Education

US$1,140,000

Learning Environments: Construction and Comprehensive Maintenance of EducationalBuildings in the West Bank and Gaza Strip

US$20,082,000

Compensation Education

US$273,000

Determining a Policy for Secondary Level Vocational Education

US$220,00

Policies and Structure of the “Ministry” of Education

US$441,000

Capacity Building

At the time of the mission the Italian government was negotiating fundingfor this project which would be implemented through IIEP. The projectcosts are approximately US$700,000.

Planning and EMIS

Direct negotiations for funding this project are underway between the PAthe Italian government and the European Union.

KEY SOCIO-ECONOMIC INDICATORS

In view of the difficulties in data acquisition the limitations of the following data haveto be emphasized. Data are often based on sample surveys and extrapolation. Results ofdifferent sources can vary extremely and are highly disputed. Most data on the OccupiedTerritories are directly or indirectly taken from or based on official lsraeli sources. Data fromPalestinian or other sources are scarce and selective. In some cases, where data are especiallydisputed or where differences are particularly apparent figures from different sources arepresented.

Total Population in theWest Bank and Gaza Strip¹in 1992

Expatriated Population

Population Distribution4

According to Israeli sources2: 1,769,000—

According to Palestinian sources3: 2,238,987—

3 million (estimated)

46 per cent of the population is aged 15 years oryounger

18 per cent of the population is aged 4 years oryounger

1 No Population survey has been carried out in the Occupied Territories since 1967. The data istherefore purely based on extrapolation and sample surveys. Data is usually based on the survey conductedin 1967 and updated

2 Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) in: World Bank. Developing the Occupied Territories, Vol.6, p. 3

3 Planning and Research Centre, The National Health Plan for the Palestinian People. Objectives andStrategies, April 1994

4 F A F O p . 4 5

Life Expectancy5 male

1985199019952000

63.064.266.068.0

female

66.067.869.071.0

TABLE AINDICATORS FOR BOTH THE WEST BANK

AND GAZA STRIP

1970 1980 1987 1991

GNP per capita 780 1,700 1,880 1,717(1991 US$)

GDP per capita 670 1,310 1,280 1,275(1991 US$)

Wage income from Israel (% of GNP) 12 24 28 24

Share of Industry 5 7 9 8(% of GDP)

Exports (% of GDP) 22 23 15 9

Imports (% of GDP) 47 46 43 40

Working age population (000s) 519.7 643.7 738.3 833.9

Labour force (000s) 180.8 218.5 284.0 312.1Employed persons (000s) 173.3 215.7 277.8 287.4

IIUnemployed (000s) 7.2 9.1 6.2 24.7Participation rate (%) 34.8 34.8 38.5 37.4

Unemployment rate (%) 4.1 3.6 2.2 7.9Employment rate (%) 33.3 33.5 37.6 34.5Employment in OT 160 141 169 190(000s)

Employment in Israel (000s) 21 75 109 97

Source: Statistical Abstracts of Israel. World Bank Mission Estimates6

* Working age population is 15 years and up

5 UNCTAD , P . 9

6 World Bank, D e v e l o p i n g t h e O c c u p i e d T e r r i t o r i e s , V o l . 1 . , p . 5 , a n dvol. . 2, P . 165

TABLE BSEPARATE INDICATORS FOR THE WEST BANK AND GAZA

Surface (km2)

Population

- According to CBS7

- According toPalestinianSources8

Natural Population Increase9

Population Density10

(inhabitant /kmz)

Infant Mortality11

(per 1,000 live births)

Fertility Rate12

(average level)

1985-1990

West Bank

1,052,000

1,450,084

Gaza Strip

717,000

788,903

7 I s r a e l i C e n t r a l B u r e a u o f S t a t i s t i c s ( C B S ) i n : W o r l d B a n k . D e v e l o p i n gt h e O c c u p i e d T e r r i t o r i e s , V o l . 6 , p . 3

8 Planning and Research Centre, T h e N a t i o n a l H e a l t h P l a n f o r t h eP a l e s t i n i a n P e o p l e . O b j e c t i v e s a n d S t r a t e g i e s , A p r i l 1 9 9 4

9 W o r l d B a n k , D e v e l o p i n g t h e O c c u p i e d T e r r i t o r i e s , V o l . 6 , p . 8

10 FAFO p. 40

11 UNCTAD p. 11

12 UNCTAD p. 12

LIST OF ACRONYMS

PECDAR

Israeli Civil Administration

Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics

Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-GovernmentArrangements, signed by the PLO and Israel on 13September 1993 in Washington D.C.

Emergency Assistance Programme

Emergency Rehabilitation Programme

Educational Management Information System

Emergency Rehabilitation Programme

Gross Domestic Product

Gross National Product

International Institute of Educational Planning

Large Scale Projects

Palestinian Authority “Ministry” of Education and HigherEducation

Non Governmental Organization

New Israeli Shekel

Palestinian Authority

Palestinian Economic Council for Reconstruction andDevelopment

Palestinian Liberation Organization

Palestinian National Council

Palestinian Public Investment Programme

Technical Assistance Programme

UNICEF

UNESCO

United Nations

United Nations International Children’s Fund

United Nations Educational Science and CulturalOrganization

United Nation Peace Implementation Programme

United Nations Relief and Works Agency for PalestinianRefugees

Value Added Tax

CONTENT

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . I

KEY SOCIO-ECONOMIC INDICATORS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . XII

GLOSSARY OF ACRONYMS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . XV

PART I: BASELINE REPORT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1. THE POLITICAL CONTEXT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1.1. PEACE ACCORDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1.2. THE CREATION OF THE PA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1.3. THE CREATION OF A “MINISTRY” OF EDUCATION

AND HIGHER EDUCATION. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

2. THE ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL CONTEXT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

2.1. HUMAN RESOURCES/LABOUR MARKET . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2.2. SHORT-TERM ECONOMIC OUTLOOK . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2.3. LONG-TERM ECONOMIC OUTLOOK . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . .

3. INTERNATIONAL AND LOCAL INITIATIVES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

4. EDUCATIONAL STOCKTAKING . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

4.1.4.2.4.3.

4.3.1.4.3.2.4.3.3.4.3.4.4.4.

THE VALUE OF EDUCATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .HIGHER EDUCATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .THE STRUCTURE OF PRIMARY ANDSECONDARY EDUCATION IN THEGAZA STRIP AND THE WEST BANK . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .THE BASIC CYCLE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .THE SECONDARY CYCLE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .UNRWA SCHOOLS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .THE PRIVATE SECTOR . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .EDUCATIONAL INDICATORS FOR BOTHWEST BANK AND THE GAZA STRIP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .THE GAZA SCHOOL POPULATION IN THE1994/1995 SCHOOL YEAR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1111121313

4.6. SCHOOLS AND SCHOOL PREMISES INTHE GAZA STRIP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

4.7. NEEDS OF NEW SCHOOLS IN THEGAZA

STRIP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184.8. THE SCHOOL POPULATION IN THE WEST

BANK IN THE 1994/1995 SCHOOL YEAR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184.9. SCHOOLS AND SCHOOL PREMISES IN THE

WESTBANK.......... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

5. ACCESS: THE RIGHT TO EDUCATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

6. QUALITY OF EDUCATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

6.1. SCHOOL TIME LOST DURING THE INTIFADA. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236.2. SPECIALIZED FACILITIES AND

SCHOOL UTILITIES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236.3. TEACHING STAFF . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246.4. I N T E R N A LEFFICIENCY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

7. RELEVANCE OF EDUCATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

PART II: STRATEGIES FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OFPALESTINIAN EDUCATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

1. INITIATIVES FOR EDUCATIONAL DEVELOPMENT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

1.1. REQUESTS FOR EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 291.2. RESPONSES BY UNESCO, UNRWA,

THE WORLD BANK AND UNICEF . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 301.2.1. UNESCO . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 301.2.2. UNRWA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 321.2.3. THE WORLD BANK . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 321.2.4. UNICEF . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

2. DEFINING PRIORITIES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

3. ISSUES AND RECOMMENDATIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

3.2.3.2.1.3.2.2.3.2.3.3.2.4.3.2.5.3.3.3.3.1.3.3.2.

3.4.3.5.

3.5.1.

3.5.2.

3.5.3.

3.5.4.

3.6.3.6.1.3.6.2.3.6.3.

FROM EMERGENCY TOWARDS LONG-TERMISSUES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .QUALITY OF EDUCATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .REGIONAL/GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .LEARNING MATERIALS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .TEACHERS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .PHYSICAL LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .EQUITY AND ACCESS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . .EDUCATIONALLY DISADVANTAGED YOUTH . . . . . . . . . . . . . .EDUCATIONALLY DISADVANTAGED STILLIN SCHOOL . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .RELEVANCE . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .MANAGEMENT AND STRUCTURE OF THEEDUCATIONAL SYSTEM. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .THE ROLE OF EDUCATIONALADMINISTRATION . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .THE STRUCTURE OF THE CENTRALEDUCATIONAL ADMINISTRATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .THE STRUCTURE OF THE REGIONALEDUCATIONAL ADMINISTRATION: GAZA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .THE STRUCTURE OF THE DISTRICTEDUCATIONAL ADMINISTRATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .EDUCATIONAL FINANCE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .COSTS AND REVENUE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .NORMAL RECURRENT COSTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .EMERGENCY FUNDING REQUIREMENTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

4. TOWARDS ALONG-TERM VISION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

PART III: AREAS FOR INTERNATIONAL ASSISTANCE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

A. PROJECTS ALREADY UNDER WAY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1. SUPPORT TO CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENTIN PALESTINE: PREPARATORY PHASE (534/RAB/10) . . .. . . .

2. SAUDI ARABIA FUNDED PROJECT FOR SCHOOLREPAIRS IN THE GAZA STRIP AND THE WEST BANK(505/RAB/10) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

353535363738394041

4546464849

B. NEW PROPOSALS . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

SUPPORT TO CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT ANDIN-SERVICE TEACHER EDUCATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

TEACHER EDUCATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

EDUCATIONAL EQUIPMENT AND MATERIALS . . . . . . . . . . .

LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS: CONSTRUCTIONAND COMPREHENSIVE MAINTENANCE OFEDUCATIONAL BUILDINGS IN THE GAZASTRIP AND IN THE WEST BANK . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

COMPENSATION EDUCATION . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

DETERMINING A POLICY FOR SECONDARYLEVEL VOCATIONAL EDUCATION . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

DEVELOPMENT OF THE “MINISTRY”OF EDUCATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

POLICIES AND STRUCTURE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

CAPACITY BUILDING . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

PLANNING AND EMIS . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

ANNEXES

CHARTS

TABLES ON SCHOOLS AND ENROLMENT INTHE WEST BANK, GAZA AND EAST JERUSALEM

CURRENT CURRICULA IN THE WEST BANKAND GAZA

MAP OF THE WEST BANK AND GAZAEDUCATIONAL DISTRICTS

LIST OF MEMBERS OF THE PALESTINIANAUTHORITY

LIST OF PEOPLE IN THE “MINISTRY” OFE D U C A T I O N

PALESTINIAN POLICY PAPER

LIST OF PROPOSED SUBJECTS FOR POLICYSTUDIES

PROPOSAL OF THE INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTEFOR EDUCATIONAL PLANNING

PROPOSAL OF DR. VICTOR BILLEH

BIBLIOGRAPHY

PRIMARY AND SECONDARYEDUCATION

IN THE WEST BANK AND GAZA STRIP

PART I:BASELINE REPORT

1. The Political Context

1. In 1948 when the United Kingdom declared the end of its mandate in Palestine,hostilities broke out between the Arabs and Jews. Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians fledtheir homeland, taking refuge in those parts of Palestine that remained under Arab controlor in Jordan, Syria and Lebanon. The areas that remained outside of Israel were the WestBank and the Gaza Strip. The West Bank was unified with the East Bank of Jordan in 1950.The Gaza Strip came under Egyptian administration, but was never formally annexed by theEgyptian government.

2. This situation continued until June 1967 when war again broke out between Israeland the Arab countries. This war ended with the Israeli occupation of the West Bank andGaza, Syria’s Golan Heights and Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula.

3. On 15 November 1988, the Palestinian National Council (PNC) announced theDeclaration of Palestinian Independence which proclaimed the establishment of thePalestinian state. The Palestinian state has been recognized by over 100 members of theUnited Nations and granted varying levels of status and representation in variousinternational organizations and agencies. Within this political context, the PalestineLiberation Organization (PLO) agreed to participate in the Madrid Peace Conference inOctober/November 1991.

1.1. Peace Accords

4. At the Madrid Conference it was agreed that the peace process would proceed alongtwo main tracks:

Bilateral: Jordanian/Palestinian/Israeli, Syrian/Israeli, andLebanese/Israeli negotiating teams were set up.

Multi-lateral: Negotiating committees were set up by subject area(refugees, water, economic development, arms control, andenvironment).

5. While the bilateral negotiations on the Palestinian/Israeli track were going on inWashington, the Palestinians and the Israelis were holding secret talks in Oslo under the

auspices of the Norwegian government. These secret talks led to the agreement on theDeclaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements. The Israeli-PalestinianDeclaration of Principles (DOP) was signed in Washington D.C. at the White House on 13September 1993 in the presence of the President of the United States, the Foreign Ministerof the Federation of Russia, the Chairman of the PLO and the Prime Minister of Israel.

6. Under the DOP, the Israeli government and the PLO agreed to put an end to decadesof confrontation and conflict, recognize their mutual legitimate and political rights, strive tolive in peaceful co-existence, mutual dignity and security and to achieve a just, lasting, andcomprehensive peace settlement. They agreed, also, to establish a Palestinian Interim Self-Government Authority and to elect a council for the Palestinian people in the West Bank andGaza Strip for a transitional period not exceeding five years and leading to a permanentsettlement based on UN Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338. They agreed thatimmediately upon the withdrawal of the Israelis from Gaza and Jericho, authority will betransferred to the Palestinians in the following areas: education, culture, health, socialwelfare, direct taxation and tourism.

7. Negotiations continued between the PLO and Israel to put into force the DOP.Extensive and exhaustive talks were carried out in different places (Cairo, Taba, Paris, Oslo,etc.) which, at the end, culminated with the Agreement on the Gaza Strip and the JerichoArea (Gaza - Jericho Agreement) which was signed in Cairo on 4 May 1994. The agreementwas witnessed by the United States, the Russian Federation and the Arab Republic of Egypt.This agreement covers such issues as the scheduled withdrawal of Israeli military forcesfrom the Gaza Strip and Jericho area, the Palestinian police force and safe passages. It alsocovers the establishment of the Palestinian Authority (PA), its structure, composition and thescope of its powers, rights and jurisdiction as well as the transfer of authority from theIsraelis to this newly established PA in the civil sector for the Gaza Strip and the Jerichoarea.

8. On 28 August 1994 Israel and the PLO signed another agreement, the Agreement onPreparatory Transfer of Powers and Responsibilities (Transfer Agreement). This agreementcovers the transfer of authority from the Israelis to the PA in the fields of education, culture,health, social welfare, tourism, direct taxation and Value Added Tax (VAT) on localproducts in the West Bank and circumscribed the scope of the powers of the PA for the WestBank.

1.2. The Creation of the PA

9. The PA was immediately established upon the completion of the Israeli withdrawalfrom the Gaza and Jericho area by the end of May 1994. The powers and responsibilities ofthe Civil Administration in these two areas were transferred to the PA before the end of May1994. The transfer of powers for the West Bank followed with the signing of the TransferAgreement on 28 August 1994. Subsequently, the Israeli Civil Administration was dissolvedand the Israeli military government was withdrawn.

10. In accordance with the Gaza -Jericho Agreement, the PA will consist of one body oftwenty-four members. (A list of Members of the PA is attached in Annex V.) The PA has

legislative, executive and judiciary powers as specified in the Gaza-Jericho Agreement andthe Transfer Agreement. It can thus pass such legislative acts as laws and basic laws,promulgate secondary legislation and make amendments to certain existing laws inconsistency with the agreements. It can exact justice through an independent judiciary body.The PA has the power to administer the departments transferred to it and may establish,within its jurisdiction, other departments and administrative units necessary to fulfill itsresponsibilities. It can formulate policies and supervise their implementation and enter intodiscussion with representatives from other states and international organizations as specifiedin the agreements.

1.3. The Creation of a “Ministry” of Education and Higher Education

11. A “Ministry” of Education and Higher Education was created in August 1994 witha relatively small staff in accordance with the Gaza-Jericho agreement with the PA-memberYasser Amro as “Minister” of Education. On 28 August 1994, with the signing of theTransfer Agreement, responsibility for the education system in the West Bank wastransferred to the PA. The “Ministry” of Education consequently has responsibility for theentire education sector, including government private and UNRWA schools. It is responsiblefor all levels of education from kindergarten to higher education and all streams - general,vocational and technical. To adequately fulfill its obligations the “Ministry” of Educationwas significantly expanded and began operations from an office in Ramallah.

12. As an administrative unit created by the PA, the “Ministry” of Education hasexecutive and legislative powers in all matters regarding education. It thus has the authorityto formulate policies, to pass legislation and to carry out all administrative work in the sectorof education. It also has the power to establish and maintain registers and statistics on thepopulation and to issue certificates, licenses and documents, which is especially importantfor the sector of education. The “Ministry” can enter into discussion with other states andinternational organizations so that economic or other agreements destined to provideassistance to the Palestinian people in their development can be concluded.

13. The organizational setup of the “Ministry” consists of:

the “Minister” of Education assisted by the Deputy “Minister”;

two Assistants to the Deputy “Minister” (one for the West Bank and one forGaza affairs);

ten Director Generals (General and Vocational Education; TechnicalEducation and Community Colleges; Planning; Curriculum and EducationalTechnology; Training, Supervision, and Qualification; Examinations; StudentAffairs; Financial and Administration; School Buildings and Projects; and,Public and Cultural Relations);

a Council for Higher Education. This council assists the “Minister” ofEducation and is chaired by him; another council, the Council for GeneralEducation is in a planning stage.

14. The public educational system is organized at four hierarchical levels:

central;regional (Gaza and the West Bank);district (ten educational districts);local (municipalities, villages, schools).

15. The “Ministry” is assisted by the Council of Higher Education which is an executiveagency in charge of higher education in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Its members areappointed by the President of the PA upon recommendation from the “Minister” ofEducation. The Council of General Education, which is in a planning stage, will have anadvisory function once it has been established.

16. In most municipalities there is an education committee advising and assisting boththe local authorities and schools as well as the Education Director of the district. In villagesthe village council has the same assisting role. In some communities these committees arevery active, while in others their level of involvement is only marginal.

2. The Economic and Social Context

17. The West Bank and Gaza had not seen much industrial development in the periodfrom 1948 to 1967 and agriculture remained the most important source of economic output.Large numbers of Palestinians migrated eastward during this period, beginning the processof providing highly skilled labour to the Gulf countries. Social services were few andilliteracy rates were high: 27.4 per cent in 1961, 4.9 per cent in 1987 (UNCTAD, 1991).

18. Between 1968 and 1980 the economies of the Occupied Territories grew rapidly withan average annual increases of 7 per cent and 9 per cent in real terms per capita GDP andGNP respectively. These increases were triggered by a number of factors: rapid integrationwith Israel and the regional economic boom (World Bank, 1993a, Vol. 1). At the same timeliving conditions improved substantially as numbers of households obtained access tomunicipal water and electricity and general household wealth increased. Infant mortalitydecreased, literacy rates increased and health care as well as other social services wereimproved. Growth slowed down in the early 1980s as in many parts of the world and theeconomy declined after 1987 with the onset of the Intifada, which caused severe disturbancesin economic relations with Israel.

19. Today an estimated 2 million Palestinians live in the West Bank and Gaza. Of these,approximately 1.3 million live in the West Bank which extends over 6,257 km2 andapproximately 750,000 Palestinians live in the Gaza Strip (378 km2). Population density isthus significantly higher in the Gaza Strip than in the West Bank. Currently the demographicsituation is characterized by a high population growth (The fertility rate for 1985-1990 was7.1 children per woman.) and a very young age structure with 46 per cent of the populationyounger than 15 years. 60 per cent of the Palestinians live in rural areas. This suggestsunusually high urbanization among Palestinians by third world standards. In 1991 theunemployment rate was running at approximately 7.9 per cent; however, it has to be notedthat many people are in reality underemployed. The health care provided in the West Bank

and Gaza (by public, UNRWA and private institutions) is satisfactory, especially whencompared with other developing countries. However, access is not equally provided in ruraland urban areas, with urban areas offering a higher density of health care services.Surprisingly only 30 percent of the population is covered by health insurance. Yet this doesnot seem to prevent people from seeking medical assistance. In general terms the socialindicators are rather encouraging, especially when compared with other developingcountries. Still, there remains an enormous need for improvement.

20. The economy of the West Bank and Gaza is dominated by the service sector.Industrial production - at less than 8 per cent of the GDP - plays a much smaller economicrole in the West Bank and Gaza than it does in the rest of the Arab region or in othereconomies with similar income levels (World Bank, 1993a, Vol. 2). Small , underdevelopedenterprises often employing fewer than four staff members dominate the production andservice sector. Tourism has stagnated mostly due to the lack of relevant infrastructure. Evenagriculture, before 1967 the backbone of the economies of the West Bank and Gaza,experienced no notable growth mostly due to limited water resources, shrinking land and therestriction of trade with agricultural products (World Bank, 1993a, Vol.2, pp. 6, 7). Todayagriculture accounts for only 30 per cent of the GDP in both the West Bank and Gaza.

21. In the West Bank the fastest growing sectors over the past ten years have been theconstruction sector in terms of employment and the industrial sector in terms of output. Inthe Gaza Strip the construction sector has also witnessed the highest employment growthrate. The greatest increase in output comes from the public sector closely followed byagriculture.

22. One of the main imbalances in the Palestinian economy is the unusually heavydependence on Israel. In 199139 per cent of the Gaza labour force and 31 per cent of theWest Bank labour force were employed in Israel (World Bank, 1993a, Vol. 1, p. 7). Duringthe past twenty-five years there was a major redirection of trade towards Israel. Israel hasbecome practically the sole trading partner of the Occupied Territories while trade relationswith other countries in the region have declined almost completely due to restraints such asregulatory and security restrictions, seasonal quotas, requirements regarding proof of origin,

23. Two other problems facing the Palestinian economy are the unusually low degree ofindustrialization and the poor state of public infrastructure and services. The average urbanwater supply is only sixty liters a day while current electricity consumption lies atapproximately 690 kwh per capita annually, Largely due to deficiencies in the distributionsystems between 40-60 per cent of the water and approximately 20 per cent of the electricityis wasted before reaching the consumer. The roads are in very poor condition and there isan important lack of telecommunications capabilities. In Gaza and the West Bank the ratioof telephone subscribers to the total population is 1:46.

2.1. Human Resources/Labour Market

24. Participation in the labour force is relatively low due to the large percentage ofpopulation under 15 years, the low rate of participation by women - only 48 per cent

according to FAFO (p. 387) - and the large number of individuals who have dropped out ofthe labour force. The total active labour force was approximately 333,300 in 1992 out of aworking age population of around 851,800. (World Bank, 1993a, Vol. 2, p. 165) (The datawas derived from the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics.) Thus approximately 39 per centof the working age population are members of the labour force. It has to be noted, however,that labour force participation is especially low among women: In 1992 the participation rateof women in the labour force was 6.9 as opposed to 72.2 among men.

25. The World Bank estimates that due to the current low participant rates and theyouthfulness of the population, the size of the labour force could reach 469,900 in the year2000, which would represent an average annual growth of 4.1 per cent in the West Bank and4.7 per cent in Gaza over the period of 1990-2000 (World Bank, 1993a, Vol. 6, p. 15).

2.2. Short-Term Economic Outlook

26. In the short-term the economy of the West Bank and Gaza will continue to be heavilydependent upon Israel both for employment and as a trading partner. The agricultural sectorwill probably increase in importance as trade restrictions decrease. However, this dependenceupon Israel and fickle agricultural production will continue to create a deep vulnerability forthe Palestinian economy and standards of living. Until the Palestinians can successfullydevelop other areas of the economy such as industry, commerce and tourism they will beheavily reliant on international aid and remittances from abroad to maintain their standardof living.

2.3. Long-Term Economic Outlook

27. There is hope that markets for Palestinian products will develop in the Arab worldand in Europe as trade barriers caused by regulatory and security restrictions and the Arabboycott of Israel disappear. The Casablanca Conference held in the fall of 1994 is clearevidence of existing possibilities in the rest of the Arab world. However, it will take sometime to develop the infrastructure required for flourishing production and trade: The waterand electricity supply is much lower than in the neighboring countries, solid wastecollection and disposal is grossly inadequate, the roads are in bad physical condition andtelecommunication networks are inadequate. Most importantly the confidence of theinternational private sector has to be gained after decades of conflict in the region.

28. The future clearly lies in the service sector, considering the limited natural resourceson the one hand and the potential of Palestinian human resources on the other. As the PAdevelops, there will be a significant increase in employment in the public sector. In additionthe construction of an adequate public infrastructure demands qualified services. It is alsoexpected that the tourism sector will be boosted once confidence in the peace process andthe security in the region is gained. All these sectors could generate employmentpossibilities. Given the large unemployment rate of the population in the West Bank andGaza Strip and the youthfulness of the population, the demands of a growing labour marketcould be met. Thus, all depends on providing a high quality education which is relevant tothe current job market and allows adjustments to future job markets.

3. International and Local Initiatives

29. The World Bank has spearheaded the effort to organize donors following the signingof the DOP. Nearly US$2.3 billion in additional assistance (above the regular level of aboutUS$200 million annually in recent years) were pledged by various bilateral and multilateralgroups for the purpose of emergency relief and economic development in the West Bank andGaza. To date over US$770 million in additional donations have been pledged by donors for1994. The framework for utilizing these resources is the Emergency Assistance Programme(EAP). The EAP consists of four components:

a) Support for start-up expenditures of the new Palestinian administration andsome additional expenditure by some non-governmental organizations(NGOs).

b) Support for public sector investment.

c) Support for private sector development.

d) Technical assistance activities.

30. The Palestinian Economic Council for Reconstruction and Development (PECDAR)was created by the PA in October 1993 for the purpose of managing and overseeing thereconstruction and development process. It is responsible for overall programmeformulation, implementation, monitoring and the reporting of the Palestinian PublicInvestment Programme (PPIP). PPIP is divided into four components: The EmergencyRehabilitation Programme (ERP), the Emergency Investment Project (EIP), the TechnicalAssistance Programme (TA) and Large Scale Projects (LSPS). The ERP is to be funded fromthe World Bank and other co-financiers. The other three components are to be financed bya variety of donors. Education sector projects mainly fall into two of these areas, the ERPand technical assistance. The United Nations is operating a complementary programme toPPIP, the United Nations Peace Implementation Programme (UNPIP).

31. PECDAR has identified US$19 million worth of projects in the education sector tobe funded by stage one of ERP, and US$25.54 million worth of projects in EIP. Theobjectives in the education sector, as identified by PECDAR, are to:

sustain the current system until fundamental institutional and operational changescould be made:

strengthen vocational training;

improve links between schools and communities.

32. PPIP sectorial priorities, which are more immediate in nature include:

reducing overcrowding in existing schools through construction of additionalclassrooms;

improving the teaching and learning environment in schools and vocational trainingcentres by adding libraries, improving laboratory facilities and constructing studyareas, teachers’ rooms and sports fields; and

implementing changes in the organizational structure of the education system.

33. The West Bank and Gaza have been recipients of a large amount of foreign assistancein the form of bilateral aid, personal aid and international assistance. As noted above, theassistance from NGOs is expected to continue with approximately US$200 million a year.While many governments are redirecting their aid away from NGOs directly towards thepublic sector, there is still a very important role for local and international NGOs to play. Forexample, in the education sector NGOs play a leading role in providing non-formaleducation. They will continue to be active in pre-school and tertiary education although theircontinued role in the latter will be dependent upon whether or not the institutions of highereducation remain in the private sector.

