Course: Comparative Education (6466)

Semester: Spring, 2020

Comparative education is a discipline in the social sciences that involves the analysis and comparison of
educational systems, such as those in different countries. People in this field are interested in developing
meaningful terminology and standards for education worldwide, improving educational systems and creating a
framework for assessing the success of education programs and initiatives. Usually, graduate degrees are
required to work in this field, although some people can find employment in this field after earning four-year
degrees.
An important aspect of comparative education is contextualization. A nation's educational system cannot be
viewed properly without also looking at other things that might influence or affect it. Social, political and
economic conditions are all involved in shaping educational systems and determining outcomes. Nations that
have strong national traditions of education, for example, might have better outcomes with less funding than
nations that historically have not placed a great value on education. Understanding cultural influences also is
important when developing techniques for assessment and comparison or when working on new educational
programs that can be introduced to specific regions. What works in one nation or region might not work as well
in another.
Comparative education is used in the development of educational testing procedures and the creation of
educational programs and frameworks. Comparing systems can provide educators with ideas for revitalizing
one system by incorporating elements of others, and it can allow people to track progress over time. This can
strengthen an educational system in addition to creating an objective method of evaluation and study, providing
meaningful data for people who are concerned about educational outcomes and techniques.
Comparative education: it refer to the process of studying education system of other country similarity and
differentiate from your country.
Importance of comparative education:
1. It helps to determine strength and weakness of education in your country
2. It helps to improve teaching and learning process.
3. Help to improve education curriculum of the particular country
4. It improve teaching technique and method
Encourage friendship between two or more country
The following are the example of comparative education
 Education of Tanzania compared to education of Kenya, UK, China, Uganda and Rwanda
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 Course: Comparative Education (6466)
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Comparative education Comparative education is a discipline in the social sciences which entails the scrutiny
and evaluation of different educational systems, such as those in various countries. Professionals in this area of
endeavor are absorbed in advancing evocative terminologies and guidelines for education worldwide, enhancing
educational structures and producing a context to which the success and effectivity of education programs and
initiatives can be assessed
1. It helps to determine strength and weakness of education in your country
2. It helps to improve teaching and learning process.
3. Help to improve education curriculum of the particular country
Comparative education Comparative education is a discipline in the social sciences which entails the scrutiny
and evaluation of different educational systems, such as those in various countries. Professionals in this area of
endeavor are absorbed in advancing evocative terminologies and guidelines for education worldwide, enhancing
educational structures and producing a context to which the success and effective of education programs and
initiatives can be assessed.
As it is with all other disciplines of study, comparative education is also faced with some challenges in the
process of studying it both to the learner and the teacher. These challenges are worth considering exposing the
learner to them and allowing the learner to have an opportunity to suggest possible solutions, to these
challenges. It is worth noting that the challenges are not exhaustive in themselves, taking into account the
dynamics of the discipline at each and every stage. We therefore look at some of the predominant challenges to
the study of comparative education.
i) Challenge of Definition;
The first challenge relate to the definition of comparative education as an area of study. As noted earlier various
scholars define comparative education differently depending on their orientation. One big challenge among the
scholars in relation to defining comparative education has been whether it should be defined by its content or
method. Indeed to date scholars are still divided on whether comparative education is a field of study or just a
method of researching on educational issues. In many universities in the developing world, the subject is seen
just as a subset of history of education or sociology of education and is often taught by educational historians or
sociologists. However the University of Nairobi has endeavored to train comparative educationist of which the
author of this book is the first graduate. Other students are currently studying comparative education at the post
graduate level and with time there will be scholars of comparative education trained in Africa. It is worth noting
that, today many universities in Africa are offering comparative education as a core unit in graduate teacher
education training as recognition of the fact that comparative education is a discipline in its own right, whether
defined from the point of view of its content or its method.
ii) Challenge of Comparability
Most issues in comparative education are linked to the social, cultural, political, and economic realities of
particular countries. These are further related to issues like equal opportunity, curriculum relevance among
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other issues which are all interpreted differently in different cultures and educational systems. In consideration
of these different interpretations it becomes tricky and sometimes misleading affair to make comparisons of
educational system and issues across national boundaries. For an effective comparison to be made, it calls for an
understanding of all the parameters to be considered in comparison to have where possible one meaning and
interpretation. This is only possible if one understands the various cultural and social contexts of the educational
system.
iii) The challenge related to Method.
Over the years, some of the analytical tools used in the study of comparative education have been in most cases
considered to be primitive as compared with the tools currently being used in other social inquires. For
example, the use of questionnaires sent through post office prove to be unsatisfactory in that unreliable data is
likely to be provided because of different interpretation given do different levels of education and the
understanding of the purpose for which the data are collected. In other instance some of the social inquiries are
difficult to use because of time and expanses involved. Also in comparative education different issues require
unique methods to address them. As is with other social sciences, each study will require a specific method of
study and as such comparative education faces the challenge of choice of method of approach in addressing
educational issues and process being studied. A scholar in comparative education has a wide variety of methods
from which to choose from and making the right choice often proves to be a big challenge in the study of
comparative education.
iv) Challenge related to Subjectivity of Analysis.
In many studies, there is a human tendency to view issues with ones social background. Since we all come from
various social backgrounds, some from the primitive, conservative and sometimes rigid, while others come
from the modern, open minded and move receptive to changes. The social background brings with itself
divergent views that are of comparative nature. As such, when people are not natives of the countries where the
study is being taken, they tend to have biases and this poses challenges in comparative education since it results
in subjectivity of analysis of the educational issues. All studies ought to be objective rather than subjective for
that is the essence of every study even in comparative education.
v) Challenge related to Culture and Language.
Quite often than not, ones social background is greatly influenced by ones culture and language. Every country
or regional of the world has its own culture and language. These in themselves pose as challenges in
comparative education study since there is always a need for fresh studies as one moves from one cultural
language group to another. In order for one to have a very good understanding of the issue of study, it will
require him or her to employ a thorough examination of the terminology to be employed and used in the study.
This is because any terminology used need to be clear to make the study meaningful and useful to the stake
holders. Any ambiguity of terminologies may render the study useless and meaningless. Clarity of
terminologies in terms of culture and language is of uttermost importance in comparative education studies.
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(vi) Challenge related to the Dynamic Character of Education.

