2010年-世界发展银行全球_Secondary_School_Madrasas_in_Bangladesh___Incidence_Quality_and_Implications_for_Reform_86页_1mb

Summary of "Secondary School Madrasas in Bangladesh: Incidence, Quality, and Implications for Reform"

Core Content

This report, part of the Bangladesh Development Series, examines the incidence and quality of secondary school madrasas in Bangladesh, with a focus on how they compare to secular schools and their implications for educational reform.

Main Findings

Incidence of Madrasas

• Quomi madrasas (traditional, unregistered) have a very small share in both primary and secondary education:
  • Primary education: Quomi madrasas account for 1.9% of total primary enrolment.
  • Secondary education: Quomi madrasas account for 2.2% of total secondary enrolment.
• Aliyah madrasas (registered, state-aided) have a more significant share:
  • Primary education: Aliyah madrasas account for 8.4% of total primary enrolment.
  • Secondary education: Aliyah madrasas account for 19% of total secondary enrolment.
• Total madrasa enrolment in primary education is 13.8%, including both Aliyah and Quomi madrasas.
• NGO schools account for 8.2% of primary enrolment, which is higher than Quomi madrasas.

Quality of Learning

• Learning outcomes are generally poor across all types of educational institutions in Bangladesh, especially in mathematics and English.
• Math test results:
  • Only 35% of students correctly answered the questions.
  • School students performed better than Aliyah students.
  • Quomi madrasas were excluded from the analysis due to their distinct pedagogic structure.
• English test results:
  • Only 33% of students correctly answered the questions.
  • Aliyah students are significantly under-represented in the top decile of English performance.
• Religious knowledge:
  • Students from madrasas perform well in Islamic studies, with an average of 75% correct answers.
• There is a gender gap in learning outcomes, with girls scoring lower than boys in math and other subjects.
• The learning gap is more pronounced in Aliyah madrasas than in secular schools.

Institutional Differences

• There is a significant variation in test scores within institutions, which is greater than the difference between institution types.
• The institution effect is strong, but it cannot be fully explained by conventional indicators of quality such as curriculum, teacher characteristics, and resources.
• Aliyah madrasas have a more modern curriculum and are coeducational, while Quomi madrasas are traditional, unregistered, and predominantly male.

Key Issues and Implications for Reform

• Poverty and madrasa enrollment: There is a modest link between madrasa education and poverty, but income is not the sole factor.
• Quality of education: Despite the growth in madrasa enrollment, especially among girls, the overall quality of education in both madrasas and secular schools remains low.
• Need for reform: The report recommends that the government should:
  • Distinguish between Aliyah and Quomi madrasas in policy discussions.
  • Improve the quality of education in madrasas, especially in math and English.
  • Ensure that madrasas do not inadvertently increase gender inequality in learning outcomes.
  • Reform Quomi madrasas, which are structurally different and often informally organized.
  • Anchor policy debates in empirical learning outcomes data rather than anecdotal evidence.

Methodology

• The report is based on the QSSMEB survey, a comprehensive survey of secondary schools and madrasas in rural Bangladesh.
• It integrates household survey data and institutional census data to provide a detailed analysis of the education sector.
• Cognitive tests were administered to 8th-grade students to assess learning outcomes.
• The survey includes data on mathematics, English, general knowledge, and Islamic studies.

Conclusion

• The madrasa sector in Bangladesh is unique in its coexistence with secular schools and its progress in gender parity.
• However, the overall quality of education remains low, and girls are systematically disadvantaged in learning outcomes.
• The report calls for a more nuanced approach to madrasa reform, emphasizing the need for improving basic literacy and numeracy skills across all institutions.
• The findings suggest that madrasas should not be excluded from reform efforts, especially as they play a role in educating the rural poor and addressing gender disparities.

Recommendations

• Develop a national learning assessment system to measure and compare educational quality across institutions.
• Use learning outcomes as a basis for policy discussions and reforms.
• Ensure that public resources are used effectively to improve numeracy and literacy in both secular and religious schools.
• Engage with Quomi madrasas to improve their curriculum and pedagogic structure.
• Promote gender equality in learning outcomes, not just in access to education.