Education In Tunisia Research Articles

Determinants of the Quality of Primary Education in Tunisia: A Micro-Econometric Analysis Applied to the TIMSS 2011 Study

Empirical estimates of education production are very few in the case of Tunisia due to non availability of data. Fortunately, trends in international mathematics and science study starts to fill this gap by providing data on students’ achievement. TIMSS 2011 revealed that the average performance of Tunisia student is at the lower end of the distribution of the average score of all participating countries Tunis took the 47<sup>th</sup> in mathematics over 50 countries. Despite the abundant resources and reforms undertaken by the educational community Tunisia student suffer from a very low primary quality of education as measured by mathematics test score. This article attempts to find out the impact of the home environment, school resources and teacher quality on the students’ educational achievement at fourth grade in mathematics., we estimate educational production functions using OLS and then repeat the exercise estimating quantile regressions at different part of the score distribution in order to analyze if there are differences in the variables affecting test scores along the scores distribution and not just at the mean of the distribution. The results show that the home environment, school resources and teacher resource are key determinants of primary education performance. In order to to improve primary education performance, it is recommended that policymakers and educational authorities focus on strengthening all three key determinants: enhancing support for families to create a conducive learning environment at home, investing in better school resources and infrastructure, and providing ongoing professional development and support for teachers. By addressing these areas comprehensively, educational institutions can create a more effective and supportive framework that promotes better learning outcomes for all students.

Mathematics Education in Tunisia during the French Occupation Based On Cultural Historical Activity: A Historical-Analytical Study

Mathematics Education in Tunisia during the French Occupation Based On Cultural Historical Activity: A Historical-Analytical Study

Towards Rethinking Sustainable Development in Architectural and Urban Planning Education A Comparative Study of Literature Reviews and the Tunisian Context

The growing global focus on dealing with contemporary challenges by incorporating sustainability in the builtenvironment is a worldwide concern. This situation becomes more urgent when it comes to rethinking Architecturaland Urban Planning Education in Tunisia, which highlights existing gaps. The research methodology involves firstanalyzing international initiatives and case studies at different scales of architectural education. Then, this literaturereview is followed by (online) interviews with educators from renowned academic institutions around the world toexplore in depth their innovative experiences in promoting sustainability issues. Through this approach, we don’t onlyidentify the knowledge and methods emphasized in these leading programs but also compare how they align with orhave to be adapted to address Tunisia's specific socio-cultural and environmental context. The findings contribute tothe ongoing discourse on sustainability education and seek to provide recommendations and insights for theadaptability of these programs in the local context.

Adopting English as a Language of Instruction of STEM in Tunisian Higher Education Institutions: Promises and Challenges

This research paper investigates the promises, challenges, and perspectives of teaching STEM subjects in English within Tunisian higher education institutions. The study explores the potential benefits of English-medium instruction (EMI) in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education, highlighting enhanced global competitiveness, improved English language proficiency, and increased access to international resources and collaborations. Additionally, it examines the challenges faced by educators and students, including language barriers, curriculum adaptation, faculty training, and student support. Through a comprehensive analysis, the paper aims to provide insights and recommendations for effectively implementing EMI of STEM in Tunisian higher education institutions. The paper concludes with a recommended action plan for the proper introduction of EMI of STEM in Tunisia, addressing both the potential advantages and the practical challenges to ensure a successful transition. This research is crucial for informing educational policies and practices, aiming to elevate the quality and accessibility of STEM education in Tunisia while aligning with global educational trends.

Tunisian parents’ expectations and approaches regarding sex education of their children according to their age: a cross-sectional study