4. Educational Stocktaking

4.1. The Value of Education

34. One of the main features of the Palestinian education system is the fact that privatePalestinian efforts and initiatives (such as individuals, associations, societies, foundationsand religious bodies, both Moslem and Christian) have played a major and vital role in theprovision of educational opportunities at all levels. The Palestinians value the pursuit ofeducation and have one of the highest enrolment rates in higher education in the Arab worldwith 18 college graduates per 1000 people (World Bank, 1993a, Vol. 1, p. 12). Whetherliving in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip or in other countries, Palestinians regardinvesting in higher education as a major family and national responsibility. They see thedevelopment of human resources as their major source of income.

35. There are many factors to explain the high value Palestinians attribute to education.Here are some of these factors:

The Palestinians lost most of their country in 1948 and became dispersed in most ofthe regions of the world. Consequently, those who were educated had no difficultiesearning their living while those with no education depended on external assistance.

More than 3 million Palestinians have been living as refugees for over forty-sixyears, many of them in camps which do not offer acceptable standards for a decentlife. While those who were educated managed to find jobs and leave the camp to livein a better environment, the ones lacking an educational background could not.

36. Consequently, education was often the only means for Palestinians to improve theirliving standards and preserve their cultural heritage.

37. During the more than twenty-seven years of occupation of the West Bank and Gaza,development of the infra-structure (including the educational institutions such as schoolpremises, equipment, furniture) was not given priority. The Israeli Civil Administrationfocused on providing the minimum funding to run the existing institutions. Construction ofschool premises or additional classrooms was mainly left to the municipal councils, villagecouncils or local and international NGOs. Consequently, the existing educational institutionsdeteriorated and became insufficient to accommodate the increase in school population andto meet the Palestinian human resource demands.

38. Following the Arab-Israeli hostilities in 1948 the Gaza Strip came under Egyptianadministration while the West Bank was united with the East Bank as the HashemiteKingdom of Jordan. In 1967 the West Bank and the Gaza Strip were occupied by Israel. TheGaza Strip continued under occupation until May 1994 when the Israeli forces withdrew andthe Civil Administration handed over the authority to the new PA established immediatelyafter the signing of the Gaza-Jericho Agreement on 4 May 1994. The West Bank is stillunder Israeli occupation although the education services were handed over to the PA at theend of August 1994 as a first step for early empowerment.

39. The Egyptian government implemented its education system in Gaza and theJordanian government implemented its system in the West Bank to facilitate the movementof Palestinian students from one school to another and to enable them to continue theireducation at higher levels in publical institutions of the respective countries withoutdifficulty. Thus, that all rules and regulations concerning content and structure of educationas well as textbooks, school examinations, general examinations, promotions of pupils tohigher classes, teachers’ qualifications, holidays, length of school year, study plans, etc. inGaza and the West Bank correspond to those of educational institutions in Egypt and the EastBank of Jordan respectively.

40. The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA)was created in 1950 to provide basic services of health, education and social services toPalestinian refugees throughout the region. It offers basic education programmes in Jordan,Lebanon, Syria, the West Bank and Gaza. The policy is to use the same curriculum as thatof the country which is hosting the refugees.

41. When Gaza and the West Bank fell under Israeli occupation in 1967 the Egyptian andthe Jordanian education systems continued to be adopted by all educational institutions aswas the case prior to 1967. Some modifications were introduced by the Israelis on prescribedEgyptian or Jordanian textbooks to suppress any information which they considered as beingdirected against Israel or the occupation, or which could promote or develop the Palestinianidentity, such as some information concerning the history and geography of the region.

42. Education programmes in both the Gaza Strip and the West Bank were provided bythree agencies until 1967. These were UNRWA and the private sector for both areas, whilepublic schools were administered by the Jordanian government in the West Bank and theEgyptian government in Gaza. Since 1967 public schools have been administered by the

Israeli Civil Administration and headed by an Israeli Education Officer. This lasted untilMay 1994 in Gaza and Jericho and until the end of August 1994 in the West Bank, when allpublic educational institutions were handed over to the PA.

4.2. Higher Education

43. The Palestinian higher education institutions consist of community colleges anduniversities. The community colleges (or junior colleges) aim at meeting the middle level,semi-professional human resource requirements and are of two-year duration. Universitiesaim at providing high-level professional human resources and are of at least four-yearduration.

44. Students are admitted to the community colleges and universities upon successfullycompleting the secondary school and passing the general secondary school examination(Tawjihi).

45. In the past twenty-seven years higher education institutions in the West Bank andGaza expanded tremendously. All universities and most of the community colleges wereestablished after 1967 on the initiative of the private sector. Currently, there are 8universities -6 in the West Bank and 2 in Gaza - and 21 community colleges -16 in the WestBank and 5 in Gaza. All universities are private. Of the community colleges there are 5public, 12 private and 4 UNRWA colleges.

46. In 1994/1995, more than 6,000 students pursuing different fields of study such aspara-medical studies, commercial/business administration, technical studies and teachertraining were enrolled in community colleges. Recently the teacher training programmes atthe UNRWA community colleges and public community colleges in Gaza have beenupgraded to four-year programmes. It is envisaged that all community colleges which havetwo-year teacher training programmes or academic programmes discontinue them and limittheir programmes to semi-professional/technical courses.

47. In the 1993/94 academic year 22,725 students were enrolled at the 8 universities, ofwhom about 40 per cent are women. 6,642 students are enrolled at community colleges(UNESCO, 1994, Vol. 1, pp. 9, 34). This imbalance should be rectified. The students at theuniversities follow a wide spectrum of specialisations such as science, engineering,pharmacy, humanities, economics and business administration, etc. A medical school,effective of the academic year 1994/1995, has recently been established at Al-QudsUniversity. Most of the students follow specializations in humanities rather than in scienceand technology.

48. Despite the relatively large number of universities and community colleges, there isa shortage in places at these institutions given the number of students who pass in theTawjihi examination. A large number of Palestinians pursue their higher education ininstitutions abroad, particularly at the undergraduate level.

49. Higher education institutions have tremendously suffered from disruptions such ascomplete closures of up to almost four years, sporadic closures and curfews on somestudent’s homes during the past seven years of the Intifada.

4.3. The Structure of Primary and Secondary Education in the Gaza Strip and theWest Bank

50. The education system in Gaza has the following structure:

Kindergarten: two years (age group 4-5 years) provided by local orinternational NGOs

Basic Cycle:Elementary Cycle: six years (age group 6-11 years)Preparatory Cycle: three years (age group 12-14 years)

Secondary Cycle: three years (age group 15-17 years)

Higher Education :Intermediate: two years (equivalent to community college)University: four years or more.

51. The education system in the West Bank consists of the following structure:

Kindergarten: two years (age group 4-5 years) provided by local orinternationals NGOS.

Basic Cycle: ten years (age group 6-15 years)

Secondary Cycle: two years

Higher Education:Intermediate: two years (equivalent to community college)University: four years or more.

4.3.1. The Basic Cycle

52. The basic education cycle is compulsory. Public schools levy a tuition fee of 60Shekels in the basic cycle and 80 Shekels in the secondary education. However, those whocannot afford this fee are exempt from it. UNRWA schools are free of charge whereasstudents have to pay tuition fees in private schools. The Palestinian “Ministry” of Educationplans to extend the basic education to ten years and to reduce the secondary cycle to twoyears in Gaza as is the case currently in the West Bank.

53. In the Gaza Strip students usually sit for a general elementary examination, organizedlocally at the district level at the end of the six-year elementary cycle. Those who pass this

examination are promoted to the three-year preparatory cycle. At the end of the preparatorycycle, students sit for the general preparatory examination (I’dadi) organized by theDepartment of Education in Gaza. Students who pass this examination are promoted eitherto schools offering academic education or to the vocational education secondary schoolsaccording to their marks in the I’dadi, their interest and the availability of places in these twotypes of secondary schools.

54. In the West Bank no general examination like the I’dadi is administered. Studentswho successfully complete the ten-year basic education cycle are promoted to the two-yearsecondary cycle according to their marks, their interest, the places available and otherrelevant regulations.

4.3.2. The Secondary Cycle

55. In both the Gaza Strip and the West Bank the secondary cycle is divided into twoprogrammes: academic and vocational. The academic programme consists of two streams:one scientific and one literary. The vocational secondary programme is composed ofcommercial, agricultural or industrial studies in the Gaza Strip and the additional subject ofnursing in the West Bank.

56. At the end of the secondary cycle, students sit for the general secondary schoolexamination (Tawjihi). In the Gaza Strip the Tawjihi was organized by the Egyptianeducation authorities until 1994. In the West Bank the Tawjihi was administered by anexamination committee which sent the results to the Jordanian Ministry of Education in orderfor them to be adopted, until June 1994. In the current school year of 1994/1995 the PA“Ministry” of Education will administer the Tawjihi in both the West Bank and the GazaStrip.

57. In the West Bank the Tawjihi is conducted in two phases: one in January for the firstsemester and the other in June for the second semester. Each phase accounts for 50 per centof the final mark. In Gaza the examination is conducted once each year in June.

58. The Tawjihi examination has five streams in Gaza and six in the West Bank:scientific, literary, industrial, commercial and agricultural in both and, additionally, nursingin the West Bank. The bulk of students are in the literary stream, then follow the scientificstreams. Very few students join the vocational streams. In the current 1993/1994 school yearthe number of students in the vocational secondary schools did not exceed 2,272 while66,909 students were enrolled in the secondary cycle altogether. Of these, only 207 femalestudents were enrolled in vocational secondary schools, which amounts to a femalerepresentation of 9 per cent in such education (Masri and UNRWA, 1995).

59. In the 1993/1994 school year out of 324 vocational secondary schools there were 4vocational schools in the West Bank and one in Gaza; 9 more vocational schools were inJerusalem. Out of these 14 vocational schools 10 are industrial schools, 2 are agricultural and2 commercial (Masri and UNRWA, 1995). There has been no significant expansion of thevocational secondary schools or any updating of premises or equipment in either Gaza or theWest Bank since 1967. Thus, the premises have deteriorated and the equipment is out-of-

date. There was no training of instructors, whether locally or abroad. Furthermore, schoolsoffering courses in the Scientific stream have not had any significant increase in the numberof students enrolled.

4.3.3. UNRWA Schools

60. UNRWA schools cover only nine grades as the tenth grade has not yet beenintroduced in UNRWA schools due to financial restraints. Thus, in the Gaza Strip they coverthe entire basic education cycle, whereas in the West Bank only the first nine grades of basiceducation are covered. After successfully passing their I’dadi UNRWA students in Gazaeither join the public secondary schools (academic/ vocational) or the UNRWA vocationaltraining centre. UNRWA students in the West Bank who successfully complete the ninthgrade are accepted in public schools. Some of them join private schools, if they can meet theexpenses.

61. UNRWA schools follow the Egyptian education system in Gaza and the Jordaniansystem in the West Bank as implemented in the respective public schools in mattersconcerning the curricula, textbooks, study plans, duration of the school year, regulationsgoverning examinations, holidays, promotion, make-up, repetition of classes, etc.

62. UNRWA operates one vocational training centre in Gaza and one in the West Bank.These centres offer, among other things, courses in mechanical, metal, electrical and buildingtrades of two-year duration after the respective basic education cycles, leading to a diplomaand not to the vocational Tawjihi.

4.3.4. The Private Sector

63. The private sector is mainly interested in the pre-school sector i.e. kindergartens,which are run by local or international NGOs. There are very few private schools. In the1994/1995 school year there are only 2 private schools in Gaza, which are both secondary,and 103 in the West Bank -59 in the basic and 44 in the secondary cycle. The Gaza privateschools have an enrolment of 127 students while 27,079 students are enrolled in privateschools in the West Bank -24,074 in the basic and 3,005 in the secondary cycle. Privateschools are subject to supervision, licensing and control by the PA education authorities.

64. Private schools cover both the basic cycle and the secondary cycle. Some of theprivate schools are noted for their high standard, while others are of ordinary or evenmediocre standards. They also follow the Egyptian or the Jordanian educational systemaccording to their location. Some private schools start teaching English or other languageslike French or German (in addition to English) from the first elementary grade.

4.4. Educational Indicators for Both the West Bank and Gaza

65. In the 1994/1995 school year 609,352 students, of which 48.1 per cent were female,were enrolled in a total of 1,386 schools in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. The following

table provides a breakdown of these enrollments according to gender, cycle and agency.(Another comprehensive table on enrolment and schools according to cycle, gender andagency in the Gaza Strip is included in Annex II.)

TABLE 1SCHOOL ENROLMENT IN THE WEST BANK ACCORDING TO

GENDER, CYCLE AND AGENCYIN THE 1194/1995 SCHOOL YEAR

Basic Secondary Total

Agency Male Female Total Male Female Total Male Female Total

Public 194,730 180,565 375,295 21,923 19,074 40,997 216,653 199,639 416,292

UNRWA 83,316 82,538 165,854 - 83,316 82,538 165,854

Private 13,976 10,098 24,074 2,139 993 3,132 16,115 11,091 27,206

Total 292,022 273,201 565,223 24,062 20,067 44,129 316,084 293,268 609,352

Source: Palestinian “Ministry” of Education

TeachingStage

Secondary

TABLE 2TEACHERS IN THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS IN WEST BANK

AND GAZA STRIP IN THE 1994/1995 SCHOOL YEAR

West Bank and Gaza Strip Gaza Strip West Bank

Male Female Total Male Female Total Male Female Total

9,305 4,634.5 13,939.5 1,212 1,036 2,248 8,093 3,598.5 11,691.5

2,238.5 1,231 3,469.5 832 307 1,139 1,406.5 924 2,330.5

11,543.5 5,865.5 17,409 2,044 1,343 3,387 9,499.5 4,522.5 14,022I

66. For a more detailed overview of the educational situation the West Bank and GazaStrip have to be presented separately due to differences in the geographic, demographic,sociological and economic situation in both areas and the influence these have had oneducational development.

4.5. The Gaza School Population in the 1994/1995 School Year

67. In 1994/1995 school year, the total number of students in Gaza enrolled in public,UNRWA and private schools is 236,041. Table 3 gives the school population by agency,cycle and gender in the 1994/1995 school year.

TABLE 3SCHOOL ENROLMENT IN THE GAZA STRIP BY AGENCY, CYCLE AND

GENDER IN THE 1994/95 SCHOOL YEAR

Basic (Elementary andPreparatory)

Agency Male Female Total

Public 50,752 48,513 99,245

UNRWA 62,273 57,036 119,273

Private -

Total 112,969 105,549 218,518

Secondary Total

Male Female Total Male Female Total

9,306 8,090 17,396 60,038 56,603 116,641

I I I62,237

I57,036

I119,273

93 34 93 34 127

9,399 8,124 17,523 122,368 113,673 236,041

68. There are 113,673 female students in the three cycles representing 48.2 per cent of thestudents enrolled. Of the students enrolled in the basic cycle 48.3 per cent are female and only46.4 per cent of the students enrolled in the secondary cycle are female. There is no dataavailable on gender distribution among the population of 15 years and younger, but it isbelieved to be half male and half female. Thus, already among the students enrolled, there arefewer female students than there should be. The access-problem for female students becomes

even more pressing, when considering that enrolment rates are not available and that many girlsmay never have been enrolled in any school at all.

69. The public schools provide educational opportunities for 49.4 per cent of the total schoolpopulation, while UNRWA provides educational opportunities for 50.55 per cent and theprivate sector for 0.05 percent. The share of UNRWA in the basic cycle as compared to the totalenrolment in this cycle is about 60 per cent.

4.6. Schools and School Premises in the Gaza Strip

70. There are 137 public schools in Gaza in the 1994/1995 school year accommodated in97 school premises. Thus 80 schools, i.e. about 59 per cent of the total number of schools,operate on double shifts. All school buildings were constructed for educational services. Thereare therefore no rented schools in Gaza. However, many of these schools have deteriorated tothe extent that they need either to be demolished and reconstructed or completely renovated.Some of the schools were built more than fifty years ago. Many of them have galvanized steelroofs, which make maintenance difficult and are not suited for the hot summers in the region.Latrine units are either missing, insufficient in number or require replacement. Most of thefunds spent on school maintenance since 1967 have been collected from the student’s parentsor were donated by the local community.

71. UNRWA operates 157 schools in 99 school buildings. In the 1994/1995 school year 120UNRWA schools are operating on double or triple shifts. The school population increased in1994/1995 by more than 10,000 students as compared to the 1993/1994 school year. Thisincrease may be attributed to the natural population growth estimated at about 4-5 percent andto the admission of children of returnees to Gaza. Most of UNRWA schools were built in the1950s and 1960s. Thus, many of them require either complete maintenance and renovation orreconstruction. UNRWA has a programme to build additional classrooms to accommodate theincrease in school population, in order not to operate some schools on triple shift. Under thePeace Implementation Programme (PIP) UNRWA manages a US$25 million programme torenovate existing schools and tore-build new schools replacing dilapidated and unsafe existingschool premises.

72. Table 4 shows the number of schools in the public sector broken down by district, cycleand gender, while Table 5 gives the breakdown of UNRWA schools according to gender andcycle.

TABLE 4NUMBER OF PUBLIC SCHOOLS IN GAZA ACCORDING TO CYCLE GENDER

AND DISTRICT IN THE 1995/1994 SCHOOL YEAR

Basic Cycle Secondary CycleTotal

District Male Female Coed. Total Male Female Coed. Total

Gaza 24 27 14 65 8 8 16 81

Khan 12 9 16 37 11 8 19 56Younis

Total 36 36 30 102 19 16 35 137

Table 5NUMBER OF UNRWA SCHOOLS IN GAZA ACCORDING TO CYCLE AND

GENDER IN THE 1994/1995 SCHOOL YEAR

Female coed. Total

Elementary 45 26 43 114

Preparatory 24 20 1 45

TOTAL 69 46 44 159

Source: UNRWA-Gaza* Please note that the data in this table differs from the data on UNRWA schools in the Gaza Strip provided by the Palestinian“Ministry” of Education.

73. As a result of the high rate of natural growth in the school population in the GazaStrip and the very limited additional classrooms constructed annually, a large number ofclasses are defined as over-crowded, i.e. accommodating more than 48 students. As anexample, about 29 per cent of the total class-sections in UNRWA schools in Gaza are over-crowded, while the average classroom size ranges between 42-52 m2. Thus, the area perstudent is generally less than 1 m2. This is much below the acceptable international standardranging between 1.5 m2 to 1.75 m2 per student. The distance between the first row of schooldesks and the chalkboard in many schools does not exceed 1 m, which has a negative impacton the students’ possibility to read from the chalkboards or charts.

4.7. Needs of New Schools in the Gaza Strip

74. In the 1994/1995 school year, about 15,000 additional students have been admittedto public schools and about 10,000 additional students to UNRWA schools. Partly, thisgrowth can be attributed to the natural school population growth and partly to the numberof Palestinians returning to the Gaza Strip. The entire scope of the shortfall of classroomsis not yet fully known, but probably very substantial. In order to eliminate overcrowding,triple shifts and eventually double shifts will have to be assessed.

75. If as a result of the peace accords, there is a massive return of Palestinians from theDiaspora to the Gaza Strip, especially of those who were displaced after the 1967 war, moreschools have to be constructed to accommodate the children of the returnees. It is premature,however, to predict the exact increase in enrolment this would cause.

4.8. The School Population in the West Bank in the 1994/1995 School Year

TABLE 6SCHOOL ENROLMENT IN THE WEST BANK ACCORDING TO AGENCY,

GENDER AND CYCLE IN THE 1994/95 SCHOOL YEAR

‘Basic Secondary Total

Agency Male Female Total Male Female Total Male Female Total

Public 143,998 132,052 276,050 12,617 10,984 23,601 156,615 143,036 299,651

UNRWA 21,079 25,502 46,581 - 21,079 25,502 46,581

Private 13,976 10,098 24,074 2,046 959 3005 16,022 11,057 27,079

Total 179,053 167,652 346,705 14,663 11,943 26,606 193,716 179,595 373,311

Source: Palestinian ‘Ministry” of Education

TABLE 7SCHOOL ENROLMENT IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS IN THE WEST BANK

ACCORDING TO CYCLE, GENDER AND DISTRICT IN THE 1994/1995SCHOOL YEAR

Basic Cycle Secondary Cycle Total GrandTotal

District Male Female Total Male Female Total Male Female

Jenin 22,418 19,607 42,025 2,085 1,542 3,627 24,503 21,149 45,652

Tulkarem 16,646 15,565 32,211 1,451 1,027 2,487 18,097 16,592 34,689

Qalqui-lia 6,475 5,493 11,968 631 433 1,064 7,106 5,926 13,032

Nablus 20,752 19,951 40,703 2,064 1,913 3,977 22,816 21,864 44,680

Ramallah 22,523 20,383 42,906 1,806 1,714 3,520 24,329 22,097 46,426

BetbIe- 11,559 11,190 22,749 1,067 1,084 2,151 12,626 12,274 24,900hem

Hebron 42,158 38,376 80,534 3,374 3,070 6,444 45,532 41,387 86,919

Jericho 1,467 1,487 2,954 139 201 340 1606 1,688 3,294

Total 143,998 132,052 276,050 12,617 10,984 23,601 156,615 142,977 299,651

76. In the 1994/1995 school year, the school population in schools in the West Bank was373,311 students in both the basic and secondary cycle. Table 7 shows the enrolment inpublic schools in the 1994/1995 school year according to cycle, gender and district. (Acomprehensive table on enrolment and schools in the West Bank according to cycle, gender,agency and district is included in Annex II.)

77. It is to be noted that female students constitute approximately 48.1 per cent of thetotal school population in the West Bank. Of all students enrolled in the basic cycle 48.3 percent are female. In the secondary cycle only 44.9 percent of the students enrolled are female.In public schools the 47.7 per cent of the total students enrolled are female, whereas in publicsecondary schools the female constituent is only 46.5 per cent.

78. UNRWA schools in the West Bank have an enrolment of 46,581 students in the1994/1995 school year (in the basic cycle). Of these students 54.7 per cent are female. Thereason for this may be attributed to UNRWA having girls schools in some villages where allfemale students (refugees and non-refugees) are accepted, while the public boys schools inthese villages accept all male students. This is an arrangement between the Jordaniangovernment and UNRWA which goes back to the early 1950s. This compares to a 50 percent female constituent in the total UNRWA school population in the West Bank and Gaza.

79. Furthermore, the role of UNRWA in basic education is more predominant in Gaza(about 55 per cent of the total enrolment in basic education) than in the West Bank (about28 per cent of the enrolment in the basic cycle). The reason for this is that there are morePalestinian refugees in the Gaza Strip than in the West Bank.

80. The private sector in the West Bank shoulders a big share in providing education atthe basic and secondary cycles as compared to the private sector in Gaza. In the West Bankthe total enrolment in private schools stood at 27,072 students being taught in 99 schools,as compared to 127 students and 2 schools in Gaza. In addition the percentage of femalestudents enrolled in the private sector is higher in the West Bank (40 per cent) as opposedto 26 per cent in the Gaza Strip. The private sector is represented by various associations,organizations, societies or private individuals who own, administer and run educationalinstitutions at all levels.

4.9. Schools and School Premises in the West Bank

81. In 1994/1995, there are 884 public schools in the West Bank. Table 8 shows thedistribution of these schools according to district, level and gender.

TABLE 8NUMBER OF PUBLIC SCHOOLS IN THE WEST BANK

ACCORDING TO DISTRICT, LEVEL AND GENDER IN THE 1994/1995

District

Tulkarem

Qalqilia

Nablus

Ramallah

Bethlehem

Jericho

Hebron *

SCHOOL YEAR

Basic Cycle Secondary Total GrandTotal

Male Female Coed. Total Male Female Coed. Total Male Female Coed.

32 36 30 98 24 15 1 40 56 51 31 138

25 28 30 83 11 12 11 34 36 40 41 117

4 6 18 28 3 3 9 15 7 9 27 43

31 39 40 110 8 13 17 38 39 52 57 148

23 35 46 104 20 17 9 46 43 52 55 150

13 16 18 47 11 9 1 21 24 25 19 68

1 1 5 7 1 1 2 2 2 5 9

Source: Palestinian “Ministry” of Education* A breakdown of the data on the schools in Hebron was not available.

82. Some of the schools in the West Bank, especially in small villages, are very smallwith few classrooms while other schools accommodate several hundreds of studentsespecially in cities and towns. In some districts schools operate on double shifts in order toaccommodate the natural school population growth. In the Hebron district, for example, outof 211 public schools, there are 22 schools operating in the afternoon shift. In some otherdistricts, as in Nablus, all schools operate in single shift.

83. In the West Bank there a considerable number of public schools are stillaccommodated in rented buildings, which were not constructed for educational purposes. InBethlehem, for example, 11 schools operate on rented premises and in Nablus 28. Not allrented facilities are suitable. The classrooms are very small (16-20 m2). There is often neitherenough ventilation nor lighting and no specialized rooms such as laboratories and suitableplaygrounds or sports facilities are available. Many of the buildings have deteriorated to anextent that they are collapsing, as is the case of some rented schools in Tulkarem, Nablus orHebron. They have cracked ceilings and walls which leak in the winter. It is estimated thatabout 20 per cent of the public schools in the West Bank operate on rented premises.

84. As in the Gaza Strip there has been little routine maintenance. This has resulted inthe deterioration of most owned school buildings and of virtually all rented schools.

85. UNRWA operates 103 schools in the West Bank. Of these, 16 operate on doubleshift. Another 28 schools are accommodated in rented premises. The UNRWA constructedschools, which were built in the early 1950s or 1960s, have deteriorated to the extent thatmany need comprehensive maintenance or replacement due to lack of proper maintenanceresulting from insufficient financial resources.

86. As in Gaza under the PIP, UNRWA is improving the infrastructure in the West Bank.Since October 1993 the agency received about US$10 millions to upgrade schools and tobuild 9 new schools in the West Bank. UNRWA preparatory schools have sciencelaboratories, libraries and multi-purpose rooms of double classroom size, i.e. about 100 m2.

5. Access: The Right to Education

87. There have been great strides made in educational access since the period of theBritish mandate. Education is mandatory and available to nearly everyone in the primarycycle. Literacy rates for young people are near 100 per cent. Although exact enrolment ratesdo not exist due to the lack of relevant data, it is estimated that enrolment rates in primaryschool are 102 per cent and in secondary schools 80 per cent. Tertiary education is widelyavailable and accessible to those who wish to continue their education.

88. A number of problems remain. While education is compulsory from grades one toten, there is little evidence of any enforcement. If a family decides to keep their child out ofschool, little is done to force the child to attend. During the first nine years of schoolingfemale students drop out in greater numbers than male students, especially after the basiccycle (See Table 9). Although the gender distribution among the population is believed tobe half male and half female, only 48.1 percent of all the students enrolled in the West Bankand Gaza Strip are female, and in the secondary cycle the female constituent is only 45.4 percent. This indicator does not take into account the situation among those never enrolled andreliable enrolment rates are not available due to the lack of relevant data

89. There are several reasons for this imbalance. Most often marriage constraints, familypressure or economic reasons are the main cause. Girls living in villages with no female orco-educational schools or offering no higher levels of education tend to drop out morefrequently than their male counterparts, since parents often do not allow them to join schoolsin neighbouring towns. This also explains why the female constituent in secondary schoolsin the West Bank (44.9 per cent) with its rural areas is lower than in the urban Gaza Strip(46.4 per cent). Parents worry about their daughters safety or the corruption of morals, whenattending schools away from the village. Poor parents often do not want to spend too muchon transport for their daughter, especially when they have a son who’s education has to beassured (The Educational Network, 1993).

90. Rural areas offer insufficient facilities. Villages often do not have a secondary school,forcing children to spend long hours commuting to school. In some areas publictransportation is not available regularly. Families who want to provide their children with

a quality education prefer to be in urban areas. Schools in urban areas tend to have betterfacilities and more qualified teachers.

91. Although there are special programmes for handicapped students, largely through theefforts of local NGOs and charitable groups, the quality of facilities and programmes variesgreatly. No programmes for handicapped students are offered in the public system.

92. The educational system in the West Bank and Gaza suffers from a problem that iscommon elsewhere in the Middle East: students who leave school at some point in their earlylife find it difficult, if not impossible, to reenter the system. This problem has becomeparticularly severe after the Intifada and is of a larger scope than expected. There are perhaps50,000 individuals who were imprisoned or dropped out of the system for other reasons.