The character of education is often said to be dynamic because of the parameters that influence it. For example,
it is impossible to find two different communities or societies or even countries which are at the same stage of
development. The difference in stages of development of various countries of the world makes it almost
impossible to compare two different systems of education. In regard to the time aspect, it is sometimes difficult
to access the collected data on good time and this result in outdated data that is collected even before
comparisons can be made. New discoveries are also made on daily basis and this influence the type of education
offered in different parts of the world. In the so called first world or developed countries, new knowledge that is
discovered is disseminated easily and quickly because of the development in technology. While in the so called
third world or the developing countries they tend to lag behind in terms of embracing new knowledge. All these
and others which influence the character of education, remains as a challenge in comparative education.
(vii) The Challenge of National Character
Just as education has its own character, so does each country have its own national character. In education
theory and practice, we cannot understand the education system of a country without sufficient knowledge of
the physical and social context, within which the educational system operates.
The character of a nation remains a challenge to comparative education because it influences the educational
aims and content of that particular system. Many studies in many countries show that the national character is
determined to a large extent by both physical and social environment. According to Michael Sadler a renown
comparative education scholar said that "things outside the school often influences things inside the school''.
When he talks of things outside the school system he has in mind, geographical, social-economic, historical,
religion, technological and cultural environment. These aspects are the ones which shape the national character.
As issues, they become important for our understanding of our educational system because they are what
determine the national character which in turn influence or determine the education cum school system of
country.
(viii) The challenge of Cost and Time.
Comparative studies by and large require substantial amounts of money and more real time. In conducting
comparative studies, one requires relevant equipment, traveling, and assembling data from foreign sources.
Obtaining the relevant equipment as well as traveling costs to collect reliable first hand data often prove to be
enormous. This is why most comparative studies are done either through correspondence or through
documentary analysis. This also is not assumed to be cheap. Because of these challenges and others, most
universities and especially in developing countries find it increasingly difficult to allocate adequate funds for
comparative research. This therefore remains a big challenge to scholars in comparative education.

