The Power of Persistence: Education System ... - EQUIP123.net

CASE ANALySIS: DIMENSIONS OF REFORM
Technical Dimensions
Pilot projects in the 1990s supported by multilateral donors and the MOE
offered new models through which decentralized and participatory approaches
and capacity-building activities supported increased access to basic education,
especially for girls, in some of Egypt’s poorest governorates. These approaches
were expanded upon in subsequent programs, including the new schools
program, and, along with improving quality and developing a knowledge
infrastructure, were highlighted in the 2002 National Democratic Party
Education Reform Policy. With the development of its National Strategic Plan
for Education during 2006 and 2007, the Egyptian government and other
stakeholders committed to more school-level authority and responsibility
in relation to school-based reform (including school self-assessment, school
improvement planning, and preparations for accreditation and quality assurance
activities). To measure impact and identify issues in implementing the reforms,
the MOE used assessments of school standards, management practices, and
student learning and critical thinking. During the same period, the development
of teacher standards, professional development, and career tracks further
evidenced the reform momentum and its link to supporting quality and
management at the decentralized level.
Institutional Dimensions
The legislative framework for decentralization, established in the 1981 Education
Law, echoed earlier definitions of the division of responsibilities between the
central MOE and the governorates, emphasizing the overarching authority
of the center. 1 Project activities during the 1980s and 1990s contributed to
organizational and personnel capacity development especially at the central level,
and at the local level in select governorates. During these decades no significant
decrees or laws that promoted decentralization were issued. In fact, MOE actions
in the 1990s reinforced the central power by purging personnel and materials, and
specifying a dress code.
The 2001 and 2003 ministerial decrees granting governors of Alexandria and
six other governorates authority over educational reform reflected an increased
focus on implementing decentralization. This momentum was also signaled in
the National Democratic Party’s 2002 “Education Reform Policy” statement, the
educational management section of the 2003 “National Education Standards,”
1 For example, the 1883 provincial councils statute, the 1939 technical zones decree, and the 1960 Local
Administrative Law; (see Abraham and Hozayn, 2006)
54
SECTION 2: lESSONS fROM COUNTRY CASE STUdIES