6. Quality of Education

93. One of the most critical problems facing the education system in the West Bank andGaza is the deterioration of the quality of education. Results of studies conducted by someinstitutions such as Tamer Institute in Language and Mathematics revealed considerableweakness in writing, estimation skills and problem-solving. Furthermore, international testsin mathematics and science for eigth grade students, which were administered in a sampleof public, private and UNRWA schools in the West Bank and in UNRWA schools in theGaza Strip, revealed that educational achievement is very low compared to other countrieswhich participated in these tests.

6.1. School Time Lost During the Intifada

94. One factor which may have lead to a deterioration in the quality of education is theloss of teaching time during the Intifada. Since December 1987 schools in Gaza and the WestBank suffered tremendously as a result of the measures of Israeli authorities, which weredirected at ending the Intifada. All schools in the West Bank were virtually closedthroughout 1988. There were no school-closures in Gaza during the first year of the Intifada.The average school time lost during the first three years ranged from 30-40 per cent of thenormal school year. The percentage ranged from 15-30 per cent during the period fromJanuary 1991 until June 1994, when the PA took over the authority in the field of educationin the Gaza Strip from the Israelis.

95. As a result the achievements of the students have deteriorated. Although some formsof popular education, distance education and alternative education were introduced andself-learning materials/educational kits were prepared and distributed to students, thestandards have fallen to a level that requires compensation education for all grades in thedifferent cycles.

6.2. Specialized Facilities and School Utilities

96. Poor and insufficient learning environments have also taken their toll on the qualityof Palestinian education. Public schools in basic education do not have any specialized

facilities such as science laboratories or science rooms, libraries, home-economics units, artsand crafts rooms, etc. In some schools the library is a cupboard with some books located inthe head teacher’s room. The same is true for science tools. Hence, students may completethe preparatory cycle without having been exposed to any science experiments, art activitiesor the borrowing of library books. However, some UNRWA schools, are well equipped anddispose of the above named facilities.

97. Some secondary schools have the above named specialized rooms, but in most cases,the equipment/tools/supplies are not sufficient or do not match the curriculum. Library booksare very limited in number and scope. Many chemicals needed to perform experiments suchas concentrated acids were not allowed by the Israeli authorities. This has adversely affectedthe quality of education provided to the Palestinian children.

98. Most public schools lack the common facilities and utilities necessary for the normalfunctioning of sports and recreational activities such as playgrounds, sports fields (volley-,basket-, hand- and football), boundary walls, etc. Often, furniture is not sufficient and thefurniture that is available has deteriorated as a result of lack of maintenance and, in addition,is often not suitable for the age and size of the students, being either too small or too largedue to the operating of many schools on double shift. Finally, the shortage or absence ofaudio-visual equipment, teaching/learning materials and education kits, computers,mimeographing machines, photocopiers and printers have to be stressed.

6.3. Teaching Staff

99. There are a total of 10,883 primary and secondary school teachers in the West Bankand Gaza Strip of which 6,157 are female. The public schools in the West Bank have1,1691.5 primary and 2,330.5 secondary teaching posts. In Gaza there are 2,248 primary and1,139 secondary teaching posts. The teaching staff has not had any significant in-serviceteacher training to improve its competence and up-date teaching strategies and methodsduring the past twenty-seven years of occupation. More than 65 per cent of the teachers havethe teacher training diploma of two-year duration. The rest only has a first university degreeand has not received any additional professional teacher training. Furthermore, there is notenough teaching staff. The student/teacher ratio amounts to an average of 28 students perteacher in the West Bank and 35 in the Gaza Strip.

6.4. Internal Efficiency

100. Since basic education is compulsory in the West Bank and Gaza, all children of 6-15years should theoretically be in school. However, the actual enrolment figures in the threecycles seem to indicate that this has not yet been achieved. Although the percentage ofenrolment of school-aged children is unclear due to the difficulties in obtaining data onpopulation, there seems to be a considerable amount of waste within the education systemeither in drop-outs or repetition, possibly indicating a low level of internal efficiency.

101. Here are some of the existing estimates: Policy Research Incorporated estimates thatin 1992 enrolment rates in the West Bank and Gaza in the three cycles were : 70-85 per centfor elementary, 45-65 per cent for preparatory and 25-35 per cent for the secondary schools(p. 9). UNESCO, on the oher hand, has estimated an enrolment rate of 102 per cent inprimary schools for the 1993/94 school year (1994, p. 9). The percentage of female studentsenrolled in the three cycles is about 48.

102. It is very difficult to give the drop-out rates (percentage of those who entered a gradebut did not complete it) in public schools in the West Bank and Gaza due to non-availabilityof sufficient data. However, in UNRWA schools the drop-out rates in the 1992/1993 schoolyear were as shown in Table 9.

TABLE 9DROP-OUT RATES IN UNRWA SCHOOLS IN THE BASIC CYCLE IN THE

WEST BANK AND GAZA IN THE 1992/1993 SCHOOL YEAR

West Bank GazaCycle

Male Female Total Male Female Total

Elementary 3 2.2 2.6 2 1.9 1.9

Preparatory 6.2 9 7.7 4.4 5.4 4.9

Source: UNRWA, pp. 46, 68

These figures show the rates of pupils who do not return to UNRWA schools at the beginning of the following year. They mayeither join public and private schools or opt not to join any school system.

103. It can easily be seen that drop-out rates in boys schools in the elementary cycle arehigher than in girls schools, while in preparatory schools, they are higher for girls than boys.Overall the rates are relatively low.

104. Another factor, which is considered an indicator of internal efficiency, is repetitionrates. Sufficient school data on public schools is not available; therefore only repetition ratesof UNRWA schools in the West Bank and Gaza are shown in Table 10.

TABLE 10REPETITION RATES IN UNRWA SCHOOLS IN THE WEST BANK AND

GAZA IN THE 1992/1993 SCHOOL YEAR

Elementary 6 6.2 6.1 8.3 6.5 7.4

Preparatory 7.6 7.2 7.4 11.4 6.8 9.2

Source: UNRWA, p. 47 & 69

7. Relevance of Education

105. Making the educational system in the West Bank and Gaza responsive to humanresource needs of the area is going to be a great challenge. Historically, the school system

was academically oriented providing basic literacy and numeracy skills to a majority of thepopulation and preparing a minority for college. In the past Palestinian students wereregarded as some of the best prepared in the region. A high percentage went on to university,where they usually performed extremely well. Palestinians were noted for their drive andacademic excellence. They became the most highly skilled and experienced technicians andacademics in the Arab world. Recently, however, concerns that the system on the whole isnot functioning as well anymore have been raised. Besides showing serious deficiencies inthe quality and variety of the education provided, it is questionable whether the system canprovide the necessary human resources for the development of a flourishing Palestinianeconomy.

106. The formal educational system in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip has not beenoriented toward the internal labour needs of the area for the past twenty-seven years. Thismay be due to the fact that the highest demand has been for unskilled or semi-skilled labour.The majority of Palestinians provided manual and/or unskilled labour in Israel, while somewere employed as skilled workers mainly in the Gulf countries until the collapse of the oilboom and later the war between Iraq and Kuwait led to the loss of employment for many.Since there was very little demand for highly skilled technical or managerial labour in Israelthese fields of education deteriorated and there are fewer Palestinians with adequate technicaland managerial skills today. If significant changes occur in the economic structure in the nearfuture as, for example, an expansion of tourism and of transportation andtelecommunications infrastructure, it is improbable that the educational system will be ableto supply the needed human resources in the short term. Thus labour from abroad,particularly the Palestinian Diaspora, will be required to supply to technical and manageriallabour for the Palestinians.

107. In a recent study conducted by the International Assessment of Educational Progressin a number of countries, students were tested for industrial skills. Students from the WestBank and Gaza scored very low in mathematics and science tests and a number of tests thatrequire novel tasks - precisely the areas where presumed employment is supposed to lie.(World Bank, 1993a, Vol. 6, p. 41) There is little capacity to develop those skills at present.Except for some vocational courses established by the Civil Administration, which werecreated primarily to meet the licensing requirements of Israel. The vocational and trainingprogrammes in the school system have decayed.

108. At university level there is a striking imbalance between the fields of the humanitiesand social sciences and that of science and technology. Student enrolment in the literarystudies and social sciences is much higher than in the latter. This tendency is alreadyreflected at the secondary level, where the literary stream is predominant over the scientificin the academic programme. The universities offer fewer courses in technology and sciencethan in the social sciences. This may in some part be due to the lack of financial resourcesnecessary for purchase and maintenance of adequate equipment and facilities. Theoreticalstudies dominate instead of practical studies. Furthermore, there is a larger number ofqualified academic teaching staff in literary studies and social sciences than in the sciencesand technological studies

109. The vocational system is not well developed at either the secondary or tertiary level;similar problems at university level prevail. A lack of financial resources for adequate

equipment and facilities and of qualified teaching staff led to fewer courses being offeredin the secondary vocational and technical than in the academic stream and equally makesthese courses less attractive to students. As fewer students have a scientific or vocationalbackground there will be fewer students choosing these fields for tertiary studies.

110. Overall, this leads to a very weak correlation between education and income and asignificant gap between the education of workers and their actual type of work. Whereas 50per cent of the labour force has tenor more years of education only 15 per cent hold highand mid-professional jobs (FAFO, p. 200). The highest unemployment rates are amongstuniversity graduates especially in literary and social science studies and businessadministration. Technical and technological graduates do not meet employment problemsinspite of the limited job opportunities in the West Bank and Gaza. Clearly, a strongerrelation between education and the labour market has to be developed in order to provide thecountry with the human resources it will need to develop a healthy economy. Significantchanges need to be made in the curricula and vocational and technical education as well asscience and technology studies need to be strengthened.

111. Some of the immediate needs can be satisfied through innovative trainingprogrammes like non-formal education, continuing education, apprenticeship programmesand short and medium length training programmes. In the long run, however, it isindispensable for the PA to revise the education system in the West Bank and Gaza Strip insuch a way that current and future human resource needs can be met.

PART It:STRATEGIES FOR THE DEVELOPMENT

OF PALESTINIAN EDUCATION

1. In August 1994, the Israeli Civil Administration transferred authority for theentire educational system in the West Bank and Gaza to the newly established PA. Thereform and rehabilitation of an educational system with major problems of quality andrelevance gained sudden urgency. The system is biased toward university study andgives limited attention to vocational and technical education. It has concentrated ontransferring knowledge and the mastery of a craft or profession rather than preparing thePalestinian youth with a capacity for life-long learning and the ability to rapidly acquirenew skills.

2. In order for the West Bank and Gaza to be economically viable, the PA will haveto encourage significant changes in the economic structure of the country. The PA isaware that the success of its development efforts will be determined, in large part, by thequality and flexibility of the labour force. The education system must, in turn, beeffective and flexible: effective in producing a well-educated population and flexible,so it can adapt quickly as labour needs change.

3. A recent study points out that in order to transform education in the West Bankand Gaza, the system must overcome the following problems: “(i) traditional culturalconstraints on girls’ access to education, especially at the secondary level; (ii) low qualitystandards, stemming from low quality and outmoded curricula and uncreative teachingmethods; and (iii) an unbalanced and under-developed system for developing highquality vocational and technical skills. ” (World Bank, 1993b, p. 29) It is a significantchallenge made all the more difficult by severe constraints on resources.

1. Initiatives for Educational Development

1.1. Requests for Emergency Assistance

4. The Palestinians have a long history of co-operation with internationalOrganizations, governments and governmental organizations. Before the formation ofthe PA, the PLO Department of General and Higher Education made numerous contactsto request assistance in the development and reconstruction of the educational system inthe West Bank and Gaza. Independently, the Palestinian Council of Higher Education,Palestinian educational institutions and NGOs have made contacts with these and other

organizations in an effort to secure financial and technical assistance in the developmentof their educational institutions.

5. Since the signing of the DOP and the formation of the PA in Jericho and the GazaStrip, the Palestinians have appealed to the international community for emergencyassistance to develop their educational system.

1.2. Responses by UNESCO, UNRWA, the World Bank, and UNICEF

1.2.1. UNESCO

6. UNESCO has been a key partner of the Palestinians in providing basic educationservices for more than four decades. Since 1950 UNESCO has had the technicalresponsibility over the education programme provided by UNRWA and UNESCO to thePalestinian refugees. UNESCO has also assisted the Palestinians in developing the openlearning system for higher education (Al-Quds Open University), in developing aPalestinian curriculum and in providing fellowships and scholarships to Palestiniansstudying abroad.

7. Following the signing of the DOP, the PLO requested UNESCO to assist thenew PA in developing its education system and other areas within UNESCO’scompetence, i.e. culture, science and communication. A Memorandum of Co-operationbetween UNESCO and the PLO was signed in December 1993 by Mr Arafat (PLOChairman) and Mr Mayor (UNESCO’s Director General).

8. As stated in the Memorandum, UNESCO and the PLO have agreed to co-operateto strengthen Palestinian post-secondary and university education, to improve vocationaland technical education and to develop research and training institutions as well as schooland university programmes in the fields of science, technology and the management ofnatural resources and, finally, to provide resources to Palestinian scientists andtechnologists in the Diaspora.

9. Subsequently, on 30 April 1994, a Plan of Action was signed in Tunis listing thefollowing priorities in the field of education:

support for the future Palestinian “Ministry” of Education, including thecreation of planning and management capabilities;

creation of a Palestinian Curriculum Development Centre;

- planning and implementation of a programme of in-service teacher training;and,

planning and implementation of a programme to improve higher educationand open learning systems.

10. As a first step the Director General of UNESCO commissioned high levelpersonnel to work with Palestinian educators and mobilized resources for the co-financing of equipment and local staff.

11. At the request of the PLO Department of Education, UNESCO and the PLOorganized two workshops around the theme of developing a Palestinian curriculum.UNESCO’s International Institute for Educational Planning (IIEP) conducted the firstworkshop in Paris in August 1990. The workshop participants discussed thedevelopment of a Palestinian curriculum for the basic education cycle. Palestinianeducators, UNESCO staff and educators from around the world attended the programme.At the conclusion of the workshop participants adopted a major recommendationregarding the establishment of a Palestinian Curriculum Development Centre. UNESCOprepared a project in order to implement the programme.

12. In November 1993 the Palestinian Council of Higher Education and UNESCOorganized a second workshop in Jerusalem. This workshop focused on the developmentof a Palestinian curriculum for the secondary cycle. A group of Palestinian educators,UNESCO experts and experts from several European countries participated in theworkshop.

13. The Italian government contributed US$300,000 to UNESCO to fund the firstphase of the Curriculum Development Centre. UNESCO, Italy and the PA “Ministry”of Education signed an agreement on 10 November 1994. Work was initiated on thecentre shortly thereafter.

14. Exceptionally for 1994/1995 the UNESCO Director General has created abudget of US$512,000 to give support for development of the “Ministry” of Education,including salary support, equipment and seed money for seminars and missions toidentify and prepare projects.

15. In order to put activities concerning higher education on a firm basis UNESCOand the Palestinian Council for Higher Education organized a mission to the West Bankand the Gaza Strip from 4 January to 14 January 1994. This was before theestablishment of the PA and the “Ministry” of General and Higher Education. The termsof reference of the mission were “to undertake a review of the present situation of highereducation, in particular of the Palestinian universities, with emphasis on science andtechnology component. The mission will assess the strengths and weaknesses of highereducation institutions in the West Bank and Gaza and will look in particular, into thefollowing: adequacy of human resources, programmes and curricula, institutionalservices including libraries, training facilities, financial sources and externallinkages’’.(UNESCO, 1994, Vol. 1) The mission team issued a report, which containedits findings, discussion and recommendations along with an overview of the highereducation system and the needs of the reconstruction process.

16. Subsequent to this mission one of the team members, Dr. Edward H. Jennings,revisited the area in October 1994 to conduct a more in-depth study of higher educationin the West Bank and Gaza Strip. His trip resulted in a second report entitled “University

Education: The West Bank and Gaza Strip, 1995-2000”. The report tackles issues raisedin the first report and presents a vision for the next five years.

1.2.2. UNRWA

17. The UNRWA/UNESCO Department of Education has been providing educationin Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, the West Bank and Gaza since 1950. It has a long history ofco-operation with the PLO Department of Education and the Palestinian people.

18. Following the signing of the DOP, the Head of the PLO Department ofEducation requested UNRWA to assist, among other things, in the following areas:

assistance in the maintenance and rehabilitation of public schools in the WestBank and Gaza;

- provision of in-service teacher training to teaching staff in the public sector;- developing the vocational and technical education programme.

19. On 12 May 1994 a Memorandum of Understanding was signed betweenUNRWA and the PLO Department of Education. This memorandum defined the waysand means of enhancing co-operation and co-ordination between the two bodies,identified the areas of co-operation and established a joint co-ordination committee.

20. During the past few months UNRWA has carried out the following activities:

obtaining of funds to carry out routine and comprehensive maintenance in publicschools in Gaza (the rehabilitation of these schools is under implementation);preparation of a project proposal on in-service teacher training of about 12,000teachers, head teachers and school supervisors of public schools (the project wasapproved by the PLO and presented to donors for funding, three trainingprogrammes were prepared);conducting a preliminary study on school mapping with IIEP;setting up of a joint technical working group from UNRWA and “Ministry” ofEducation engineers to carry out a comprehensive survey on all schools in theWest Bank and Gaza with the aim of preparing project proposal(s) for therehabilitation of schools and for adding new classrooms, school sanitaryfacilities and other amenities to existing premises.

1.2.3. The World Bank

21. The World Bank has been supporting the work of the Multilateral WorkingGroup on Economic Development and Regional Co-operation by providing analyses ofthe key economic issues and developmental challenges facing the Middle East region.At its second meeting in Paris in October 1992, the Working Group requested the World

Bank to expand its contribution to include an assessment of the development needs andprospects of the economies of the West Bank and Gaza Strip. In response to this request,a World Bank mission visited the Occupied Territories during the period of 21 January -24 February 1993 (World Bank, 1993a, Vol. 6, p. vii-ix). One of the outcomes of thismission was report on the Occupied Territories consisting of six volumes, one of whichdealt with human resources. This report was the basis for further work in the educationalsector.

22. In September 1993 the PLO and Israel signed the DOP which outlines theprinciples underlying the transfer of authority from the Israelis to the Palestinians in theWest Bank and Gaza Strip until a final settlement is reached between the two parties.The signing of the DOP was followed by a donors meeting in which over US$2.0 billionin additional assistance was pledged by various bilateral and multilateral groups for thepurpose of emergency relief and economic development in the West Bank and Gaza.

23. Another World Bank mission visited the Occupied Territories from 11 Octoberto 22 November 1993 following a visit to Tunisia to confirm the mission’s objectiveswith the Palestinian leadership. It was agreed that the mission would seek to:

- prepare an initial investment programme for donor financing to help meet theimmediate needs of the Occupied Territories;identify priority technical assistance requirements for building Palestiniancapacity to design and manage economic development programmes; and

- lay the groundwork for effective use of donor assistance over the longer termby identifying technical studies related to high priority policies, programmesand projects.

24. The mission resulted in a two-volume document, “Emergency Assistance to theOccupied Territories. ” The document describes the main issues affecting the varioussectors of the Palestinian economy and presents proposals for investments andcomplementary technical assistance needed to address those issues. It also describes theexternal financing requirements of the public sector including the start-up andtransitional expenditures of the new Palestinian administration.

25. Within the education sector the World Bank has identified a strategy ofsustaining the current system until fundamental institutional and operational changes canbe made. This strategy would help prepare for the transfer of authority and improve thefinancial basis of the sector. Finally, it would strengthen vocational education andimprove links between schools and communities.

26. The Emergency Assistance Programme of the World Bank would improve theteaching and learning environment by upgrading laboratory and library facilities,physical plan and equipment The total costs of improvements would be US$80 million.The Palestinian administration, UNRWA and NGOs would implement the programme.Funding would also be provided for universities and for pre-schools operated by NGOs.

27. The World Bank report identifies a number of areas of technical assistance,including completion of a school mapping study to plan investments in new schools and

the beginning of the planning and design of long-term curricula and pedagogic reforms.It includes analysis and training to improve the financial management of educationalinstitutions and the financial sustainability of the educational system as a whole. Finally,it would strengthen vocational and technical education through support to a vocationaleducation task force. Technical assistance activities in the sector are expected to costUS$4.6 million over the next three years. This includes project preparation assistancefor Emergency Assistance Programme investments.

1.2.4. UNICEF

28. UNICEF has been active in Palestinian education for many years. It has playedan important role in educational programmes in general, and in UNRWA educationalprogrammes in particular. UNICEF has worked with the PLO Education Departmentand, since 1986, has had an office in Jerusalem, which serves the population in the WestBank and Gaza Its programme in the West Bank and Gaza began with a pre-school andkindergarten programme and a public safety programme.

29. UNICEF funded a consultancy by Dr. Victor Billeh, the President of theNational Centre for Educational Research and Development in Jordan, to advise the“Ministry” of Education on developing a planning capacity. Dr. Billeh’s report focusesprimarily on the establishment of an Educational Management Information System(EMIS) and a planning capacity at the “Ministry”.

30. In addition, UNICEF has been providing salary support for several staffmembers in the “Ministry” of Education.

2. Defining Priorities

31. In October and November 1994 the “Ministry” of Education began to developa policy document that identifies its most important educational priorities. Thesepriorities have been established in consultation with staff in the Palestinian “Ministry”of Education, other Palestinian ministries and institutions as well as internationalorganizations. The following areas were tentatively identified as the top priorities of the“Ministry” of Education:

curriculum development and unification;text-book printing and distribution;consolidation and expansion of the existing schools;upgrading of teacher skills and those of the school supervisors andadministrators;school maintenance;obtaining proper equipment for the “Ministry” of Education;development of the Directorate of Technical Education and communitycolleges;initiating the process of developing a long-term educational vision;

establishing realistic mechanisms for co-ordination with appropriateinstitutions involved in human resource development;establishing mechanisms for an efficient use of assistance from internationalinstitutions and foreign governments.

3. Issues and Recommendations

3.1. From Emergency Towards Long-Term Issues

32. With the massive backlogs and problems inherent in the unification of twoseparate and substantially different education systems, it has been necessary for the“Ministry” to begin its work by adopting a short-term policy of requesting assistance forpriority needs.

33. At the same time, the “Ministry” has to acquire a longer range vision for thedevelopment of education. Consequently, parallel with undertaking emergency actionsto address the specific short-term needs, the “Ministry” is moving towards institution-building. This means that certain medium-term objectives are emerging and taking ongrowing importance.

34. Given that the “Ministry” of Education is in a situation where many things needto be done, it is useful to examine needs through a comprehensive “programmeapproach”. The magnitude of the task ahead also dictates that maximum use has to bemade of available resources. Conceptually, the urgent priorities as described by the“Ministry” may be seen under five broad objectives:

a) raising the quality of education;

b) maintaining universal access to basic education;

c) ensuring equity in educational opportunities;

d) making education relevant to social and economic development policies; and

e) developing the “Ministry” of Education for its roles of leadership andgovernance.

35. The “Ministry” of Education should move away from listing managementpriorities and instead define its needs through a comprehensive programme approachbased on an analyses of data in the educational sector

3.2. Quality of Education

3.2.1. Regional/Global Perspective

36. The challenge to be met in the long-term is to develop the Palestinian humanresource base so that Palestinians will once again have the skills and expertise to competesuccessfully in neighboring countries, throughout the Middle East and globally. Byvirtue of being a country where many Palestinians from the West Bank and Gaza havefound employment, Israel’s job market and overall economy will have a heavy influenceon the shape of education in the West Bank and Gaza. The rapidly improving economyof Jordan is also contributing to redefining human resource demands in the country.

37. In order for the West Bank and Gaza to respond to these challenges, a dramaticimprovement in the quality of education as well as more emphasis on the field oftechnical and vocational education is needed. This can only be achieved by progressingsimultaneously on several fronts: new and modern curricula need to be designed,learning materials need to be produced to communicate these new curricula, teachersneed to be trained on the new curricula and on how to be effective in the classroom andthe physical learning environments need to be improved so that they will support theeffective interaction of learners, teachers and learning materials.

3.2.2. Curriculum Development

38. In a series of workshops and seminars, Palestinians have identified areas ofconcern for the new curricula:

increasing competence in science and technology;greater sensitivity to Palestinian cultural heritage and needs of the future;more sophisticated understanding of the world in terms of geography, history,and languages;

- better command of one or two European languages introduced at an earlystage in student development;acquiring all the necessary skills to handle issues of knowledge and problemsolving techniques;imparting education of a transformed system of values related to democratictheory, practice and methods that contribute immeasurably to the respect ofhuman rights and to peace.

39. The difficult task of unifying and reforming the curricula in the West Bank andGaza appears even more difficult, when the constraints of time, cost and expertise areconsidered. The “Ministry” is caught in a situation where it will probably have tocontinue with what is already available and generally acceptable for the Palestinians inthe two areas. In the short-term the “Ministry” maybe able to most effectively utilize itsresources by identifying the common points in the Egyptian and Jordanian curricula andthen focusing its curriculum reform efforts on areas where these curricula are the mostincompatible and on adapting them to the Palestinian culture. This will not accomplishthe long-term goal of complete curriculum reform and unification immediately.However, it would enable the PA to begin the process of unification without forcing thepopulation to wait for completely new curricula and retrained teachers.

40. In its March 1994 Report on Emergency Assistance to the Occupied Territories,the World Bank recommends setting up an institution that would design i) an updated,unified curricular framework; ii) instruments for assessing the learning being pursuedunder the revised curriculum; iii) credentialing examinations for teachers; and iv) aprogramme of in-service training for teachers, administrators and school inspectors(World Bank, 1994a, Vol. 2, p. 32). UNESCO and the government of Italy are co-operating with the PA to establish a curriculum centre which would effect theserecommendations. Initially the centre would limit itself to designing an updatedcurriculum.

41. Objectives for the curriculum should include the following premises. It should:

- be a unifying mechanism for the two Palestinian sectors;enable Palestinians to be competitive relative to regional and global scenariosbased on scientific and technological literacy;

- be driven by quality standards;- be developed through community participation;- provide quality education to all Palestinians irrespective of gender, ethnicity,

religious affiliation, national origin or socio-economic status.

3.2.3. Learning Materials

42. A textbook policy needs to be established as a way of implementing the interimcurriculum and the future Palestinian curriculum. The most realistic short-term solutionis to reproduce textbooks based on the relevant aspects of the current Jordanian andEgyptian versions. It is estimated that it will take five to seven years to complete the newcurriculum with a new set of textbooks. The first texts will not be available before 1997.Until a new Palestinian curriculum is developed, the “Ministry” should considerproducing supplementary material which will help fill gaps and unify existing texts.There are a number of factors and questions which must be considered in thedevelopment of an entire new set of textbooks:

- It will cost a great deal of money.- It will be extremely time-consuming.- Are there possible alternatives to producing an entire set of texts all at once?

If so, what are the costs and benefits of alternate scenarios?- Are there publishers in the West Bank or Gaza capable of printing the texts?- Is there a distribution system in place?- Could part or all of the process be privatized?

43. The new Palestinian curriculum will integrate syllabi, instruction and materials.In addition to the production and supply of textbooks and other printed materials thecurriculum should further the use of other educational technologies such as video andaudio tapes, computer software as well as instructional hardware.

44. While the “Ministry” will have to develop certain textbooks and standardizededucational materials as a way to ensure quality education for all, these should be

supplemented by teacher or school based production. The latter provides a focus on theidea of low cost and improvisation, collective and regional production initiatives as wellas creativity and professionalism.

3.2.4. Teachers

45. As noted earlier in this report, the quality of education in the West Bank andGaza is generally unsatisfactory. The system is not providing an education of quality orof relevance. In order to address this issue the “Ministry” of Education is committed todeveloping anew curriculum and new teaching materials. The time frame for completingthis process is estimated to be five to seven years.

46. Teachers will have to be trained in the implementation of the new curriculum andin the use of the new materials. Since they only have between 14.6 and 18.6 contacthours per week and a school year of 201 days, there is some opportunity for teachers toundertake additional training on their own time. However, it has to be taken into accountthat teachers salaries are very low - only US$300 in public schools as opposed US$600in UNRWA schools - so that many teachers need to take on second jobs.

