Quality of basic education

Abstract

This study contributes to a significant United Nations broad research exercise of over 70 commissioned papers carried out by researchers and institutes from around the world. By drawing upon the author’s funded research into the quality of basic education in a number of countries including South Africa in 2003, Afghanistan in 2001, and Vietnam in 2003, it argues for a review of the concept of quality in education to embrace more centrally classroom and cultural realities. Arguing for a classroom culturalist approach to educational development, the study pays particular attention to issues of gender, the theme of the 2003/04 UN Global Monitoring Report.