Question

Summary of education in Madagascar

Answer 1

Education was not seen in typical Madagascar as being isolated from other aspects of existence. It emphasized the importance of preserving one's place in a hierarchical society, educated people in the proper observance of ritual and countless fady prohibitions, and taught reverence for ancestors above all else. Formal education in the modern sense first emerged when the London Missionary Society missionary David Jones founded a school in Antananarivo in 1820

Education for children aged six to fourteen is mandatory. The new education program offers five years of primary schooling, from six to eleven years of age. Higher schooling lasts seven years and is split into two parts: a four-year junior high school from the ages of twelve to fifteen, and a three-year high school from the ages of sixteen to eighteen. Students earn a certificate at the end of the junior level and students earn the baccalauréat (the equivalent to a high school diploma) at the end of the senior level

The university system consists of many faculties including law and economics, mathematics, letters and moral ities, and various colleges specialized in public education, education, nursing, social service, public health, and agronomy. The disproportionate number of students at the six universities has been questioned by official reports: a total of 40,000 in 1994 when the maximum capacity is 26,000. Reform efforts are underway to increase students' progress rate — only 10 percent complete their degrees, and for African countries the total number of years needed to earn a degree is eight to ten, compared to five.

The national education system has also been the subject of political discussion. Educational qualifications, as is the case in Africa, offer one of the only ways to get jobs in a country with a small private sector, and the provision of educational services has continued to be an topic with volatile political consequences.