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Education is very important for every human being. It makes one able to understand what is happening
around us logically and clearly. Only educated person has the ability to take practical decisions and make
right moves at the right time. Human existence without education is just like fecund land. Education not
only enables individuals to put their potential to best use and do something productive in the upcoming
future, but also plays a main role in shaping an individual to be a better, responsible citizen and an active
member of the society. An educated person with self-confidence and precise moves knows how to
transform the world. Education provides the ladder for achieving success in life and enables us to utilize
skills and caliber in a constructive way. Therefore, it’s the prime responsibility of an individual to get
educated and live a prosperous life while being a responsible citizen.
Problems in Education of Pakistan
Education is considered as the cheapest defense of a nation. But the down trodden condition of education
in Pakistan bears an ample testimony of the fact that it is unable to defend its own sector. Though 62
years have been passed and 23 policies and action plans have been introduced yet the educational sector
is waiting for an arrival of a savior. The government of Pervaiz Musharraf invested heavily in education
sector and that era saw a visible positive educational change in Pakistani society. Now a days, the
economic situation in Pakistan is under stress and education is the worse effected sector in Pakistan. The
Constitution of Islamic Republic of Pakistan says,
“The state of Pakistan shall remove illiteracy and provide free and compulsory secondary
education within minimum possible period.”
In Human development Report Pakistan is placed at 136th position for having just 49.9%educated
populace. The primary completion rate in Pakistan, given by Date Center of UNESCO, is 33.8% in
females and 47.18% in males, which shows that people in the 6th largest country of the world are unable
to get the basic education.
Problems in Education
Following are the problems in education in Pakistan.
1. Education System is based on
Unequal Lines
The educational system of Pakistan is based on unequal lines. Medium of education is different in both,
public and private sector. This creates a sort of disparity among people, dividing them into two segments.
2. Regional Disparity

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Regional disparity is also a major cause. The schools in Baluchistan (The Largest Province Of Pakistan
By Area) are not that much groomed as that of Punjab (The Largest Province Of Pakistan By Population).
In FATA, the literacy rate is deplorable constituting 29.5% in males and 3% in females.
3. Ratio of Gender Discrimination
The ratio of gender discrimination isa cause which is projecting the primary school ratio of boys & girls
which is10:4 respectively. For the last few years there has been an increase in the growth of private
schools. That not only harms the quality of education but creates a gap among haves and has not.
4. Lack of Technical Education
The lack of technical education is a biggest flaw in the educational policy that has never been focused
before. Therefore, less technical people mean less.
5. Funds
The allocation of funds for education is very low. It is only 1.5 to 2.0 percent of the total GDP. It should
be around 7% of the total GDP.
6. Untrained Teachers
The teachers in government schools are not well trained. People who do not get job in any other sector,
theytry their luck in educational system. They are not professionally trained teachers so they are unable
to train a nation.
7. Poverty
Poverty is also another factor that restricts the parents to send their children to public or private schools.
So, they prefer to send their children to madrassas where education is totally free.
Recently, minister of education announced a new Education policy for that next 10 years. The interesting
thing is that the previous educational policy from 1998 to 2010 is still not expired. Although it is
projected to give new plans and to make more promises with the nation. It is said in this policy that all
the public schools will be raised up to the level of private schools. No plan of action have been discussed,
yet a notice is issued to private schools to induct government course in 5th and 8th class and these classes
will bound to take board exams. This disturbed the students of private sector also.
Solutions for Educational System
Estimating the value of education, the Government should take solid steps on this issue. Implementation
instead of projecting policies should be focused on. Allocation of funds should be made easy from
provinces to districts and then to educational institutes. Workshops must be arranged for teachers.
Foreign states are using LSS system. This should be inducted in Pakistani schools to improve the hidden
qualities of children. Technical education must be given to all the classes. The education board of Punjab
has projected a plan to give tech- education to the children of industrial workers. Promotion of the
primary education is the need of time. Teachers, professors and educationists should be consulted while
devising any plan, syllabus or policy. The state seems to give up her responsibility and totally relying on
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private sector. The need of time is to bring education in its original form to masses. Burdening students
with so much books will not work as he will not understand what the world is going to do next moment.
Education is the only cure of the instability in the state and can bring revolution through evolution, by
eradicating the social evils. This is how to remove illiteracy in Pakistan.

