Algeria

Basic Data
Official Country Name:	People's Democratic Republic of Algeria
Region:	Africa
Population:	31,193,917
Language(s):	Arabic, French
Literacy Rate:	61.6%
Number of Primary Schools:	15,426
Compulsory Schooling:	9 years
Public Expenditure on Education:	5.1%
Educational Enrollment:	Primary: 4,674,947
	Secondary: 2,618,242
	Higher: 347,410
Educational Enrollment Rate:	Primary: 107%
	Secondary: 63%
	Higher: 12%
Teachers:	Primary: 170,956
	Secondary: 151,948
	Higher: 19,910
Student-Teacher Ratio:	Primary: 27:1
	Secondary: 17:1
Female Enrollment Rate:	Primary: 102%
	Secondary: 62%
	Higher: 10%

History & Background

Algeria is the second largest country in Africa, after the Sudan. Located in northern Africa, Algeria is bordered by the Mediterranean on the north, on the west by Morocco and Western Sahara, on the southwest by Mauritania and Mali, on the southeast by Niger, and on the east by Libya and Tunisia. The present boundaries were set during the French conquest in the nineteenth century.

Algeria is rich in oil, and the economy is heavily dependent on hydrocarbons. Petroleum and natural gas and nonfuel minerals such as high-grade iron, oil phosphates, mercury, and zinc account for approximately 50 percent of the budget revenue. The state owns more than 450 of the heavy industrial enterprises, particularly steel, and envisions the creation of private small-and medium-sized businesses in commerce, tourism, and transport.

Algeria is divided into 48 wilayas (provinces). Each wilaya has a wilayat (provincial council) headed by prefects appointed by the president and 1,539 local authorities. The Director of Education for each wilaya administers the plans and operations of the schools.

In 2000, the population numbered 31,193,917 people, with 35 percent aged 0 to 14 years, 61 percent aged 15 to 64 years, and 4 percent older than 64. The growth rate in 2000 was estimated at 1.74 percent, down from 3.3 percent in 1988. The mortality rate in children under five years of age was 4.2 percent in 1997; 13 percent were reported to be malnourished. Approximately 90 percent of the inhabitants are concentrated in 12 percent of the land along the coastal area that stretches some 1200 kilometers. More than half (57.2 percent) of Algerians live in urban areas. Approximately 2.5 million Algerians live in France.

The combined Arab-Berber people comprise more than 99 percent of the population (Arabs approximately 80 percent; Berbers 20 percent), with Europeans less than one percent. Islam is the official state religion, with Sunni Muslims numbering over 98 percent of the population. There are also 110,000 Ibadigah Muslims and 150,000 Christians. Together Christians and Jews comprise about one percent of the population.

In 1999, an estimated 23 percent of the population fell below the poverty line and 39 percent were unemployed. Almost 30 percent of the working population holds government positions, 22.0 percent are in agriculture, 16.2 percent in construction and public works, 13.6 percent in industry, 13.5 percent in commerce and services, and 5.2 percent are in transportation and communication.

Algeria derives its name from Al Jazain, which is Arabic for "the Islands," referring to the small islands along the coastline of the capitol Algiers. The territory along the Mediterranean coast has recorded early history, but the areas far south in the Sahara do not have written records. The indigenous people of Algeria and the surrounding Mediterranean area were Berbers, the name given the inhabitants from western Egypt to Morocco since ancient times. The origins of the Berbers are obscure, but they are believed to have migrated across North Africa from Asia. The origin of the Berber language is unknown.

Before the arrival of the French in 1830, Algeria was known as the Barbary Coast (a corruption of Berber) and was notorious for the pirates who preyed on Christian shipping. Piracy remained a serious problem until the U.S. Navy defeated a Barbary fleet off the coast of Algiers in 1815, and it was not completely eradicated entirely until the French attached Algeria.

