International Bureau Of Education Research Articles

Physical modelling as a conceptual device for climate responsive architecture: investigating pedagogy for theoretical discourses

Concepts remain the point of origin for creativity in design activity. For a comprehensive exploration of concepts it is imperative to assign adequate time and significance in architectural education and pedagogy towards their understanding. Physical modelling is one of the key techniques that helps in the critical analysis and conceptual comprehension in design. The current research considers the use of physical modelling as a conceptual device in the learning of theoretical discourse with specific focus on climate-responsive architecture. In the delivery of theories in architecture to students, such conceptual devices enhance and establish the knowledge imparted. While presenting the use of physical modelling as a conceptual device, the current research work acts as an illustrative exercise that can be carried out during the coursework for Climate and Built Environment that in turn can enrich the learning of thermal comfort principles in architecture. The research lists the learning outcomes of the classroom exercise and evaluates them against the learning theories postulated by the International Bureau of Education. The exercises resulted in the development of 3D physical models that illustrated the understanding gained by the students. It was observed that application of theory imparted during over the course of lectures was applied. The students also drew from their intuition and internal aesthetic sense. It was noted that the theory covered in class had been tested and explored and there was a strong rationale behind each model, proving that the exercise had taken the understanding of the theme beyond the scope of theoretical knowledge. The observations also revealed that the core principles of the learning theories propounded by the International Bureau of Education were in alignment with the learning outcomes from the modeling exercises that were executed by the authors, especially that of the Experiential Learning Theory. It may be concluded that these exercises can be effectively used in lecture classes that discuss architectural theories, including sustainability and climate response in buildings to expand the aesthetic and sustainable sensitivity of the learner. Consequently productivity in the design studio is vastly enriched. Apart from enrichment stemming from the listed learning outcomes, students are able to analyse design problems with climate in mind, thereby, familiarizing them with concepts of sustainability in the design studio.

Piaget, diplomat of educational internationalism. From the International Bureau of Education to UNESCO (1929–1968)

ABSTRACTBuilding on a historiography that is in full expansion, we are focusing our attention on the sociogenesis of “educational internationalism”, by studying the way in which agents and organisations which claim to belong to this movement have executed their commitments and reconfigured them over the decades. After having studied the groups which work within the International Bureau of Education (IBE) – which aims to build peace through science and education – here we are examining the way in which its director, Jean Piaget, shaped the implements and the operating methods of the IBE, and represented it on different international stages. The well-endowed archives that were analysed have prompted us to suggest that he is revealed as a diplomat of “educational internationalism”; while the IBE became the first intergovernmental agency (1929), it started working with UNESCO from 1946 before it became fully integrated in 1969. In particular, this article shows how, within the intergovernmental context of the IBE, this learned man adapted the concepts of teamwork and self-government that he had theorised. We are interested to see which diplomatic tools Piaget put to use in order to tackle the unavoidable contradictions that he came up against. How was one to preserve a strict neutrality and scientific objectivity, conditions of an educational internationalism which claims to be universalist, in the arenas where it is governmental and institutional delegates in struggle that debate, moreover on topics such as school – viewed as a space where national identities are fashioned?

