Hamed Ammar warns about the looming danger in the current reform of the education system in Egypt It is worth stating at the outset that in the final analysis the practice of education is a political process, meanwhile, the conduct of politics is an educational process. Consequently through the dialectical relationship between these two poles, the more powerful of them at a certain time will ultimately prevail. These are basic tenets that need to be pointed out for a profound understanding of any educational system within the dimensions of time and space. I venture to express my view that for many decades Egypt has been ruled by systems of government harbouring paternalism, autocracy, and plutocracy, with varying degrees of force. Within this context, educational goals, policies and activities have been mainly guided by the vested interests of its rulers to maintain the reproduction of the status quo, and to shape the minds and souls of its human products along the same direction. However, these statements can be challenged by some critics upholding the view that education has functioned as a powerful instrument in, the euphemistically dubbed, modernization since the days of Mohamad Ali, the founder of our modern state. This judgment sounds palatable at its face value with respect to the phenomena of modernization. Nevertheless, a more thorough evaluation of education's impact on society would beg the question, claiming an enquiry into the nature and content of this modernization, the actual beneficiaries from all its effects, with special reference to its educational yields and returns in improving the quality of life, and in tackling the chronic ailments of economic and social problems. It has been well stated that not every modernization is development, whereas every development spells modernization. At best, education has contributed to the stimulation of appetites for consumption at a geometric rate, while instilling capacities for production at a mathematical rate. Moving from what may seem to be a pessimist's view, let us look more closely at the panorama of our educational system and its major problems: 1. One of these problems not usually discussed with transparency and candidness but looms large, is the wide gap between the grandiose official discourse and proclamation on the one hand and the real capabilities of their implementation, on the other hand. In fact, what usually takes place are minor modifications of the cosmetic type, representing pouring old oil in new bottles, or according to the French saying "Plus ça change plus c'est la même chose". Suffice it to mention a few examples: Changing previous text book covers by more colourful ones; replacing the title of subject inspector (mufatish) with a subject matter orientator (muwageh), or of a Director with President of the university; issuing educational laws, such as the lately enacted accreditation law, for improving education quality and imposing them on existing institutions lacking the minimum basic conditions for their application. Nothing has been changed in substance nor in practice!! 2. Inadequate financial resources available for a reasonable functioning of the system are certainly a great obstacle and have dire consequences. Indeed this stands as one of the chronic impediments in the way of serious and effective changes. In absolute figures the total budget allocated to the whole system increased from less than L.E. 3 billion in 1992 to about L.E. 26 billion in 2006. However school and university enrolment has risen from 6 million to 18 million students. For university enrolment alone, the increase was overwhelming as it soared from 90 thousand to almost 1.8 million students this year, housed in almost the same physical facilities that suffocate any attempt for sound teaching. This reminds the writer of Moliere's comedy L' Avare (The Stingy), indicating that the amount of hospitality food prepared for two guests can also cater for four or five!! 3. Within this financial gap, it is significant to note the glaring meager achievements in the provision of educational infrastructure (buildings, equipment, space, facilities etc.) to match the flux of new enrolments in schools and universities, who are squeezed in only 40.000 schools and 14 universities. The density of a classroom in the former ranges between 40--70 students. For the latter, attendance at lectures reach the hundreds, to the extent that some students rent private chairs to be inserted wherever there is little space. Adequate educational infrastructure is a sine qua non for productive education, similar to the impact of economic infrastructure without which economic development can hardly take off. 4. The official discourse voices the importance of fostering student - teacher interaction and dialogue, with the aim of promoting critical and independent minds in addition to self learning. It even labours under the hope, expressed in its high flown verbosity, to reach loftier goals of first class, quality education for excellence and creativity. The use of multi--media technology, which exists presently as mere samples, is expected to motivate learners to attain the competitive edge required for progress in a globalized world market. However, the results remain disappointing, as the basic conditions for meeting these noble goals are unavailable or unsatisfactory, keeping intact the prevailing and lingering deep--seated traditional and banal methods of instruction. These include prescribed mass textbooks, even in universities, leading to rote memory learning, unimaginative moulds of exam systems, and the whole range of what the famous Brazilian philosopher calls the banking system of teaching learning and evaluating. As a result the most abominable epitome of acquiring knowledge is represented by the widespread resort to private lessons tutoring for exam preparation. It is estimated to cost families at the national level around (L.E. 15 million) every year. 5. With the deflating budgetary allocations per capita, the educational system has been a classical example of bureaucracy inflation. Myriad laws, by-laws, and regulations prevent institutions from having any room for initiative or independent action, especially in any new emerging situation. Diehard rules are generally received from the higher in the echelons, and these from the centre. In fact the whole educational administration is highly centralized e. g. every paper, regardless of its importance, must have at least three signatures; graduation certificates for BA, BSC have to be signed at the back by seven bureaucrats before being signed by the university president in the front. One can imagine how many thousands of certificates to sign and how much time is wasted therein!! For further examples of this kind, one could cite the rigid prescription of curriculum subjects, their periods, distribution between terms, teachers' and students' conduct, the start and end of the academic year, as all are governed by legislation, ministerial orders and by regulations from the Higher Council of Universities. A few attempts have been made to introduce a taste of decentralization but the results have not been promising, as they created several problems between the competent ministry, local government bodies and the schools. There exists hardly any reasonable leeway for administrative or academic autonomy. In