Introduction
Afghanistan is among the countries with the lowest rates of enrolment in
modern education and of adult literacy. At the same time, the country has a long
tradition of Islamic education. This chapter describes the development of Islamic and
modern education and the conflicts and tensions over the content and over girls'
participation in modern education.
The Country
Afghanistan, located in the heart of Central Asia is one of the poorest countries in
the world. GNP per capita was calculated to 164 US$ in 1998 and the human
development index to 169 (out of 174). Life expectancy at birth is around 45 years;
under five mortality rate is 257 per 1000. The population is estimated to 25 million
inhabitants, of which some 2-3 million still live in exile. The main ethnic groups are
Pashtuns (45-50 %), Tadjiks (30-35 %), Hazaras (5-10 %) and Uzbeks (5 %). 99 per
cent are Muslims, 85-90 per cent are Sunni and 10-15 per cent are Shia Muslims. The
country has two official languages, Pashtu and Dari
1
(UNDP, 2000; UNICEF 2001;
CIA, 2000)
Many countries have experienced wars for long periods but few, if any, have
suffered so immensely as Afghanistan. The destruction of the country was tremendous
leaving practically nothing undistorted. Nearly 2 million people died, four million
were disabled and one third of the population, around 6 million, fled the country for a
refugee life, mostly in the neighbouring countries. In addition, several natural
1
Dari is an Afghan version of Persian
1disasters have devastated the country: floods, grasshoppers, earthquakes and in
addition a severe draught lasting four years in a row. An almost total, next to
inconceivable destruction of the country is the result.
Afghanistan is one of many developing countries but one that has not seen any
development for decades. Afghanistan has not advanced as most other countries, it
has not even stagnated - it has regressed. The industrial sector is asunder, exploitation
of natural resources has collapsed, agricultural production has declined, the physical
and administrative infrastructure has broken down, and the social sector has almost
totally collapsed. The literacy rate, for men 45 per cent and for women 11 per cent,
among the lowest in the world, was low also before the wars but even when compared
with today's situation there were more schools and more students in schools 25 years
ago. Although the Taliban fall in 2001 is bringing a change, at least in the cities, it is
doubtful whether there is any other country with such a low literacy rate as
Afghanistan. Moreover, the 'illiterate environment' in Afghanistan is conspicuous
(although the Taliban fall in 2002 is bringing a change, at least in the cities): outside
the few cities there are hardly any newspapers, magazines, bookshops, or libraries and
very few written messages such as posters, advertisements, and signboards.
However, the country has a rich history of highly developed civilisations where
art, literature and sciences have flourished. Written languages have existed for
thousands of years. Population layers of the upper classes have been literate and have
practised their literacy for centuries. Moreover, Islam has been dominating most parts
of the country for 1,200 years or more, which implied that Islamic education has
reached great parts of the population, also rural people living in remote areas. The
Koranic education did not only teach the Koran but also reading, writing and counting
were learnt by a number of rural villagers - i.e. boys and men. Islam also includes the
Sharia laws, which implies that legal regulations and legal documents have been
spread and used also among illiterate people since long. These contradictory facts, the
dominating 'illiterate environment' in combination with the 'literate history' and the
since long existing Islamic education, make the educational situation in Afghanistan
particular, maybe unique.
The history of Afghanistan goes back thousands of years. The country is connected
with the old Persian and Turkic empires, with Alexander the Great, the Ghaznavid
dynasty, Genghis Khan and others. Afghan tribes periodically invaded India and created
vast Indo-Afghan empires. The Mogul dynasty ruled India from Kabul until the British
2colonisation. In 1747, Ahmad Shah Durrani was the first king selected by a Loya Jirga
2
and the first Afghan state was born. The Durrani clan ruled Afghanistan until 1973,
when the country was declared republic.