Value of Values Education in the Virtual Classroom

This research endeavored to follow in a way the ideals of Herbert Spencer regarding value- based education. It inquired on the value or importance of values education in online instruction during this time of the pandemic. The researchers had used narrative descriptive method and strategy in analyzing the data that were collected through the digital data approach from several educators of higher and other educational institutions. Primarily, this research presented the various practices observed before, during, and after online learning, to ensure value-laden education aside from identifying the specific values needed to be promoted and intensified during this pandemic by reason of necessity and urgency like sensitivity, self-care, courage, perseverance, discipline, respect, accountability, faith, justice, peace, honesty, humility, and love. This research yielded to the importance and impact of values education to educational excellence while still in pandemic which are classified as personal character development, social and world development, and spiritual development on the account of the good nature of the value-based education, availability of much needed structures, quality of delivery, and dynamic support system. ReferencesAECT. (2001). What is Descriptive Research? The handbook of research for Educational Communications and Technology. http://members.aect.org/edtech/ed1/41/41-01.html.CHED Memorandum Order No.20. (2013). Commission on Higher Education. General Education Curriculum: Holistic Understandings, Intellectual and Civic Competencies. https://ched.gov.ph/wp-content/uploads/ 2017/10/CMO-No.20-s2013.pdfEliot, C. W. (1911). Spencer on Education. Online Library of Liberty. https://oll.libertyfund.org/pages/spencer-on-educationEriksson, P. & Kovalainen, A. (2016). Qualitative Methods in Business Research, 2nd Ed. Sage Publications, Ltd.Hall, B. P. 2006. Values Shift: A Guide to Personal and Organizational Transformation. Resource Publications.Hall, B.P. (2000). The Genesis Effect. Personal and Organizational Transformations. Don Bosco Press.Hall, B.P. & Thompson, H. (1980). Leadership Through Values. Paulist Press.Harari, Y. N. (2018). 21 Lessons for the 21st Century. Jonathan Cape.Harari, Y.N. (2015). Sapiens. HarperCollins Publishers.Holmes, B. and Spencer, H. (2020, November 8) International Bureau of education (1820-1903). http://www.ibe.unesco.org/sites/default/files/spencere.pdf.Liu, et.al. (2017). Scientific Knowledge Education Based on Herbert Spencer “What Knowledge is of Most Worth?” Open Access Eurasia Journal of Mathematics Science and Technology Education. 13(7):4291-4299 https://doi.org/ 10.12973/Eurasia.2017.00836aLlego, M. A.(n.d.) DepEd Values Education Program (VEP) Goal and Objectives. https://www.teacherph.com/deped-values-education-Program Paine, L. S. (2003). Value Shift. Why Companies Must Merged Social and Financial Imperatives to Achieve Superior Performance. McGraw-Hill.Presidential Decree No. 6-A. The Lawphil Project (1972). Authorizing the Undertaking of Educational Development Projects, Providing for the Mechanics of Implementation and Financing Thereof, and for other Purposes. https://lawphil.net/statutes/ presdecs/pd1972/pd_6_a_1972.html.Seidenberger, T. and Weiss, M. (2011). The educational theory of Herbert spencer. https://www.newfoundations.com/GALLERY/Spencer.html.ThoughtCo. Famous education quotations from Philosopher Herbert Spencer. (2020, November 11). https://www.thoughtco.com/famous-education-quotations-herbert-spencer-Values Education in the Basic Education Curriculum. (2003). DO 41, S. 2003. https://www.deped.gov.ph/2003/05/22/do-41-s-2003-values-education-in-the-basic-education-curriculum/ What is Research? (n.d.) https://www.personal.psu.edu/wxh139/research_talk.htm6.

Operationalising Global Citizenship Education

This article describes the Universal learning Programme, an innovative curriculum framework designed by the International School of Geneva’s La Grande Boissière campus and UNESCO’s International Bureau of Education. The design, scope and reach of the programme operationalises Global Citizenship Education through the development of deep conceptual understanding of relevant domains, the assessment of life-worthy competences and the creation of authentic social impact. It is through this balanced synthesis of learning and innovative task design that all the precepts of Global Citizenship Education are developed and put into concrete practice. The Universal Learning Programme offers e

The International Bureau of Education: A Precursor of the Unesco and the Factory of its Pedagogical Guidelines? (1934–1968)

Our article contributes to trace the sociogenesis of "educational internationalism" as promoted by the International Bureau of Education when it became an intergovernmental organization in 1929, cooperating with Unesco since 1947, before being fully integrated in 1969. The IBE can be considered as one of the forerunners of Unesco, a kind of factory of its pedagogical guidelines: it develops a modus operandi for producing, through a comparative approach, in as objective and neutral a manner as possible, knowledge concerning the progress of education in the world and recommendations forming a charter of world aspirations in education. These matters are discussed in International Conferences on Public Education (ICPE). With the birth of Unesco, the IBE negotiates a status of autonomy and collaboration, continuing its technical work based on comparative education. The problems studied, defined by both institutions together, relate to three crucial fields: access to education, curriculum, teacher education. The IBE’s approach is far from being free of tensions: in the results themselves of its work and between the countries participating in IBE’s enquiries and the ICPEs.

