Countries of the World/COUNTRYS.BIN/dp/0215/02153.txt

Text File | 1991-06-25 | 13KB | 223 lines

$Unique_ID{COW02153}
$Pretitle{224}
$Title{Lebanon
Chapter 2D.   Education}
$Subtitle{}
$Author{As'ad AbuKhalil}
$Affiliation{HQ, Department of the Army}
$Subject{health
lebanon
private
public
beirut
education
schools
university
lebanese
primary}
$Date{1987}
$Log{}
Country:     Lebanon
Book:        Lebanon, A Country Study
Author:      As'ad AbuKhalil
Affiliation: HQ, Department of the Army
Date:        1987

Chapter 2D.   Education

     The Lebanese, along with the Palestinians, had one of the highest
literacy rates in the Arab world. The rate was estimated at nearly 80 percent
in the mid-1980s, but like most other spheres of Lebanese life, communal and
regional disparities existed. In general, Christians had a literacy rate twice
that of Muslims. Druzes followed with a literacy rate just above that of
Sunnis. Shias had the lowest literacy rate among the religious communities.

     The war adversely affected educational standards. Many private and public
school buildings were occupied by displaced families, and the state was unable
to conduct official examinations on several occasions because of intense
fighting. Furthermore, the departure of most foreign teachers and professors,
especially after 1984, contributed to the decline in the standards of academic
institutions. Admissions of unqualified students became a standard practice as
a result of pressures brought by various militias on academic institutions.
More important, armed students reportedly often intimidated--and even
killed--faculty members over disputes demanding undeserved higher grades.

     In the 1980s, there were three kinds of schools: public, private
tuition-free, and private fee-based. Private tuition-free schools were
available only at the preprimary and primary levels, and they were most often
sponsored by philanthropic institutions. Many private fee-based schools were
run by religious orders.

     Public schools were unevenly distributed among Lebanon's districts. The
Beirut area had only 12.9 percent of the country's public schools, but a large
number of Lebanon's private fee-based schools were concentrated in or near
Greater Beirut (see table 2, Appendix A).

Primary Education

     In 1987 five years of primary education was mandatory and available free
to all Lebanese children. The curriculum of grades one through five was mostly
academic, and Arabic was the major language of instruction. French and English
were also major languages of instruction in private schools, although foreign
languages were taught in public schools as well. No certification was awarded
upon completion of the primary cycle. At the end of the fifth grade, the
student qualified for admission to the four-year intermediate cycle or to the
seven-year secondary cycle.

Intermediate Education

     Intermediate education was a four-year cycle, consisting of grades six
through nine for intermediate schools and one through four for vocational
schools. Three different tracks were offered at this level: lower secondary
was a four-year academic course designed to prepare the student for the
baccalaureate examination; the upper primary track consisted of three years
similar to lower secondary and a fourth year of preparation for entering
vocational schools or teacher training institutes; and vocational study was a
three-year practical course for less skilled trades. At the end of this cycle,
students received an academic, technical, or professional certificate.

Secondary Education

     Secondary education consisted of grades eleven through thirteen for
academic programs or years one through three for vocational programs. Three
tracks were available at this level. The secondary normal track consisted of
three-year training programs for prospective primary and intermediate school
teachers. A teaching diploma was awarded to students of teacher training
schools who passed examinations at the end of the twelfth school year. The
secondary vocational track prepared students for careers in such fields as
business, commerce, tourism, hotel management, electronics, construction,
advertising, nursing, telecommunications, automobile mechanics, and laboratory
technology. Finally, the secondary academic track offered concentrations in
philosophy (liberal arts curriculum), mathematics, and experimental sciences.
The Baccalaureate I certificate was awarded to students who passed the
official examination given at the end of the twelfth school year, and the
Baccalaureate II was awarded to students who passed official examinations at
the end of the thirteenth school year. The Baccalaureate II was necessary for
admission to institutions of higher education in Lebanon. Many of the courses
taken during the year were comparable to those at the college freshman level.

Technical and Vocational Education

     In 1987 around 130 technical and vocational training institutes existed
in Lebanon. Seventeen of these were state run, and the remaining 113 were
private. Eighty-six of the private institutes were in the Greater Beirut area.
Major public institutes included the Industrial Technical Institute, the
Technical Institute for Tourism, and the Technical Teachers Institute.

Higher Education

     In 1987 there were sixteen colleges and universities in Lebanon, and all
but the Lebanese University were privately owned (see table 3, Appendix A).
The Lebanese University, established in 1952, was under the Ministry of
Education. It had two main branches--one in East Beirut and the other in West
Beirut--and smaller branches in the provinces of Ash Shamal, Al Janub, and Al
Biqa. University faculties (departments) included law, political science and
management, engineering, literature and humanities, education, social
sciences, fine arts, journalism and advertising, business administration, and
agriculture. The language of instruction was Arabic, and one foreign language
was required by all faculties.

     Beirut Arab University was established in 1960 and was officially an
Egyptian-sponsored institution under the auspices of the Maqasid Society of
Beirut. All affairs were controlled by Alexandria University in Egypt.
Approximately 85 percent of the students enrolled at Beirut Arab University in
the 1980s were non-Lebanese, coming primarily from Persian Gulf countries.
Arabic was the primary language of instruction.

     St. Joseph's University, established in 1875, was administered by the
Society of Jesus and had strong ties to the University of Lyons in France. St.
Joseph's University had branches in Tripoli, Sidon, and Zahlah. French was the
primary language of instruction, although some courses were offered in
English. Faculties in 1987 included theology, medicine, pharmacy, dentistry,
engineering, law and political science, economics and business administration,
and letters and humanities.

     The American University of Beirut (AUB) was initially established in 1866
by the Evangelical Mission to Syria. In 1987 final authority over the affairs
of AUB rested with the board of trustees, whose permanent office was in New
York City. The university was incorporated under the laws of the state of New
York. The faculty of arts and sciences awarded bachelor's and master's
degrees; the faculty of medicine awarded bachelor's and master's degrees in
science, master's degrees in public health, and certificates in undergraduate
nursing and basic laboratory techniques; the faculty of engineering and
architecture awarded bachelor's and master's degrees in engineering as well as
bachelor's degrees in architecture; the faculty of agriculture and food
sciences awarded master's degrees in all departments, as well as doctorates in
agronomy. English was the language of instruction at AUB.

Health

     Before 1975 Lebanon boasted advanced health services and medical
institutions that made Beirut a health care center for the entire Middle East
region. The war, however, caused enormous problems. Emergency medicine and the
treatment of traumatic injury overwhelmed the health care sector du