47. Educators in the West Bank and Gaza note that teachers need training not onlyin teaching methodology, but also in subject matter. It is not yet clear, whether thiswould be addressed through the “Ministry” or through other mechanisms (e.g. coursesat local universities). Options include using local universities or community colleges todeliver courses, distance learning or self-study with some sort of credentialing/qualifyingexaminations. The “Ministry” should explore the alternatives.

48. Before implementing a teacher training programme it will be important to carryout a training needs assessment.

49. The cost of delivering a comprehensive teacher training programme can be high,especially, if the programme includes training in subject matter. It would be worthwhileto consider emphasizing trainee-financed training and a policy which accepts trainingas an incentive for promotion and/or career growth rather than trying to provide trainingto all staff.

50. There are a number of existing institutions in the area which are capable ofproviding teacher training. In order to reduce its infrastructure build-up the “Ministry”should concentrate on setting training standards while utilizing the other existinginstitutions for most of the training. These include local universities, ongoing educationprogrammes, NGOs, other governmental bodies and international organizations. Inaddition, the use of distance learning could greatly reduce the cost and enhanceeffectiveness. It is not necessary to utilize only one of the above mentioned deliverymechanisms. On the contrary, it may be possible to combine centralized anddecentralized strategies.

51. Teacher training is not a short-term or one-stage process. It is a matter ofcontinuous upgrading of teachers’ professional qualifications. Teacher training not onlytransfers knowledge and skills, it also is an incentive programme and a way to promoteself-esteem. Besides subject matter and instructional techniques training, teachers needto acquire some critical managerial competencies such as project management, decision-making and problem-solving to enable them to manage problems indirectly related toinstruction and to be made more receptive to the many changes that the educationalsystem will inevitably undergo.

3.2.5. Physical Learning Environments

52. There are a total of 1,386 schools in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Of these,1021 are “Ministry” schools, 260 UNRWA schools, and 105 private. In the West Bankthere are 884 “Ministry” schools and 103 UNRWA schools, while in the Gaza Strip thecorresponding figures are 137 and 157 respectively. The school age population for thetwo regions is approximately equal.

53. Schools on single shift are used from 7:00 am until 12:00 am or 1:00 pm, 201days per year. This leaves a substantial amount of surplus space in afternoons andholiday periods.

54. The physical conditions of many schools throughout the West Bank and GazaStrip are well below the standard conducive for learning. The problems encountered are:

use of rented premises;unmaintained buildings;overcrowded classrooms;

- lack of laboratories and libraries;- dilapidated and inappropriate furniture;

absence of landscaping and playgrounds;triple shifts; and

- double shifts.

55. There are major inequities between private, UNRWA and “Ministry’ ’-run schools,as well as between West Bank and Gaza schools. UNRWA has its own standards forconstruction, but the “Ministry” does not. Double shifts are the rule in all UNRWAschools. The “Ministry” schools in Gaza are overcrowded and operating on double ortriple shifts, while single shifts are the rule in “Ministry” schools in the West Bank.

56. The situation of overcrowding and multiple shifts seems to be on the increase.The natural population growth rate has increased from 2.2 per cent in 1968 to 4.2 percent in the West Bank and 5.1 per cent in Gaza in 1991 (World Bank, 1993a, Vol. 6, p.8). This growth rate is outstripping the arrival of resources to build new space. On thepositive side there is strong evidence of willingness by certain communities to mobilizelocal and foreign resources for constructing and maintaining neighborhood schools.

57. The “Ministry” has created a Directorate for Buildings and Projects which is incharge of all construction and repairs. This directorate has a small central unit, an officein Gaza and one technical person in each of the District Education Offices. It is managedby an experienced engineer. The Deputy located in Gaza is a qualified architect. TheRamallah technical office and the Gaza office each have several technical personnel andare able to prepare bidding documents, call tenders and supervise construction.

58. A comprehensive, standardized data base on the number and condition of schoolbuildings, furnishings and equipment is a priority of the “Ministry” Directorate forBuildings and Projects, but is not yet available. Each district office has an officer, whois responsible for maintaining data and managing maintenance and construction of“Ministry’ ’-run schools. Through them a technical survey has been made of most schoolsin Gaza. For its part, UNRWA maintains a data base on buildings and sites for all of theirschools and is sharing this know-how with the “Ministry”.

59. A five step programme is required to address the problem of learningenvironments.

a) Establishment of standards.

b) Census and data base of buildings, site and furniture.

c) Comprehensive maintenance and site works improvements.

d) Construction of additions to existing schools.

e) Creation and construction of new schools.

60. The priority for new construction should be to relieve overcrowding, to eliminatetriple shifts and to add space for libraries, science facilities and physical education. Thiswould improve the quality of education. Elimination of double shifts should be a secondpriority.

61. The “Ministry” units need to be developed so that they can manage large scaleprogrammes by relying heavily on the private sector for design, as well as construction.

3.3. Equity and Access

62. As stated above, the problems of equity and access to the educational system arenot well documented, but exist inspite of enormous improvement over the last decades.It is therefore critical, that the “Ministry” carry-out or commission research in this areaso that informed policy decisions can be made.

63. When the PA articulates its educational goals, it should take a comprehensiveview of education and include informal and non-formal educational programmes as wellas the formal educational system. These programmes can be initiated in many sectors and

thus the planning process should involve an inter-ministerial and multi-sectoral planningand implementation process, which would provide a practical means of implementation.

64. programmes such as illiteracy eradication and compensatory education for earlyschool drop-outs and adults, more vocational education programmes and public librariesfor independent learning are some of the early options that should be given seriousconsideration. A well co-ordinated and comprehensive non-formal education programmewith strong community participation to support the rehabilitated formal schooling systemwill be needed.

3.3.1. Educationally Disadvantaged Youth

65. There are reasons to suspect that there are large numbers of young people whoare educationally disadvantaged. These would include women who have left school atan early age, rural youth, who never enrolled in school, young people, who dropped outof school because of social unrest and those who stayed in school, but received a sub-standard education due to loss of school time. It would also include children with specialneeds.

66. As a result of the measures adopted by the Israeli military authorities during theIntifada tens of thousands of young Palestinians were arrested and imprisoned, whilethousands were wounded, some of them with permanent disabilities. With theestablishment of the PA thousands of prisoners have been released, while more than6,000 are still in prisons and detention centres. Some of the released prisoners needrehabilitation while others, who did not complete their schooling, require some form ofadult education to compensate for what they have lost.

67. Even students who completed their schooling or university during the Intifadahave suffered from closures and lost teaching time. Their achievement has deterioratedto the level where they require compensatory education. Different forms of adulteducation, compensatory education and rehabilitation should be provided to those adultsor youths. Studies should be conducted to assess the volume and extent of the problemin order to provide the appropriate programme to each of the following categories:

released prisoners of school age;released prisoners beyond school age and without any vocational training;released prisoners beyond school age with vocational training;released prisoners with diploma or university degree.

3.3.2. Educationally Disadvantaged who are Still in School

68. In order to compensate for the lost teaching time and improve the achievementof the students who are still in school, especially in the upper elementary, preparatoryand secondary classes, studies should be conducted to identify the educational needs ofthose students who suffered more than others. Based on the outcomes of these studies,

remedial education programmes may be prepared for implementation in the schools inorder to bring the standards of these students to an acceptable level.

69. Similarly, the colleges and universities in the West Bank and Gaza should assessthe needs of their students and organize remedial classes to compensate for what theyhave lost during the past few years as a result of school closures.

3.4. Relevance

70. In the recent past the greatest number of job opportunities have been for unskilledor semi-skilled labour. No pressure was exercised on the education system in the WestBank and Gaza to produce highly skilled labour, managers or a labour base, which is ableto quickly acquire the new skills required for the latest changes in technology.

71. As mentioned above a recent study showed that students from the West Bank andGaza scored very low in industrial skills such as science and mathematics. At present,there is, however, little capacity to develop those skills. The few vocational coursesoffered at secondary level in community colleges lack in quality. This may be partly dueto insufficient material and teacher qualifications.

72. In order to provide Palestinians with the human resources they need to developa healthy economy, significant changes need to be made in the programmes offered andthe curricula used. Some of the immediate needs can be addressed through innovativetraining programmes, training by industry, non-formal education, continuing education,apprenticeship programmes and short and medium length training programmes followingthe completion of general secondary school education. The “Ministry” of Educationshould undertake studies of some of these less costly options for delivering vocationaleducation. Before undertaking any significant expansion of the vocational/technicaleducational system a study on the livelihoods of the Palestinian people and on how theeducational system can best support their way of life should be conducted.

73. The “Ministry” of Education has developed a comprehensive plan to refine andfurther develop the existing community colleges in a more market oriented way and withgreater participation of the private sector. This seems to be a very realistic vision.Technical and vocational education should be employed in a way to suit the current andfuture economic situation and needs. Furthermore the school and technical andvocational systems should complement each other to achieve initial credibility.

74. A policy for technical and vocational education should be based on a number ofanalytical studies relating to demand, cost and public interest. The policy should beperiodically evaluated and adjusted. Traditional vocational education programmes,particularly at the secondary level, are extremely expensive. The cost of maintaining up-to-date equipment in schools and staffing the schools with staff who are aware of themost recent innovations in industry is costly and difficult. Less costly options such asthose mentioned above, should be found.

3.5. Management and Structure of the Educational System

3.5.1. The Role of Educational Administration

75. Before analysing the administrative mechanisms already in place in the WestBank and Gaza Strip, it is useful to define the reasons for creating them. The generalgoals and the legislative framework for any educational system are established by thehighest political power in the country. The mechanism for educational administration,in this case the “Ministry” of Education, participates in preparing these goals andframeworks and has the responsibility for translating these principles into plans,programmes and projects. To prepare for their execution, the “Ministry” should developeducational objectives, content, methods and materials and organize the different levelsof education. It is in charge of implementation, follow-up and evaluation of plans andmakes proposals for revision if needed.

76. The most important task for any “Ministry” of Education is supporting teachersand pupils and creating the optimum conditions for the teaching/learning process and notcreating or running an administration. To that end, a well functioning educationaladministration has to be compact at all levels of its structure.

77. The “Ministry” of Education, as the highest educational authority in a country,has the general responsibility for development of the educational administration. It isresponsible for establishing a suitable division of labour as well as for ensuring co-operation between different levels of the administration and a balance of responsibilityat every level of the educational system.

78. The Palestinian “Ministry” of Education, as one of the first functioning parts ofthe PA, represents an extremely visible part of the new self-government. It has a centralrole in the nation-building process. It must demonstrate both to the Palestinians and tothe international community that the agreements with Israel actually offer newpossibilities for development and that Palestinians are able to take full responsibility fortheir own education. The ‘Ministry” is faced with great challenges. Yet, it is understaffedand in urgent need of new technology. Strengthening education in the West Bank andGaza Strip means addressing the needs of the entire educational system in concert withstrengthening the central offices of the “Ministry”. The vertical integration ofadministration, balanced with rational decentralization is a vital question to beaddressed at this stage of development.

79. Education is a social institution which functions in continuous and closeinteraction with the rest of society. In this case, it is a vital agent in a geographic regionundergoing profound economic, social and cultural change. A policy for the educationsector must be urgently formulated. This can, however, not be achieved in isolation fromnational goals. Effective and efficient educational administration presupposes close linkswith other sectors at the local, district, and national level. Simultaneously withdeveloping its internal vertical integration, contacts and forms of co-operation withsociety and other administrative authorities need to be shaped. Strengthening theeducational system’s external and horizontal relationship are therefore as important, asstrengthening its vertical structure.

3.5.2. The Structure of the Central Educational Administration

80. The central educational administrative unit is a single-level, ministry-based, coreadministration. The main technical office is located in the town of Ramallah in the WestBank, while other “Ministry” offices are in Gaza and Jericho. The “Ministry” ofEducation has a central and unique role both in formulating educational policy and inprofessional matters, but the definition of the role and tasks of the “Ministry” are stillunder consideration. As the detailed chart in Annex I shows, the “Ministry” of Educationhas been designed to cover all functions dealing with education. This results in a veryheavy organization. Although the “Ministry” serves a small population of only 2 million,there are 10 departments including a total of 103 different sections or divisions. Each ofthe departments has offices in both Ramallah and Gaza.

81. The Deputy “Minister” is assisted by two Assistants to the Deputy “Minister”.One of them is located in Gaza, heading the Gaza Regional Directorate of Education.Two District Education Directors are subordinate to him, one for North - and one forSouth Gaza. Nine District Education Directors (including one for Jerusalem) aresubordinate to the Assistant to the Deputy “Minister” for West Bank Affairs. His officeis located in the West Bank and is also in charge of legislation and statistics in the“Ministry” of Education.

82. Currently, there are approximately eighty staff members (from “Minister” tosupport staff’) in the central offices of the “Ministry” of Education. Thirty-five staffmembers work in the Gaza Regional Education Office. For&five work in the‘Ministry"’s technical office, set up in the College for Women in Ramallah. The buildingis undergoing remodeling, but needs further construction and maintenance work.Assistance is also needed for the purchase of computers, office equipment and furniture.

83. As stated above, the definition of the role of the “Ministry” is still underconsideration. Since the “Ministry” is an agency operating at the central level, it isresponsible for general policy-making, legislation, budgeting, monitoring and evaluation.It also has to build and maintain good relationships with society and other sectors of thecentral administration.

84. In order to effectively assume these key areas of responsibility, the “Ministry”must have adequate means to monitor and regulate the system. The instruments neededare:

national curricula;standardized textbooks;national examinations;experienced and qualified administrators at the district level;an effective supervising system; andthe right to issue regulations.

85. The strengthening of the “Ministry” of Education means, first and foremost,strengthening the “Ministry’”s role as a strong policy maker. It does not mean increasingthe “Ministry’”s responsibility for routine matters or the centralization of decisionmaking.

3.5.3. The Structure of the Regional Educational Administration: Gaza

86. Since the West Bank and Gaza are served by two distinct educational systems andbecause of physical distance and travel restraints, the Gaza Strip has its own regionaleducation office headed by the Assistant to the Deputy “Minister” for Gaza Affairs of the“Ministry” of Education. A special feature of this office is that it contains part of eachof the ten directorates of the “Ministry”: One Director General (Examinations,measurements, and Evaluation) and nine of the ten Deputy Director Generals are locatedin this office. In addition, the two District Education Offices in Gaza are subordinatedto the regional office. The general structure of regional educational administration inGaza is shown in the chart on Gaza structure in Annex I.

87. The Deputy “Minister” of the ‘Ministry” of Education is present in Gaza two daysper week (Wednesday and Thursday) as is the “Minister” of Education, who comes toGaza on Saturdays and Sundays. The Assistant to the Deputy “Minister” for Gaza Affairs(Head of the Gaza Office) is also responsible for liaison with those other ministrieswhich are located in Gaza.

88. The development conditions in Gaza are very challenging. Every year about75,000 new students join the public schools in Gaza. There area total of 137 schools, butonly 94 with school buildings, so there is an urgent need for classrooms. As in otherdistricts, there is a need for training teachers and administrative staff. To adjust to thissituation the Gaza office is concentrating mostly on planning and supervising education.

3.5.4. The Structure of the District Educational Administration

89. There are a total of ten educational districts in the West Bank and Gaza, eight ofthem in the West Bank and two in Gaza. (For maps of the educational Districts in theWest Bank and Gaza, see Annex IV.) East Jerusalem constitutes another educationaldistrict, which is, however, not under the authority of the PA. All of the DistrictEducation Directorates have, in principle, the same functions. The list of functions is asfollows:

admission of students;appointmen/transfer of teachers;training of teachers;building and maintenance of schools;collection of schools data;providing textbooks and school furniture;supervision of the educational process;supervising/licensing private schools;

monitoring expenditure of school contribution funds.

Because the functions of District Directorates are basically the same, the structure of tenDirectorates is very similar.

90. Supervision of the educational process in schools is one of the most importanttasks at district level. Supervision covers, in principle, all subjects. There is, however,no supervisor for the first three years of schooling, when children follow an integratedcurriculum. The other main area of function includes more technical and supportivetasks. The structure of the organization is shown in the chart of the structure of thedirectorates. (See Annex I.)

91. The current Palestinian educational administrative structure is thesuperimposition of two parts: one old, one new. The new part, established during the pastyear, is the Technical Office of the “Ministry” of Education in Ramallah and the Gazaregional office. Staff have been drawn from the PLO Department of Education, theuniversities and the Council for Higher Education. The district education directorates andthe principals in the schools represent the old system dating from the period before andduring the occupation. They have long traditions and a great deal of professionalexperience, but little modern management training. As the functions of the districtdirectorates show, they have the basic responsibility for running education in the schools.The staff of the directorates appear to have good relations and fairly frequent contactwith the head teachers and their deputies.

92. As stated above, the vertical integration of these two parts is essential for asuccessful educational system. At this point a crucial question is how best to utilize thepotential capacity of the districts. Clearly, most personnel need training, yet manyemployees have valuable professional skills which could be employed for internaldevelopment projects and task forces. Stock-taking of national human resources will beone of the most important tasks of the new “Ministry” of Education.

93. A very preliminary analysis of the current situation of the district administrationindicates that their role, function and task remain relevant, even in this new stage ofdevelopment in the Palestinian education system. They have a relatively strong role andgood practical experience in supporting the every-day running of the schools. If thiscapacity can be turned into a real strength for decentralization, it would relieve the“Ministry” of routine tasks and give it the possibility of concentrating on shaping its roleas the highest policy maker in education.

3.6. Educational Finance

3.6.1. Costs and Revenue

94. According to the World Bank, the total expenditure in all levels of education isbetween US$170 million and US$175 million a year. 80-85 per cent of the expenditureis for grades one to twelve. The remaining expenditure is for post-secondary education.This represents a per capita expenditure of US$90-100 per resident of the Occupied

Territories and corresponds to approximately two-thirds of the amount being spent percapita on health care. (World Bank, 1993a, Vol. 6., p. 37)

95. In 1991 the Israeli Civil Administration provided more than 40 per cent of thefunds for educational costs in grades one to twelve. Just over 50 per cent of this taxrevenue was obtained from income tax, VAT and customs and excises. The rest camefrom other fees and charges.

96. Most municipalities levy an education tax, which is used primarily to build andmaintain school buildings. Additional funding is obtained through school fees, which arecurrently 60 Shekels for students in the basic cycle and 80 Shekels for students in thesecondary cycle. These fees should generate another US$10 million. However, manystudents cannot afford to pay the fees and are thus exempted from payment, so that theactual amount of revenue generated from the fees is less. Some schools have goodrelationships with the local community enabling them to mobilize the communityresources for the school and the education process. Others have active parent-teacherassociations which assist the headteacher in overcoming many of the problems facing theschool or the students.

97. Private primary and secondary schools are financed largely or entirely withstudent fees. They attract paying students, because they are perceived to offer a bettereducation.

98. Much of the revenue for education is obtained from external sources and notgenerated from taxes, fees or local contributions. The largest contributor after the publicsector, which spent US$58 million in 1991, is UNRWA which spent US$52 million in1991 providing education to nearly 150,000 students. This represents nearly 40 per centof the total costs of basic and secondary education. Additional outside revenue isobtained from international agencies, bilateral aid programmes, international NGOs andfrom Palestinians in the Diaspora.

99. In the long term, it is expected that the Palestinians will be able to secure theirrevenue through tax collection. However, the amount of revenue currently available doesnot appear to be enough to meet the needs of the education system.

100. According to Meron Benvenisti, official economic data in the West Bank andGaza is “inaccurate at best and misleading at worst” (Benvenisti, 1986, p. 5). Roughestimates put the GDP of the Occupied Territories in 1991 at 2.66-2.76 billion Shekels(World Bank, 1993a, Vol. 2., p. 136). According to World Bank data, the Israeli CivilAdministration collected approximately 20 per cent of GDP in taxes in 1991. This wasup from approximately 15 per cent in previous years. (The amount in 1993 came to 28per cent GDP, but this figure may be misleading, as in the early 1990s taxes wereaggressively collected as a form of punishment. It is not indicative of the amounts whichthe PA can expect to collect.) These figures compare with 27 per cent in Jordan and 39per cent in Israel. If the PA is successful in setting up a strong and effective taxcollection system, the amount collected could rise to at least 25 per cent of GDP (WorldBank, 1994b).

103. The World Bank estimates that the PA will collect revenues amounting toUS$204 million in 1994 and US$542 million in 1995 (World Bank, 1994b, p. 44)¹.Clearly, this is not going to be sufficient to meet current needs and substantial externalinputs will be required - both for normal and development costs. Planning staff at the“Ministry” of Education urgently need to develop a standardized budgeting process tobe able to forecast more rationally their financial needs. Because both income andexpenses for the system are so dependent upon forces external to the “Ministry” ofEducation - taxes, population increases, the economy - it will be important for plannersto work closely with other ministries and organizations in the country.

3.6.2. Normal Recurrent Costs

104. Because of the lack of precise data on population, drop-out rates, repetition ratesand internal and external migration, it is difficult to accurately forecast future enrollmentsin the school system. This, in turn, makes it very difficult to estimate future financialrequirements and prepare a prospective school map.

105. Over the past few years, total enrolment in the basic and secondary cycle hasincreased by approximately 2 per cent a year, with increases in public schools being thelowest and in private schools the highest. The large increase in the number of studentsattending private schools - over 7 per cent a year in the past two years - may be due tothe impact of the Intifada on the public school system and the concern of parents aboutproviding their children with a decent education.

106. Student enrolment in the public school system could increase sharply over thenext five years, especially in Gaza, due to the assumption of control by the PA and thereturn of Palestinians from the Diaspora. These increases will put further strains on thebudgetary resources of the “Ministry” of Education.

107. Teacher salaries are the major component of the education budget. Although theyare very low - approximately US$300 per month, compared to twice that amount forUNRWA - the current cost for salaries is approximately US$55 million a year. If thosesalaries were doubled, which would not be unreasonable, given current economicconditions, the cost would rise to over US$100 million. If the PA were furthermore toassume the cost of running UNRWA schools, while maintaining UNRWA salaries andat the same time raising the salaries of public school teachers to meet those of UNRWA,the cost for salaries alone would rise to over US$150 million a year.

108. In order to keep pace with current costs, the “Ministry” of Education plans tospend approximately US$350 per student per year. This is consistent with the amountspent by Jordan as well as by UNRWA. At current enrolment levels this would requirea budget of US$140 -$150 million a year. However, it must be noted that, if the PA has

1 According to The Economist of 13- 19 May 1995, the PA’s tax revenue was US$7million in January 1995 and only US$3 million in April 1995.

to assume the costs for providing education to all of those presently in the UNRWAsystem and if there are significant numbers of returnees, the total cost for simplymaintaining the system at current level (same student/teacher ratios, no significant salaryincreases, minimal educational infrastructure) could rise to well over US$200 million ayear.2

3.6.3. Emergency Funding Requirements

109. Due to the neglect of the system over the past three decades, substantial inputsare required to get the system operating at a respectable level. The “Ministry” ofEducation estimates that it will require US$28 million a year for school construction andrehabilitation. In addition, substantial inputs will be required for school maintenance,teacher upgrading, the purchase of equipment and curriculum development. The“Ministry” of Education is therefore projecting a need of $100 million over its regularbudget.

4. Towards a Long-Term Vision

110. The West Bank and Gaza are known to be very poor in natural resources. Theyhave very limited arable land and face acute water shortages - especially in Gaza. Tocompensate for these shortcomings, it is incumbent on the PA to look at education andtraining as the resource upon which they can build a development strategy. Througheducation a high quality, flexible Palestinian labour force could be trained, which couldcompete easily due to its relatively lower cost and capability to respond rapidly to thechanging needs of national or regional labour markets.

111. The neglect and deprivation, which the Palestinian education system has sufferedin the past, now gives Palestinians the opportunity to develop a radically new educationalscenario. They will be able to reform or restructure the system and strengthen both itstheory and practices. Systematic initiatives in management and organization could ensurethe development of an integrated and progressive education system to serve thePalestinians now and in the years ahead.

112. The current organizational structure of the “Ministry” of Education is an effectiveinterim solution for helping the “Ministry” to meet the needs of the transfer period. Yet,it is already necessary to initiate a more comprehensive and longer-term approach indeveloping the educational administration. In order for the “Ministry” to be effective, thefunctions and structure of administration must reflect and respond to educational policyand the main tasks of the administration.

2According to The Economist of 13-19 May 1995, the PA has projected a budget deficitof US$135 million for its entire 1995 budget. At a Paris donor-meeting in April 1995 thedonors agreed to underwrite this deficit, putting up US$65 million at once.

113. The starting point in the development of any educational administrative systemis to analyse the influences of structure, management and personnel on theadministration. It is necessary to take into account the availability of financial resources.The establishment of an administrative structure must aim at economically viablesolutions in view of the scarce economic resources.

114. The following analyses would consider variables such as the current scenarios,the opportunities and options, as well as the threats in curriculum development, pre-service and in- service teacher training and in adult education. Technical and vocationaleducation would also be analysed from the same perspectives.

115. As stated above, the most important tasks of the “Ministry” of Education in thefuture are to:

a) formulate and authorize a vision for Palestinian Education;

b) unify the educational system;

c) define the role of the “Ministry” of Education as a national agency andthe highest educational policy-maker in the country;

d) analyse carefully the influence of this role on the structure of theorganization and on the need for staff.

116. The “Ministry” of Education had to take over the responsibility for the currenteducation system in a very short time. It has been a great challenge to the understaffedteam, which, for the most part, has neither significant administrative experience norrecent practical experience with every-day life in Palestinian schools. Personnel needsmanagement training. The staff has barely tackled the issues brought to them. Mostactions are of an emergency nature like responding to each new crisis. The “Ministry”staff needs to prepare themselves to make policy decisions based on a real knowledge ofthe situation in the schools. An inexpensive but effective way to build awareness wouldbe for the staff to visit schools and district offices on a regular basis to see whatdecisions can be made at school and at district level, thereby freeing the “Ministry” toaddress policy issues.

117. The efforts of the “Ministry” of Education in the above mentioned issues areclosely linked with the development of educational administration. An effective way todevelop its administrative structure on the basis of its analysis would be to develop anaction plan based on a set of fixed objectives for policy development and implementation.The action plan should define objectives, include a time schedule, prepare task analyses,identify responsible persons and agencies, list resources, provide descriptions of workingmethods and make plans for follow-up and evaluation. It should be an action plan for theentire educational administrative system, including a plan of evaluation.

118. The preparation of an action plan will help the “Ministry” to think ahead, at leastone year, and create a total picture of administration. Through a democratic andparticipatory preparation process different partners could be involved in the process of

developing the plan. This plan would then become a basic policy document dealing withthe development of educational administration.

119. A longer-term need is to restructure the “Ministry”. As stated above, the currentstructure of the “Ministry” is an interim one. The “Ministry”, which will evolve as thepolitical and economic climate evolves, should consider revising its structure so as tobetter meet its objectives. The most urgent need is the establishment of a planning unit,staffed and positioned in a way to substantially influence the shaping of a rational andcost effective “Ministry”. The planning unit should concentrate on policy planning andbe the main analytical advisor of the “Minister”. The planning unit would be best situatedwithin the organizational structure allowing for direct access to the “Minister” and to theDirector General. It should be staffed with a complete team, including statisticians,planners and policy advisors, who work together. Among its functions would be theidentification of studies which need to be undertaken in order to make policy decisions.(A listing, neither exhaustive nor mandatory, of subjects which deserve study is givenin Annex VIII.)

120. In the analyses of its structure, the “Ministry” should study avenues fordecentralization in order to:

strengthen the District Education Offices;encourage locally governed, school-based development;enlarge parents’ participation and community involvement.

121. To stimulate thinking about another way to approach structure - shifting theemphasis of the “Ministry” to policy issues - a hypothetical alternative structure ispresented. (See chart of proposed reorganization in Annex I.)

122. According to this alternative, the professional responsibility for development ofcurricula, preparation of learning materials, organization of examinations and teachertraining would be given to a semi-autonomous Institute of Education, which woulddevelop out of the Curriculum Development Centre, which is now being created. ThisInstitute of Education would operate in very close co-operation with the “Ministry”. The“Ministry” would be in charge of required political and administrative decisions.