Analysis of U.S., Kenyan, and Finnish Discourse Patterns in a Cross-Cultural Digital Makerspace Learning Community Through the IBE-UNESCO Global Competences Framework

In 2017, the International Bureau of Education (IBE) at the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) put forth seven global competences to address accelerating technological progress and increasing levels of complexity and uncertainty affecting many facets of society (Marope, 2017). These competences were used in examining participant discourse in a global, collaborative digital makerspace environment, where students ages 12 to 17 from six countries develop and share STEM-focused media artifacts. The participants communicate synchronously through video conference calls, referred to as online global meet-ups. The meet-ups allow students to present media artifacts they have created, share ideas, exchange information, and provide feedback. In this analysis, epistemic network analysis (ENA), a technique in quantitative ethnography, is used to examine the connections made among the IBE-UNESCO global competences in a meet-up involving participants from Finland, Kenya, and the U.S. ENA network models were created initially for the three sites, then further disaggregated by time segment to analyze how participant discourse patterns may have evolved in each context. Through this approach, the paper explores more broadly the interactive role of media making, cross-cultural engagement, and collaborative learning in the development of global competences in students.

The Development of Hiroshima International School

Jean Piaget is well known as a child and cognitive psychologist. He is less understood as the founder of the discipline of genetic epistemology, the scientific study of the genesis and development of human meaning-making. He is also a major proponent of constructivist learning and activity pedagogy. A major supporter of the first international school, the International School of Geneva (which later developed the International Baccalaureate), and an early director of both the world’s first child study center, the Jean-Jacques Rousseau Institute, and the International Bureau of Education (later a part of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization), Piaget was deeply committed to student self-government, collaborative, active learning, and peace education. In 1980 I became principal of the Hiroshima International School of peace and culture, and we used his seminal work, “The Right to Education in the Modern World,” based on Article 26 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, to create and sustain an authentic “international” school organization, curriculum, and pedagogical practice.

Investigation of Technological Tools used in Education System in Oman

Abstract Recent educational reforms in Oman illustrates some sincere endeavors to reengineer the education framework in the last four and a half decades. These reforms, that Oman took to address the issues of the education and ensure some progressing improvements were also appraised by international Bureau of Education. The issue of technological tools in education system in Oman is explored using secondary data further analysis is carried out to explore the factors that affecting technology adaptation in education and to find meaningful solutions to improve the usage technological tools in education system. This study exhibits how to exploit present day innovative techniques for learning and teaching in schools and universities. The papers aim to identify the difficulties that hinder the employment of modern technologies in field of education in Oman. Data is obtained from various studies relevant to this aspect and principals, teachers and students of some public and private schools, which are randomly selected to achieve consistent results. This data is analysed using IBM SPSS Statistics.

Jullien’s 1817 Esquisse: Toward a “Science” of Comparative Higher Education?

This article links comparative and international higher education research to ideas put forward in the 1817 pamphlet by Marc-Antoine Jullien, Esquisse, that is widely recognized as a foundational work for the field of comparative education, including providing its name. The paper describes how Jullien’s ideas in Esquisse are reflected in the contemporary work of the International Bureau of Education (IBE) and the UNESCO Institute of Statistics (UIS), including examples of comparative higher education tables analogous to those first described in Esquisse. The positivist approach advocated by Jullien is linked to contemporary research such as international rankings of higher education institutions (league tables) and surveys of the professoriate. It concludes with implications for future directions of comparative education research that are more “scientific” because they embed the increasingly sophisticated capacity for measurement and data collection within systematic conceptual frameworks as well as ever more rigorous quantitative and qualitative methodological techniques.

Jean Piaget e a educação internacional: práticas pedagógicas de construção de um método de compreensão e reciprocidade nas crianças

Esse artigo apresenta a proposta de educacao internacional elaborada por Jean Piaget em meados de 1930. Para isso, analisamos publicacoes do autor visando identificar sua concepcao de espirito de cooperacao internacional e a maneira de desenvolve-lo nas escolas. Identificamos como o contexto socio-historico, marcado pela guerra e pelos nacionalismos, influenciou a construcao de conhecimentos sobre educacao e sobre psicologia. Por ter assumido a direcao de importantes instituicoes internacionais de educacao preocupadas com a promocao da paz pelas escolas, o autor aborda a problematica da educacao de forma objetiva e cientifica. A educacao internacional teria como objetivo principal propiciar a emergencia da compreensao e da posicao de reciprocidade diante dos pares e dos estrangeiros. O metodo a ser empregado, nas escolas, deveria aproveitar-se das tendencias a solidariedade interna e a pratica das regras de cooperacao e dos metodos do self-government.Palavras-chave: Jean Piaget, educacao internacional, Bureau Internacional de Educacao.

