Education systems and textbooks in selected countries of the Middle East are increasingly the subject of debate. This volume presents and analyzes the major trends as well as the scope and the limits of education reform initiatives undertaken in recent years. In curricula and teaching materials, representations of the "Self" and the "Other" offer insights into the contemporary dynamics of identity politics. By building on a network of scholars working in various countries in the Middle East itself, this book aims to contribute to the evolution of a field of comparative education studies in this region.

Education and the Arab Spring: Resistance, Reform, and Democracy explores the current debate about education in the Middle East and North Africa post-Arab Spring. It draws from a variety of conceptual frameworks rooted in different disciplines and fields, such as education, religious and cultural studies, political science, and Arab studies. The book is, in part, a response to an increased demand since the Arab Spring – by universities, cultural institutions, think-tanks, education officials, policymakers and journalists – for a richer, deeper understanding of the role of education in post-Arab Spring states and societies. The book adds a unique and much-needed perspective to this field: its specific focus is on the Arab context, and its analysis is of issues of particular relevance to a changing world order. The great mix of experiences of the contributors attests to the excellent quality of this promising work. “It is not infrequent to hear sweeping but general criticisms of all aspects of educational systems in the Arab world – everything from textbooks to teaching methodologies have come under scrutiny. The authors of this collection seek to move the debate beyond generalities by providing detailed studies; while informed by a sense of the inadequacy of existing systems, they also provide an empirically rich analysis of existing systems.” – Nathan Brown, George Washington University, USA

This book brings together academics and postgraduate students, practitioners and Ministry officials all of whom are wedded to developing an understanding of what is happening to education in the broader Middle East. They cover many countries whilst recognising that many more could have been included. In drawing attention to education in Pakistan, Palestine, Oman, Turkey and Qatar they indicate the wide range of education 'policy borrowing' and, most importantly, the effects of this exchange. The contributors know that the countries of the broader Middle East are not alone in having purchased glitzy, glossy and tantalisingly wonderful educational reforms, only to find how quickly they became outdated. In other words, they became a 'baroque arsenal' of educational goods, services and models of practice which, having been discussed, designed and generated many years before in countries elsewhere, have then been sold and delivered to the unsuspecting countries of the broader Middle East. It is argued that many of the countries of the region did not suspect that their purchases were, more frequently than not, the 'off-loading' of failed educational experiments in countries of 'the centre'. This book discusses what this means not only for educational reform projects but also for the impact upon regional political stability. The two final chapters discuss the underlying key concerns of gender and of cross-border education.

"The uprisings that were seen throughout the Middle East during 2010 and 2011, make it difficult to over-state the role of educated youth in the region s politics. Daniele Cantini combines an analysis of young people in Jordan, of its relevance and of its perceived crisis, with one which looks at education and the pursuit of knowledge. He thereby highlights the unprecedented rise in youth population and the growth in institutions of higher learning as a way to explore and explain the challenges Arab-majority societies are currently facing. It proposes an understanding of the university as an institution integral to the survival of the regime, discusses its fragile reforms, and crucial in the formation of young people s social and political identities. Youth and Education in the Middle East, offers vital first-hand accounts of the role of educational institutions and the impact they have in shaping transnational and local constituencies as well as in the micropolitics of everyday life."--Bloomsbury Publishing.

The failure of reform policies in areas of critical importance to Arab populations such as health and education played a central role in igniting the Arab Awakening, yet this policy perspective has been largely absent from recent studies of the region. Arab regimes most reliant on repression to guarantee their survival were also those most vulnerable to mass politics. Where threats to regime survival have been limited, so have more meaningful reforms been possible, finding an alternative to political change through focusing on "soft policy" areas such as education. A Political Economy of Arab Education offers a comprehensive analysis of K-12 education systems in Arab countries, deepening understanding of their administrative structures and outcomes, and exploring how political considerations have impacted the ability of Arab regimes to engage in meaningful reform. Taking a unique comparative political economy perspective, it examines the reasons behind policy stagnation in Arab countries, addressing the effects of size, history and political stability on the design and implementation of policies and administrative structures. Its informed analysis and comparison of education systems provides new insight into Arab regimes and highlights factors pulling them towards either stagnation or reform. Examining the sustainability of reforms and establishing the benefits of engaging in meaningful change, this book sheds light on why some regimes survived the Arab Spring while others crumbled and formulates convincing predictions on the potential for future regime change in the region. This book will be of key interest to students and scholars of Middle Eastern Studies, International and Comparative Education and Development Studies.

The Wiley Handbook of Global Educational Reform examines educational reform from a global perspective. Comprised of approximately 25 original and specially commissioned essays, which together interrogate educational reform from a critical global and transnational perspective, this volume explores a range of topics and themes that fully investigate global convergences in educational reform policies, ideologies, and practices. The Handbook probes the history, ideology, organization, and institutional foundations of global educational reform movements; actors, institutions, and agendas; and local, national, and global education reform trends. It further examines the “new managerialism” in global educational reform, including the standardization of national systems of educational governance, curriculum, teaching, and learning through the rise of new systems of privatization, accountability, audit, big-data, learning analytics, biometrics, and new technology-driven adaptive learning models. Finally, it takes on the subjective and intersubjective experiential dimensions of the new educational reforms and alternative paths for educational reform tied to the ethical imperative to reimagine education for human flourishing, justice, and equality. An authoritative, definitive volume and the first global take on a subject that is grabbing headlines as well as preoccupying policy makers, scholars, and teachers around the world Edited by distinguished leaders in the field Features contributions from an illustrious list of experts and scholars The Wiley Handbook of Global Educational Reform will be of great interest to scholars and graduate students of education throughout the world as well as the policy makers who can institute change.