Afghanistan was never colonised. All Afghans know that the British made three
attempts to capture and hold Afghanistan and all Afghans are proud of the fact that all
three attempts failed. At the end of the nineteenth century the state had been consolidated
and strengthened, Islam was emphasised as a state religion and the country isolated itself
from the West. In the early twentieth century the rulers tried to modernise the country,
influenced i.a. by the development in Turkey. The first constitution was adopted and
education opportunities were established, also for girls. During the reign of Afghanistan's
last king, Zahir Shah
3
(1933-1973) the governmental power was reinforced, and a new
constitution was adopted. By the end of the 1970s, the modern sector had grown
considerably. An Islamist movement was crushed in 1975 and its leaders fled to Pakistan.
In April 1978, Marxist sympathisers in the army, trained in Soviet Union, murdered the
Prime Minister and seized power through a military coup. Widespread rural revolts
followed. Soviet troops invaded the country in December 1979 and installed a puppet
regime.
In 1989 the Soviet troops had to withdraw only to be followed by a long and
brutal power struggle involving hundreds of local commanders. Anarchy and chaos
dominated the entire country. This situation remained up to the end of 1994, when the
Taliban (students of Islam) entered the arena and installed law and order - at the cost
of human rights abuse. In particular women and girls in the cities were denied work
and education opportunities. Foreign extremist Islamists infiltrated the Taliban
movement and after the US bombings in the end of 2001 the Taliban lost power and
were replaced by an interim administration. In June 2002 a new Islamic transitional
government was appointed, which according to plans will lead the country up to 2004
when free elections will be held.
Islam in Afghanistan
In the development of Afghanistan from a tribal confederation till today’s state
religion and politics have been intimately connected. Islam has been the means for
2
National council
3unifying the country and for sanctioning both the absolute monarchy in the beginning
of the last century and for the ‘re-sacralization’ of the state by the Islamist movement
(Olesen, 1995). Islam reached Afghanistan during the seventh century and gradually
replaced the existing religions, Zoroastrianism, Buddhism and Hinduism. Islam
spread rapidly all over the country with exception of the eastern part, Nuristan, where
the inhabitants converted only in the end of the 19
th
century. Today, 99 per cent of all
Afghans are Muslims. Islam is the basic cultural identity and defines the frame of
reference for social morals, rights and obligations for all Afghans, regardless of ethnic
origin. Islam influences all parts of life; in politics, in education, in science, in daily
life at home, in the mosque, at office or in the field - references to the Koran and to
the hadiths justify and motivate actions and opinions. "[F]ew Muslim peoples in the
world observe the rituals and the piety of Islam with such regularity and emotion as
the Afghan" (Rashid, 2000 p 82).
The first constitution (1964) confirms Islam in the country: "Islam is the sacred
religion of Afghanistan" (cited in Samuelson, 1981). In the constitution of 1964 the
Islamic judicial system, Sharia, is dominating but secularised law is also included
(ibid.). It was not allowed to propagate for other religious beliefs but non-Muslims
were allowed to practise their religion. The Communist regime in the 1980s had to
retreat on the question of Islam and wrote in its constitution: "The Holy and Faithful
religion of Islam will be respected, complied and protected in the People's Republic of
Afghanistan; all Muslims are granted freedom to perform all the religious rites of
Islam
4
" (Utas, B. in Davidsson, A. et al 1990).
The tribal and popular uprisings that have occurred throughout history have all
been waged in the name of Islam. Rural mullahs have been at the core of these
upheavals (Roy, O. in Maley, W. 1999). Islamism in Afghanistan, on the other hand
recruited followers among the intelligentsia and modern urban people, also among
educated women; it was rather a political ideology addressing politics, economics,
culture and law than a religious revivalist movement (ibid.). It emerged in the mid
sixties among the students of Kabul University; they launched a failed uprising in
1975 and they were at the core of the different Mujaheddin groups during the war
against Soviet Union (ibid.). After the Soviet withdrawal in 1989 their influence
3
Zahir Shah returned from his exile to Afghanistan in 2002 and was appointed Father of the Nation.
However, after a few months he return to exile in Italy.
4
Translation by Pia Karlsson
4decreased and after 1992 the Islamist ideology played just a small role in politics
5
.