Algerian history is one of repeated invasions. Phoenician traders (900 through 146 B.C.) established Carthage (present day Tunisia) and established and expanded small settlements along the North African coast. They were followed by the Romans (98 through 117 A.D.), who annexed Berber territory to the Roman Empire. In 429, a Germanic tribe of 800,000 Vandals crossed into Africa from Spain and pillaged Carthage. In 533, the Byzantines (429 through 536) raided and sacked the Vandal kingdom. For more than 1,000 years (642 through 1830), Muslim armies invaded from Cairo, bringing Islam to the Berbers. The Spanish (1504 through 1792) constructed outposts and collected tribute. The Ottomans (1554 through 1830) captured Algiers and established it as the center of the Ottoman Empire. The French (1830 through 1962) captured Algeria and annexed the country. Of all the invaders, it is the Muslim and French conquests that have had the greatest lasting impact.

The Muslim expansion into Algeria dates back to the first decades of Islam. The Arabs were tent-dwelling herdsmen; the Muslim invaders of the Barbary Coast stationed Arab leaders and soldiers in towns but did not settle in Algiers. The Berbers, who were highlanders and cultivators, lived in towns and villages in the countryside, which remained essentially Berber.

The Berbers found it advantageous to join the religion of the Muslim rulers and avoid having a minority status. Islam was compatible with Berber society and conversion to Islam provided a sense of identity and belonging. Between the tenth and the fifteenth centuries, Berber-Arab dynasties developed, eventually becoming Algeria, Morocco, and Tunisia (collectively the Maghreb ). Although the Maghreb (literally, place of sunset) today is considered part of the Arab world, the enduring influence of the Berber population gives it a cultural identity distinct from the Islamic lands to the east, in the Mashreq (place of sunrise).

The French forces who invaded Algeria in 1830 encountered fierce resistance. Achieving control of Algeria required the expenditure of a tremendous number of troops and was not complete until 1847. Algeria however, was annexed to France in 1842, after which the French started colonizing the entire country. The French colonists wished to be ruled by the home government rather than by military authorities, and a very close connection with France developed, whereby Algeria came to be regarded as an integral part of France, with representatives in the French parliament. Assimilation, however, was never complete and Algeria enjoyed considerable autonomy.

The colonial authorities imposed a policy of cultural imperialism intended to suppress Algerian cultural identity and to remold the society along French lines. Local culture was actively eliminated, mosques were converted into churches, and old medinas (Arab cities) were pulled down and replaced with streets. Prime farming land was appropriated for European settlers. White French settlers controlled most of the political and economic power, and the indigenous peoples became subservient.

As colonization continued, a new Euro-Algerian people came into being, numbering 800,000 by 1954. Of these, half were of Spanish, Italian, Maltese, or of other non-French origin. The 150,000 Algerian Jews were completely politically assimilated into that group. The Muslim population increased from three to nine million.

The rulers appropriated the habut lands (the religious foundations constituting the main income for religious institutions, including schools) in 1843, allocating insufficient money to maintain Muslim schools and mosques properly or to provide for adequate numbers of teachers and religious leaders for the growing population. As the colonizers ushered undesired changes into Muslim society, they unintentionally created Muslim resistance—a resistance born of the fear of cultural contamination and resentment of political domination.

From 1882 forward, primary instruction for Europeans and Jews was compulsory; Muslim schools were established at the discretion of the governor general. In 1892, more than five times the money was spent educating Europeans as was spent on Muslims, who had five times as many children of school age. Since few Muslim teachers were trained, European teachers staffed Muslim schools. The curriculum was in French, and there were no Arabic studies. It is estimated that, in 1870, only five percent of Muslim children were in any kind of school.

Early attempts at mixed French and Muslim primary and secondary schools had little success, but after 1920 improvement was achieved. In 1949, French and Muslim primary schools were merged. In 1958, only 12 percent of all children attended school. Few Muslims went beyond primary school.

Under French dominion for well over a century, Algerian independence came in 1962 after an eight-year war. A national assembly was elected and a republic was declared. Three years later, a military junta overthrew the government and ruled for 10 years before new elections were held. The National Liberation Front (FLN), the sole political party in Algeria, was a party of primarily secular socialist policies.

The post independence policy of Arabization that included replacing French with Arabic as the state language led to clashes with the Berber population, who saw French as their "avenue to advancement." At the same time, a grassroots Islamic revivalist movement was created that aimed to establish an Islamic state in Algeria.

After independence, free and compulsory education was guaranteed for all. School enrollment rose from 850,000 in 1963 to 3 million in 1975.