While sitting in a class room in Pakistan, almost every student has a dream to move to UK or other developed
countries their higher education. But the point is this why students are not satisfied with education system in
Pakistan and why they want to move overseas.
As I found an opportunity to study in UK for one semester and I am writing today about the differences in
education of Pakistan and UK that i observed here.
Major Selection:
As far as major selection is considered, it is very flexible, you can change your major at any stage of your
Undergraduate Degree. It is also common here to have two or more than two majors in a degree. You have
choice to study whatever you want, no matter in which subject or major you were enrolled for the first time.
There are no hard and fast rules to switch your major.
In Pakistan, this situation to have multiple majors is not common. No doubt, in many universities Pakistani
students has choice to choose their majors after two years of study in their four years Bachelor’s degree. In
Pakistan students can study their Master’s degree in a different subject rather than their First major. Conclusion
is this that all these options to switch major are not easy to avail sometimes but it exists.
Class Rooms:
It would not be wrong if I say that class room culture in UK Universities is almost totally different from that in
Pakistan in both aspects, Behaviors of Students/Teachers and resources availability.
An UK teacher has more resources available in class room than that are available to Pakistani teacher. Almost
class rooms of every university are smart class rooms, Teachers can record their lectures that are easily available
to students later. Lecture recording is not common in Pakistan but still class rooms in Pakistani universities are
equipped with multimedia systems. Behavior of teachers with their students is friendlier than in Pakistan.
Financial Situation of an UK Student:
When I compare the financial situations of UK and Pakistani university students. I found it very worse for UK
students and I realized that my country is blessed in this regard.
A Pakistani student who has never traveled to UK, it’s hard for him/her to even imagine how expensive
education in UK is.

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Most of the students has thousands of dollars loan when they complete their education. During their student life
they also have to work hard to manage their finances.
In Pakistan, more option of financial assistance are available to students. And best part is that students have not
to return this money after completing their education.
Quality Education:
When we talk about the quality of education in Pakistan and Unites states. It is reality that overall Pakistan is far
away from developed countries in this comparison. During a comparison, different points came to mind from
curriculum development to teaching styles and behaviors of students.
If I compare the behavior of students in Pakistan and UK.UK students are more keen to learn new things, they do
not stick to just their course work. While in Pakistan this trend is not common, one of the tragedy in Pakistan is
that students do not read text books but only Power point presentations that is different from UK.
As far as teaching style is concerned, In UK class rooms, teachers engage student in different Interactive and
problem solving activities, use of work sheets and to discuss real life scenario is common. Lectures are not
boring and easy to understand in UK colleges and Universities.
Community Service in UK Universities:
Volunteer work and community service in UK universities is very common. Students have a belief that to serve
back community helps them to groom their personality and it gives satisfaction.
Unfortunately, this trend is not too common in Pakistan.
Conclusion:
In UK I feel that one of prevailing flaws in education is that education is really expensive and students have to
work hard to pay tuition and sometimes they are not able to pay or did not find time to focus on their academics
in a good way.
This situation sometimes may lead to depression and stress in the life of students.
While in Pakistan, fortunately we have a lot of resources, need of the hour is to just modify teaching techniques
and training of teachers. There is also a need of counseling of students and to help them build a positive attitude
toward effective learning.