IntroductionAdolescents often lack vital information for making wise sexual and reproductive decisions, leading to risks like abuse, unwanted pregnancies, and infections. Comprehensive, early, and age-appropriate sex education is crucial. While parents should play a significant role, many underestimate their responsibility. The perception of sex education is changing, with younger parents being more open to participating in their children’s education.ObjectivesThis study compares the approaches of Tunisian parents with adolescent and pre-adolescent children towards sex education.MethodsThis study used a cross-sectional design to collect data from Tunisian parents of children between the ages of 1 to 18 using an online survey. Two groups were recruited based on the age of their children, one group had parents of children younger than 10 years old, and the other had parents of adolescents. The survey included questions about the participants’ demographics, approach to sex education, reasons for their approach, and opinions on sex-related education in public schools. The survey was anonymous and confidential, and data were collected from January to March 2023 through various social media platforms.Results This study surveyed 232 Tunisian parents with children between the ages of 1 and 18, divided into two groups based on the age of their children. The majority of participants were female (62.1%) and married (81.9%). The majority of participants in both groups agreed that sex education is important and indispensable, but only 54.7% of parents in the older children group responded positively to teaching sexual education as an independent subject. There was a significant difference between the two groups regarding their opinions about the appropriate age of sexual education for their children, and who they think should discuss sexual and reproductive health with young people. Most participants indicated that the human body and its development, sexual and reproductive health, prevention of sexually transmitted diseases and infections, contraception as well as puberty are the most important subjects to be addressed. Sexuality and sexual behaviors, the concepts of violence and safety, interpersonal relationships, consent, insults, harassment, and sexist cyberbullying were less frequently mentioned.ConclusionsIn conclusion, this study highlights the importance of sex education in Tunisia. Parents in both groups support it but differ on timing and integration. Barriers like communication challenges and religious beliefs exist. These insights can guide tailored sex education programs for Tunisian parents, promoting youth sexual and reproductive health.Disclosure of InterestNone Declared

Morphological Awareness and Cross-Language Transfer

This research investigated how knowledge of word structure (morphology) transfers across languages in an EFL context. The study involved 100 randomly selected students from basic education in Tunisia, with half from Grade 8 and the other half from Grade 9. The students' vocabulary sizes were assessed using an adapted version of Nation's Vocabulary Levels. Additionally, tests for inflectional and derivational morphemes in Arabic, French, and English were used to measure the students' awareness of word structure. The students also completed two tasks involving words that are similar in meaning and form across languages (cognates) in French-English and Arabic-English. The results showed that knowledge of word structure in Arabic did not relate to knowledge of word structure in English, but there were significant connections between knowledge of word structure in French and English. Furthermore, the study revealed that the similarity of English words with Arabic affected the transfer of knowledge of word structure, while knowledge of word structure in French had an impact on both similar and dissimilar English words.

Inclusive Education in Tunisia: Expectations versus Reality

Inclusive Education in Tunisia: Expectations versus Reality

The Experience of Family Medicine Residents during the Early Phase of COVID-19 Pandemic in Tunisia

The COVID-19 pandemic has overwhelmed healthcare systems particularly the training curriculum for post-graduate medical students. Our aim was to assess family medicine residents’ perceived impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on training and medical education in Tunisia. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional survey among all Tunisian family medicine residents who were in training during the year 2020. Residents starting their first-year residency studies in 2021 were excluded. A structured questionnaire was created and shared via Google Forms. Residents' anonymity and consent were respected. Results: We included 107 residents (85% females). During the first semester of 2020, a significant reduction in workload was reported including working hours (58.9%), patient's flow (65.1%) and elective admission (83%). The workload tended to partially normalize during the second half of the year. The restriction of academic activities (staff, grand rounds, and congresses) was considered the major obstacle (73.8%) hindering residents’ training. About 72% benefited from E-learning during the second period. By the end of 2020, 48.6% of participants reported being infected by the virus. The majority (97.2%) reported feeling anxious, irritable and/or depressed. The pandemic significantly decreased residents' satisfaction with their medical training (4.22±2.15 before the crisis versus 2.78±1.18 during COVID-19) (p<10-3). Conclusion: The COVID-19 pandemic had decreased residents' level of satisfaction with their training and had negatively affected their mental health. The key findings of the present research can be a starting point to provide high quality residency training and to avoid bypassing their weaknesses in the upcoming outbreaks.