With the steep drop in oil prices in 1986, came a number of changes. The economy moved from a rigid, centralized control and placed a greater emphasis on market forces. Public expenditures in the early 1990s were increased to upgrade education and health care. As the Islamists sought to redefine Algerian identity to be more Arabic, more Muslims questioned the legitimacy of the existing political system, which they perceived as too secular and Western. A 1988 protest against austerity measures and food shortages resulted in government promises to relax the FLN monopoly on political power and to work toward a multiparty system.

In 1992, democratic elections were cancelled just as the militant Islamic Salvation Front (FIS)was headed for a landslide victory. The president resigned and handed power over to the military, which led to a civil war between the government and the Islamic fundamentalists. The FIS laid siege to the secular government, which escalated into the destruction of academic institutions, the assassination of students and scholars, and the exodus of over 1,000 academics from the country. By the 1995 election, the violence had become so widespread that the death toll was placed at 45,000. Bombings even reached Paris.

Reports differ on the effects of a 1999 government offer of amnesty to the FIS. Some sources report that, as a result of the offer, the Islamic Salvation Army disbanded in January 2000 and many of the insurgents surrendered under the amnesty program. However, all violence did not end. Other sources reported that, while some of the rebels responded to the offer and disarmed, the FIS still exists and is suspected of assassinations aimed at derailing peace efforts.

The transition from a state-owned economy and one-party regime to a liberal economy and a multiparty regime was accompanied by violence, both physical and symbolic. Officials of the authoritarian, centralist government that has ruled since independence are products of French education and are seen by many Algerians as a "political-economic mafia." Berbers (more specifically Kabyles), whom the French favored in education and employment, moved into administrative jobs after independence, much to the frustration of lesser-educated Arabs. Political turmoil ensued, as the angry Islamic Salvation Front sought to gain power by imposing fundamentalist ideology to transform Algeria into an Islamic state. At stake in the ongoing violence was the complete re-negotiation of the distribution of power.

The dramatic downturn in international petroleum prices in 1998 led to a decline of more than 25 percent of government revenues from oil and gas, amounting to as much as 60 percent of total revenue. Educational expenditures suffered at a time when educational needs were growing. In 1999 however, a degree of optimism was seen regarding Algeria's economic prospects, thanks to rising petroleum prices, and hopes that a return to domestic political stability would attract foreign investment and form the basis for sustained growth.

Algeria, more formally the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a multiparty socialistic state based on French and Islamic law. Suffrage is universal and begins at age 18. The government established the multiparty system in September 1989. One year later, there were an estimated 30 to 50 legal parties. The right to form political parties is guaranteed, provided such parties are not based on differences in religion, language, race, gender, or region.

Language: Three languages are widely spoken. Arabic, the official language, is spoken by 83 percent of the population, although many government and business functions occur in French, which is still widely spoken. Arabic has replaced French as the language of instruction. In 1992, English was introduced in primary schools on an equal footing with French as a first foreign language. Berber, with dialects spoken by approximately 17 percent of the population, was introduced into the schools in 1995.

Two forms of Arabic are used: the classical Arabic of the Quran (Koran) and Algerian dialectical Arabic. Classical Arabic is the essential base of written Arabic and formal speech throughout the Arab world. Written Arabic is psychologically and sociologically important as the vehicle of Islam and Arabic culture and as the link with other Arabic countries. It is the repository of a vast religious, scientific, historical, and literary heritage. Berber is primarily a spoken language with approximately 10 dialects, some with considerable borrowing of Arab words. An ancient Berber ceremonial script, tiffinaugh, survives in some areas.

Literacy: Prior to French occupation in 1830, the literacy rate in Algeria was 40 percent. After 130 years of French rule, it was even worse, as Algeria was left with one of the lowest literacy rates in the world—as low as 15 percent, according to the United Nations. Illiteracy was attacked in stages, with the greatest emphasis initially placed on developing formal education. The National Center for Literacy Education was established in 1964 to supervise the work of local literacy centers. Literacy is regarded as essential to economic development, and from the beginning, it was a prime objective of the independent government. In 1966, only 7.9 percent of women and 29.9 percent of men were literate. In the 1970s, massive efforts to reduce illiteracy resulted in vast improvements, as nominal literacy rose steadily, reaching 48.6 percent in 1985 (62.7 percent male, 35.0 percent female) and 57.4 percent in 1991 (69.8 percent male, 45.5 percent female). In 2000, literacy rates ranged from 62 to 72 percent (males, 73 to 80 percent; females, 43 to 63 percent). Female literacy is improving, but continues to lag in comparison to males.