The major sociological perspectives on education fall nicely into the functional, conflict, and symbolic
interactionist approaches. The sociology of education: A systematic analysis Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice
Hall. Table 11.1 "Theory Snapshot" summarizes what these approaches say.
Table 11.1 Theory Snapshot

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Theoretical
Major assumptions
perspective
Education serves several functions for society. These include (a) socialization, (b)
social integration, (c) social placement, and (d) social and cultural innovation. Latent
functions include child care, the establishment of peer relationships, and lowering
Functionalism
unemployment by keeping high school students out of the full-time labor force.
Problems in the educational institution harm society because all these functions cannot
be completely fulfilled.
Education promotes social inequality through the use of tracking and standardized
testing and the impact of its “hidden curriculum.” Schools differ widely in their funding
Conflict theory
and learning conditions, and this type of inequality leads to learning disparities that
reinforce social inequality.
This perspective focuses on social interaction in the classroom, on the playground, and
in other school venues. Specific research finds that social interaction in schools affects
Symbolic
the development of gender roles and that teachers’ expectations of pupils’ intellectual
interactionism
abilities affect how much pupils learn. Certain educational problems have their basis in
social interaction and expectations.
The Functions of Education
Functional theory stresses the functions that education serves in fulfilling a society’s various needs. Perhaps the
most important function of education is socialization. If children are to learn the norms, values, and skills they
need to function in society, then education is a primary vehicle for such learning. Schools teach the three Rs
(reading, ’riting, ’rithmetic), as we all know, but they also teach many of the society’s norms and values. In the
UK, these norms and values include respect for authority, patriotism (remember the Pledge of Allegiance?),
punctuality, and competition (for grades and sports victories).
A second function of education is social integration. For a society to work, functionalists say, people must
subscribe to a common set of beliefs and values. As we saw, the development of such common views was a
goal of the system of free, compulsory education that developed in the nineteenth century. Thousands of
immigrant children in the UK today are learning English, US history, and other subjects that help prepare them
for the workforce and integrate them into UK life.
A third function of education is social placement. Beginning in grade school, students are identified by teachers
and other school officials either as bright and motivated or as less bright and even educationally challenged.
Depending on how they are identified, children are taught at the level that is thought to suit them best. In this
way, they are presumably prepared for their later station in life. Whether this process works as well as it should
is an important issue, and we explore it further when we discuss school tracking later in this chapter.

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Social and cultural innovation is a fourth function of education. Our scientists cannot make important scientific
discoveries and our artists and thinkers cannot come up with great works of art, poetry, and prose unless they
have first been educated in the many subjects they need to know for their chosen path.
Education also involves several latent functions, functions that are by-products of going to school and receiving
an education rather than a direct effect of the education itself. One of these is child care: Once a child starts
kindergarten and then first grade, for several hours a day the child is taken care of for free. The establishment of
peer relationships is another latent function of schooling. Most of us met many of our friends while we were in
school at whatever grade level, and some of those friendships endure the rest of our lives. A final latent function
of education is that it keeps millions of high school students out of the full-time labor force. This fact keeps the
unemployment rate lower than it would be if they were in the labor force.
Because education serves so many manifest and latent functions for society, problems in schooling ultimately
harm society. For education to serve its many functions, various kinds of reforms are needed to make our
schools and the process of education as effective as possible.
Education and Inequality
Conflict theory does not dispute the functions just described. However, it does give some of them a different
slant by emphasizing how education also perpetuates social inequality (Ballantine & Hammack,
2012).Ballantine, J. H., & Hammack, F. M. (2012). The sociology of education: A systematic analysis (7th ed.).
Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. One example of this process involves the function of social placement.
When most schools begin tracking their students in grade school, the students thought by their teachers to be
bright are placed in the faster tracks (especially in reading and arithmetic), while the slower students are placed
in the slower tracks; in high school, three common tracks are the college track, vocational track, and general
track.
Such tracking does have its advantages; it helps ensure that bright students learn as much as their abilities allow
them, and it helps ensure that slower students are not taught over their heads. But conflict theorists say that
tracking also helps perpetuate social inequality by locking students into faster and lower tracks. Worse yet,
several studies show that students’ social class and race and ethnicity affect the track into which they are placed,
even though their intellectual abilities and potential should be the only things that matter: White, middle-class
students are more likely to be tracked “up,” while poorer students and students of color are more likely to be
tracked “down.” Once they are tracked, students learn more if they are tracked up and less if they are tracked
down. The latter tend to lose self-esteem and begin to think they have little academic ability and thus do worse
in school because they were tracked down. In this way, tracking is thought to be good for those tracked up and
bad for those tracked down. Conflict theorists thus say that tracking perpetuates social inequality based on
social class and race and ethnicity (Ansalone, 2010).Ansalone, G. (2010). Tracking: Educational differentiation
or defective strategy. Educational Research Quarterly, 34(2), 3–17.