The Taliban movement was one of few radical Islamist movements rooted in a rural
society
6
The Taliban government (1996 - 2001) enforced Islam as a state religion by .
proclaiming Afghanistan as an Islamic Emirate and imposed an extremely strict
interpretation of the Sharia law. The role of Islam and Sharia was hotly debated at the
Loya Jirga in June 2002; several ministers assured that Sharia would still be the main
legal system in the country.
The strict gender segregation has been strengthened in the last decades. With
references to Islam the gender issue has been an issue in many insurrections and
battles in Afghanistan. Often, when women´s participation in education, for instance,
has been enhanced, it has provoked counteractions.
Education in Afghanistan
In Afghanistan as in other Muslim countries education has a long history. Within the
frame of Islam, education has existed for many centuries. Today, education includes
three different categories: (i) traditional or indigenous (pre-Islamic), (ii) modern and
(iii) Islamic education. Within the latter category, there are four types of Islamic
schools in Afghanistan: Mosque schools; Traditional madrasa, first level; Traditional
madrasa, second level; and Modern madrasa. In addition, so called Arabic schools
have appeared from the eighties and onwards.
Traditional (indigenous) Education
When Louis Dupree (1973) travelled in Afghanistan in the 1960s and 1970s, he found
Islam mixed with pre-Islamic customs; some were contradictory to the Koran, e.g.
revenge and blood vengeance, even on fellow Muslims. Black magic, witches, jinns
and malangs
7
existed parallel to Islamic practice. As an effect of the modernisation
process (from the 60s) popular beliefs contradictory to Islam started to disappear, a
5
The Soviet troops were defeated and left the country in 1989 but the Communist puppet regime held
its power over Kabul and some other cities until 1992.
6
The rural origin is of importance when understanding the Taliban movement and its conduct in the
capital of Kabul.
7
A malang is a holy man who wanders around the country and is thought to have been touched by
the hand of Allah.
5process that continued and was reinforced by the mobility and refugee experiences
caused by the wars.
Education as the transmission of skills needed for survival in a subsistence
agricultural or nomadic setting has of course occurred and been common in
Afghanistan long before any formal education system was introduced. Teaching of
skills, traditions and beliefs, values and culture is a kind of indigenous education
transferred from generation to generation, often through oral transmission of poetry
and stories. The stories usually have a moral message; they advice and counsel.
Children (as well as other listeners) are expected to learn what is required by the
individual with regards to responsibility and behaviour toward human beings and
society. The overt or covert moralities include virtues such as honesty and kindness,
respect and empathy. Children are taught the importance of unity, obedience and
helpfulness. They are informed about zakat, about the obligation to share gained
knowledge, to fight against oppression in all its forms and to struggle for equality.
In Afghanistan, the traditional, indigenous education also includes teaching about
Islam. The non-formal Islamic education that is transmitted by adults and adolescents
around the child consists of Islamic references on everyday issues and moral values.
Also popular beliefs, some of which are alien to Islam, may be communicated as
Islamic, even by some mullahs.
Virtues such as generosity, courage, kindness and hospitality are regarded as
essential to become a good Muslim and constitute a considerable part of this
indigenous education. The history of Islam and the life story of the Prophet are also
included. The illiterate Afghan society has a living tradition of oral storytelling and
poetry; many poems with origin in the classical Persian literature are known by heart
among great layers of the population. The most well-known poet is Rumi, born in
Balkh 1207. Compared to the classical Persian poetry the Pashtu literature is modest
and of late appearance. The short poem of landay is a Pashtu popular poem, often
anonymous and often aphoristic, satiric against power and superiority and when
recited by women - against men (Forsberg, et al, 1995). Moreover, there are some 30-
40 famous stories transmitted orally from generation to generation during hundreds of
years. These stories are mostly told for small gatherings in private houses during long
winter nights by a good storyteller, often an older man in the family. They deal with
honesty and revenge, oppression and courage, honour and love. The aim was to have
fun and sing and to keep the young boys and girls busy by educating them in good
6manners, and caution them against bad habits. In the end of the 19
th
century many of
these stories were compiled in a book called Mili Hendara, National Mirror. This
book was available in almost every village (in Pashtu areas) and was read by a literate
person while others were listening. In Dari speaking areas they read ancient books in
Persian, e.g. Gulistan (Garden) by Sadi and a collection of verses by Hafiz (books,
that still are part of the Islamic madrasa curriculum) written hundreds of years ago.