Indonesian and Tunisian Constitutional Frameworks: The Impact on the Development of Higher Education Curriculum

Education has a critical role in the development of a new generation of individuals. It all depends on the constitutional frameworks and norms around which educational institutions and educational praxis are founded, and education is one of the tools to maintain national identity. The quality of education cannot simply be measured by the percentage of GDP spent on education. According to the World Data Bank, Tunisia spends 26.63 percent of its budget on education, while Indonesia spends only 20.50 percent. However, this does not guarantee that the quality of education in Tunisia is higher than in Indonesia due to the cultural and constitutional framework disparities between the two countries. The aim of this study is to compare the higher education curricula in Tunisia, which was developed from the French secular, or laicite, system, with that in Indonesia, which is founded on the ideology of Pancasila. Moreover, this study aims to analyze how the laicite system and Pancasila ideology have an impact on higher education curriculum design. The method used is a qualitative approach with a comparative case study analysis. Data was obtained from interview sessions with policy makers on curriculum as well as from the handbooks of curriculum in the Faculty of Culture at Indonesia University and the curriculum of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences at Tunis University and focuses on the learning method and outcomes, as well as other journal and mass media pieces that are relevant. The data shows that disparities between constitutional frameworks and ideological contrasts between Pancasila and the laicite system have a significant impact on the religious component of the curriculum development process. In Tunisia, in particular, the curriculum has yet to achieve the government’s goal of developing critical consciousness. In Indonesia, the curriculum is based on the process model design, while in Tunisia, it is based on the product model design.

ENTREPRENEURIAL INTENTION AMONG GRADUATES OF THE HIGHER INSTITUTE OF SPORT AND PHYSICAL EDUCATION OF GAFSA

: Tunisia is among the third world countries which suffer from an acute economic crisis, characterized mainly by saturation at the level of the public service. In spite of this, the four Higher Institutes of Sport and Physical Education in Tunisia continue to produce unemployed graduates. On the other hand, entrepreneurship in the field of sport can be a solution to this economic quagmire. Indeed, the objective of this article is to evaluate the entrepreneurial intention among graduates of the Higher Institute of Sport and Physical Education of Gafsa and understand the facilitating conditions for business creation. This paper constitutes a quantitative study through a questionnaire administered face to face to 100 graduates in question. This questionnaire is composed of multiple choice closed-ended questions on a five-point Likert scale. It has three main axes: the profile, the entrepreneurial intention, and the issues related to entrepreneurship. The statistical analysis is verified using SPSS 16 software using several tests such as: the adjustment or adequacy test, the independence test and the chi-square homogeneity test. The results of our study show that there is an intention towards landing private careers, fuelled by a positive attitude, an ambitious perception, and an influence from the entourage. On the other hand, several obstacles can also be found in the process of business creation, most notably red tape. Thus, teaching of entrepreneurship at the university takes on a whole new meaning and constitutes a strategic desire to mobilize higher education for sustainable economic solutions.

The Exploration of Islamic Educational Reform and Colonialism Impact on Contemporary Islamic Higher Education

Many historians and scholars have embraced the concept of ""tradition vs modernity,"" arguing that Islamic educational institutions play a minor role in Muslim civilization's intellectual development. Despite the fact that portrayals of Islamic educational institutions, such as madrasas, as legacies of medieval antiquity are still popular in public discourse, numerous historians, philosophers, and scholars have debated this concept over the years. This research is a comparative study to explore the modern Islamic educational reform in Islamic higher education in Tunisia and Indonesia. As well as its contribution to development. The purpose of this study is to answer what are the explorations of educational reform in Indonesia and Tunisia's higher education? What is both countries' contribution to the development of Islamic education? The study was conducted using a qualitative method with an historical approach. The historical books of colonialism in Indonesia and Tunisia were used to collect data for the exploration of Islamic educational reform in Islamic higher education. Data also includes journals, articles, books, news, and international data that are relevant to the theme. The findings of the study show that modern reform is impacted by the colonial system in Indonesia, which allowed faith-based schools to take control of the schools. Islamic higher education in Indonesia is growing with modern ideas and has a dualistic system. While in Tunisia, of the French colonial type, they tried to get rid of all Islamic education because many Islamic higher education or madrasas were gotten rid of. As a result, following the end of colonialism, Islamic higher education in Tunisia now consists of just one and only Zaitunah University as part of Islamic civilization. This paper expects that by providing insight into colonial-era transformations, current and future generations of educators will recognize their significance and help to reintegrate an Islamic worldview, epistemology, and ethics into higher education development.