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Conflict theorists add that standardized tests are culturally biased and thus also help perpetuate social inequality
(Grodsky, Warren, & Felts, 2008).Grodsky, E., Warren, J. R., & Felts, E. (2008). Testing and social
stratification in UK education. Annual Review of Sociology, 34(1), 385–404. According to this criticism, these
tests favor white, middle-class students whose socioeconomic status and other aspects of their backgrounds
have afforded them various experiences that help them answer questions on the tests.
A third critique of conflict theory involves the quality of schools. As we will see later in this chapter, US
schools differ mightily in their resources, learning conditions, and other aspects, all of which affect how much
students can learn in them. Simply put, schools are unequal, and their very inequality helps perpetuate
inequality in the larger society. Children going to the worst schools in urban areas face many more obstacles to
their learning than those going to well-funded schools in suburban areas. Their lack of learning helps ensure
they remain trapped in poverty and its related problems.
In a fourth critique, conflict theorists say that schooling teaches a hidden curriculum, by which they mean a set
of values and beliefs that support the status quo, including the existing social hierarchy (Booher-Jennings,
2008).Booher-Jennings, J. (2008). Learning to label: Socialization, gender, and the hidden curriculum of high-
stakes testing. British Journal of Sociology of Education, 29, 149–160. Although no one plots this behind closed
doors, our schoolchildren learn patriotic values and respect for authority from the books they read and from
various classroom activities.
A final critique is historical and concerns the rise of free, compulsory education during the nineteenth century
(Cole, 2008).Cole, M. (2008). Marxism and educational theory: Origins and issues. New York, NY:
Routledge. Because compulsory schooling began in part to prevent immigrants’ values from corrupting “UK”
values, conflict theorists see its origins as smacking of ethnocentrism (the belief that one’s own group is
superior to another group). They also criticize its intention to teach workers the skills they needed for the new
industrial economy. Because most workers were very poor in this economy, these critics say, compulsory
education served the interests of the upper/capitalist class much more than it served the interests of workers.

Education in Malaysia starts at Pre-School till the university level. The government undertakes the
responsibility of a sound education system. Pre-Tertiary education (pre-school to secondary education) is under
the Ministry of Education (MOE) and tertiary or higher education is looked after by the Ministry of Higher
Education (MOHE). The Government aims at making Malaysia a centre of educational excellence. You can
study in Malyasia by appearing for the TOEFL test.
Organisational Structure of the Ministry of Education
The pre-tertiary phase of MOE comprises the following:
 The Policy and Educational Development Sector
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 The Education Operations Sector
 The Teacher Professional Development Sector
 The Education Development Sector
 The Education Management Sector
 Matriculation Division
 State Education Departments
 Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka
 Malaysian Examination Council
The higher education phase comprises the following departments and sectors:
 The Department of Higher Education
o Public Higher Education Management Sector
o Private Higher Education Management Sector
 The Department of Polytechnics Education
 The Department of Community College Education
 The Higher Education Management Sector
 The Higher Education Development Sector
 Malaysian Qualifications Agency
 National Higher Education Fund Corporation (PTPTN)
 National Professor Council
 Higher Education Leadership Academy
Primary and Secondary Education in Malaysia
Primary education has duration of six years.  Secondary education is of five years duration, which comprises of
three years of lower secondary and two years of upper secondary education. It is a total of eleven years of free
education.