Culture: Islamic culture constitutes a comprehensive holistic system of thought and behavior, with an equal emphasis on both the spiritual and physical aspects of life and their integration. All Muslims are equal before God and equal among themselves, an orientation that carries over into their philosophy of education for all. Learning in the Muslim culture, a necessity and a religious duty, occupies a central position in Muslim thought. Muslims often quote The Prophet: "God eases the way to paradise for him who seeks learning" and the Quran: "Seek knowledge from the cradle to the tomb;" and "To acquire knowledge is a duty for all Muslims."

Constitutional & Legal Foundations

Algeria was under French constitutional rule until independence was gained in 1962. The first Algerian constitution was adopted in 1963, and a second followed in 1976, which was amended in 1988 and 1989 and revised in 1996.

In the 1996 constitution, the preamble emphasized the Arab, Islamic, and Amazigh (Berber) identity of Algeria. The beginning articles of the constitution declared that Algeria was to be democratic and republic, Islam was to be the state religion, and Arabic was to be the national and official language. The constitution established the High Islamic Council (advisory) and prohibited practices contrary to Islamic morality. Although the constitution declared Islam the state religion, Shari'a (Islamic law) was not incorporated into the state's legal system. Sovereignty rested with the people through their elected representatives.

The Constitution guaranteed the right to free education, made fundamental education compulsory, and allocated to the state the power to organize the educational system and legislate the general rules for scientific research. Control of education, originally vested in the Ministry of Education, now rested in two ministries:the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, and the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education.

In 1995, the Higher Council for Education was created to improve the efficiency of the educational structure and to link the ministries of Education, Higher Education, and Employment. An Arabization law, implemented in 1998, required governmental and educational functions to be conducted in Arabic. The deadline for Arabization in higher education was extended to July 5, 2000. By that time, officials in government ministries had to acquire at least a minimal facility in literary Arabic. Additionally, the media had to increase the use of Arabic.

Modern day education in Algeria has roots first in Moslem and later in French philosophies. The high value placed on knowledge by the Quran and the Prophet Mohammed provided Muslims with incentives to develop education in order to read and learn the Quran and The Prophet. In the earliest schools at the mosques and in other early Quran schools—and even in private homes—instruction was offered in the Quran, the life of the Prophet, and in the grammar, structures, and forms of the Arabic language.

Maktab or kuttab were developed as learning centers for children as were masjid and majlis, adult study groups associated with mosques. Discussion was part of the learning process at the centers and included topics such as legal matters and poetry, as well as the Prophet's life, sayings, and devotional practices. Jami, the Friday mosques, eventually became seats of higher learning. As the Muslims engaged in learning and writing, a number of libraries developed. They were often attached to courts, where collections of books were organized. These large and informal institutions also housed books from other cultural traditions.

From its earliest beginnings, Moslem learning focused on life skills and theological concerns. The Moslem heritage is a philosophy that places high value on education, prescribes it for all Muslims, and uses a comprehensive approach to learning infused with religious teachings. Moslem educational philosophy is based on acquiring self-knowledge, balanced with the recognition of the need for skills to live in the world. The Moslem learning during the medieval period (800 to 1000 A.D.) was conceived as six sciences: celestial spheres and heavenly bodies, earth and geography, medicine and natural science, crafts and vocations, religion and creeds, and political administration. Throughout the medieval period, Muslim women's education was affected by local cultural factors that imposed constraints on their training and role in society. The tenth century saw organized institutional development supported by the state. By the eleventh century, medersa (primary schools) developed into Muslim schools of law and became the primary centers for religious and legal education. They received state support and had endowed professorships and residential facilities. Educational philosophy rested with the intellectuals in informal teaching until the 1880s.

In the early decades of the 1800s, Algerian education was comprised of quranic schools, primary schools, and secondary schools (zaouias ). Jurisprudence, geometry, philology, physics, and astronomy were taught. Higher education institutions did not exist in Algeria and students attended universities in neighboring countries.