Navigating through the COVID-19 pandemic: Unfinished learning in primary and secondary education in Tunisia

During the outbreak of the global SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) pandemic, Tunisia, like many countries, prepared an emergency plan to shift to distance learning to salvage the academic year and ensure continuous learning. However, a shortage of digital materials coupled with the fact that many households did not have adequate Internet bandwidth made it virtually impossible to secure adequate digital learning. When in-person schooling was restarted in 2020/21, primary, pre-secondary, and secondary school pupils attended school on alternate days to avoid overcrowding. As a result of the pandemic, the curriculum has been lightened, and the fundamentals have been prioritized. Based on content analysis of the Ministry of Education documents and a survey conducted by the Ministry on remote learning, we shed light on the different measures taken to curb learning loss during the spread of the pandemic as well as the challenges facing Tunisian students and the government. The consequences of these measures are discussed along with future recommendations.

The Pandemic Crisis: Time for Digitization of Higher Education in Tunisia

Our article highlights the negative impacts of Covid-19 on higher education in Tunisia. The future is uncertain for everyone, especially students who face a world paralyzed by the pandemic. Based on a qualitative study based on the Focus Group method among students, teachers, researchers, directors, a number of parents and members of civil society, we want to know how the Coronavirus has affected education and how universities cope with different changes. Our work focuses on the lessons learned from containment as well as the potential positive benefits to higher education. Our results show that the pandemic has forced universities to explore new methods of teaching and learning, including through distance and online education. This solution has proven difficult for students and teachers, who not only have to cope with the emotional, social and economic challenges posed by Covid-19 by doing their best to curb the spread of the virus. The higher education sector has made remarkable headway through accelerating digitization and the pursuit of distance education during the pandemic, but constraints persist. Our article will provide interested parties with a set of courses of action helping to structure such a policy of transformation towards digital education in a changing university landscape. The challenge is to invent a more flexible higher education that offers active pedagogies by integrating the contributions of digital technology and relying on research, and which can meet the different expectations of students.

Agency in educational language planning: perspectives from higher education in Tunisia

ABSTRACT Post-modern approaches to language policy have emphasised the role of agency in implementing and appropriating language policies. While agency is often perceived in positive terms, Liddicoat [(2019). Constraints on agency in micro-language policy and planning in schools. In J. Bouchard & G. P. Glasgow (Eds.), Agency in language policy and planning: Critical inquiries (pp. 149–170). New York: Routledge.] calls on language policy researchers to investigate its problems and constraints. This article discusses the interplay of structure and agency in educational language policies in Tunisian higher education, a sector characterised by a ‘benign neglect' approach to language policy. While doing so, it responds to Fenton-Smith and Gurney’s [(2016). Actors and agency in academic language policy and planning. Current Issues in Language Planning, 17(1), 72–87] observation that higher education contexts remain largely underexplored in the language policy scholarship. The article uses data from 12 semi-structured interviews from local higher education stakeholders in order to explore how their agency is exercised, rejected and contested. The study demonstrates that while agency creates room for flexibility and the ability to respond to changing local demands and aspirations, it can also cause problems such as inconsistency, uncertainty, and the reproduction of social inequalities.

Rethinking Civic Education in Tunisia: a Focus on School Curricula and Teacher Training

The paper explores the status of civic education in Tunisian public schools. It calls for seizing the opportunities offered by Tunisia’s transition to democracy to improve the teaching and learning of civic education. Before 2011, the Tunisian educational system was not very concerned with raising young generations on the principles and values of civic engagement, participatory citizenship, democratic participation, and social justice. Decision makers did not seem to be aware of the opportunities that young generations may enjoy inside and outside the classroom to learn about these values, and to be more actively committed to other issues, such as human rights, economic development, and the rule of law. However, the Tunisian youth have always used modern technology to keep updated about National and world affairs, and the recent huge developments in the domains of social media and citizen journalism have deepened their awareness about the lack of social justice and human rights in the country. The paper focuses on the importance of civic education in the Tunisian educational system to critically reconsider its potential role in educating the young generations on the values and principles of democracy. This is achieved through a review of two major components of the teaching/learning of civic education, namely how the subject is being taught and how the teachers are being prepared.

Conceptions de la respiration chez des élèves tunisiens du cycle préparatoire et du cycle secondaire de l’enseignement

In the discipline of life and earth sciences, so many concepts are characterized by their multidisciplinary and complexity, which makes them difficult to learn. This is the case, for example, with photosynthesis, the immune system, biological evolution, respiration, heredity, etc. This problem worsens when the initial conceptions of learners are neglected by teachers in their courses as various research has shown. In this work, we have noted the conceptions of breathing among students of the preparatory cycle and the secondary cycle of education in Tunisia. It appears then that these conceptions are varied, that they evolve with the age, recalling the historical evolution of this concept and especially that some of them strongly resist to the change and constitute obstacles to the learning.