They include Islamic moral issues and Islamic knowledge. Two of these books are
also used in the mosque schools for children.
There are no particular initiation rites in Afghanistan. Circumcision is practised
but only for boys and is not considered as any special event. It is not regarded as
absolutely compulsory but most parents bring their boys in pre-school age to a
hospital or clinic if available, or to a local "surgeon" for the operation. It is regarded
as sunna, a tradition originated from the Prophet, and therefore beneficial
The indigenous education also strongly transmits the gender roles. Afghanistan is
characterised by strict gender segregation and the girl is taught to prepare herself for
marriage and learn useful domestic skills and the boy to be a protector of his family
and family honour. The woman's primary sphere of interest is the domestic one; she
should be a good caretaker and maintain the family's well-being while the man is the
breadwinner and the provider of his family. The goal in life is a large family,
preferably with many sons. These gender roles are often thought of as induced by
Islam.
Islamic education
The formal Islamic education differs from the non-formal Islamic instruction in at
least three aspects: 1) It takes place in a specific setting, usually in the mosque. Most
mosques, even the very simple ones, have a special "classroom" for teaching and
learning. 2) Not everyone is allowed to teach; a special teacher is appointed - namely
the mullah of the mosque. 3) Written texts are used, always the Koran and the hadiths
but sometimes also other kind of written literature.
Islamic education has a long tradition in Afghanistan. It began with the arrival of
Islam. Various individuals, i.e. men considered to possess religious knowledge and
experience have been teaching in the mosques for hundreds of years. Such Islamic
schools were prevalent all over the country for many centuries (Amaj, 1991, Kamgar
71998, Rafi 1998). To learn the Holy Koran is the first objective. People, young and
old, are then taught to memorise parts of the Koran. Memorisation of the Koran goes
back to the time when the Prophet Mohammed, himself illiterate, was said to have
received the Book orally from the Archangel Gabriel and recited it to his companions
(Wagner, 1993). As the Koran is transmitting the direct words of God (in Arabic) it
cannot be translated without risking falsifications; that is why Muslims all over the
world learn the Koran in the Arabic language. One who can memorise the entire
Koran is still a highly respected person in Afghanistan and is called Kari
8
.
In the ancient Islamic schools reading, writing and arithmetic were also often
included (Kamgar 1998, Rafi 1998). Moral education, such as the individuals' duties
and obligations towards him/herself, the family and the society was also an important
part; sometimes also vocational training such as calligraphy and accounting was
included (Mansory, 2000).
Today, some children attend madrasas (only for boys) where they receive
religious education and some children attend ordinary primary school, which also
have several hours per week of Islamic education. Practically all children, boys and
girls, attend a Koran or a Mosque School when they are in of pre-school age.
The Mosque School provides the elementary level of Islamic education. It
provides a basic Islamic learning for all children in its neighbourhood. It is nonformal in character; it is not regularised and has no specific administrative or
institutional rules. There are no entrance admission criteria, no fees, no examinations,
and no certificates. There are mosque schools in all villages except some extremely
poor and isolated communities where the population cannot afford a mullah. Besides
teaching the Koran, these Mosque Schools prepare the children for the next
educational stage (if there is any) inasmuch as they acquaint the small children with
the type of activities and situations they will encounter. They learn to listen to the
teacher, to take turns, to raise hands when asking etc., and they familiarise with
letters
9
and some learn to read. There are also children who attend Mosque schools in
addition to attendance in a primary school in the afternoons or weekends.
Virtually all children from four to five years of age attend the mosque school.
The length of attendance is up to every individual but usually children stay there until
8
Originally, the Karis were graduates of a Darulhifaz (= "home for memorising the Koran"), where
mostly blind people learned to memorise the Book.