123. The organization of the “Ministry” in the alternative structure is divided into twomain functional sectors. The Department of General, Vocational and TechnicalEducation would concentrate on the substantive issues of education. The otherdepartment, in charge of administration and management services, would provide anintegrated and co-ordinated set of services to the substantive wing, thereby keeping theprovision of education the central objective of the “Ministry”.

124. Such a structure would result in five main units to be supervised by the “Minister”and the Deputy “Minister” - a number consistent with good management practice.

PART III:AREAS FOR INTERNATIONAL ASSISTANCE

The “Ministry” of Education needs external assistance to develop its educationsystem because it lacks financial resources as well as technical expertise and manpower.In asking the international community to join into face the challenging task ahead, the“Ministry” has made clear its policy of maximizing the use of professionally ablePalestinians who are either available locally, from the universities and private sector, orfrom the Diaspora. International expertise, when needed, should be used to produceconcrete results and transmit specific skills to Palestinians.

The donor community, both international and bilateral, has shown great solidaritywith the PA by expressing its interest to provide support to Palestinian education. Inorder to ensure that assistance is optimally used, the “Ministry” has created a donor co-ordination committee, which is chaired by the Deputy “Minister” and includes fourDirector Generals. Monthly meetings are being held with the donors to ensuretransparency and co-ordination of external assistance to education.

The project areas given below cover the spectrum of project areas given by the“Ministry” as its priorities. These have been discussed between the “Ministry” and theconcurrent missions of UNESCO, UNICEF and the World Bank. In Part II of this reporta set of five broad objectives is given for the development of a long term view ofeducational development. The matrix on the following page illustrates how each projectarea relates to the different objectives. Two of the project areas, curriculum developmentand school repair, have already begun with first phase actions. Major follow-up projectsare proposed.

UNESCO in drawing up its programme of Assistance to the Palestinian people(PAPP), will include all or parts of these projects in its appeal to donors.

PROGRAMME MATRIX

PRIORITIES

1. Curriculum and textbooks

2. Upgrading teacher skills

3. Equipment and educational materials

4. School maintenance

5. Consolidation/Expansion of existing schools

6.1 Community College Development

7. Opportunities for disadvantaged groups

8. Development of the MOE

9. I Longer term educational vision

OBJECTIVES

A. PROJECTS ALREADY UNDERWAY

1. Support to Curriculum Development in Palestine: Preparatory Phase(534/RAB/10)

1.1. National Executing Agencies

The “Ministry” of Education

1.2. Duration

November 1994- January 1996

1.3. Context and Justification

There is no unified curriculum for the Palestinian people. Schools in the West Bankfollow the Jordanian curriculum while those in the Gaza Strip follow the Egyptian one.Consequently, neither of these curricula suits the needs of the Palestinians, nor are theysensitive to their cultural identity or national heritage. Furthermore, the quality of theeducation system does not meet international standards as the results of Palestinian studentsin comparative international testing show. This is especially true in mathematics andsciences.

The Palestinian “Ministry” of Education and UNESCO have already started workingtowards an educational system designed to suit the Palestinians. A Plan of Operation wassigned by the PA and UNESCO on 10 November 1994 for the establishment of a CurriculumDevelopment Centre.

While the ultimate target beneficiaries of the curricula are the Palestinian childrenand youth, the immediate target beneficiary is the educational personnel responsible fordifferent aspects of the curriculum reform programme.

Curriculum development is an area that was recognized as a priority by UNESCOand the PLO. Two workshops have been held (in Paris in 1990 and in Jerusalem in 1993) todefine priorities and map out implementation strategies for primary and secondary levels.A third workshop for vocational education has been proposed by UNESCO (see project B6). Also see Project on Curriculum Development (project B 1).

1.4. Project Objectives and Implementation Strategies

In the long run this project will contribute to the development of an education thatreflects the Palestinian national heritage and is suited to the Palestinian economic, social and

cultural objectives by introducing a systematic, co-ordinated and integrated approach to thedevelopment of a national curriculum.

The immediate objective is to establish and institutionalize arrangements for amedium-term project concerned with the implementation of a systematic programme ofcurriculum development, evaluation and revision. It will produce a blueprint for the creationof capacity and institutional framework for curriculum research, dissemination, review andevaluation of learning outcomes.

Under the authority of the “Minister” of Education a committee will clarify policiesand priorities and be responsible for approving the submitted plans and proposals. A coreproject management team will prepare proposals, plans and strategies for the implementationof the project.. The necessary technical backstopping will be provided by UNESCO staff andan external consultant. Finally, activities will be conducted to raise the awareness of the keytarget groups about the project.

1.5. Main Results to be Achieved

A curriculum reform and development programme, taking into account reports onthe present curriculum situation and Palestinian goals and objectives for education, will bedesigned. This will be accompanied by a Project Document for its implementation duringa five year Phase (1996 - 2000). In addition, guidelines will be developed on the use ofJordanian and Egyptian curriculum materials as an interim measure.

Main Activities

Review of Palestinian goals for national Education.

Carrying out of situational surveys.

Assessment and synthesis of former findings of missions,seminars and workshops.

organization of workshops and orientation seminars etc.

Identification and adaption of suitable educationalmaterial from other countries.

Main Inputs

Senior officials from the “Ministry” will review and approve plans, proposals andactivities. The “Ministry” will also provide assistance and advice regarding suitable premisesand candidates for the project.

UNESCO will provide the nationally recruited staff and the technical support servicesas well as equipment, materials and supplies and the project operating costs.

1.8. Project Budget

Total Project Costs

1.9. Funding

US$300,000

2. Saudi Arabia Funded Project for School Repairs in the Gaza Strip and in theWest Bank (505/RAB/10)

“Ministry” of Education

2.2. Duration

September 1994- March 1996

There are a total of 137 public schools in the Gaza Strip and 884 in the West Bank.These schools are of different design and have been constructed over several decades, someof them more than fifty years ago. Limited financial resources for maintenance andconstruction over the last decades have lead to the deterioration of most schools, creating alarge backlog for maintenance and repairs. (While some teachers succeeded in mobilizingtheir community resources to at least repair all that was absolutely necessary, many othershave not succeeded in doing so.) Most schools are, therefore, in a desolate state which doesnot only lead to difficulties in teaching and learning but sometimes even poses safety threats.

The target beneficiaries of the project are seventeen schools in the West Bank andGaza Strip.

The objectives of the project are to create a conducive and safe learning environmentin the most needy schools. In the long run it should serve as a model for initiating a processwhich will lead to the repair and maintenance of all schools in the West Bank and Gazastrip.

In all, seventeen schools - fourteen in Gaza and three in the West Bank - are beingrestored, furnished and equipped according to a priority list. The project is beingimplemented by the “Ministry” of education who designated a national project co-ordinatorand will design, assist and supervise the rehabilitation. UNESCO provides the services of acivil engineer and ensures the proper implementation of the project together with the“Ministry”. Throughout the project UNESCO will keep a liaison with the Saudi governmentin all matters pertaining to the project.

The seventeen schools will be completely restored, furnished and equipped so as toprovide conducive learning environments.

2.6. Main Activities

Selection of seventeen most needy schools.

Establishment of a priority list of basic equipment andidentification of deficiencies in each school.

Repairing, furnishing and equipping each school in accordance with the priority list.

2.7. Main Inputs

The “Ministry” will provide office space, secretarial services and internalcommunication, as well as the necessary staff for implementing the project.

UNESCO will provide the costs for financing renovation, building, equipment andfurnishings up to the limit indicated in the budget. It will also provide the staff necessary forensuring the proceedings of the project.

2.8. Project Budget

Total Project Costs US$2,500,000

2.9. Funding

Saudi Arabia

B. NEW PROPOSALS

1. Support to Curriculum Development and In-Service Teacher Education

1.1. National Executing Agency

“Ministry” of Education and Higher Education

1.2. Duration

five years (1996 - 2000)

The nature of the political environment in the Occupied Territories has resulted incritical shortcomings and problems within the education system which the PA is committedto address. These include:

the absence of a unified national system of education;

low internal efficiency and diminishing quality of education resulting from frequentclosures of institutions and characterized by classroom overcrowding, double-shifts,significant drop-out rates, and low student performance;

the closure of institutions between 1987 and 1990 and their sporadic closure sincethen, has seriously eroded the culture of learning and a generation of young peoplehas been denied educational opportunities;

differences between the three systems of administration (public, private, UNRWA),absence of co-ordination of the curricula taught in the West Bank and Gaza, and theirlack of relevance to the social, cultural and economic needs of the Palestinian people;a scarcity of textbooks - the few that are in use are out of date; the absence of acoherent curriculum design to guide the choice of textbooks; and lack of a consistentrelationship between the curricula and materials used at the primary, preparatory, andsecondary levels;

low-quality science and technology and technical and vocational educationprogrammes.

The situation suggests a need for a national mechanism for designing andimplementing educational programmes that are relevant to the realities of the Palestinianenvironment. Such a mechanism is considered necessary for the purpose of relatingeducation and curriculum to the philosophy, culture and economic objectives of the society.The challenge is to produce a curriculum with the underlying philosophy, objectives,

structure, organisation and instructional materials that would better serve the needs ofPalestinian society and which, in the emerging socio-political context, would maximize thechoices available to the Palestinian authorities, educational institutions and the learners.

The target beneficiaries of the project include: Palestinian children and youth, forwhom relevant and appropriate curricula will be designed; national leaders and senioradministrators, who articulate policies and priorities and whose role will be crucial inproviding supportive and timely decisions concerning activities of the curriculum reformexercise; curriculum specialists; classroom teachers; school heads; supervisors and teachertrainers, with a view to enhancing the effectiveness of their role in the curriculum reformexercise.

The intended end-of-project situation is the existence of capacity for curriculumresearch and development through a medium-term policy perspective and strategy,particularly with regard to institutional arrangements and the relationship betweencurriculum development and production of instructional materials, educational research,examinations, overall planning for educational development, teacher education and thetraining of educational planners, administrators, inspectors and school heads.

As a strategy, the project is to be developed as a major component of an integratednational programme for educational reconstruction and development. The principal elementsof this programme were identified in a Memorandum of Co-operation signed by UNESCOand the PLO on 9 December 1993 in Granada. These elements, in the form of projectproposals, were reviewed and confirmed in the first working session of the jointUNESCO/PLO Committee in Tunis in April 1994 and have been further refined duringmissions since the creation of the PA. A Project Management Committee chaired by the“Minister” of Education and Higher Education will provide the administrative guidance tothe project. A core project team comprising a national director, two international advisorsand national programme co-ordinators will be responsible for preparing proposals, plans andstrategies for project activities; UNESCO staff, external consultants, and representatives ofdonor agencies will provide technical backstopping. Emphasis will be placed on activitiesintended to raise the awareness of the key target groups about the project.

Development objective:

The development of an education that reflects the economic, social and culturalobjectives of the Palestinians by introducing a systematic, co-ordinated andintegrated approach to the development of a national curriculum (educational goalsand objectives, syllabuses, textbooks, teachers’ guides, and other instructionalmaterials) that is relevant to the needs and characteristics of Palestinian children andyouth.

Immediate objectives:

The establishment of a national Curriculum Development Centre capable ofundertaking and sponsoring research into curriculum issues, managing thedevelopment and production of learning and teaching materials, and collaboratingwith teacher training institutions in the organisation of in-service courses for teachersfor the dissemination of new curricula.

The establishment of a collaborative mechanism and system for planning,implementing and evaluating curriculum development programmes.

The design and implementation of a systematic programme for the development,production and dissemination of curriculum materials (pupils texts and other learningmaterials, teachers manuals and materials for teacher in-service and upgradingprogrammes).

The design and implementation of a comprehensive, integrated and phased trainingprogramme for Palestinian educators, specialists and administrators in the conceptsand techniques of curriculum development and evaluation. The design andmanagement of in-service programmes for teachers, instructional supervision andlearning assessments, distance education techniques and development of skills indesk-top publishing and production.

A functional Curriculum Development Centre.

A committee system which facilitates participatory decision-making throughconsultation and debate and provides opportunities for administrators, educators,classroom teachers, curriculum developers, specialists from other sectors andcommunity leaders to contribute to curriculum change and development activities,comprising a Curriculum Committee, subject Curriculum Panels and with provisionfor occasional working groups and task forces.

An operational and phased programme for curriculum development and productionof textbooks, teachers handbooks and other teaching and learning materials at thebasic education level.

Palestinian educators, administrators, supervisors and teachers trained in theconcepts, techniques and management of curriculum development.

Identification of a site and appointment of core local staff for the CurriculumDevelopment Centre.

Creation of the Curriculum Committee and subject Curriculum Panels.

Preparation of goals and objectives for education, developing and field testing ofteaching and learning materials, and undertaking their final publication, anddissemination.

Implementation of a comprehensive training programme comprising: internationaland regional fellowships, study tours and in-country workshops, seminars and in-service activities.

1.7. Project Budget

Personnel

International Personnel-1 Advisor in Curriculum Development

and Teacher Education-1 Specialist in Print Media

and Textbook Production- Ad hoc consultants

Nationally-recruited staff-1 National Project Director (48 mm)-8 Programme Co-ordinators (384 mm)-8 Curriculum Specialists (384 mm)-2 Production Officers (120 mm)- Ad hoc consultants

Administrative support staff (420 mm)

Training

- International/regional fellowships,- Study tours, in-country seminars,

workshops- In-service courses

Equipment

3,194,500

360,000

416,000

80,000

120,000960,000760,000180,00050,000

268,500

1,091,600

270,000

- One 8-seater mini bus- desk-top publishing equipment- Equipment, furniture materials

and supplies- Hire of printing services

Miscellaneous and Project Support Costs

- Reporting- Operation and maintenance of equipment- Contingencies- Project support including UNESCO Staff

Total Project Costs

1,225,460

5,781,560

2. Teacher Education

“Ministry” of Education, University faculties of Education

2.2. Duration

July 1995- December 1997

In the 1994/1995 school year there were some 14,022 primary and secondary levelteachers in Gaza and the West Bank “Ministry’ ’-run schools. Of these 3,387 were teachingin the Gaza Strip and 17,409 in the West Bank. Their qualifications are low withapproximately 67 per cent having no more than a two year post secondary diploma. Whilethe diploma holders would normally have received some training in educational methods,in 1993 only 579 teachers were registered as having both a university degree and an EDdiploma. Sampling of teacher knowledge of the subject matter they teach indicatessubstantial inadequacies.

UNRWA, which like the “Ministry” teaches the Egyptian curricula in the Gaza Stripand Jordanian curricula in the West Bank, had recognized a similar pattern of poor teacherqualification in its schools, and over the recent years has developed in-service trainingmaterials designed to upgrade their staff. Teachers, headteachers and supervisors have nearlyall benefitted from training courses of one to three years using a distance educationapproach. These differences in qualifications between UNRWA and “Ministry” teacherscompound the educational inequalities created by the two different curricula in use.

In a parallel project a new unified Palestinian curriculum will be developed. It isexpected that new curricular materials will begin to be available from 1996 onwards,possibly beginning with social studies for all grades and with comprehensive materials forone or two grades only. This project is the first step in upgrading teachers’ skills and teachingmethods. The curriculum development project will give special training in new curricula asthey become available.

While there are at least twelve community colleges, six regular universities and oneopen university that offer courses in education, the “Ministry” has not yet established amechanism for setting standards for in-service or pre-service training.

The project is designed to benefit Palestinian children and youth who are studying inprimary and secondary schools. To reach them, the project would directly benefit theteachers by adding to their professional qualifications.

In-service teacher training is one of the areas designated in the UNESCO programme,and detailed draft proposals have been submitted to and commented upon by the “Ministry”.This proposal takes into account the desire of the “Ministry” to buildup a capacity withinthe “Ministry” to set standards for in-service training and also to link the training to relatedactions such as curriculum development, provision of learning materials and school buildingrepair. There is also a need to examine the overall pattern of teacher education and to definethe interface between in-service and pre-service teacher education.

The long-term objective of this project is to contribute to the improvement of thequality of primary and secondary education through the raising of teacher qualifications,notably their level of substantive knowledge and educational skills. In the long-term it isexpected that virtually all the teaching staff may be reached, employing the information andexperience gained from the implementation of this project which can be seen as a first steptowards raising the quality of education through teacher training.

There are two immediate objectives which this project would address:

the development of the capacity of the “Ministry” of Education to establish standardsof teacher education; and

the development of tested teacher education materials that can be used by anyqualified teacher education institution.

The project would enable the “Ministry” to develop central control of standard settingfor teacher education which could, after satisfactory application, be adopted by the networkof teacher training institutions. The teacher training programmes would be developed, testedand implemented in the first stages by a small core-team of master teacher trainers from the“Ministry”. This team will then train the district office supervisors (and available outstandingteachers) who, in turn would run training programmes for the body of the teaching staff.

Teachers would be required to take three hours of their own time every three weeksto follow courses over a period of three years. Training would stress content knowledge aswell as teaching methodology. A distinction will be made for grades one to four whereteachers will be expected to have teaching abilities in a number of subjects at the same grade,and grades five to ten where they will be teaching in one or two subjects to a number ofgrades. District resource centres will be used as much as possible as the location for in-service teaching.

The project would result in the establishment of tested materials for training teachersin five subjects (mathematics, Arabic, social studies, science and religious instruction) at allbasic education grades. These materials would take into account the curriculum currently in

use, but would also prepare teachers for the future Palestinian curriculum underdevelopment.

Through the cascade approach to teacher training, beginning with a group of 10training specialists and 180 trainers (60 supervisors and 120 selected outstanding teachers)some 10,200 will receive in-service training. This will include 1800 teachers each inmathematics, science and social studies and 2400 each in Arabic and religious education. Allteachers will receive training on effective teaching methodologies taking into account thebest approaches for each age group. The teachers will be taught in 10 sessions of three-hourseach per year over a period of 3 years. 20 to 30 teachers will make up one section. Inbetween sections teachers will apply what they have learned in the preceding sessions in theirclassrooms and will prepare for the next section in their spare time.

Training abroad of ten training specialists.

Creation of core training teams in each educational district, development and testingof training materials in each district. Study of the near term and longer termfeasibility of using distance education methods for certain components of thetraining.

Launching of three year training programme.

Sharing of training materials with private teacher education institutions forgeneralized use.

2.7. Main Inputs

Personnel

The project will rely largely on “Ministry” staff and local consultants who will assistin the development of training materials. One international consultant (6 m/m) willbe utilized to advise on the project design and to undertake an annual assessment ofproject achievements.

Training

Study tours: 10 training specialists would undergo 6 weeks of training abroad innear-by countries which have outstanding programmes in teacher training.

Local Training: The 180 trainers would undergo an initial orientation of 2 weeks andwould participate in a one week evaluation workshop at the end of each of the 3years the project is in operation.

10,200 math, science, social studies, Arabic and religion teachers would receivetraining 30 hours per year over a period of 3 years.

Material Development

Teacher training materials will be developed by the “Ministry” staff. In certain casesand for highly specialized materials, subcontracts will be offered to nationals or tonational institutions.

Equipment

2 centres (one in West Bank and one in Gaza) will be created for the production andreproduction of teaching materials.

Certain specialized equipment such as reference books, overhead projectors andaudio-visual equipment will be distributed to all ten district learning resource centresin order to upgrade them for teacher training purposes going beyond grades one tofour.

2.8. Project Budget

Personnel

- International Consultants (6 mm)Travel: 4 round-trips:Fee: $5479 x 6 mmDSA: $180X 42

- Local consultants (80 mm)2 local consultants for

4 months each, per subjectFee: $1,500 x 80 mm

Contracts

- subcontracts for trainingmaterial development

- subcontracts for trainingmaterial production

UNESCO Staff Missions

164,434

4,00032,874

120,000

10,000

-1 one-week missions for one staffmember each per year

Travel: $100 x 3DSA: $180X 21

3003,780

Training

Training of Trainers

-1 six-week study tour foreach of the 10 trainingspecialists

Travel: $400 x 10DSA: $100X42X 10

-1 local two-week orientationcourse for 180 trainers

DSA: $10X 14X 180course preparation:

-3 one-week evaluation workshopfor 180 trainers: one at the endof every year

DSA: $10X7X 180course preparation:

Training of Teachers

- Training of 1,800 mathteachers (90 sections)

Transportation ($3 per;course per teacher)Honorarium for trainers($30 for each of 10 annualsessions of each section)

- Training of 1,800 scienceteachers (90 sections)

Transportation ($3 percourse per teacher)Honorarium for trainers($30 for each of 10 annualsessions of each section)

- Training of 1,800 socialstudies teachers (72 sections)

Transportation ($3 percourse per teacher)

91,800

4,00042,000

25,2002,000

12,6006,000

1,041,000

162,000

27,000

162,000

27,000

162,000

Honorarium for trainers($30 for each of 10 annualsessions of each section)

- Training of 2,400 Arabicteachers (80 sections)

- Training of 2,400 religionteachers (80 sections)

Equipment, Materials, Supplies

FOR 2 MATERIAL PRODUCTION CENTRES

-2 offset presses-2 computers each with

platemaker-2 LCD panels for overhead

projector-2 ring binder systems with

consumables

-2 office starter kits-14,400 reams of paper- miscellaneous-2 fax machines- shipping costs (10%)

- office furniture

FOR TEACHER TRAINING

- reference books-10 overhead projectors-10 colour TV (27”) and VCRs

21,600

216,000

24,000

216,000

24,000

367,602

60,000100,000

32060,00010,00030,00026,522

20,00020,00015,000

-10 audio-visual trolleys- shipping costs (10%)

- consumables- miscellaneous

Rent for Production Centres

Miscellaneous

Project costs

support costs (13%)

Total Project Costs

6005,560

8,0006,000

60,000

40,000

1,778,916

232,000

2,010,916

3. Educational Equipment and Materials

3.2. Duration

January 1995- December 1996

Though the Palestinian people have long held the reputation of being among the besteducated people in the Middle East, recent research and comparative test results show lowachievement levels. While it is not possible to point to a single cause for this situation, thereis a growing consensus that a general decline in the quality of education is at its root. Oneissue of educational quality is the availability of instructive and motivating learningmaterials.

Schools in the West Bank and Gaza Strip have had a very small budget for schoolequipment. Most classrooms are equipped with a large chalkboard, chalk and eraser but littleelse. In some primary schools children’s artwork maybe found attached directly to the wallsas pin-up boards are rare. Industrially produced visual aids are also in very short supply bothat primary and secondary levels. Schools have little or no equipment of their own whichwould enable the staff to compensate for these shortages through self-production.

The education of children and youth is suffering as a result of this situation. Theenvironment is not stimulating for effective learning and the shortage of materials andsupplies encourages teachers to rely on rote learning techniques. This project is thereforeneeded to benefit learners and teachers alike. In the first stages it will target the mostdisadvantaged schools now under direct management of the “Ministry” of Education. Allschools benefiting from school maintenance programmes will also benefit from theprovision of learning materials.

This is an urgent need that has been identified only since the creation of the “Ministry”of Education. Consequently it has not been included in the Emergency Programme drawnup between the PLO and UNESCO. It is, however, a key element in the four-pronged attackon bringing educational quality up to an acceptable standard. The other three quality orientedprojects are school maintenance, curriculum development and upgrading teacher skills.

The long term objective of developing teaching materials that support the curriculumwill be addressed under the curriculum development project.

This project has the shorter term objective of developing a cost effective approachto providing, using and maintaining learning materials and putting this into effect in the mostneedy “Ministry’ ’-run schools. A central concern would be to develop approaches that rewardthose communities with a demonstrated interest in improving the quality of their schools.

The basic strategy is designed to develop a sense of self responsibility at school levelfor keeping classrooms adequately provided with teaching materials. As the schoolsupervisors based in the district education offices are responsible for providing suchmotivation, the project is conceived around them with reinforcement coming from the centrallevel.

Each district education office should receive support from the central level forestablishing District Learning Resource Centres (DLRC). These district centres, in turn,would select pilot schools at both primary and secondary level where suitable school levellearning materials centres (LMC) can be developed. Subsequently, a larger number of themost needy schools in each district would be identified and LMCS established.

In the meantime communities would be encouraged to raise resources for equippingand supplying their own schools in partnership with the “Ministry”. Capacity will bedeveloped in the “Ministry” to draw up affordable basic equipment lists, undertake bulkpurchases, organize logistics, authorize local purchases and to motivate Palestinianenterprises to compete in developing and producing educational materials.

10 DLRCS would be established, and about 100 of the most poorly equipped schoolswould benefit from more and better learning materials. It is expected that this, coupled withthe retraining of teachers, would lead to improvements in the quality of teaching and,hopefully, learning achievement.

ten DLRCS would be established, equipped and staffed on the basis of a studyon the optimal distribution of resources between the DLRCs and individualschools. Each centre would organize workshops for the training ofsupervisors by outside consultants as well as for the training of teachers bysupervisors in the schools they serve. To facilitate this activity each DLRCwould include a multi-purpose training centre.

The “Ministry” would, in co-operation with schools and districts, developguidelines for the equipping of schools and DLRCS. Procedures would be

established for central purchasing, local purchasing, logistics specificationwriting and evaluation of locally produced materials. Where instructionalmaterials are concerned activities would be carried out in co-operation withthe Curriculum Development Centre.

Ten schools in each district would be studied and tested to see what financial,material and human resources they can realistically mobilize towardsimproving their schools including establishment of an LMC. Learningmaterials to be considered for inclusion would be a basic library, scienceteaching equipment and audio-visual aids. Particular attention would be givento creating LMCS where teachers would produce their own learningmaterials. Individual schools would receive educational materials inconjunction with training of teaching personnel on how to use the equipmentprovided and on the production of self-made learning materials. Selection ofthe recipient schools would be based on the dual criteria of need anddemonstrated willingness to mobilize local resources within their means.

3.7. Main Inputs

Personnel

International consultants would be used to advise on the design of the pilotphase including the cost effectiveness study, equipment purchase policy andprocedures, comment on equipment list proposals and leading the evaluationof results achieved under the project. Local consultants would design theDLRCS and propose equipment lists.

Training

Study tours: Twinning arrangements would be made with one country (orseveral) of modest means which has made effective use of such LRCS. Twoofficials from the “Ministry” and two from each district office would makea two-week in-service training in such a centre and participating schools.

Local training: Supervisory and key administrative personnel in the districtoffices would be trained locally by study tour participants. School levelpersonnel would be trained by the district supervisors.

Equipment

The 10 DLRCS would be equipped with telefax and e-mail to connect themwith the “Ministry” and with one another. Advanced photocopiers wouldenable the DLRCS to produce teacher generated learning materials. One roomwould be furnished as a multi-purpose training centre. At school level a basicset of equipment would be made available to 100 schools on a cost startingbasis with the communities.

3.8. Project Budget

Personnel

- International consultants (8 mm)- Local consultants (48 mm)

Contracts

-48 contracts with local universitiesfor development of prototype learningmaterials such as posters and wall charts($2 000 each)

-48 contracts with local industry forproduction of learning materials($4 000 each)

-2 one-week missions for one staff memberper year

Training

- International study tours(2 persons, 2 weeks each)

- Training for 10 supervisors fromeach of the 10 districts twotimes per year (40 non-residentialworkshops of 5 days each for 100supervisors)

- Teacher training for 10 schools twotimes per year (20 non-residentialworkshops of 5 days each)

Equipment, materials supplies

- Communication equipment for the twoMinistries (Ramallah and Gaza City)and for the 10 education office DLRCS

176,000

104,00072,000

288,000

52,000

2,362,000

27,000

- Reproduction equipment for 10 DLRCS

- Training equipment for 10DLRCS

- Office equipment for MoE (Ramallahand Gaza City) and for 10 DLRCS

- Equipment for 100 primary schools- Equipment for 25 secondary schools

Furniture

- Furniture for 10 DLRCS withtraining room, purchased locally

- Furniture for the 2 “Ministry” DLRCS

Miscellaneous

Project Costs

support costs (13%)

Total Project Costs

185,000147,000

1,500,000500,000

21,000

20,500

20,000

2,924,000

380,120

3,304,120

4. Learning Environments: Construction and Comprehensive Maintenance ofEducational Buildings in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank

4.2. Duration

There are a total of 1,386 schools in the West Bank and Gaza Strip of which 1021 are underthe “Ministry” of Education, 260 under UNRWA and 105 are private. Many of these schoolsare in poor, even very poor condition. At the same time there is serious overcrowding inWest Bank schools: there are as many as sixty children in classrooms often not larger than20 m2 and a number of schools function on triple shifts. Double shifts are the rule inUNRWA schools. Toilet blocks are usually not working or non-existent. Libraries andlaboratories are lacking and school sites are largely undeveloped for outdoor learning andactivities. The furniture is mostly inadequate and insufficient. Even when teaching spacespermit the use of modem teaching methods and their physical condition is satisfactory, mostteachers fail to use them correctly or creatively.