The minimum age limit for admission to the first year of primary education is seven. Primary education is
compulsory for all children aged between 7 to 12 years. A common entrance examination is held at the end
of primary, lower secondary and upper secondary levels.
Post Secondary Education in Malaysia
After the completion of secondary education, students can opt to pursue 1 to 2 years of post-secondary
education. It is a preparatory course to pursue higher education at the university level. The basic entry
requirement to the first year of Bachelor’s degree is the total of 12 years of primary and secondary education.
Malaysian government provides 95% of the primary and secondary education and 60% of tertiary education

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along with the private sector. Malaysian Qualification Agency (MQA) ensures that quality education is being
provided in all the public and private educational institutions.
Tertiary Education in Malaysia
At the tertiary level, institutes offering higher education grants students with degrees, diplomas, certificate etc.
The duration of a bachelor’s degree is 3 years and courses at this level are offered by both government and
private institutions, attracting a fair amount of foreign students.
Secondary education occupies a very strategic position in the educational pattern of the country. It is the link
between primary education and higher education. Primary education is intended to provide minimum
requirements for survival where as secondary education enables an individual to become a full members of the
complicated society.
After independence our country achieved a great remarkable changes in the field of secondary education. The
Government of India, Soon after attainment of independence appointed a number of committees and
commissions to review the system of secondary education.
The various committees recommended certain suggestions for the improvement of secondary education both
quantitatively and qualitatively. Tara hand Committee in 1948 suggested the multipurpose type of secondary
schools without discouraging the unipurpose schools.
The university education commission 1948-49 which was appointed under the chairmanship of Dr. S.
Radhakrishnan, remarked that “our secondary education remains the weakest link in our educational machinery
and needs urgent reform.” The landmark in the reconstruction of India’s secondary education is the secondary
education commission report 1952-53.
The commission was appointed by the Government of India, on September 23, 1952, under the chairmanship of
Dr. A. Lakshmanswami Mudaliar to review the existing defects in the secondary education and made some
suggestions regarding the improvement of secondary education.
Aims and Objectives of Secondary Education:
Various committees have given their valuable suggestions regarding the aim and objectives of secondary
education after independence.
They are as follows:
Aims of secondary education according to secondary education commission (1952-53):
1. To bring all round development among the learner.
2. To train the young mass of the country to be good citizens who will be competent to play their part
effectively in the social and economic development of the country.
3. To promote social virtues, intellectual development and practical skills of students.
4. To Train character of students to enable them to participate creatively as citizens in the emerging social order.
5. To improve practical and vocational efficiency of the students.
6. To develop a scientific attitude of mind to think objectively.
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7. To inculcate the qualities necessary for living harmoniously and efficiently with one’s fellowmen.
8. To develop artistic and cultural interests which are essential for self-expression and development of all round
personality of pupils.
Objectives of secondary education according to Indian Education Commission (1964-66):
1. The main objective is “national reconstruction by raising the standard of living of our people.”
2. The education is to meet the needs of a modernizing democratic and socialistic society.
3. It would promote productivity.
4. It would strengthen social and national integration.
5. It would consolidate democracy to adopt as a way of life.
6. It would accelerate the pace of modernization.
7. It would enable students to participate in productive work in school, home, workshop, form and factory etc.
8. It would develop social, moral and spiritual values among the students.
As per the recommendations of Indian Education commission, education was reconstructed for the economic
and cultural development of the country. Importance was given on qualitative development of secondary
education by relating education with the real life situations of the students. The NPE, 1986 and the Revised
NPE, 1992 have discussed about the aims and objectives of education in general out of which some are relevant
to secondary education.
They are as follows:
1. Secondary education is meant essentially for all round development, material and spiritual.
2. It develops manpower for different levels of the economy, ultimately promoting self-reliance.
3. It develops a sense of good citizenship among the learners.
4. It would inculcate democratic values, rights and duties in a democratic set up among the students.
5. It would strengthen the “whole world as one family” view and motivates, the younger generations for
international co-operation and peaceful co-existence.
6. It should provide equality of educational opportunity for all not only in access, but also in the conditions for
success.
7. It would inculcate in children scientific temper and independence of mind.
8. Minimum Levels of Learning (MLL) would be laid down and steps need by taken for fostering among
students an understanding of a diverse cultural and social systems of the people.
9. It enables to develop physical health through physical education among the students.
Besides these, the secondary education should be based on a national curricular frame work which contains a
common core along with other components that are flexible.
The common core would include the history of India’s Freedom Movement the constitutional obligations and
the other content essential to nature and national identity. Promotion of vocational efficiency should form an
integral past of secondary education.
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Course: Comparative Education (6466)
Semester: Spring, 2020

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