9
There is very little difference between the Arabic letters and the letters used in Dari and Pashto.
8they commence the primary school or the madrasa, the modern or the traditional one.
If no school exists in the neighbourhood the boys can continue for many years in the
mosque school, with irregular attendance but girls tend to quit when they are around
eleven to twelve years olds. Students pass through individually in their own pace. The
classes can be quite big (and noisy!) - of up to 100 students.
The mullah teaches a couple of hours per day to those who appear in class. He
is head of the mosque; informally "employed" by the surrounding community, i.e. by
the people who inhabit the area "belonging" to the mosque. Besides teaching the
children, the mullah's duties include the guidance of the villagers in Islamic matters -
men as well as women (but for the latter in reality only to a limited extent), leading
the prayers, performing ceremonies at deaths and marriages, and suggesting names for
the new-born. In Afghanistan, a man can be a mullah and simultaneously have
another profession, farmer or businessman or whatever. A mullah is simply a learned
person in the domain of Islam. The Afghan imam, like imams in other countries, leads
the prayers. Sometimes the imam and the mullah are the same person, sometimes not.
In some villages the mullah is paid through the zakat system, i.e. the Islamic tax
collection system, where everyone should contribute with ten per cent of his income
for financing collective needs and for assisting the poorest. If paid, the mullah's salary
is more or less equivalent to the salary of a primary school teacher. Usually, however,
there is no fixed salary rate - the villagers pay according to zakat in cash or in kind.
The poorest have no obligation to pay anything but the mullah is obliged to guide and
teach in any case. He has achieved more Islamic knowledge than others and therefore
has a duty to share his knowledge.
It is generally agreed that every child should receive some basic Islamic
education. Still today that means learning to read the Holy Koran, memorise some
minor parts, to learn the five pillars of Islam, the prayers and the praying rituals as
well as certain Islamic moralities and values. Before reading the Koran, children often
use an alphabet book, called Baghdadi Qaida, the Baghdad Principle. It is
phonetically organised and consists of Arabic phonemes and letters and the children
learn all the phonemes one by one. After that starts the reading of the first part of the
Koran, the first separa
10
If one separa is learnt then all the others can easily be read .
too. Most children learn to read the Koran in two to three years. Often parts of the last
10
There are totally 30 separas in the Koran.
9separa are memorised, i.e. from the 90
th
to the 114
th
sura. These verses are recited
when praying. Only occasionally parts or verses of the Koran are translated or
explained for the children. They learn to read, mostly without really understanding it.
Direct teaching ( i.e. the teacher is speaking while the students are listening) is
the dominant method and often regarded as an expression of respect for the teacher.
Respect for teachers is mandatory and the teacher (i.e. the mullah) is usually highly
respected for his knowledge (but there are also many good jokes about mullahs!). The
children are also respected; to be kind and decent to children is regarded as an Islamic
obligation. When teaching Islamic morals the mullah uses a book titled Panj kitab
(Five books) in Dari and when translated into Pashto called Rashid Bayan (Rashid's
exposition). These books are also used for learning how to read. When writing is
taught in the Islamic school it is done through copying what the teacher has written or
by imitating a book. Simple arithmetic is often taught as well. Later on, students may
also learn how to set up contracts or papers of agreement, following the commonly
agreed rules for such documents. Such contract and agreement letters are compiled in
a “book“ called Mulatefa, which consists of a series of paper sheets clipped at the end
to the next one in a progressive degree of difficulty (Rafi 1998). The student reads,
repeats, writes, memorises, copies until he masters them, one at a time.
Learning in the Mosque School (as in most educational settings in
Afghanistan) is a passive act. One can, however, find mullahs with inborn
pedagogical talents who adapt their teaching to the children's level. Older children
often teach the younger ones. The children take turns in being taught by the mullah.
The children learn the rituals of praying, the Islamic five pillars, good manners and
habits, and some of the ethics that the mullah considers to be consistent with Islam.
The mullah is usually a very respected person but there are examples of mullahs
whose reputation is not so good or whose knowledge is poor. People complain -
sometimes loudly - about mullahs who are not punctual or who are unkind to the
children and it sometimes happens that they are dismissed.