The resources needed to bring existing schools up to standard are vast but the actualscale of the task to be carry out on the required comprehensive maintenance is not knownbecause of the current absence of a complete census. The “Ministry” has now, however,started to carried out such a census. The information that is available is currently beingreviewed and schools are being visited in order to make such information available to the“Ministry” and to interested donors. This data, which will become available during the firsthalf of 1995, will permit the setting of justified priorities for school improvement.

A second major issue is that of relieving overcrowding and accommodating returneechildren. School enrolment in the West Bank and Gaza Strip is growing at 2 per centannually. This leads to the need for expanding the capacity of many existing schools or tothe creation of new schools.

The “Ministry” has yet to develop official standards for school improvement or fornew construction. UNRWA, however, has standards for its own use.

The most urgent problems to be addressed are those of overcrowding and repair of thoseschools which are unsafe. At the same time there is a potential for improving educationthrough encouraging teachers to make creative use of available space and furniture.

The importance of this project is that it would directly benefit Palestinian children.The secondary beneficiaries would be the Palestinian workmen and local manufacturers.

The UNESCO emergency programme foresees a major follow-up to the ongoingSaudi Arabia-funded school repair programme (505/R4B/10). Because of the substantialfunding requirements, this is an area in which a number of donors could be active. Theschool building census sub-component of the project is the first action to be undertakentowards preparing the school map mentioned in the UNESCO Emergency Programme.

The immediate objective is to develop the capacity of the “Ministry” to be able tohandle a large repair and construction programme on a high professional level. The long-term objective is to improve the quality of education through improving the quality of thelearning environment.

The capacity of the “Ministry” of Education’s Directorate for Buildings and Projectswould be developed so that it would be the authority for maintaining the data base on schoolbuildings and, in co-operation with educational specialists, for setting standards. In additioncapacity would be created to manage a large scale programme on comprehensivemaintenance and construction. Modern management sub-contracting procedures would beintroduced to keep the permanent staff to a minimum. District offices would be developedto have the capacity for data collection and project supervision.

Through execution of this project the capacity of the “Ministry” to manage in a cost-effective manner a large scale maintenance and repair programme would be created. Thefoundation of this capacity would be the establishment of educational building standards anda data base which would enable the “Ministry” to establish priorities founded on the greatestneeds and to use some of the space for informal education.

Teachers throughout the West Bank and Gaza Strip would receive information on thecreative use of educational space and furniture for the introduction of modern teachingmethods.

About fifty needy schools would be upgraded to conform to the new standards. Thiswould include the provision of library and science facilities and toilet blocks, the requirednew furniture and equipment, as well as the repair of buildings and improvement of schoolsites.

About ten overcrowded or triple shift schools would be relieved of enrollmentpressures through the creation of new schools. The new schools would serve as a trialapplication of the new standards.

The development of standards and a data base on educational buildings would becarried out in partnership with those units in the ministry which are working on theimprovement of the quality of education and the establishment of the EducationalManagement Information System. The results would be applied in the planning, design andexecution of the projects for educational buildings improvement and new construction.

The following activities would strengthen the capacity of the “Ministry” to managelarge scale repair and construction programmes:

Publication of a guide for the design and use of buildings furniture andschool grounds for basic education and other community uses.Publication of standards for cost effective construction.Development of a data base on the status of all existing schools with anestablished mechanism for regular updating.

Activities for the upgrading of about 50 schools would include::

The repair of buildings and improvement of outdoor space (shady areas,playfields, and playgrounds).The creation of spaces for science, library and learning materials production.The replacement or repair of broken and inadequate furniture.The installation of educational and sport equipment.Provision of new furniture.

Activities to construct about ten schools would be:

The construction of new buildings and preparation of sites.The provision of school furniture.The installation of educational and sport equipment.

4.7. Main Inputs

Personnel

International personnel: expertise of other countries as regards design andconstruction standards would be provided by UNESCO architects in Ammanand Paris and short term international consultants. Three months ofconsultancies are foreseen for improvement of the data base.. Localpersonnel: two local educationalists (one in basic education and one insecondary education) each for twelve months needed to work with thearchitects on drawing up the design guidelines preparing manuals for teacherson how to use the space, furniture and equipment provided. These consultantswould also provide a liaison between concurrent activities in curriculum,

teacher training and provision of learning materials; all of which address theissue of quality of education. Two local engineers would be engaged asproject managers (one for repairs, one for construction of new schools) forthe duration of the project.

Subcontracts

The collection of data on the condition and status of individual schoolsshould be given to unemployed or under employed engineers and sitesupervisors. This may be arranged through the Association of Engineers.Likewise the initial inputting of data should be subcontracted. Guidelines forthe design and use of buildings, furniture and sites would be published anddisseminated to designers, educational personnel and donors.

Training

Short study visits (two of two weeks each) should be offered to “Ministry”personnel to see experiences in the establishment of standards which takeaccount of the efficient use of space and the cost effectiveness between initialcost and maintenance costs. One study visit of two weeks is needed totransfer experiences on project management and subcontracting ofprofessional services.

Equipment

The “Ministry” would need two computers which hold and process centrallythe school census data (these will be linked to computers in the districtoffices provided under the EMIS project). In addition the sub projects forupgrading existing schools and constructing new ones would each needequipment for preparing contract documents and project management. Twovehicles would be needed for site visits.

Each of the sixty schools in the project would receive new furniture andequipment at the agreed standard.

Construction

The “Ministry” would contract for repairs and new construction following theprocedures being developed in co-operation with UNESCO under theUNESCO-Saudi Arabia project for school repair.

4.8. Project Budget

Personnel

- International consultants (2 mm)- Local educationalists (24 mm)- Local engineers (72 mm)

Contracts

- Contracts for the collectionand input of data

- Contracts for publication ofguidelines

- One-week missions for one staffmember per year

Training

-2 one-week study visits for “Ministry”Personnel (two people each)

Equipment, materials and supplies

- Equipment for repair andconstruction programme

- Equipment for 60 schools

Furniture for 50 schools

Repair of 50 schools

Construction and furnishing of 10 newschools

(US$l,000,000 per school as aplanning figure only. Specification

176,000

81,000

33,000

48,000

16,400

13,600

1,046,000

46,000

7,500,000

10,000,000

will be possible once buildingstandards have been developed)

Miscellaneous

Project Costs

Support costs (13%)

Total Project Costs

50,000

19,883,000

198,900

20,081,900

5. Compensation Education

The “Ministry” of education in co-ordination with the “Ministry” of Social Affairs

5.2. Duration

July 1995- June 1996

While universal access to education has generally been available in both the West Bankand the Gaza Strip, there are indications that the achievement levels of many young peoplefall well below normal standards. One study (FAFO-report 151) indicates that as much as7 percent of the population has never attended school. Directors of District Education Officeshave remarked that secondary school dropout rates are normally higher for girls than theyare for boys. Anecdotal information indicates that there are a number of school leaverswhose academic achievement levels are far less than expected. Indeed, there may be a

have only 14.6 to 18.6 contact hours per week. However, many teachers reportedly use theirextra time to hold second jobs because their salaries are too low (US$300) to provide fortheir livelihood.

The uncertainty of information on the exact nature and magnitude of the problemrequires the main short-term objective to be one of developing a better understanding of theproblem. The long-term objective is to build up confidence in adult education programmesthat address the possession of functional literacy and numeracy knowledge. A joint“Ministry’’-NGO steering committee would oversee the project and organize its evaluation.

The project would support sample studies on the in-school and out-of-schoolpopulations and carry out limited pilot projects to test the potential effectiveness ofcompensatory education programmes.

On the basis of a better understanding of the nature and magnitude of the problema large scale programme for compensatory education would be presented. The feasibility ofdifferent approaches to attacking the problem would be studied.

Surveys of in-school students with low achievement levels.

Surveys of out-of-school youth who have schooling deficiencies or feel theneed to complete the equivalent of basic or secondary education.

Small scale pilot projects to test the feasibility of using available staff,learning materials, space and open learning/distance education modes; targetgroups would be females who left school before completing their studies,youth who completed secondary schooling but have not achieved an adequateachievement level to be effective in society and low achievers still in school.

5.7. Main Inputs

Personnel

International personnel: Consultants (4 mm) to assist in the design andevaluation of surveys and pilot projects.

Local personnel: Teaching staff for the pilot projects dealing with in-schoolyouth would be regular teachers.

Local contracts:

Field studies would be contracted to local universities, NGOs or privateconsultancies. The execution of the pilot projects would be offered to NGOgroups.

5.8. Project Budget

Personnel

- International consultants (4mm)

- Local Personnel (150 mm)

Contracts

-2 one-week missions for 1 staffmember per year

Equipment, materials, supplies

Miscellaneous

Project Costs

Support cost (13%)

Total Project costs

105,000

60,000

45.000

110,000

11,000

10,000

242,000

31,500

273,500

6. Determining a Policy for Secondary Level Vocational Education

6.2. Duration

July 1995- June 1996

There are only seven “Ministry” run vocational education institions in the West Bankand Gaza Strip. For its part, UNRWA runs four with an enrolment of 1,662 students. Theindividual public schools are poorly supported and poorly equipped. There is reason tosuspect that those who complete the courses do not find employment easily in the areas oftheir specializations. In addition, a number of secondary schools offer pre-vocationaltraining. As there is incomplete data on the skill training opportunities in the West Bank andGaza Strip, the governments of Austria and Switzerland are jointly undertaking acomprehensive survey.

Given that the neighboring countries of Israel and Jordan target the placing of upto 40 per cent of their students in technical or vocational education, Palestinian authoritiesare concerned that they may need to dramatically expand this part of education, which ona per graduate basis is very costly.

UNESCO has been observing the situation for some time and has proposed theholding of a seminar to discuss a vocational education curriculum. It appears, however, thatthe necessary dialogue should address the drawing up of a comprehensive policy forvocational education before addressing the narrow issue of a vocational curriculum.

The objective of the project is to prepare a comprehensive policy on vocationaleducation that takes into account job opportunities in both the public and the private sector,and the cost effectiveness of various approaches to providing vocational education andtraining.

On the basis of the policy study it is expected that the “Ministry” will be able to makerational decisions on the expansion of vocational training and to involve industry and futureemployers in the decision making process.

Main Activities

Studies on the efficiency and quality of the existing programmes includingtracer studies on recent graduates.

Studies on the cost of various programmes and courses currently offered.

Studies on the views of industrialists and other employers.

Study tours to examine how countries with modest resources are able to makecost effective programmes at pre-vocational and vocational level.

Seminars to achieve concensus between educators, finance sources, andpotential employers.

Main Inputs

Personnel

International personnel: Consultants on the economics of technical educationand on the mobilization of participation from potential employers (4 mm).

Local contracts

Local universities or private research groups would be contracted to carry outthe necessary feasibility studies.

Training

Study tours to four countries with modest resources to examine cost effectiveand participatory approaches. Contributions to the national workshops.

Project Budget

Personnel

- International consultants

52,000

Contracts

100,000

-2 one-week missions for 1 staffmember per year

Training

-4 one-week Study tours to fourcountries with modest resources

-4 national workshops

Equipment, Materials, Supplies

Miscellaneous

Project costs

support costs (13%)

Total Project Costs

27,000

23,000

195,000

25,000

220,000

7. Development of the “Ministry” of Education

The overall development of the “Ministry” of Education covers the central“Ministry”, the regional office for Gaza and the ten District Education Offices. It alsoconcerns issues of structure, planning and management. The “Ministry” is, by its verynature, a mechanism for setting policies, determining strategies for turning policies intoprogrammes, and establishing systematic procedures for carying them out. It must,therefore, have the means for the analysis of existing situations and the development ofnew concepts for the future. This necessitates the right human resources.

As a reflection of prior initiatives the programme for development andstrengthening of the “Ministry” is divided into three main project thrusts: Policies andstructure; development of human capacity for policy formulation and educationalmanagement information systems; and educational planning. It is to be understood thatthese issues are so interrelated that they cannot be executed separately.

7.1. Policies and Structure

7.1.1. National Executing Agencies

7.1.2. Duration

7.1.3. Context and Justification

7.1.3.1. Current Structure

Educational administration in the West Bank and Gaza Strip is a combination ofan old system at the school and district levels with a new system of regional and centraladministration. Under the Civil Administration the district directorates exercised a largeautonomy. They maintained good relations with the schools and head teachers, and theemployees at district level provided a pool of good education professionals.

The central “Ministry” only began to take shape in August 1994. TheOrganization chart (in Annex I) shows that it has responsibility for all aspects ofeducation. This, in itself, invites the “Ministry” to concentrate on decision-making at thecentral level, thereby decreasing the responsibility and autonomy of the district educationoffices. World trends are the opposite: decentralization and the strengthening of theautonomy of regions, districts, municipalities and schools are strongly promoted.

Fortunately the current structure of the “Ministry” is in harmony with the modernapproaches.

7.1.3.2. Current Policies

The “Ministry” of Education had been established and made operational evenbefore the planned elections had taken place, and before a clear set of developmentobjectives of the PA was established. During its first two months of existence, manyactions taken by the “Ministry” had necessarily been part of an emergency programmewhose principle objective had been to open schools.

Now that empowerment to collect revenues has been granted, it is possible todevote some attention towards defining the general objectives and modalities of the“Ministry”. Is it to be primarily a regulatory body or one that takes leadership role inhuman resources development for the West Bank and Gaza Strip? Should it have a strongcentral ministry -- or should there be devolution of authority to the regions or to thedistricts? What is the perception regarding the establishing the genuine participation ofthe people in the development of education and at what level: the village, municipal,and/or district level?

A Council of General Education is foreseen which includes persons from theprivate sector and several ministries. While not yet activated, this will be a key policymaking body.

7.1.4. Project Objectives and Implementation Strategies

The principal objective is to shape a “Ministry” that has a broad vision foraddressing the human resource development needs of the population which it serves andat the same time has a holistic view of the functions of schools, districts and the central“Ministry”.

The strategy will be to introduce top policy makers to successful experiences inother countries and to create popular support for educational reform by encouragingparticipation of educational personnel, other Ministries and the public at large.

7.1.5. Main Results to be Achieved

A mechanism which will motivate policy makers to make informed decisionsbased on in-depth analysis of local conditions and on comparative analysis of countriesfacing similar problems should be created. Local universities and research bodies shouldbe mobilized to get involved in policy studies.

The “Ministry” should be established with a structure that remains flexible duringits formative period and allows it to change in pace with modem management trends.

The “Ministry” should be conceived to function with the smallest possible staff,while still performing with high efficiency.

7.1.6,

7.1.7.

Main Activities

Commissioning studies on issues that would help to establish educationalpolicy. Local universities and the Palestinian Diaspora would be drawn onwhenever their knowledge of local conditions is an advantage. (Severalsubjects requiring in-depth analysis are given in Annex VIII.)

Short-term visits to countries which have successfully addressed problemssimilar to those being faced by the Ministry of Education. These would becountries with comparative size and with similar cultures which haveproven successful in their approaches to economic and humandevelopment.

Feasibility studies for creating an Educational Planning Unit which servesas a secretariat to the Council of General Education and the “Minister”.

Assessment of staffing requirements.

Analysis of the tasks to be carried out by the various departments andoffices of the “Ministry”, and evaluation of the structure of the “Ministry”in relation to its functions.

Technical assistance for the development of finance and personnel policiesand putting routine administrative procedures into practice.

Main Inputs

Personnel

International Consultants: six months of consultancies on the design ofpolicy studies, educational structures and on evaluation of managementsystems.

Contracts

International contract: a twinning arrangement for assistance with theMinistry of a small country which has exceptionally successful personneland financial administration policies.

Local contracts: twelve contracts with local universities and researchgroups on specific issues calling for policy decisions.

Contracts for the organization of a national conference on educationalaims.

Training

Study Tours: visits of three to seven days by the “Minister”, Deputy“Minister” (Director General), and members of the Council to see howcountries of small population and limited resources establish their nationaleducation policies and structure their ministries in the face of recurrentcost constraints.

7.1.8. Project Budget

Personnel

- International consultants (6 mm)- Technical advisory services from

UNESCO specialists

Contracts

- International Contract-12 Local contacts- Contracts for national conference

Miscellaneous

Project Costs

Support Costs (13%)

Total Project Costs

100,000

270,000

20,000

390,000

50,700

440,700

7.2. Capacity Building

7.2.2. Duration

The “Ministry” of Education has been staffed by excellent top managers.However, most of these have come from universities or private institutions andconsequently do not yet have sufficient knowledge about the functioning of a “Ministry”.

The UNESCO Emergency Programme has foreseen this need to build the capacityof the “Ministry” to develop its own policies, programmes and management strategies.

7.2.4. Project Objectives and Implementation Strategy

The objective of the Capacity Building Project is to develop a team of topmanagement personnel in the “Ministry” who are aware of trends and developments inother countries facing similar problems. This would be achieved by the training of therelevant people with the incorporation of programmes from other countries which havesuccessfully developed their ministry personnel in similar conditions. This training wouldmainly consist of sub-regional and local training organized by IIEP. In addition, short-term training at the IIEP in Paris, and on the spot studies of experiences in other countriesare foreseen.

The project should communicate sufficient knowledge about the functioning ofthe “Ministry”. The “Ministry” staff should acquire the ability to manage and plan thedevelopment of the educational system on a short-term and long-term basis as well as thehandling of day-to-day issues. Their Capacity to co-operate with other departments aswell as international and other national agencies will be enhanced.

7.2.6. Main Activities

Training of forty senior officials and headmasters on school managementwith a view that this would be the core personnel for carrying out thetraining of others.

Training of eight senior officials in policy formulation and managementskills.

Training of twelve persons in the specialized areas of preparation of theschool year and timetable, school mapping, administration ofexaminations, management of staff, finance and physical facilities,budgetary processes and project identification, preparation and evaluation.

Participation with persons from Mediterranean countries in a one weekforum on managing science education.

Training of two staff members on computer based techniques forcollecting, preparing, analysing and reporting information concerned withplanning the quality of education in a sub-regional course.

7.2.7. Main Inputs

The project will be executed by the IIEP.

Total Project Budget US$791,000

(For details see IIEP Proposal in Annex IX)

7.3. Planning and EMIS

7.3.2. Duration

December 1994- December 1996

While a Department of Educational Planning has been shown on the MOEorganizational chart at the same position as the divisions dealing with educationalsubstance, the only appointments made for the Department of Educational Planning havebeen for the Gaza Strip regional office. Since there is no planning unit, these functionsare currently handled by the assistants to the Director General and several DirectorGenerals according to their personal specialized skills. The planned policy setting body,the Council for General Education, has no technical secretariat.

At the district level, planning capacity is limited to the projection of classroomrequirements based on current year enrollments and the April registrations for theSeptember school opening. Basic statistics (enrolment by grade and sex, number andqualification of teachers, number of schools, number of classrooms) of fair reliability areavailable at district, regional and central levels. They are mainly hand processed.

Staff are of varying qualifications. While an abundance of information isgathered, there is little uniformity concerning information between offices and not allinformation is available in the “Ministry”.

7.3.4. Project Objectives and Implementation Strategy

The long-term objective is the creation of a high level educational planning unit inthe “Ministry”. The short-term objective is to establish an EMIS which will facilitate thecollection of data at school and district level, and its collection and analysis at regional andcentral levels. This will be achieved by transferring the experiences from other countries.

An EMIS system will be established. Policy advice on a broad range of issuesshould then regularly be available. Furthermore data on possible school mapping andannual programming activities will then be readily available.

7.3.6. Main Activities

Collection, processing and analysis of management data.

Liaison with planning bodies and other Ministries for collection of dataconcerning human resources development.

Drawing up of annual projections for students and budgets.

Commissioning policy studies.

Advising policy makers.

Issuing reports and publications on educational policy, planning andmanagement.

7.3.7. Main Inputs

Personnel

International personnel: consultants for design, and training and evaluation.

Training

Training at IIEP and local training

Equipment

Computers and software

Personnel

- Technical Assistance

Equipment

- Computer software:- Computer hardware:

531,600

64,000

Miscellaneous

Project Costs

support costs (13%)

Total Project Costs

10,000

605,000

78,700

683,700

Note: Victor Billeh, a UNICEF consultant, has submitted a detailed report withrecommendations on EMIS development and on related staff training (see Annex X).

ANNEX I

Figure: I ORGANIZATIONAL AND ADMINISTRATIVESTRUCTURE OF THE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION

I Council of HigherEducation l “-- MINISTER OF EDUCATION

Public Relations &Cultural Affairs

I Deputy Minister II

Assistant tothe Deputy

Minister

I iExaminations,

Measurement, &EWuation

m EEEEl :Building & Projects

I - - - - i i

I 13eputy/Gaza

I Curriculum

/Education

Technologyii !

2 District EducationalDirectorates in Gaza

1Assistant to

—> the DeputyMinister

! Deputy/GazaFinance &

Administration1 r ! I I! Technical Educatio i

7 & Community Deputy/GazaCollages

I I Deputy/Gaza 1 I i

Student Affairs1

I General Education I I Deputy/Gaza II I L !

Figure: 2 STRUCTURE OF REGIONALEDUCATIONAL ADMINISTRATION IN THE GAZA STRIP

, I I] Education I I General Director I[

Committee (Deputy Secretary General

1/ f I

/l1. I

Public Relations Secretariat

I Assistant DirectorI

\ General Education Personnel<

\ Vocational & TechnicalEducation

Accounting

\ Student Affairs Supplies

-+ Examinations I Auditing k-1 I J I

\ Private Education Planning

\ SupervisingI

Buildings & Projects <

-+Special Education I

Figure 3: DISTRICT EDUCATION OFFICES

Director Education Committee

Deputy Director II

Supervisors

● Arabic● Religion● English● Social Studies● Science● Math● Home Economics● Physical Education● Traffic Safety● Kindergarten

~ Student Affairs I

1111111

Personnel

Accounts

Construction andMaintenance

I Supplies1-

Mail Registry

I Guards and Drivers ~

School Head Teachers and Deputy Head Teachers

Figure: 4 HYPOTHETICAL ALTERNATIVE STRUCTURE OF THE PALESTINIANMINISTRY OF GENERAL AND HIGHER EDUCATION

MINISTER OF EDUCATION

COUNCIL OF---+----4

COUNCIL OFHIGHER EDUCATION EDUCATION(EXECUTIVE BODY) 1 (ADVISORY BODY)

National Institute of Education

Development of:Curricula of General, Vocational,

& Technical EducationLearning MaterialsTests and Exams

Research& DevelopmentPublications

>- PLANNING UNIT

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ... - >(SECRETARIAT). . . . . .

Division of Public andDeputy Minister International

I,I D e p a r t m e n t l—

Deputy Minister

\//Department of General,

Vocational, and Technical Education(Including Community Colleges)

Executive body making required nationaldecisions dealing with:

Content and Methods of EducationLearning MaterialsTeacher Training

Supervision of InstructionExaminations& Certifications

Student AffairsPrivate Education

I I Relations

“m\l/

Administration andManagement Services

Administrative UnitLegislation

Personnel, etc.Finance Administration

. BudgetingAccountingStatisticsSuppliesBuildings

I DISTRICT EDUCATION DIRECTORATES I

S C H O O L Sv

TABLES ON SCHOOLS AND ENROLMENT IN THE WEST BANKGAZA AND EAST JERUSALEM

TABLE 11

ENROLMENT AND NUMBER OF SCHOOLS IN THE WEST BANKIN THE 1994/1995 SCHOOL YEAR

ACCORDING TO DISTRICT, CYCLE, GENDER AND AGENCY

3 ‘Number of Students Number of Schools

.evel Basic Level Secondary Level Basic Level Secondary Level

igency Public UNRW Private Public UNRW Priv. Public UNRW Priv. Public UNRWA Priv.A A A

Jenin Total 42,025 4,898 790 3,627 - 236 98 15 3 40 2

Male 22,418 2,206 501 2,085 - 236

Female 19,607 2,692 289 1,542 - -

Tulka- Total 32,211 3,260 - 2,478 - 30 83 7 34 2rem

Male 16,646 1,654 - 1,451 - 24

Female 15,565 1,606 - 1,027 - 6

Qual- Total 11,968 2,163 - 1,064 - - 28 3 15qilia

Male 6,475 1,069 - 631 - -

Female 5,493 1,094 - 433 - -

Nablus Total 40,703 8147 1,527 3,977 - 296 110 16 8 38 2

Male 20,752 4211 747 2,064 - 170

Female 19,951 3,936 780 1,913 - 126

Ramal- Total 42,906 11,808 10,370 3,520 - 1,380 104 25 16 46 23lah

Male 22,523 4,974 5,850 1,806 - 960

Female 20,383 6,834 4,520 1,714 - 420

3Number of Students Number of Schools

.evel Basic Level Secondary Level Basic Level Secondary Level

igency Public UNRW Private Public UNRW Priv. Public UNRW Priv. Public UNRWA Priv.A A A

Beth- Total 22,749 6,322 7,615 2,151 - 757 47 16 18 21 12lehem

Male 11,559 2,694 4,568 1,067 - 502

Female 11,190 3,628 3,047 1,084 - 255

Jeri- Total 2,954 2,183 647 340 - - 7 3 3 2cho

Male 1,467 1,130 338 139 - -

Female 1,487 1,053 309 201 - -

Hebron Total 80,534 7,800 3,125 6,444 - 306 171 18 11 40 3

Male 42,158 3,141 1,972 3,374 - 154

Female 38,376 4,659 1,153 3,070 - 152

Total Total 276,050 46,581 24,074 23,601 - 3,005 648 103 59 236 44WestBank Male 143,998 21,079 13,976 12,617 - 2,046

Female 132,052 25,502 10,098 10,984 - 959

Total 346,705 26,606 810 280

Total 373,311 1090

TABLE 12

ENROLMENT AND NUMBER OF SCHOOLS IN THE GAZA STRIP

Agency

Female

Total in Levels

Grand Total

IN THE 1994/1995 SCHOOL YEARACCORDING TO CYCLE, GENDER AND AGENCY

Number of Students

Basic Level

99,245 119,273

48,513 57,0361 1

218,518

Secondary Level

TPublic UNRWA

17,396

8,0901

17,523

236,041

Number of Schools

Basic Level I Secondary Level

Public UNRW Priv. Public UNRWA Priv.A

102 157 35 2

259 37

TABLE 13

ENROLMENT AND NUMBER OF SCHOOLSIN THE WEST BANK AND GAZA STRIP

IN THE 1994/1995 SCHOOL YEARACCORDING TO CYCLE, GENDER AND AGENCY

TABLE 14

ENROLMENT AND NUMBER OF SCHOOLS IN EAST JERUSALEMIN THE 1994/1995 SCHOOL YEAR

ACCORDING TO CYCLE AND AGENCY

I Number of Students

Level Basic LevelI

Secondary Level

Agency Public UNRW Private Public UNRW Priv.A A

Total 13,747 4,476 12,104 3,882 7,645

Total in Levels 30,327 11527

Grand Total 41,854

Number of Schools

Basic Level I Secondary Level

Public UNRW Priv. Public UNRWA Priv.A

22 8 28 5 15

58 I 20

TABLE 15

WEST BANK:STUDY PLAN FOR COMPULSORY CYCLE

BY SUBJECT AND NUMBER OF CLASSES PER WEEK

I Basic Cycle

1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th 9th 10

Islamic 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3Education

Arabic 9 9 9 9 7 7 7 7 7 6

English 5 6 6 5 5 5

Maths 5 5 4 4 5 5 4 4 4 4

Social Studies 2 2 2 2 3 3 2 2 3 -

Sciences 3 3 3 3 4 4 4 4 - -

Pre-Vocational 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2Education

P.E. 2 2 1 1 2 2 1 1 1 1

Arts 1 1 2 2 1 1 1 1 1 1

History 2

Geography 2

Biology 2 2

Physics 2 2

Computer 2Studies

Chemistry 2 2

Total 26 26 26 26 32 33 30 29 32 34

TABLE 16

GAZA STRIP:STUDY PLAN FOR COMPULSORY CYCLE

BY SUBJECY AND NUMBER OF CLASSES PER WEEK

3Subject Basic Cycle

1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th 9th 10th

Islamic 4 3 4 3 3 3 2 2 2 2Education

Arabic 11 11 10 10 9 9 7 7 8 6

English 6 6 7 6

Mathematics 7 7 6 6 6 6 5 5 6 4

Social Studies - - - 3 3 3 3 3 3 5

Health 4 4 4 4 4 2Education and BiologySciences

2Physics

2Chemis-

Pre-vocational - - 1 1 2 2 M l M l M l M lEducation

F 3 F 3 F 3 F 4

Physical 3 3 3 2 2 2 2 2 2 2Education

Arts 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2

Public 3 4 5 3 - -InformationandEnvironmentalActivities

Music 1 1 1 1

Hebrew 2 2 -

Total 30 30 31 31 32 32 M 34 M 34 M 35 M 33

F 37 F 37 F 38 F 37

M = MaleF = FemaleSource: Palestinian “Ministry” of Education

TABLE 17

WEST BANK:STUDY PLANS FOR SECONDARY ACADEMIC EDUCATION

BY STREAM

E=- Arab Society

Art Education

II English

II Social Studies

PIslamic Education

Mathematics

Science

PhysicalEducation

FVocationalEducation

M = MaleF = Female

Grade 11- scientific Grade 11- Arts Grade 12- Scientific Grade 12- Arts

5 6 5 6

5 5 5 5

3 3 3 3

5 2 6 3

9* 2 11** 3

1 1 11

2 2 F 1 F I

33 29 M 31 M 27

F 32 F 28

* 4 : Physics, 3 : Chemistry, 2 : Biology for Grade 11** 5 : Physics, 3 : Chemistry, 3 : Biology for Grade 12

TABLE 18

GAZA STRIP:STUDY PLANS FOR SECONDARY ACADEMIC EDUCATION

BY STREAM

II Subject

II Arabic

II Biology

II Physics

kChemistry

ArabSociety

II Economics

ForeignLanguages

Geography

History

11 Statistics

11 Mathematics

kPhilosophy/Logic

Psychology& Sociology

PhysicalEducation

II Sociology

11 Religion

II HomeEconomics*

kNeedlework*

ILM = MaleF = Female

Grade 10 Grade 11-Arts Grade 11-Science Grade 12-Arts Grade 12-Science

6 7 5 6 6

6 7 6 6 6

2 2 2 2 2

2 2 2 2 21 1 1

2 2 2 2I

2 2 2 2 2

M 33 M 27 M 31 M 30 M 32

F 37 F 31 F 35 F 34 F36

* For girls only

ANNEX IV

Educational Districts in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip

Qualkiliah

Jerusalemkm ? ; 1,0 IF

Miles o-o

Hebron

Borders according to ArmisticeDemarcation Lines, 1949

No-Man’s Land Areas,Armistice Demarcation Lines, 1949Definition of educational districtsaccording to Palestinian Authority

The borders shown on this map are notexact and, furthermore, do not imply anyjudgement on the legal status of theterritory of any endorsement or acceptanceof such borders on the part of UNESCO.