Impact of Higher Institutes of Sport and Physical Education in Tunisia Students’ Pre-University Cheating Behavior on Their Asocial Conduct during University Examinations

To the best of our knowledge, this is the first thesis dealing with cheating in university exams at the higher institutes of sport and physical education in Tunisia. This research is aimed to 1) evaluate the importance of the phenomenon; 2) define the profile of cheating students; and 3) contain the role of the society in the emergence and spread of this phenomenon. 799 students from the four Tunisian higher institutes of sports and physical education volunteered to respond to a quantitative questionnaire-based survey. The data collected were statistically analyzed using the SPSS-version 20 software. A univariate statistical study was followed by a bivariate or multivariate study. 86.1% of respondents admitted that they had cheated during their university education. Univariate and multivariate studies pointed to cheating antecedent as the common denominator amongst cheating students, since 99.98% of them had already cheated at school. Results analysis was performed from two standpoints: the individual and the social context, in which the student was brought up, based on well-established known theories. This twofold approach made it possible to highlight the interaction between the different actors. Student misbehavior is the inevitable result of the shift in social representations of academic norms that have led to the trivialization of cheating, converting student status from mere observer into a follower. The genesis of this culture, where cheating has become part of the norm, is marked by the collusion plays between the actors involved in the training and evaluation processes i.e. students, professors and the institutions.

Tunisian Academics at the Turbulent Times of the ‘Jasmine Revolution’: Publication Challenges and Survival Strategies

This study investigates the range of publication difficulties that Tunisian scholars experience especially in post-revolution Tunisia. It also explores the strategies they have deployed in their struggle with the publication process. 12 Tunisian business and economics scholars affiliated to a Tunisian university were interviewed. The accounts attest that Tunisian academics face a litany of socio-economic difficulties which got worse in the aftermath of the 2011 revolution and the ensuing social unrest. Unfavorable research surroundings included unsupportive research environment and an ad hoc state policy. Compensation strategies included working on mega open access data to fight parochialism. The study has important implications for policy making and instructional planning in Higher Education in Tunisia. It points to a generalized need for a research system overhaul to improve the research surroundings.

Modeling the Education Supply Chain with Network DEA Model: The Case of Tunisia

Little has been done on network DEA in education, and nobody has attempted to model the whole education supply chain using network DEA. As such the contribution of the present paper is to evaluate the efficiency of Tunisian education supply chain with a network DEA developed by Kao and Hwang (Eur J Oper Res 185:418–429, 2008). The idea consists on subdividing the education system into three sub-processes, where, primary, secondary and tertiary education are linked by intermediate variables. Input variables of the whole education system are “the number of schools” and “the number of students enrolled in the first year of basic education”. Output generated from basic education “Promoted pupils from basic education” is the only input used by secondary education. The output variable “Graduates from secondary education” is then used by tertiary education to produce the output of the whole education system which is “Graduates from tertiary education”. The results of assessment show that most governorates have a lower efficiency scores in tertiary education compared to efficiency in basic and secondary education. The results of the efficiency scores ranking demonstrate an important similarity between the ranks of the whole education system efficiency and the tertiary education efficiency. This result confirms that the inefficiency of education in Tunisia is mainly due to the inefficiency of tertiary education.

Tunisian Physical Education Student Trainees’ Agreement Rate about the Consistency between Initial Training and Integration during the Preparatory Internship for Professional Life

This article aims at describing Physical Education Student Trainees’ (PEST) agreement rate towards consistency between training and integration during the Preparatory Internship for Professional Life (PIPL). In order to achieve this research, the method used in the quoted investigation is based on an administration of a questionnaire among 116 PEST (average age ± SD = 21 ± 1.8; sex = males and females) inscribed at one of the four Higher Institutes of Sport and Physical Education in Tunisia. This study resulted in a consensus that there is a lack of consistency between training and integration in the PIPL with a student trainees’ global agreement rate on ten equal to 5.09 ± 0.22. The results discussed in this article will encourage pushing towards an improvement of the Tunisian physical education initial training devices to prepare well for the future teachers to a successful professional life.