Traditional Madrasas have a long history. The boy students, the taliban
11
,
learn from a broader spectrum of religious subjects and only religious subjects,
including Fiqha (rights and duties, logic and reason) and the Arabic language. The
students are usually highly motivated and often dedicate many years for their studies.
11
Talib is a student of Islam, taliban is the plural form.
10In most villages and also in the cities traditional madrasas exist. The local community
is responsible for running the school. Traditional madrasas have always been a
community affair and villagers did often not perceive the difference between them
and Modern Madrasas. Students attend on irregular and individual basis; they decide
themselves at what pace they might wish to learn and for how long. They can walk
long distances to attend a special madrasa with a famous teacher. Also in Traditional
Madrasas the education is free. They study the tafsir, interpretations of Islam, at lower
levels the one that is valid in Afghanistan but in higher madrasa training the
curriculum includes study of other interpretations as well. They study the hadiths and
the sira, i.e. the sayings by the Prophet Mohammed and his life-stories. A major
subject is the figha, Islamic duties, rights, and rituals. They study tawhid, the unity of
God, and they learn rhetoric and logic (Socrates) as well as Arabic and Persian
literature. (Sharif 1987). A good student might pass through and complete the entire
training in ten years in such a school.
Less ambitious and smaller traditional madrasas exist all over the country.
They are boarding institutions and students from different villages attend the school
and live together. The aim with the traditional madrasa is to provide for the
specialists an Islamic society needs, or, in other words, to produce masters in Islamic
theology and law. A student graduates from the madrasa after completing a certain
number of books in the different subjects and through a special ceremony the student
is acknowledged as Maulawi or Alim, and is then authorised to work also as judge, as
well as imam and mullah. Anyone, who has studied Islam, can become imam or
mullah, but to become judge or lawyer a particular training is stipulated by the
government. Principally, only graduates from the Sharia Faculty of the University are
allowed to work as judges but graduates from traditional second level madrasas have
also been approved and permitted to work as judges.
Few continue to the second level of the traditional madrasa and only few such
schools have ever existed, some 15 to 20, less than one per province. The training
aims at producing imams and mullahs, missionaries and teachers and maintaining the
high status of the Islamic learned person. In addition, nine governmentally run second
level madrasas have existed. The curriculum in those schools was fixed and decided
by the government, it consisted of seven grades and when graduating after grade 12
students were allowed to enter into the faculties of Sharia and Law of Kabul
University. The aim of governmental madrasas and Islamic education at the
11University was to produce judges, governmental cadre and teachers for Islamic
schools.
Girls have always been excluded from formal Islamic education. After the
elementary instruction they get in the Mosque Schools their opportunity to get Islamic
education is only through attending the primary school - if there is any and if offered
to girls students. Consequently, on strong grounds one can assume that girls and
women in Afghanistan have a much more limited Islamic knowledge than boys and
men have unless their father, husband or brothers have taught them at home,
something which actually is quite common. The few women with some type of
University training are exceptions. Those at these institutions often attended Islamic
classes and constituted a considerable share of the students at the Faculty of Sharia,
following a training that aimed at producing the necessary female teachers in Islamic
subjects in primary and secondary schools for girls.
That the female literacy rate in Afghanistan is so extremely low (also compared
to other Muslim countries) has no support in Islam. According to Islam the man and
the woman have the same obligation for and the same right to education and both are
obliged to learn about Islam, expressed in the Koran as well as in the hadiths. The
famous sura 21, verse no 7 in the Koran says: “If you don’t know, you must ask and
find out from alim" (= those who know). One famous hadith says: “To seek
knowledge is farz (obligatory for man and woman). Another saying is from the figha:
“There is no excuse for those who claim that he/she does not know ”
12
The Modern Madrasa School is a boarding school for some 50 -100 boy students
aged 10 – 15 years. Before the wars, i.e. in the 1960s and 1970s there were very few
such madrasas, but from the 1980s and even more so in the Taliban period (1994-
2001) an expansion took place. The Islamic revival during the Jihad, the liberation
war against the Soviet occupation 1979 - 1989, prepared the ground for the
rehabilitation of Modern Madrasas. Another reason was the decline of primary
schools. Many school buildings were destroyed by the war, but even if the school
remained intact the number of students decreased as parents withdrew their children
from the Communist influenced teaching during this period. During the Taliban
government Modern Madrasas were the only form of education encouraged by the
government.