LIST OF MEMBERS OF THE PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY1

Yasir Arafat

Yasir ‘Abd-Rubbuh

Muhammad Zuhdi al-Nashashibi

Samir Ghawshah

Riyad al-Za’nun

Zakariya al-Agha

‘Abd al-Hafiz al-Ashab

‘Azmi al-Shu’aybi

Ilyas Frayj

Sa’ib Erakat

Ahmad Qurai’

Intisar al-Wazir

‘Abd al-’Aziz al-Haj Ahmad

Frayh Abu-Midyan

Nabil Shaath

Yasir ‘Amro

Tayib ‘Abd al-Rahim

Munib al-Masri

1 As of March 1995

President, Interior

Culture and Arts

Finance

Labour

Health

Housing

Telecommunications (Communications &Posts)

Youth and Sports

Tourism and Monuments

Municipalities (Local Government)

Economy and Trade (IndustrialPlanning)

Social Affairs

Transportation

Justice

Planning and International Co-operation

Education

General Secretary of PNA

without portfolio

ANNEX VI

LIST OF PEOPLE IN THE “MINISTRY” OF EDUCATIONAND HIGHER EDUCATION¹

“Ministry” of Education - Ramallah

Mr. Yasser Amro -

Dr. Naim Abu Hommos -

Mr. Muti Abu Higleh -

Mr. Khalil Mahsheh

Mr. Walid A1-Zagah -

Dr. Sa’id Assaf -

Mr. Hisham Kuhail -

Mr. Fawaz Mujahed

Mr. Fayek Hamadallah-

“Minister” of Education

Deputy “Minister”

Assistant to the Deputy “Minister” for West BankAffairs

Director General for Public Relations andCultural Affairs

Director General for General Education

Director General for Supervision Training andQualifications

Director General for Technical Education andCommunity Colleges

Director General for Projects and Buildings

Director General for Administrative and FinancialAffairs

“Ministry” of Education - Gaza Section

Dr. Abdullah Abdul - Assistant to the Deputy “Minister” Munim Gaza StripAffairs

Mr. Fathi Bala’wi - Assistant to the Deputy “Minister”

Mr. Husni Zu’rub - Director General of Gaza Education

1 As of March 1995

Mr. Abdullah Abu - Director General of ExaminationsSamhadaneh and Evaluation

Mr. Mohammed Al-Jedi- Assistant to the Director General of General Education

Mr. Mohammed Abu - Assistant to the Director GeneralJarad for Community Colleges and Technical Education

Mr. Hassan Abdul- - Assistant to the DirectorKhalek Ali General for Administrative and Financial Affairs

Mr. Ala’ Abu Zayneh - Assistant to the Director General for Buildings andProjects

Mr. Jaber Fadda - Assistant to the Director for Cultural Affairs and PublicRelations

Ms. Amal Al-Imam - Legal Advisor

District Directors in the West Bank and Gaza Strip

Mr. Adel Al Hallack

Mr. Khalil Abu Libdeh -

Mr. Hussein Al-Sheik -

Mr. Mohammed Al-Jawabreh -

M. Rashed Al-Ja’bari

Mr. Mahmoud Mahameed -

Mr. Zahran Hassouneh -

Mr. Fatallah Al-Dakheel -

Mr. Sulaiman Sultan

Mr. Mohammad Al-Hanjouri -

Ramallah

Kalkiliah

Tulkarem

Bethlehem

Hebron

Nablus

Jericho

Khan Unis

PECDAR-Representatives

Mr. Ahmad Qurei’ - Director General

Mr. Nabil Al-Sharif - Deputy Director General

Dr. Mohammed Shtayeh - Administrative and Financial Department

Dr. Sami Tarazi Technical Assistance Department

Dr. Abdul-Rahman Hamad - Projects Department

Dr. Samir Abdullah - Economic Department

Mr. Samir Hulaileh - Co-ordination with NGOs Department

ANNEX VII

PALESTINIAN POLICY PAPER¹

Symposium on the Plan of Action forPalestinian Children in the West Bank and Gaza

RecommendationsEducation Working Group

April 5-6, 1995

Given that any development plans seek to improve living conditions for human beings,participants agreed that the necessary staring point is the formulation of a comprehensivevision focussing on the empowerment of the Palestinian child, and activating his/her role insocietal building and self-actualization, while also considering the unique reality and culturalidentity of the Palestinians. This discussion focussed on the following three issues:

1) Access

Providing access to education for all children within the age-group of basiceducation.

Drafting a plan for utilizing school buildings for extra curricula activities andprogrammes benefiting society at large. Building multi-purpose halls inschools used for double shifts.

Mobilizing society to share in the provision of basic education especially inpromoting special education and assisting kindergartens.

Developing a reliable database regarding population and student enrolmentstatistics and their dissemination.

Increasing the female enrolment rates.

Conducting studies and implementing pilot projects within a pre-determinedtime frame related to students with special needs, in order to draw better plansfor the period beyond the year 2000.

Conducting studies about the existing educational rules, regulations andlegislation for their presentation to the Palestinian legislative bodies. Rules,regulations and legislation should be unified between the West Bank and Gazaand should address issues of access, equity, protection and quality.

Developing programmes for improving the teachers’ content knowledge andprofessional attitude.

1 Submitted to UNESCO by the Palestinian Authority in May 1995; clight editorial changes were made.

2) Quality

The participants focused on the need to activate learningon the part of the child and the importance of life-long education within an Arab,Islamic and international framework. To achieve this, the following components forthe teaching-learning process will have to be considered and developed:

a) The teachers’ reality, skills and attitudes.

b) The curriculum in its broad sense.

c) The teaching-learning environment.

d) The process of learning.

3) Societal participation

The group discussed the participation of all societal groups interested and specialisedin the education of the child. They held the position that it is necessary for thesuccess of education development plans. The wider the participation in shoulderingthe responsibility for education, the broader is the benefit. the societal groupsmentioned included the following:

The family

Government agencies

Academics

Municipalities and local councils

Teachers

Students

International experiences

The industrial and commercial sector

Among the mechanisms and structures the group discussed for actualizing societalparticipation are the following:

a) Activating the role of the Municipalities’ Education Committees.

b) Setting up parents councils in schools.

c) Awareness raising and information dissemination through the media.

d) Encouraging the voluntary extra-curricula activities planned by the schools inthe community. These create better interaction between schools and society.

Participants agreed that there is a need to review the legislation governing theeducational process as a whole, so that the “Ministry” of Education can move towardsa situation where there is centralized planning and decentralized implementation.

Finally, the participants stressed the need and importance of the establishment of aspecialised agency for co-ordination among the government and non-government bodiesinvolved in the development of educational plans and their implementation. This agency willbe officially commissioned by the Palestinian Authority to work according to clearly definedterms of reference after the present NPA Steering Committee concludes its work.

LIST OF PROPOSED SUBJECTS FOR POLICY STUDIES

Following are some issues that could be addressed through a series of policy studies.The list is not exhaustive, nor rigid.

Disparities for girls and women

Current practices and future policy options in education for special needs

Pre-service teacher education and teacher qualifications

Educational finance: needs available, resources and resource mobilization

Financial resources available for education

Unit costs (cost effectiveness)

Internal efficiency (drop-outs and repeaters)

Guidelines for design and use of schools

The role of the “Ministry” of Education; alternative scenarios

Community participation; replicating successful examples

Non-formal education; how can it respond to Palestinian needs

Optimal role of the “Ministry” of Education and other institutions in training

Developing a policy framework for vocational/technical education

Private sector involvement in education; how to make it a part of the system

Distribution of educational authority among the central “Ministry” ofEducation, regional offices, district offices and schools

Student achievement and performance of schools (what characterizessuccessful schools in Gaza and the West Bank)

PROPOSAL OF THE INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTEFOR EDUCATIONAL PLANNING1

(Rev: 1-21 April 1995)

INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR EDUCATIONAL PLANNING7-9 rue Eugène-Delacroix, 75116 Paris

534-RAB-11CAPACITY BUILDING IN EDUCATIONAL POLICY-FORMULATION

AND MANAGEMENT FOR THE PALESTINIANEDUCATIONAL AUTHORITY

A PROJECT

Approved by the Government of

for a 1995-1997 ITALY /UNESCO Funds-in-Trust Project

1 Slight editorial changes were made

534-RAB-11:Capacity Building in Educational Policy-Formulation and Managementfor the Palestinian Educational Authority

1. Project justification

1.1. Following the ‘Declaration of Principles on Interim Self Government Arrangement’signed on 13 September 1993 in Washington D.C. by the representative of the PalestinianLiberation Organization and the Israeli government in April 1994, the Palestinian interimself-government authority has assumed responsibility for Palestinian education. This proposalaims to assist the new Palestinian education authorities to manage the education system forthe development of Palestinian human resources.

1.2. Education in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, under the jurisdiction of the Israelimilitary occupation authorities, was administered through a functional unit, the Office ofEducational Affairs, within the Civil Administration, and involved a complex combinationof authorities including the Jordanian Ministry of Education, the Egyptian Ministry ofEducation, the Israeli Office of Educational Affairs for the Occupied Territories, andUNRWA/UNESCO.

1.3. Education is provided by three types of institutions:

(i) public sector (previously administered by the Israeli Civil AdministrationCIVAD, and now by the “Ministry” of Education and Higher Education,Palestinian Authority), which provides basic education (primary, preparatory,and lower secondary); upper secondary education, and community colleges;

(ii) UNRWA/UNESCO, which provide basic education (primary and preparatory)and community colleges for registered Palestinian refugees; and

(iii) the private sector (non-profit and profit-making) which includes pre-schoolthrough post-secondary educational institutions sponsored and/or operated bycommunity-based charitable organizations, region-wide institutions and intra-regional associations.

1.4. The Palestinian “Ministry” of General Education and Higher Education is responsiblefor co-ordination between the various educational institutions and oversee the operation ofCouncil for Higher Education.

1.5 A joint ITALY/UNESCO mission held in July 1994 to the Occupied Territories, andthe follow-up meeting of Palestinians, UNESCO and the IIEP, held at the UNESCOHeadquarters in December, 1994, stressed on the specific aspects of capacity-building ineducational planning and management incorporated in this proposal.

2. Pre-project situation

2.1. Although there has been significant quantitative expansion at all levels of Palestinianeducation due both to the motivation of the Palestinians themselves and to the generous helpof countries in the Arab world and the international community, the educational system stillfaces the following problems:

frequent closures have contributed to diminishing the quality of education; someschools, especially in the Gaza Strip, are overcrowded and have to run on doubleshifts. Palestinian students came last in science and second to last in mathematics ina testing programme of the International Assessment of Educational Progress,covering 20 countries;

most educational institutions, regardless of their level, have poorand recreational facilities;

the teaching staff are unable to provide high-quality work becausetraining and access to new educational technologies;

a serious problem facing the Palestinian educational authority is

library, laboratory

they lack adequate

the lack of policy-formulating and management skills among senior and middle level administrative staffas well as head teachers and deputy head teachers at central, district and institutionallevel of the Palestinian education system.

2.2. The present situation calls for very rapid development of policy-formulation andmanagerial skills. Several missions have investigated the problems of the educationalinstitutions (World Bank, ILO, USAID, UNCTAD and UNESCO), all of whoserecommendations stressed first and foremost the need for capacity building in educationalpolicy-formulation and management. The government of Italy had taken special interest inthe reconstruction of the Palestinian educational system.

2.3. The main objective of the present proposal therefore is the development of keycompetencies in the area of educational policy-formulation and management taking accountof both the short-term as well as the long-term development needs. With regard to policyformulation skills, the project will address key areas of educational decision-making: (i)strategies for universalizing and improving basic education provision; (ii) developing post-compulsory education for socio-economic development with particular reference to thedevelopment of science education. In the management area, the project suggests to addresstraining needs of two types of key actors: (i) head teachers and deputy head teachers,responsible for management at the institutional level and (ii) central level staff in targetedareas (i.e. data management) with a view to responding to short-term skill needs.

3. Expected situation at the end of the project

3.1. By the end of the project, it is hoped that the following objectives will have beenattained:

● the capacity of the “Ministry” of Education and Higher Education to formulate policyand manage the development of the system, both in the short- and long-termperspectives, will be substantially enhanced;

● the capacity of institutional management at the school level will be strengthened;

● the capacity to co-operate with international and other national agencies will bereinforced.

4. Target beneficiaries

4.1. The proposed project is designed to respond specifically to the training needs of fourkey categories of personnel involved in the policy-formulation and management of Palestinianeducation;

● head teachers and deputy head teachers responsible for the management of primary,secondary and vocational schools

● middle level officials needing basic training in long and short-term educationalplanning and management,

● senior level staff needing to acquire specific skills in management and synthesizing,conceptualization and reflection.

5. The proposed strategy

5.1. To achieve the overall objective of the project, several complementary programmeactions will be necessary. Whenever possible, training programmes emerging from differentactivities will be linked with the International Institute for Educational Planning, Paris (IIEP)training programmes. Due to the urgent Palestinian educational need for senior officials andplanners, three types of training are being proposed:

● a mix of in-country (practical, case-oriented) and international programmes(methodology-oriented) to prepare middle managers, head teachers and deputy headteachers to serve the country’s short- and long-term needs;

● an international programme to acquire competence in specialized tasks at internationaland sub-regional levels (based on both practical and theoretical internationalexperience) to prepare for immediate management functions; and

● a programme of reflection (based on international experience and on-site observations)on long-term strategies.

The project will draw on existing local expertise of Palestinian institutions.

6. Immediate objectives, outputs and activities

6.1. Immediate objective 1

To develop the capacity of a cadre of head teachers and deputy head teachers who inturn will be responsible for developing the administrative and the technical capacity of headteachers of primary, secondary and vocational schools.

output 1

A total of 40 key head teachers ( 4 from each school district) will have been trainedin nine weeks intensive training courses, one in 1995/96 and one in 1996/97 inschool management. They will participate in preparing taining activities for trainingand conduct training.. They will subsequently be able to conduct local trainingcourses for the 1000 head teachers and form a “national team” for the training ofpotential candidates to become head teachers.

Activity 1

40 selected senior officials, head teachers and teachers engaged in the managementof primary, secondary and vocational schools will receive intensive training duringthree courses for a total duration of nine weeks (1995/97) on trainers’ programmes.The content of the courses will be designed to give due) specificity to the Palestiniansituation. Preparatory missions will be undertaken yearly and training materials willbe prepared in accordance with the Palestinian needs. Emphasis will be placed onskills related to adult learning techniques of school-management (i.e. development ofeffective schools, teacher management, audit and evaluation of schools). The coursewill also offer training in methods of preparing and presenting training material.

To develop management skills in two key areas of educational development: basiceducation (in the context of Palestine, the implementation of the ten-year basic educationprogramme) and post-compulsory education and training (covering upper secondary andtertiary levels, technical and vocational training programmes) to meet human resource needsfor socio-economic development) and in other selected areas of educational development.

output 2

Three participants will have acquired policy-formulation and managementskills (during 1995-1997) to ensure planned development of education and training.In addition three study tours will be organized for Palestinian senior officials of the“Ministry” of Education in order to examine the educational structures and trainingmethodologies of foreign countries.

Activity 2

a. The participants will be selected from the relevant entities of theeducational system (basic education, upper, secondary and tertiary education andtechnical and vocational training programmes). There will be an initial four-week in-country phase of individual work based on training materials sent by the IIEP and asecond phase of intensive training at the IIEP Headquarters in Paris for eight months.The programme will cover (i) analysis of the main relationships between theeducation system, its environment, and socio-economic development (ii) analysis andcomparison of educational policy and plan formulation and implementation processesrelated to the overall objectives of ‘basic education for all’ or ‘ post compulsoryeducation and training for development’ (iii) methods and techniques of diagnosing,forecasting, projecting, programming, administering, monitoring, and evaluating theeducation system and (iv) in-depth study of a planning/management issue.

b. Capacity Building for implementing educational reform: the design andusing new textbooks, following the unification of curriculum and the orientation ofteachers in the use of the new textbooks.

To develop the capacity of senior officials from the educational agencies to carry outspecialized tasks through in-depth training..

output 3

Six senior officials will have acquired skills, in selected areas as follows :preparation of school-year and timetable, school-mapping, administration ofexamination, management of staff, finance and physical facilities, budgetary processesand project identification, preparation and evaluation. Five local courses (two to threeweeks) will be also organized for the local school district segment in 1995 and 1996.

.Activity 3

The participants of this activity will be trained at IIEP and locally and will beselected according to their competence in quantitative techniques and/or experiencein educational management and their future role in educational management of theterritories. For abroad training each trainee (total of 6) will stay three weeks eitherat the IIEP or in a European training institution.

To enable senior level educational officials to take written account of and reflect upontheir experiences in the development of Palestinian education and to enrich their knowledgeby acquisition of international experience on relevant topics.

output 4

Science supervisors and 10 high-level officials from Palestine will have learntabout: (i) the state-of-the-art in science education at secondary level in someneighboring countries in the Mediterranean region; (ii) international experience onthe issues and how to address them; and (iii) will have received some guidelines forassessing the status of Palestinian science education at secondary level. Otherdiscipline supervisors and educators will be given opportunities to participate locallyand abroad in conferences, workshops and study tours.

Activity 4

A. Palestinian science supervisors and high-level officials will attend one weekforums on managing science education which will be organized either in the WestBank and Gaza Strip or elsewhere.

B. Scholarships will be offered to supervisors high-level officials, to attendconferences or forums in selected educational subjects besides science.

6.5 Immediate objective 5

To develop capacity of the Palestinian education authority to plan and monitor thequality of education through better use of information.

output 5

Five staff members of the central “Ministry” will be trained in specialized modulesin Paris and/or sub-regional courses on computer-based techniques for collecting,preparing, analyzing, and reporting information concerned with planning the qualityof education to be conducted in 1995 in the sub-region.

Activity 5

Five Palestinian key officials from the central “Ministry” concerned with datamanagement will be invited to a sub-regional course on data management for planningthe quality of education. One of the key components of this programme is thateducational planners will have ‘hands on’ experience in using computers as an integralpart of the collection, preparation, processing and reporting of educational policyresearch data.

The time schedule for each activity appears in Appendix III.

7. Approved budget estimate for the five activities: The approved budget by year andform of assistance appears in the attached Appendix I. The approved budget by activityappears in Appendix II.

APPENDIX I

534-RAB-11 : CAPACITY BUILDING IN EDUCATIONAL POLICY-FORMULATION AND MANAGEMENT FOR THE PALESTINIAN

EDUCATIONAL AUTHORITY

APPROVED BUDGET(including programme support costs)

Components 1995 1996 1997 TOTAL$ $ $ $

10. Project Personnel

11.51 Res. Fellows11.61 Consultants16. Mission costs17. Local Consultants

19. Component Total

20. Sub-Contract

Activity IActivity 11Activity 111

29. Component Total

32. Training

31. Fellowships32. Group Training

39. Component Total

50.Miscellaneous

52. Reporting Costs

53. Sundry

59. Component Total

Total Programme

80. Program mesupport

GRAND TOTAL

1000035000100004000

300002000025000

9900026000

125000

285000

322050

1500045000140008000

400003000025000

8700037000

124000

328000

370640

25000850002400012000

146000

900005000050000

190000

18600063000

249000

646372

730400

APPENDIX II

534-RAB-11 : CAPACITY BUILDING IN EDUCATIONAL POLICY-FORMULATION

AND MANAGEMENT FOR THE PALESTINIAN EDUCATIONAL AUTHORITY

APPROVED BUDGET BY ACTIVITY

ACTIVITY 1

Activity Total US$

Three intensive training courses each of nine week duration for head teachers and deputyhead teachers over three years

- Consultants- Mission costs- Sub-contract- Group training- Miscellaneous

6000010000900006000

ACTIVITY 1 TOTAL 192,000

Participation of six Palestinian Senior Officials of the “Ministry” of Education in the IIEPeight month Annual Training Programme (3) in the study tour (3) and implementation ofeducational reform:

Local consultantsMission costsSub-contractFellowships (3)Group trainingMiscellaneous

ACTIVITY 2 TOTAL

12000400050000960002000010000

192000

ACTIVITY 3

Participation of 6 Senior Officials of the Palestinian Educational Authority in Selectedareas of Specialised training in educational management at IIEP and organization of 5local courses:

Consultants 10000Sub-contract 50000Fellowships (6) 60000Miscellaneous 8000

ACTIVITY 3 TOTALI

128000

ACTIVITY 4

Attendance of science supervisors to Forums on Science Education in Palestine orelsewhere and of other supervisors in conferences or forums in selected educationalsubjects:

10 Higber level Palestinian Education Officials’ participation in a Science Education Forum tobe held in a neighboring country(to cover Fees, travel, subsistence and ten fellowships) of which:

Resident Fellows 25000Consultants 15000Mission costs 10000Fellowships 30000Group Training 20000Miscellaneous 11000

ACTIVITY 4 TOTAL 111000

ACTIVITY 5

Training in data management for 5 Senior Officials in aSub-regional Workshops

Group training 17000

ACTIVITY 5 TOTAL I 17000I

TOTAL PROJECT COSTS US$ 640 000REPORTING COSTS (Miscellaneous) US$ 6 372PROGRAMME SUPPORT COSTS US$ 84 028

GRAND TOTAL US$ 730 400

APPENDIX III

534-RAB-11 : CAPACITY BUILDING IN EDUCATIONAL POLICY-FOMULATIONAND MANAGEMENT FOR THE PALESTINIAN EDUCATIONAL AUTHORITY

APPROVED TIME SCHEDULE BY ACTIVITY

1995 1996 1997 Activity

c.d.e.

b.c.d.e.f.

::c.d.

a.b.c.

ACTIVITY 1

Apr/MayJun/July Jan/Feb

Oct Jul.- Jan & Jul

Sep/Dec Jan/Jun

ACTIVITY 2

Jan Jan

Mar MarApr AprOct/May (96) Oct/May (97)Apr FebOct Jun/Mar

ACTIVITY 3

Jan/Apr Jan/AprMay/Sep May/SepOct/May (96) Oct/May (97)Sep/Dec Sep/Dec

ACTIVITY 4

.- Jan/Dec

ACTIVITY 5

-- May/Jul-- Sep-- -Dec

MarAprOct/may (98)

_-----

------

preliminary missions to Paris and Bristolpreparatory phase in Palestine and preparation of trainingmaterials

delivery workshop for the core team of trainersdelivery of one week workshop of heads of schools

delivery of district level training

despatch of announcement of IIEP’s Annual Training Programme(ATP)submission of candidates’ applicationsselection of candidateseight-month course at IIEPVisiting Fellows in Paris

local courses for the implementation of educational reform

announcement of coursessubmission of candidatestraining of approved candidates

-- local training courses

participation in conferences, workshops and study tours

announcement of coursesubmission of applicationsparticipation in the course

“Ministry” of Education and Higher EducationPalestinian Authority

Educational Management InformationSystem and Educational Planning

A Plan to Develop the Capacity of the “Ministry” of Education and Higher Educationof the Palestinian Authority in Educational Policy Planning and Management

Prepared by

Dr. Victor Billeh

President: National Center for Educational Research and DevelopmentAmman - Jordan

Presented to UNICEF¹(Office in Jerusalem)

November 1994

1 Submitted to UNESCO in Aprirl 1995; slight editorial changes were made

Introduction: The Context

This report is based on the consultant’s mission to the West Bank and Gaza (3-10November 1994) in accordance with terms of reference prepared by the UNICEF office inJerusalem. The mission came as a response from UNICEF to a request from the “Ministry”of Education and Higher Education (“MOE”) of the Palestinian Authority (PA), forassistance in building the “MOE’”S planning capacity. During recent meetings held in theWest Bank between “MOE” officials and representatives of UNESCO, UNICEF and theWorld Bank, a consensus was reached about the need to organize a concerted effort betweenUNESCO and UNICEF, and other United Nations agencies and potential bilateral donors inhelping the “MOE” build its planning and management capacity. This mission, therefore, wasplanned to coincide with a five-person UNESCO mission headed by Dr. John Beynon, whichvisited the Occupied Territories for nineteen days starting 23 October 1994.

The consultant met with the “Minister” of the “MOE”, the Deputy “Minister” and histwo Assistants in the West Bank and Gaza, and the Directors General of key departments ofthe “MOE”, and liaised with UNESCO and World Bank missions and Italian, and Frenchdelegations visiting the “MOE” at the time of the mission. He also met, at the “MOE”, withall Directors of Education of the seven districts on the West Bank and visited Gaza to meetthe Director of Education of the Gaza district. A meeting was also organized at the “MOE”with fourteen school principals representing the districts of the West Bank. Two field visitswere made to the Office of Education of the Ramallah district and the Gaza district toexamine in detail procedures used in collecting and processing school census data andpreparing education plans for the districts.