Moslems initially withdrew from the French-imposed educational system, a condition that changed when veterans returned from World War I. In 1917, the French made primary education compulsory for boys who lived within two miles of a public Algerian school. The lack of schools and teachers deterred implementation of this decree. In 1944, a plan to enroll one million Algerian boys and girls in primary school by 1964 was introduced. In 1947, Arabic became an official language and was introduced into schools. The destruction of the Moslem schools and the imitation French system imposed by the colonizers left independent Algeria with a strong desire to establish an authentic Algerian system of education. In the way of this major educational change stood a host of impediments.

Political freedom did not bring cultural freedom; the heritage of colonialism was still felt strongly in the educational system. French ideas and influence remained after the departure of French teachers and administrators in 1962. The French left behind a rigid school curriculum complete with very selective formal examinations: La Sixieme (primary school, in the sixth year), the Brevet d'Etudies du Premier Cycle (secondary school, in the fourth year), the Probatoire (secondary school, in the sixth year), and the Baccalauréat (secondary school, in the seventh year). The French educational heritage was a highly centralized, rigid structure designed for the elite; a fact-acquisition based system of learning with major exams throughout the curriculum.

Algerian Philosophy: In 1961, African ministers of education met in Addis Ababa and developed a comprehensive educational plan to set the stage for educational change in Algeria. The plan called for universal primary schooling, rapid increases in secondary and higher education enrollments, and major improvements in the quality of education. With Algerian independence the following year, educational opportunities were opened to all people, marking a shift from the French exclusive elitist system to an Algerian system with equal opportunities for all. Education became a right rather than a privilege.

Algerian authorities recognized very early the role of education in economic development. They realized that for Algeria to develop economically, a literate and trained workforce was a necessity. They planned to channel students into scientific and technical fields, which were most needed by the Algerian industrial and managerial sectors.

The departure of French teachers in 1962 left a gap in the classrooms that was first filled by teachers from the quranic schools and medersas. The marked decline in teaching quality however, led authorities to abandon this practice before these teachers became entrenched in the system. Temporary teachers from nearly 50 countries were brought in to fill the void and to try to overcome the complete disarray caused by independence. Enrollment was only 850,000 at that time (1962), but it quickly swelled. The change in philosophy from education for the few to education for the many was admirable, but the pedagogical and human resources necessary to provide a quality education for all simply were not available—Algeria was not prepared for the massive number of students. In the decade following independence, large enrollments meant hastily trained teachers and improvised classrooms, many in the vacated homes of former French residents. The growing enrollments reached 3.0 million by 1975 and 6.5 million by 1991.

The early independence period between 1962 and 1970 was marked by a series of educational reforms using models and philosophies imported from Europe, the United States, and the Middle East. The profusion of imported educational theories and ideas contributed to disorganization and incoherence in the overburdened system. There was a lack of facilities, trained teachers, and instructional materials; confusion caused by differing educational philosophies; rigidity caused by the highly centralized system together; and, unwieldy, large classes. These mounting problems were dealt with on the local level in very sporadic fashion. Critics complained of the lack of long-term planning and integration. A new phenomenon appeared with mass schooling: mass dropouts. These dropouts and other young "un-employeds" developed a kind of antiestablishment attitude and become known as hittiste (those who lean on walls).

This period was called the "impossible emancipation" due to the restrictive political, social, economic, and education factors. This period included a lack of teachers, schools, colleges (only one university existed), financing, managers, and educational expertise. Illiteracy remained very high. The productive and the educational sector of the economy operated independently and without coordination or apparent consultation, forcing the industrial sector to develop its own training capabilities and to draw heavily upon foreign technical aid to meet its needs for skilled manpower. Graduates in scientific and technical fields from public institutions often were inappropriately trained for employment in industry. The guarantee of free universal education that led to a massive influx of students brought large problems.

Riding on the economic crest of the oil boom, the decades of the 1970s and 1980s produced educational reforms, which were more carefully planned than previous attempts. The reforms were often based on imported theories. The goals remained the same—to provide equal opportunity for all, with free, or nominally priced, schooling and scholarships. Priority was given to reducing illiteracy. The policies put in place all aimed toward the Arabization of all curricula, the Arabization of the medium of instruction, and the Algerization of the teaching staff. A number of major policy decisions were made as educational structure developed over the years.