12
These quotations are frequently used to convince conservative mullahs about girls' right to education.
12In the Modern Madrasa several mullahs are teaching. The subjects are the Koran
and other Islamic scripts, Islamic ethics and in addition, subjects of the ordinary
primary school (the reason why we label this education Modern Madrasa). Students
pass through the six grades during nine months per year. Each day has a timetable of
4-6 hours and more than 50 per cent of the time is spent on religious subjects. With
the Modern Madrasa the Taliban aimed at educating students with a correct and strict
(= Taliban) view on Islam while simultaneously training them in modern subjects and
thus making them able to compete with what was called the secular school students.
That is why also subjects such as English sometimes were included - if any teacher
was available. The mullah-teachers are sometimes from the village but as often from
other areas and have usually graduated long ago from a higher degree of Islamic
education. During the last years of the Taliban regime also younger teachers were
working in the Modern Madrasas, young Afghans trained in Pakistani madrasas
13
.
During the Taliban period there were special governmental grants for the students
in Modern Madrasas. The school was located in simple buildings constructed by the
villagers and financed by a wealthy individual (inside or outside Afghanistan) or by
the government. Many students were lodged in homes of the villagers, who also
provided food for the students. The fact that food was served was sometimes a reason
for poor students to attend the Modern Madrasa.
If there is a primary school in the village parents usually prefer that kind of
education for their children but some still choose the madrasa, as it provides a more
profound Islamic education. It still happens that parents regard primary education as
godless and as a work of Shaitan. Some primary school students also attend the
madrasa if they have the opportunity. Children often walk a long distance to the
primary school but when it is too far away, they may enrol in a distant madrasa; in so
doing they will get food and lodging and access to a primary school too. With the fall
of the Taliban many of these Modern Madrasas have closed down.
Arabic schools in the Afghan context are (a few) schools supported by Saudi
Arabia and by some individual Arabs. They appeared first in the refugee camps in the
1980s, some of which had exclusively Islamic education and others with a curriculum
mixture of 'modern' and Islamic subjects. Inside Afghanistan there are also a few
Arabic schools for male orphans.
13
It has not been heard of arms training in the Modern Madrasas in Afghanistan, which has been
13Modern
14
education
Free and compulsory primary schooling
15
was introduced in Afghanistan as far back
as 1935. Primary education in Afghanistan covers grades 1-6, i.e. for children of age
seven to eight to thirteen to fourteen years. The first modern school - for boys only -
was established in Kabul in 1903. After 1919, schools were established also outside
Kabul. The first girl school was instituted in 1921. Some students (male and female)
were sent for higher education to Turkey
16
, Germany and France. German and French
support to education was not only financial; the school curriculum and the school
uniforms of these countries were copied into Afghan education. In 1930, there were,
in all, thirteen primary schools in the country with 1,590 students (Mansory, 2000). In
the 1950s, the education sector expanded rapidly. In 1956, there were 126,000
students enrolled (Ministry of Education, 1968, cited in Mansory, 2000). The
constitution of 1964 guaranteed free education for all but only limited possibilities for
implementation were at hand. In 1975, around 900,000 students were enrolled; about
80 per cent of these were pupils in primary school (Ghani 1990, cited in Christensen
1995). In 1990, the number of primary schools was 1,200 - less than in 1978 - and
during the nineties the situation continued to deteriorate. Already in 1983, the war had
destroyed 50 per cent of the schools (ibid.).
From the 1950s also girls' education expanded rapidly – in the cities. In 1955,
there were girl schools in seven provincial capitals (out of 29) while in the rural areas,
very few such schools existed. At the end of the 1970s, around one third of all
children were enrolled in primary schools - of whom seven per cent were girls.
recorded from madrasa schools in Pakistan.