The consultant reviewed the following existing proposals and documents:a - IIEP- Project Proposal: Capacity Building in Educational Planning and

Management for the Palestinian Educational Authority - July 1994.b- UNESCO/Italy Funds-in-Trust Programme: Support to Curriculum

Development, October 1994.c- Terms of Reference for a Project Preparation Mission: Support to the

“Ministry” of Education 1994.d- The Draft Policy Document of the “MOE”, November, 1994.

The consultant worked closely with the UNESCO mission to ensure compatibility withpriorities set by the “MOE”. Then priorities were presented by “MOE” officials in a generalmeeting attended by the UNESCO mission, the World Bank and UNICEF missions, andrepresentatives of the Italian government. Another meeting was organized by the “MOE”during which the donor agencies presented their observations and recommendations, whichwere followed by general discussion. This meeting was attended by the above mentionedagencies and a French delegation.

This report focuses primarily on the consultant’s findings, conclusions, andrecommendations regarding the establishment of an Educational Management InformationSystem (EMIS) and a planning capacity at the “MOE”. The report is organized in thefollowing two sections:

(I) Present status regarding educational planning at the central and district levels.

(II) Planning capacity and the establishment of an EMIS. This section will include adescription of two proposed phases for establishing the EMIS and developing planningcapacity at the “MOE”:

Phase I: The establishment of a database.Phase 11: Capacity building in technical and analytical skills and educational policy

planning

Section I: Background and Present Status

The Central Level (“MOE”)On 28 August 1994, authority over education in the West Bank and Gaza was

transferred from Israeli Civil Administration to the PA. The “MOE” was immediately set upand a number of educators from various educational institutions were appointed in keypositions as the Deputy “Minister”, two Assistants to the Deputy “Minister”, and severalDirector Generals. The position of Director General for “Educational Planning andinformation” was still vacant. However, one employee with a background in statistics wasappointed during the mission. The “MOE” did not yet have any education database, exceptsome basic aggregate figures about the numbers of schools and teachers.

These figures were collected from the various District Directorates of Education(DOES). Some Director Generals (DGs) were already beginning to develop certain forms tocollect data from the DOES, needed for their own directorates, such as (DG for TeacherTraining and Supervision, DG for Projects, and DG for Vocational Education). Some ofthese forms were already sent to schools and data were collected. However, no codingscheme was envisaged or developed before designing the forms. This will, of course, createproblems during data entry and analysis. In addition, the different directorates were not usinga united coding system or a manual, to avoid collecting the same piece of information bymore than one Directorate.

The District LevelThe DOE is the first level in the system to collect school level data and report it in

the form of statistical tables.In the last couple of years, some districts acquired personal computers, appointed onecomputer specialist, acquired a commercially available computer package to enter collecteddata, and produced a certain menu of statistical tables. The consultant visited one of theseDOES (in Ramallah) and studied the system of data collection and processing. Severalobservations were made:

A- Points of Strength1- The presence of personal computers and a computer person in charge of the

unit.2- Experience in collecting and processing of data, and generating statistical

reports

B-Points of Weakness1- The data forms were limited in their information which is needed for policy

planning and management. For example, no data on ages of student arecollected, which are needed to calculate enrollment ratios.

2- Information on teachers and other employees were collected on a separateform that is not linked to the school data form.

3- No information is regularly collected on school facilities and their maintenanceand rehabilitation needs.

4- Each DOE develops its own forms, and no coding manual is available forschool principals.

5- The actual utilization of data are quite limited: employees in the directorateuse several data forms and process them manually to develop plans forschools needs.

6- No education indicators are developed from the collected data and no data areutilized in policy analysis and planning.

Section II: Planning Capacity and the Establishment of an EMIS

Ironically, the “MOE” is lucky to have a clean “tabula rasa” with no data or inheritedstructure. Therefore, it can design a model that builds on present strengths in the educationsystem. Centralized systems of education usually collect and process data at the central leveland produce general statistics at the national level. Data at the district level are not usuallyavailable unless the capacity for processing and analysing school data is decentralized to thedistrict level.

Several DOES in the West Bank seemed to have the capacity to manage the process.Therefore, the role of the “MOE” should be to develop a unified system with unified formsand software, strengthen the capacity at the DOE level to collect and process data, andmaintain the system and keep it updated. In the beginning DOES will then send their data tothe “MOE” on diskettes and, at a later stage once the basic structure becomes developed andoperational, through modems.

The “MOE” should initially rely on the use of personal computers at the DOE leveland acquire a local area network ()LAN system at the central level. In the first year or twoof its operation, until sufficient technical staff are appointed, the “MOE” can also depend onthe use of microcomputers to consolidate data files from the various DOES. This function ofestablishing an educational database (a prerequisite to the development of an EMIS) shouldbe differentiated and separated from the function of providing computer services such as apayroll system, a system for processing examinations, and an inventory control system. Aminicomputer or a mainframe can be acquired for those purposes at a later stage, but thetwo functions of an EMIS for planning and general computer services should be

separated. However, co-ordination and linkages between the two functions should be madeby adopting the same coding schemes to be able to join files and make use of existinginformation, and avoid unnecessary duplication of data gathering.

The Planning Function at the “MOE”A distinction should be made between the function of policy analysis/policy planning

and the development of annual plans/programmes for implementation. Policy analysis entailsstrategic planning and development of different policy options/scenarios. This would be doneby examining basic education indicators and analysing various options. These options wouldbe judged against general criteria such as feasibility, affordability, relevance, sustainability,efficiency and effectiveness. Such analysis should be done by a small group of educators, andeducation economists (a small think tank) to be positioned high in the hierarchy of “MOE”attached to the “Minister’”s office. This unit could be called Educational Policy Planning unit(EPPU) and can be viewed as a technical arm to the Boards of Education and HigherEducation.

The other type of “planning” which is associated with programme development andannual budgeting exercise is normally done at the “General Directorate for Planning” whichencompasses a section which deals with educational data and another section which deals withthe development of annual plans. The information section liaises with the informationdivision at the DOES at the district level and the planning section liaises with the “planning”division at the district level.

To avoid confusion between the two functions of “planning” at the DG Level and“educational policy planning”, it may be advisable to use the term “programming” or “schoolplanning” for the first function to distinguish it from the educational policy planning function.

The establishment of an EMISThe integrity and efficiency of an education system is highly dependent on the quality

of data in it. The quality of data is determined by its relevance, reliability, accuracy,completeness and timeliness. The success of EMIS development will depend on addressingfour major areas of concern.

First, data is generally not available from the Statistics Section’s database in time tobe used to inform annual planning and budgeting processes. As a result “informal” datacollection systems persist, i.e., various “MOE” units collect and gather their own data. Notsurprisingly, data elements, definitions and methods vary across units. If the EMIS is to bemore widely used for annual planning, policy analysis and to support budgeting processes,the system must provide data in a more timely fashion. Data collection and provision mustbe synchronized with the annual planning and budgeting cycle .

Second, at least some of the data from the several primary data centers needs to beintegrated into the EMIS. Much of the data from the personnel system has to be incorporatedin the EMIS. Buildings and maintenance data has to be integrated into EMIS. A

comprehensive facilities database should be developed, maintained and supplied to decisionmakers. The database has to be annually updated. Co-ordination will be required todetermine what, if any, data from the Maintenance Section database should be incorporatedinto the EMIS.

Third, data is not generally accessible to all who could benefit from its use. Lack ofaccess to EMIS data is constrained by organizational structures and processes and a lack ofadequately skilled staff. EMIS development must include strategies for increasing the accessof potential users to the data they need and, in particular, must address the increasing needsof the regional offices. Lack of adequately trained staff is the most serious constraint toaccess. The provision of an adequate level of training will be the key to the successfuldevelopment of an effective, comprehensive and computerized EMIS. A significant amountof several types of training will be needed. Training in the design and development ofeducation system databases, primarily technical in nature, will be central to the short termsuccess of EMIS efforts. However, effective utilization of the EMIS and the long termsuccess of EMIS efforts will require training of relevant staff in the use of computers, andin particular the use of an EMIS, to support educational management, planning and policyanalysis. This type of training will need to be provided to a broad range of staff throughoutthe “MOE” and in the regional education offices. As staff and their needs can be expectedto change over time, training will need to be ongoing and become an institutionalized partof the “MOE” practice.

Fourth, computer resources are essential. Few offices in the “MOE” and the regionaloffices have sufficient computer hardware and software to benefit from the development ofa comprehensive and computerized EMIS. Thus, it will be necessary to procure and installhardware and software to support EMIS development. Computers will be needed by thosesections identified as the primary users of EMIS data.

Strategy for the Establishment of EMIS

A two-stage strategy is proposed for the establishment of EMIS and the developmentof planning capacity in the “MOE”: because of the urgent need for setting up the EMIS, itis proposed that certain steps be taken by UNICEF immediately to enable the “MOE” todevelop the basic infrastructure for collecting school census data immediately (In Dec.1994 or Jan. 1995). Once the data are collected, an extensive staff training programme anda technical assistance programme can be implemented to train “MOE” and district levelpersonnel in the utilization and further development of EMIS, in addition to a programmein capacity building in educational planning and management.

Phase I: The Establishment of a Database

Development and institutionalization of an effective EMIS will require close co-ordination of a set of simultaneous activities. Training will be central to strengthening both:capacities for developing and maintaining a comprehensive EMIS and capacities for moreeffective management, planning, policy analysis and decision making. Training will need tobe a continuous and ongoing process. The emphasis should be on learning throughpractical experience. That is, to the extent that it is possible, all training should revolvearound the work at hand. Even more formalized training and study tours, when offered,should focus on the development of skills and the acquisition of knowledge that can beapplied immediately.

The whole plan would be implemented, step by step, following a building blockstrategy. That is, the database’s foundation block would comprise the basic school-censusdata to start with. A data collection form, a manual and data entry forms would be adaptedfrom the forms developed by NCERD in Jordan (The “MOE” is presently working on theadaptation).

The initial stage will lay the foundation by establishing and operating the schoolcensus data. The focus will be on designing standardized forms, developing efficientprocedures, and demonstrating how data can be reported immediately on demand. How datacan be analyzed and used to improve educational planning, as well as to monitor progressand to enhance the efficiency of the education system.

The following activities will be essential to lay the foundation for a proper EMIS:1- Analyzing the data needs of different deferent departments of the “MOE” and

decision makers at the central and district levels

2- Designing and developing a comprehensive integrated data collection form forthe school census data.

3- Preparing a data collection manual to guide collection, coding and entry ofdata.

4- Creating prototype applications to enter and validate data into personalcomputers (PCs) directly from the data collection forms.

5- Procuring and installing necessary computer hardware (PCs) and softwareprogramme packages.

6- Training technical staff on data entry, validation procedures and introductionto relational data-bases (such as R: Base).

7- Field testing applications, data collection and data entry procedures on a setof real data and modifying and developing the data collection procedures andapplications.

8- Removal of problems from the data collection formas, procedures, manual andapplications.

Needs analysis and designing data collection form and manual: The very first stepon the way to establishing EMIS is to conduct a needs analysis in order to identify the dataneeds of different sections departments and directorates of the “MOE”. Once it is knownwhich departments need what type of information, in what form and at what level ofspecification, a unified data collection form can be designed to collect all the neededinformation much more efficiently at one point in time from all the schools. This would sparethe school principals and staff from repeated data collection procedures. At the same timethis action will save time and resources. Identification of data needs will lead to cleardefinitions of variables and standardized coding of the data.

Designing of the data collection form, data collection manual and codebook willfollow. Well-designed data collection form, manual and codebook are basic prerequisites forefficient data collection.

Procuring and installing hardware and necessary software: Installation ofappropriate, up-todate, high powered, PC and appropriate, user-friendly, efficient software(programme packages) area basic necessity for making an EMIS work. Therefore, while theneeds analysis is being conducted and the form and manual are begin prepared, required PCsand software should be procured and properly installed so that initial basic training of theEMIS personnel (technical staff) could start without loosing much time.

The initial need of the project is two PCs for each DOE (except Gaza which needs3 PCs) , the “MOE” should also have two PCs to start with.

Basic training: Basic training in database concepts, design and development ofapplications and report forms and data entry and validation will be followed by training inrestructuring data and creating policy-oriented databases.

All training, however, has to be reality-based, online, while dealing with real practicalneeds of the decision-makers and planners. Basic training will include the following :

A- Preparation for Training (Building applications for School Census Data)Training can be organized at the National Center for Educational

Research and Development (NCERD) in Amman, Jordan.Prior to actual training, NCERD will build applications for the Palestiniandata which will serve as the basis for training in R-Base, and basic EMISconcepts as applied to Palestinian educational data. The output of this step willbe a training manual and computer screens for data entry.

B- introduction to R: Base and Data EntryFour people (One from the “MOE”, one from the Palestinian Bureau

of Statistics, and two people for the DOE who are computer sciencespecialists) will be trained at the NCERD. These people will subsequentlytrain other data entry people from the DOE. The person who will be in charge

of temporarily co-ordinating all the work of the DG for Planning can alsoparticipate in this activity so that he can follow all actions needed after thisinitial training.

c- Home-based Training of Data Entry PeopleThe participant trainees will be selected from the DOES. It is advisable

to train two trainees from each DOE on the West Bank and Khan Younis, andthree trainees from the Gaza DOE. The trainers who were trained at theNCERD will conduct the training for about two weeks.

Data collection: The basic data collection forms and the manual will be piloted ona sample of schools (The training can be done at some of the schools whose principals metwith the consultant in Ramallah during his visit in November). The forms will then bemodified and improved, in light of comments from the field.

Finally, the data collection will be accomplished by the Directors of Education in thedistricts. The Divisions of Statistics at the district level should check and verify each schoolform to make sure that the forms are complete and accurate.

Data entry: The actual data entry will be carried out by the trained staff at eachdistrict, using the double entry method to ensure that the data are accurately entered andverified. The people from the “MOE” who were trained at NCERD will be responsible forsupervising the process of data entry at the DOES, collecting the data diskettes from eachdistrict and consolidating all data in one file. After that, the process of data analysis andmanipulation can begin.

Technical Assistance Requirements for Phase IThe primary role of technical assistance will be to support the work of the “MOE”

staff who will be responsible for the management, administration, and implementation of allactivities, including the provision of training for district education officers. It is estimatedthat a total of two person/months of short-term technical assistance will be required tosupport the implementation of this phase.

A summary of Phase I activities and technical assistance requirements are outlined in AnnexI.

Computer Software Requirements for Phase IFive types of software are required: (i) database software for the development of EMIS andassociated applications for data entry, processing, and retrieval; (ii) spreadsheet software tosupport the needs of planners and policy makers with the development of a host of planningand analytical models and other applications; (iii) statistical analysis software to supporthigher order analyses; (iv) word procesing software to support the writing of reports; and (v)system utility software to facilitate the maintenance of computer system resources.

A number of good packages exist in each category of software. Each would serve theneeds of the project very well. During phase one of EMIS activities a number of differentpackages can be used: R: Base, Paradox and FoxPro in the database category; Lotus andExcel in the spreadsheet category, SPSS in the statistical analysis category, and MS Word

in the word-processing category. On the basis of NCERD’S experience, and ease of learningand use, it is suggested that R: Base, SPSS, Excel and MS Word (all for Windows) beacquired.

Over the past few years, significant changes have taken place in computer software.Current technologies are easier to use and more powerful. Of all the changes that haveoccurred, the introduction of the Windows on IBM style machines is the most significant.Standardization on Windows-based software significantly reduces the thelearning curve for bothnovice and intermediate computer users. Strong consideration should be given tostandardization on Windows as an operating environment.

A summary of software requirements is provided in Annex II.

Computer Hardware Requirements for Phase IThe purchase of some computer hardware will be required to support the

establishment and operation of an effective EMIS. Computers will be required in each DOEand in Directorates of the “MOE” that cooperate in EMIS activities. In phase I, it issufficient to have only powerful personnal microcomputers.

More powerful computing capacity will be required later in the “MOE” Division ofinformation which is responsible for further development of the EMIS and its maintenance.Linking district level PCs with the “MOE’”S network will also be done after one to two yearsthrough telephone modems.

As software has become easier to use and more powerful, the minimum hardwarerequired to run it has increased. This trend is likely to continue, computers with 486processors and running at speeds of 33,50 and 66 MHz, with random access memory (RAM)on the order of 8-16 Mbytes; and with hard disks in excess of 200 Mbytes are essential forrunning the best of the software that is available today.

The minimum number of PCs required for phase I is two and one printer for eachdistrict DOE, except the Gaza DOE which needs three. The “MOE” Division of Informationneeds four PCs and two printers in the beginning, in addition to the needs of the majordepartments which will be utilizing the EMIS data.

The consultant was informed by “MOE” officials that some DOES had one or twoPCs, with 386 processors. These PCs are adequate for data entry. However, it was notpossible to establish the exact needs of the DOES during the mission. If five of the districtshave computers, then a total of fifteen PCs can be sufficient for the remaining DOES and the“MOE” during phase I. After one or two years (in phase II) the “MOE” will need a LANsystem.

Annex III lists the needed hardware for “MOE” and the district DOE.

Phase II: Capacity Building in Technical and AnalyticalPlanning

After completing phase I, the “MOE” will have a

Skills and Educational Policy

complete set of data ready forprocessing and analysis. Each DOE will also have a set of the district data also ready forprocessing and analysis.

During phase II, the “MOE” and district staff of the Information and PlanningDirectorate will acquire technical and analytical skills to handle data processing, using severalsoftware packages. They will be trained in restructuring data files, creating “policy” files,transporting data to host programs, preparing statistical reports, computing and derivingeducational indicators from a combination of proxy variables, EMIS analysis & applicationsand producing sophisticated reports and graphic presentations of the data. The trainingworkshops will use actual data on the Palestinian General Education system.

Integration and Utilization of EMISThe first two phases are expected to have covered the full cycle of data collection,

processing, reporting and decision-making. This allows for a review of the availability ofinformation against the planning and budgeting cycle.

Synchronization of different activities to meet the timely data requirements ofplanners, managers, and decision makers at the “MOE” and in the DOES will ensue from thereview of the data needs of education managers and planners at different levels ofadministration. Synchronization has to take place along two dimensions: vertical andhorizontal. Vertical is temporal juxtaposition or time sequence of the sequential activitieswhich include timing of data collection, data entry, data cleaning, data analysis, reporting,etc. Horizontal dimension requires concurrent execution of parallel activities such ascollection of data needed by different departments, entering data at different places (centerand the districts) integration of data originating from different sources into a comprehensivedatabase. A comprehensive database and EMIS alone do little to improve the quality ofeducation unless they are properly utilized. A series of workshops will be required for eachof different groups of EMIS users. For district utilization of EMIS, the district directorateswill have to be equipped with necessary hardware and software and staffed with trainedpersonnel.

The second phase of EMIS, therefore, will focus upon strengthening the capacity ofthe “MOE” by building upon the EMIS foundation of the previous year. The strategy wouldbe to broaden the database by integration of data currently collected by different directorates.This, however will be done gradually, adding one layer of data at a time.

In the long run, nevertheless, personnel data including teacher data, maintenance data,examinations data and educational facilities data integrated with the basic school census datawould substantially increase the power of the database to help policy analysts, planners,managers, administrators and researchers at various levels. To achieve this, EMIS personnelwill need to acquire more advanced EMIS concepts and skills related to complex datamanagement, statistical analyses of data, rapid automated information retrieval for the

District Directors and advanced applications and report generation.

Training of “MOE” and DOE staffA training programme is suggested for phase II to develop the technical analytical

capabilities of “MOE” and DOE staff. This programme would consist of training about fourkey people abroad. It is recommended that the same people, who were trained at NCERDduring Phase I, be sent for further training abroad to acquire the various skills needed.Because the technical and analytical skills required for phase II are advanced, it is advisableto conduct an intermediate level training workshop abroad for the trainers, to be followedby an advanced level training workshop. The trainers will also organize an intermediate andan advanced training workshops for the DOE staff. Upon their return home after eachtraining workshop, these trainers will be conducting a training workshop for the DOE staff.

The local training will be supported by an expert for about one week during eachtraining workshop to assist the four local trainers. The duration of the intermediate andadvanced level training for the four trainers abroad is at least six weeks and four weeksrespectively. The local training of the DOE staff could be organized in three training sessionsof about two weeks each, as needed, with time inbetween sessions to allow staff to practice,since phase II requires acquisition of technical and analytical skills to use different softwareapplications. A total training time of about six weeks should be sufficient.The total estimated cost of this component is presented in Annex I (activities 7,8 and 9).

EMIS Orientation for Senior StaffOne of the by-products of the activities in phase II, is the preparation of a set of

educational indicators about the Palestinian education system. These indicators can bepresented in a three-day seminar to the senior executives, educational planners and policyresearchers at the “MOE” and DOES. However, the real objective of the seminar will be todemonstrate the utilization to the EMIS, its structure, the type of data to be collected, itslimitations and capabilities and the type of questions these officials expect from their staffto answer.

This activity (Annex I-activity 10) would require about two person/weeks of technicalassistance to prepare for the presentation, because the workshop would be built around thespecific responsibilities, tasks, indicators and needs of individual departments. Developmentof context specific training is known to add significantly to increase the effectiveness oftraining.

Capacity Building in Educational Policy Planning and ManagementThe main objectives of this activity are: 1) to enhance the capacity of the “MOE” and

senior district staff to manage and plan the development of the system in the short and long-term perspectives and 2) to develop the monitoring and evaluation capacity of the system.

To achieve these objectives, several training programmes will be proposed. Some ofthese programmes are similar to those suggested by IIEP (July 1994 proposal). Three typesof training activities are being proposed:

1- Local training: a local training programme involving about ten to fifteensenior participants focusing on detailed analysis of four to five key issues in

education, each forming a case study, will be organized. These issues will beselected by the “MOE”. Joint expatriate and local consultants will becommissioned to prepare the necessary report on the case studies. The trainingprogramme would last for three weeks, with consultants available for thetraining. The first week of the programme would involve theoretical andmethodological presentation of the issues involved with an internationalperspective about different options and different experiences elsewhere.

The programme could cover strategic options for development of basiceducation, efficiency of the education system (both internal and external),economics of education, monitoring and evaluation of an educational systemand preparing priorities for educational development. The remaining twoweeks will be devoted to in depth case studies, to enable the participants toreflect on the issues and to develop a clear view of available options. (AnnexI-Activity 11.1).

2- Study visit: after this training, it will be necessary for educational planners(about ten) to go on a study visit of about two to three week duration to visitthree countries that would provide them with rich experiences and clarifysome of the issues covered in the previous programme. This would enable thePalestinian decision-makers to consider different policy alternatives based ona better understanding of their own issues (through examining the casestudies). (Annex I-Activity 11.2).

IIEP Training: a one-month residency programme at IIEP in Paris for aboutten officials (five each year for two years). This programme would focus onmajor issues in educational planning with special emphasis on policy planningand the utilization of different resources. People who participated in thepreparation of the case studies under activity 1 will be involved in thistraining. (Annex I-Activity 11.3).

4- Special Studies: school level data collected each year serve two mainpurposes: 1) to document the status and determine trends in the educationsystem as the basis for ongoing resource allocation and planning decisions and2) as the basis for special studies conducted to address high priority issues asthey arise. The capacity to conduct special studies, as needed, is important inthe “MOE’”S utilization of national education data in planning. It is thereforeproposed that some specialists work with the staff of the “MOE” to conducttwo to three special studies. The topics of these studies will be determined atthe time of the consultancy, based on discussions with relevant senior “MOE”personnel. It is suggested that three person/months of technical assistance beprovided to assist in problem formulation, data analysis and reporting. (AnnexI-Activity 11.4).

5- Monitoring and evaluation: it is suggested that a special workshop beorganized for training a group of educators at the “MOE” in monitoringlearning achievement and other educational outcomes. During this workshopthe participants could design an institutionalized structure to establish and

maintain such a capacity at the “MOE”. The participants (about twelve) couldalso develop prototype materials/instruments to be applied in the field. Suchinstruments could form the basis for conducting an independent study to assesslearning achievement at schools in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.This Workshop could last for three weeks and it would require twoconsultants. (Annex I-Activity 11.5).

Annex 1

A Summary of Phase I and Phase IIActivities on Technical Assistance and Equipment Requirements

Activity Duration Place T.A. Phase I Phase II Remarks(weeks) Req.

PHASE 1

Conduct needs analysis 1 WB and 1 1,000 Draft forms wereand finalise data forms NCERD given to “MOE”of manual for adaptation. To

be reviewed andfinalised buNCERD

Procurement of Immediately WB 93,000 71,500 To train data entycomputer hardware and personnel.software Computers can be

borrowed ifprocurement isdelayed

Preparation of training 1 NCERD 2 2,000 (A)manual and entryscreens

Training workshop for 2 NCERD 2 2,000 (A)trainers (4) for data 5,600 (B)entry and processing

Training workshop 2 WB 1 2,200 (A) An NCERD(20 people) for data 14,000 (B) consultant will beentry present to provide

support duringtraining

Data collection from 1 WB and District Directorsschools and verification Gaza of Education mustby DOEs ensure verification

of school formsbefore entry

Data entry 4 WB and 2 4,400 (A) An NCERDGaza consultant will be

present for 2 weeksduring data entryprocees to providesupport

PHASE 2

Activity Duration Place T.A. Phase I Phase II Remarks(weeks) Req.

Intermediate training of 6 Abroad 6,000 (C)4 people abroad 6,000 (C)

3,000 (E)

Advanced training of 4 4 Abroad 4,000 (c)people abroad 4,000 (D)

2,000 (E)

Training sessions (3) for 6 WB 3 5,000 (c)20 district level staff 42,000 (D)members 4,500 (E)

EMIS orientation for 1/2 WB and 2 3,000 (c)EMIS staff Abroad

Capacity Building 3 WB 6 3,000 (E)- Local Training of 7,200 (D)15 trainees 12,600 (C)

15,000 (B)16,000 (F)

- Study visits 3 Abroad 1 2,000 (c)40,000 (E)

- IIEP training for 4 IIEP 4x2 15,000 (E)

10 officials 54,000 (D)15,000 (c)

- Special studies 12 WB 12 21,600 (C)15,000 (D)10,000 (F)

- Monitoring and 3 WB 6 10,800 (C)

Evaluation 7,200 (D)

Workshop 12,000 (E)

Subtotal 124,200 407,400

Grand Total 531,600

WB - West Bank

A - Technical Assistance includes fees and DSAB - DSA for local traineesC - Fees for consultantsD - DSA for consultantsE - Travel for consultantsF - Fees for local studies

Note on Basis of Cost Estimates

Phase 1

1- DSA for consultants 180/day2- Fee for consultants 1,000/week3- DSA for local training 50/day

Phase 2

1- DSA for consultants 180/day2- Fee for consultants 300/day3- DSA for local training 50/day

Computer Software Requirements(US$)

Item Phase 1 Phase 2 Total

Quantity Cost/Unit Total Cost Quantity Cost/Unit Total Cost cost

D o s 3 130 400 400

Windows (Arabic 3 500 1,500 1,500version)

Relational 3 600 1,800 1,800Database (R: Basefor Windows)

Spreadsheet 3 500 1,500 1,500(Excel, Arabic,version forWindows)

Statistical 3 900 2,700 2,700Analysis (SPSSfor Windows)

MS-Arabic Word 3 200 600 600

GIS (Windows) 1 5,500 5,500 5,500

Harvard Graphics 3 500 1,500 1,500

Annex 3

Computer Hardware Requirements(US$)

Item Phase 1 Phase 2 Total

Quantity Cost/Unit Total Cost Quanity Cost/UNI Total Cost costT

Computer: 4 for “MOE” 4,500 18,000 18,000486 DX2-66 Planning andMhz, 16 MB InformationRAM, 1 GB HD Department

Computer: 15 for DOES 3,000 45,000 12 for “MOE” 3,000 36,000 81,000486 DX-66 Mhz,8 MB RAM, 260MB HD

Laser Printer 2 for “MOE” 2,000 4,000 2 for “MOE” 2,000 4,000 8,000

Uninterrupted 4 for “MOE” 500 9,500 9,500power supply and

15 for DOES

Modems for 10 400 4,000 4,000linking DOESwith “MOE”

Computer: 1 for “MOE” 7,000 7,000 7,000Pentium 100Mhz, 32 MBRAM LANServer

LAN cables and for “MOE” 1,500 1,500 ,1500connections

Total 84,500 64,500 149,000

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