Teaching and Learning English as an Additional Language: The Brazilian Context

In this edition of the Brazilian English Language Teaching (BELT) Journal, our focus turns once again to our traditional theme of teaching and learning English as an additional language. In this brief introduction, we would like to highlight the Brazilian context and reality, a central aspect of the scope of our journal. While we have no intention of providing a comprehensive overview by any means, we hope to touch upon some recurring themes in recent literature, which are also represented in the selection of articles showcased in the current edition. These themes include: (i) the role of the Brazilian sociocultural, political and institutional contexts in the language teaching and learning process; (ii) contemporary theories and the Brazilian context; and (iii) aspects of curriculum development in Brazil. These topics will be considered in turn in the respective sections below. Before moving forward, we would like to present a clarification on our use of the term ‘additional language’, not only in this editorial, but in all publications by members of the research group UPLA (Uso e Processamento de Lingua Adicional) at the Pontificia Universidade Catolica do Rio Grande do Sul (PUCRS). Our decision reflects our agreement with the position expressed by Judd et al. (2001) in a document that is part of an ‘Educational practices series’ published by the International Academy of Education and the International Bureau of Education, institutes associated to Porto Alegre, January-June 2015, v. 6, n. 1, p. 1-11 : http://dx.doi.org/10.15448/2178-3640.2015.1.20751 ISSn 2178-3640

Prospects: An increasing focus on curriculum, learning, and assessment

I am pleased to introduce our first non-thematic collection of peer-reviewed articles in 2015. As we move toward making the International Bureau of Education (IBE) a global Center of Excellence, we continue to gradually shift the focus of Prospects, so it can more effectively address IBE’s mandate and strategic goals. The heart of our work is strengthening the capacity of education systems to equitably provide high-quality education and effective learning opportunities—thus contributing to quality Education for All. Likewise, Prospects increasingly focuses on issues central to our broad efforts to produce, compile, and disseminate up-to-date information and analyses in the areas of curriculum, learning, and assessment. In this issue we include articles that bear directly on these three areas, with topics ranging from curriculum reform and inclusive education to active learning, vocational training, and formal, nonformal, and informal learning. Specifically, the articles examine research-based early-grade reading programmes; teacher enactment of active-learning pedagogy; disability-inclusive indicators that are local and contextually applicable; instruction in local language as one aspect of the right to education; engagement of higher education institutions in disaster prevention and mitigation; access to different types of learning and training in rural areas; and the duality principle (the integration of theory and practice in the context of vocational education and training). Besides adding substantive arguments to ongoing scholarly debates, all the articles also develop valuable recommendations for policymakers. John P. Comings proposes a research-based model for design of early-grade reading programmes. The model has three components: (1) schools should provide instruction in a language their students speak and understand; (2) teachers should employ instruction that is consistent with the current evidence-based theory of how children acquire and improve reading skills; and (3) to make meaningful progress, students should spend sufficient time

Setting education on the global agenda: A historical perspective

I am pleased to introduce this special issue, which builds on and further strengthens the already solid partnership between UNESCO International Bureau of Education (IBE) and the University of Geneva. This is indeed a special issue, as it uses a historical perspective to tackle three important aspects of education policies that are often addressed in articles published in Prospects and elsewhere, but are rarely featured in an explicit and systematic way. These aspects are: the circulation of knowledge and the genesis of education policies; the mediators of dissemination (individuals and social groups); and the materials and channels to enable the ‘‘transit of knowledge’’ (Secord 2004, p. 670). Focusing on the ways in which educational knowledge was produced and distributed during the 20th century, the issue also synthesizes recent contributions in this area, especially as they relate to the development of transnational history approaches in education. Transnational history takes as its starting point ‘‘the interconnectedness of human history as a whole, and, while it acknowledges the extraordinary importance of states, empires, and the like, it pays attention to networks, processes, beliefs, and institutions that transcend these politically defined spaces’’ (Sven Beckert, in Bayly et al. 2006). In particular, transnational approaches to the history of education are concerned with questions of the transfer, reception, negotiation and appropriation of given ideas and texts, but also institutions, as they cross national, cultural and linguistic boundaries. Work of this kind, which understands educational phenomena as a dynamic space for dissemination and exchange, seeks to go beyond a focus on their study in their isolated initial contexts (Macdonald 2013, p. 21). Since the 20th century was characterized by the ‘‘institutionalization of the international’’ in education, through new international organizations and associations, the authors in this issue pay particular attention to UNESCO and the IBE, as well as the League of