14
What is here called 'modern' is elsewhere often called 'Western'. As Afghanistan never has been
colonised, modern education was not introduced by a colonial (Western) power (but has nevertheless
now and then been regarded as a foreign intrusion). Neither can modern education be labelled secular
in Afghanistan. Modern education is not and has never been secular in Afghanistan; Islam is a state
religion and Islam is an important part also of the 'modern' school curriculum.
15
Primary education in Afghanistan covers grade 1-6, i.e. for children of age 7-8 to 13-14 years.
16
The first graduates of the first girl school were sent to Turkey to get higher education in nursing, an
event that caused a lot of discontent among religious leaders. Education for girls experienced soon a
severe backlash, most girl schools closed down in the 30s and did not recover until the beginnings of
the 1950s.
14 In Kabul, however, girls constituted 35 per cent of all students. (Ghani, 1990 and
Kraus, 1994 cited in Cristensen, 1995.) A majority of the children in primary schools
dropped out after grade three (Daun, 1990). In rural areas there were still very few - in
many areas not any - girl schools until the Mujaheddin set up schools for girls in the
1980s with support of NGOs, mainly the Swedish Committee for Afghanistan (SCA).
The Taliban ban (1996 - 2001) on girls' education mainly affected girl schools in
the cities. In rural areas where 80 - 90 per cent of the Afghan population live, this
edict was not enforced and a large number of schools for girls appeared, often with
financial support from the local community. Anyway, the total enrolment rate for girls
decreased in the country during the 1990s as an effect of closure of city schools for
girls, but also due to low priority among ordinary Afghans to this type of education,
and not least, due to the security situation and parental concern of safety for the girls.
From the eighties and up to 2002 only few educational services were provided by
governmental authorities. In spring 2002 education was proclaimed a national priority
but still the main providing actors were the international NGOs. The biggest NGO,
the Swedish Committee for Afghanistan enrolled around 250 000 students in March
2002. It is estimated that less than 25 per cent of all school-aged children had access
to school (with a primary school age population estimated to more than four million
children). According to SCA School Statistics the percentage of girls constituted 25
per cent of all students.
The quality of teaching and learning is generally low as a result of low qualified
teachers; the few professionally trained teachers (10-15 per cent) graduated more than
20 years ago. In addition, the teacher force is aging. Albeit financially supported by
foreign NGOs it is common that local authorities and/or local communities appoint
the teachers - although according to standards set by the NGO. “Chalk and talk" is the
dominant teaching method. When Islamic subjects are taught the students are even
more passive listeners - the teacher reads and the students memorize. The examination
system includes two tests per school year; the tests are produced by the individual
teachers and are not standardized.
Traditionally, teachers have been highly respected in the Afghan society,
something that slowly has changed during the last years. Teachers as many other
educated people belong today to the poorest layers and as such their status have
declined. Teachers are paid by the NGOs usually with additional contribution from
the communities but still not enough to support a large family.
15The curriculum adhered to by the NGOs has been the one adopted by the shortlived mujaheddin government in 1992. The school year includes nine months with six
days per week and four-five hours per day. The textbooks have been a controversial
issue. The books printed during Jihad were mostly financed by an American NGO
and included an abundance of fighting and resistance messages, glorifying the soldier
and his weapons. After 1994, new books, excluding the war and including peace
messages were introduced. In the late nineties several NGOs agreed on more
pedagogically developed textbooks. Islam and Islamic messages have all the time
constituted a substantial amount of the text in most subjects. The Taliban regime tried
to impose a new curriculum with more religion on the timetable (see table 1) but this
was hardly successful. They also rejected the NGO textbooks and tried to introduce
the books used in traditional madrasas, written in Arabic. As can be seen in the below
table the hours per week dedicated to religious subjects constitute the main difference
when comparing the pre-war schools, the Communist timetable, the NGO supported
schools, the Taliban education and the recent timetable introduced by the interim
government in June 2002.
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