Education in Different Cultures

Learning in Iran

As we learn from the nightly TV news, education in Islamic countries has special challenges. Boys are generally favored, and many religious leaders (some of whom are also political leaders) believe that education should be totally about religion.

Iran breaks that mold. The country is an Islamic Republic, and the government has changed the country's educational goals many times. Today, Iranian youth have options for training in vocations, such as business or agriculture - helping them prepare for better jobs. And Iranian women are finding a better chance for education than in many other countries: approximately 45% of Iranian students are female!¹ The literacy rate is around 79%.

Iran has a lot of universities, both public and private. It is competitive to gain admission, and an estimated one million students attend. It's estimated that some 23,000 students study theology.²

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By Randall Shirley
Contributing Writer to World Wide Learn. © 2005. All Rights Reserved.
Sources: 1. http://www.iranchamber.com/education/articles/educational_system.php
2. http://www.britishcouncil.org/iran-discover-iran-education-report.doc