Building an “international code for public education”: Behind the scenes at the International Bureau of Education (1925–1946)

The founders of the International Bureau of Education (IBE) in Geneva were convinced the best way to develop understanding between peoples was by disseminating knowledge: collecting pedagogical materials from around the world, making them accessible to all, and enriching them through collective studies and conferences where attendees could engage in reflection to “resolve global problems in education”. This article goes behind the scene to study how the IBE “armed itself” to overcome rivalries, reach across borders, and promote international understanding. It focuses on its first two stages—as a private institution and an intergovernmental organization—before it became linked to UNESCO in 1946. It describes how the IBE positioned itself during the interwar period in relation to its first sponsors, continually adapting itself so it could safeguard the viability, durability, and legitimacy of its concept. Resolutely scientific, its mission was to make comparative education—joining the local and the global, the particular and the universal—the basis for circulating knowledge free from centrifugal and hegemonic forces, so it could develop a “charter of aspirations for global education”.

Prospects: Reflecting back, looking forward

I am pleased to introduce this ambitious and thought-provoking issue of Prospects, which inaugurates my appointment as the Director of the UNESCO International Bureau of Education (IBE) and Editor-in-Chief of the journal. Having served as a member of its Editorial Board for many years, I have already had the opportunity to closely witness its remarkable intellectual journey and development, and contribute actively to it. Thus, my new role of Editor-in-Chief comes as a natural next stage, one that aims at continuing to publish a journal whose high quality standards and distinctive profile, substance and identity make it a landmark among many other journals of comparative education. It also comes with the challenge to build a stronger, even more prestigious and globally visible journal. Its merits should extend beyond publishing sound peer-reviewed academic articles, to producing well-grounded, reliable work that responds to today’s educational questions and policy needs, with a special focus on curriculum-related issues. As we move toward making the IBE a global Center of Excellence, we need to reflect deeply about reorienting the journal so that it can contribute optimally to IBE’s core mandate and goals; key among them is strengthening the capacity of education systems to equitably provide high quality education and effective learning opportunities. This issue is a clear step in the new direction and illustrates our efforts to more effectively address IBE’s strategic goals and mandate. Key topics featured in this issue include education quality, equity, access to learning, teacher professionalism, community participation and youth labour market integration. The geographical coverage of the articles is notable; it includes Brazil, Cambodia, Colombia, China, Ghana, Kenya, Nepal and West Africa. The contributors to this issue are from a vast spectrum of cultures, represent different horizons of thought and belong to different generations. Despite these differences and the diversity of topics they address, the main themes of the articles are interwoven. A recurring

Skills for inclusive and sustainable development: Perspectives from the Asia Pacific region and beyond

The UNESCO Chair in Technical and Vocational Education and Training at the Hong Kong Institute of Education, Rupert Maclean, and Shanti Jagannathan, Senior Education Specialist in the Regional and Sustainable Development Department of the Asian Development Bank, Manila, are to be congratulated on their timely co-guest editing of this special issue of Prospects on Skills for Inclusive and Sustainable Development: Perspectives from the Asia Pacific Region and Beyond. This topic is profoundly important to countries in the Asia Pacific region and beyond, as they seek to achieve economic and social development that is fair, inclusive, and sustainable. It is also of great importance in exploring constructive ways that the economic tigers in Asia, which are experiencing unprecedented rates of economic growth, can achieve ‘‘green growth’’ rather than growth that further damages the environment through such trends as an ever-increasing carbon footprint. Promoting skills development for employment, and for sustainable and inclusive development, is of great interest to UNESCO, which is the Focal Point and Lead Agency of the International Decade of Education for Sustainable Development, 2005–2014. The area of education for sustainable development (ESD) is also of continuing interest to the UNESCO International Bureau of Education (IBE), which devoted the September 2005 issue of Prospects to this topic (Maclean 2005). Within UNESCO, the UNESCO International Centre for Technical and Vocational Education and Training, UNESCO UNEVOC in Bonn, Germany, takes the lead on this important aspect of ESD, in close collaboration with colleagues in UNESCO Paris. There can be no sustainable development without education and without appropriate green skills for employability. As UNESCO UNEVOC elaborates in its various publications (e.g., UNESCO UNEVOC 2012), sustainable development cannot be reached through technological solutions or financial instruments alone, since achieving sustainable development