addition, the whole process of education is geared to maintain order and uniformity. At the university level there stands a Security Bureau at the college and at the university administration level, with its officers and personnel meant to control any disturbing or unruly gatherings, such as students' demonstrations and protests. The Security Agency at the higher level usually has its say in the appointments, promotions and dismissals of university staff. It also has to endorse the names of persons considered for leadership positions. The Security Bureau usually also interferes by excluding students out of favour due to their ideological colouring from standing for students union's elections. Actually, forming political parties as part of students union activities is barred by law, under the pretext of avoiding strife between these groups. Again and paradoxically enough, presidents of teachers unions have been held for the last fifty years by Ministers of Education, presumably duly elected!! On the whole, the duty of successful leadership is to abort and quell any activities that could disturb the daily routine or the climate of steady functioning, as peace must reign in the whole campus and its population. This stands in sharp contrast with what my teacher Professor Karl Mannheim taught me at London University, stressing the fact that when everything appears to be running smoothly, devoid of any restless dynamism, one must be sure that there are some matters going wrong. One is also struck by the almost absence of a place for art in all university curricula or even as hobbies, with the exception of art colleges. Whether consciously or unconsciously, or for the lack of recognition of its significant and valuable impact on total personality formation, its absence confirms the dictum of Bertolt Brecht "Art is not a mirror held up to reality, but a hammer with which to reshape it". But who cares to reshape it!! 6. Problems of education are rampant, diversified and complicated due to the timid approach in reform, lack of transparency and accumulations over time. Therefore, I shall end my paper by focusing on what is, in my view, a major problem that has been lurking in the educational scene and has lately gained significant ground. It is the hasty rush to establish private schools and universities as well as foreign universities. The 1974 Investment Law ushered in the ideology of encouraging free trade and the right of free investment in any sector of societal development. Education being a relatively easy venture with no risk therein, and decidedly a profitable undertaking, has since lured private investors including foreigners who find it much cheaper than in their original countries. Private schools have started to mushroom, enrolling at present 10% of the total school population. The general political climate, combined with increasing demand by social classes who can affording providing their children with a better quality education, has been a conducive factor for their continued expansion. With respect to foreign schools and universities, they serves the interests of the home country by providing graduates to be employed in their businesses in Egypt and in neighboring countries. Such graduates could also be attracted to emigrate to work abroad, filling the prevailing shortage of youth in their own respective countries, due to their demographic gap. This will result in an Egyptian brain drain and deprive the national economy from their contributions. The real dilemma for Egypt, despite the quality education to be gained by such Egyptian graduates, is that it finds itself, at present, having four complete educational systems, and not just few schools here and there. These are, namely a) the Egyptian government system, b) the private Egyptian system, c) the American, Canadian, French, German, and Russian system, in addition to d) Al Azhar religious system. This quadruple system differs in many aspects, e. g. ownership, student clientele, and free or tuition fees as criteria of admission. They also differ in the medium of instruction either in Arabic or in a foreign language. Even if there were no difference in prescribed curriculum content, discrepancies and differences loom large in the so called "hidden curriculum" reflected in their uniforms, means of transport to and from their institutions and in the social background of families. In short, discrepancies strike the eye in the whole milieu of their schools and universities such as in small classes, adequate libraries, facilities of playing fields, art and music arrangements and the whole atmosphere of beautiful environments. This is not diversity, but rather a state of differentiation, at variance and separation. These four types of educational system can, and will have serious implications for present and future sociological conditions through shaping different minds, personalities, life orientations, and ways of thinking and values. Suffice it to mention the difference in the use of a foreign language as the medium of instruction where the mother tongue is relegated to a third standing in the hierarchy of learning. It must be pointed out that language is not just the result of thinking. In fact, it is the real fabric from which the process of thinking is made, and not merely a mode of expression. It is the stuff or the material of thinking itself, imagination, feelings, fears and hopes and all that constitutes one's national culture. Teaching in Arabic does not, however, exclude the great importance for a solid learning of foreign languages, particularly needed for living in a globalized world. Further problems that could emanate from this quadruple systems adding to differentiations, lie in weakening the development of common core of national culture, and simultaneously increasing class privileges and unequal opportunities in both learning and prospects of employment. Finally, the prestige and power accorded to the increasing number of fee-paying educational institutions teaching in a foreign language, irrespective of their individual benefits, are likely to stand as an impending danger for the cultural and social fabric of society. These coveted private and foreign institutions where society's leaders and wealthy classes send their children, are likely to diminish the value of the national educational system and divert concern away from any serious reform of its overdue malaise. 7. The eradication of illiteracy has been called for by the Legal Consultative Assembly since 1876, yet the percentage of illiterates (15 -- 60 years of age) after 130 years remains as high, at more than 30 per cent. The poverty of the country's knowledge wealth can also be observed in the pitiful percentage (of 12%) with a higher education in the total labour force. To conclude, one could assert, that the road to resolve these major problems and others is well known, and sufficiently explored. Serious rewards can only be gained by venturing onto that road with courage confidence and willpower. Ideas, skills and know-how, and even financial resources are not all that lacking. Only a democratic system of governance can mobilize those assets towards a knowledge society, in the interests of all its people. This requires a long term strategy aimed at building, with perseverance, a societal edifice cemented by the values of human rights, freedom and justice for all.