Partnerships between Albanian Educational Institutions and European Countries in 1927-1939

This paper Institutional Partnerships with European countries and beyond during the period 1927-1939 undertakes to analyse real and professional ties that existed between the Albanian Ministry of Education , School Normal in Elbasan and the European institutions especially with the International Bureau of Education in Geneva (IBE) Some of the results of this collaboration is worth highlighting: Firstly, support from the IBE regarding the design of a solid legal basis for the Albanian education, which led to the drafting of a comprehensive legislative package during the Education Minister Ivanaj. The process is considered very professional since it analyzed the situation of Albanian education system and was based on the European laws that were made available by IBE. Secondly, this collaboration with IBE - enabled access to European publications of the time, through periodic bulletins that focused on education reform, teaching models and pedagogy reforms, issues of child psychology, and many different themes that helped in the development of better education system. Thirdly, it supported the building of appropriate data systems at the national level. Systems and methods that helped in collecting education related data which were necessary to inform policy and practice. The model used at the time served to create a similar system of statistics in all European countries, and it formed the basis for the future of the Albanian education. Fourthly, it is worth mentioning that the abundant theoretical, scientific, and practical information on the active pedagogy model and its elements, which was treated in publications that IBE found application mainly in school practice in the Normal School of Elbasan. The second part of the presentation will present the collaborations with other educational institutions in Austria, Germany, England, Netherlands, Belgium, United States of America, and even Japan and India. Methodology: Research in the archives of the Albanian State. This study is based on qualitative research. DOI: 10.5901/jesr.2014.v4n1p429

The International Bureau of Education (1925–1968): A Platform for Designing a ‘chart of World Aspirations for Education’

The international conferences and the official publications of the International Bureau of Education (IBE) comprise a platform where a growing number of governments exposed their considerations and concerns with the purpose of building up a better world through education. The resulting recommendations foster the basis of an ‘international code for public education’. The voluminous archives of the IBE comprise a particularly fertile source for understanding ‘the variants and invariants’, and of course also the purposes of school organisations and curricula as promoted by these organisations. The paradoxes of this effort carried out during the first forty years represent both the challenges for its survival and the outline of this article: (a) giving up on all obligations and political statements so as to ensure effective actions at governmental level; (b) documenting local needs so as to establish a world chart; (c) supporting mass schooling through state involvement for promoting individual emancipation; (d) promoting curricula designed on separate subjects so as to guarantee harmonious complete personal growth; (e) advocating scientific objectivity for spreading the methods and principles of New Education; (f) acting upon public schooling, the reserved hunting grounds of nations, for building up international education.

Trends in inclusive education at regional and interregional levels: issues and challenges

The UNESCO International Bureau of Education (IBE), through the Community of Practice (COP) in Curriculum Development, organized eight Regional Preparatory Workshops on Inclusive Education in 2007. These workshops had the overall goal of initiating a participatory, consultative process in order to highlight key issues and challenges regarding inclusive education, to be presented at the 48th session of the International Conference of Education (ICE) 2008. Each preparatory regional workshop centred on four sub-themes around which the IBE Council has proposed to articulate the 48th ICE: Approaches, Scope and Content; Public Policies; Systems, Links and Transitions; Learners and Teachers. In the framework of conceptual dimensions of inclusive education, and the sub-themes of ICE 2008, this article identifies trends across regions within the ICE sub-themes and highlights points for future debate on inclusive education.

Primary and secondary curriculum development in Afghanistan

The article analyzes curriculum processes and products pertaining to the overall reconstruction of Afghanistan’s education system after 2002. With the support of several international agencies, including UNESCO’s International Bureau of Education (IBE), as well as non-governmental organizations (NGOs), Afghanistan’s Ministry of Education succeeded in making important progress with regard to quality education, curriculum planning and design. Based on a careful analysis of needs, new curriculum frameworks for primary and secondary education were developed over the period 2002–2006, and syllabuses and textbooks for primary and secondary education will be developed and disseminated in schools across the country. However, many challenges remain to be tackled, especially with regard to the dissemination of a new curriculum culture and the writing, printing and distribution of quality syllabuses and textbooks at all education levels. The article highlights both the achievements and the obstacles standing in the way of comprehensive curriculum reforms taking place in the difficult context of reconstructing a cohesive societal infrastructure in a country, such as Afghanistan, that is affected by conflict.