In 1976 the National Charter was created. The highly centralized control of Algerian education was codified in this charter. It was intended to politically unify all or nearly all of the educational institutions. By this time, the public education system was virtually the only education provider, in large part because of the diplomas, titles, and certificates it awarded. Algerians are said to value degrees (more than expertise) for social promotion purposes to the point that degrees are said to exercise a "fatal attraction."

In 1977 the Abolition of Private Education was formed. Private education, primarily in the realm of foreign institutions and schools that were often run by Roman Catholic missions, was abolished.

The Polytechnic Curriculum Theory came into existence in 1978. The theory from East Germany was adopted for the first nine years of schooling, which resulted in the creation of the Foundation School. It was intended to reduce dropouts by combining primary school (at the end of which most dropouts occurred) with middle school.

The École Fondamentale et Polytechnique resulted from pressure for more and better education in 1976-1979, and was designed to bridge the gap between academic and practical studies by combining theory with practice. It was aimed at improving the dropout problem, which had reached epidemic proportions. Also in 1979, Technical colleges were ended just when industry needed large numbers of skilled and semiskilled workers.

The Ministry of Vocational Education was created in 1983. It was given the responsibility of developing a national training system to satisfy the skill requirements of the economy and provide training for as many young people as possible.

In 1985 and 1986 additional reforms developed core programs in general secondary education and channeled university students into vocational specializations, exact sciences, or experimental and human sciences. The Carte Universitere defined Algeria's graduate and postgraduate needs to the end of the century, with each higher education center expected to fill its quota of the national trained manpower requirement.

The University of Further Training (l'Université de la Formation Continué) targeted those students who were oriented toward vocational learning but who were not going to earn the baccalauréate. It was a place for students completing six years of primary school (ending at age 12) who were not old enough to work. The university began operating in 1991. The Ministry of Vocational Education was transferred to the Ministry of Education. The carefully planned educational reforms were often not realistic and were rarely realizable. Either the resources to implement them were lacking or the planning was so remote from the realities of the situation that they reflected no real remedy for the target problem. From 1988 on, social and economic conditions and shortcomings in the education system led to the formation of informal, voluntary educational activities.

In 1989 the National Commission was appointed to study educational reforms. The first baccalauréates that used nothing but Arabic instruction were completed.

In 1995 the Higher Education Council was created. It aimed to structure the education system more effectively by linking the work of the ministries of Education, Higher Education, and Employment.

The Arabization Law replaced French as the language of government and education in 1996. In spite of the reforms and intensive efforts to create an Algerian system, education in 1996 was still often described as consisting of the "wholesale adoption of European theories, policies and practices" that critics lamented "failed to connect with Algerian realities and needs."

Educational System—Overview

The educational system is structured into primary foundation school for nine years, followed by secondary education school for three years, and then the tertiary (university) level. Algerian education is still grounded in the French fact-acquisition orientation, and teaching is almost exclusively in the lecture and memorization mode. In 1996, the total enrollment at primary and secondary schools was equivalent to 86 percent of the school age population (89 percent of the boys, 82 percent of the girls). Enrollment at primary schools in the relevant age group was 97 percent for boys and 91 percent for girls.

A 1995 UNICEF study reported that early childhood education services for children up to 6 years of age were limited. Fewer than 50,000 children were enrolled, exclusive of those in quranic preschools (quranic schools accommodate large numbers of preschool children.). Of those enrolled, 10 percent of children up to 3 years old were in nurseries and 90 percent of 3 to 6 year olds were in kindergartens. Fifty-five percent of those in kindergarten were urban children. Estimates in 1995 of the percentage of preschool age children enrolled in some form of preschool (including quranic schools) ranged from 3 to 20 percent. Reports from 1995 indicated that no preschool services existed for children with special educational needs except for special sections in kindergartens attached to primary schools for those with hearing impairments. Preprimary schools are conducted in Arabic and are not compulsory.

The Foundation School (École Fondamentale et Polytechnique), replaced the French 10-year compulsory school model with a nine-year model. Primary and middle schools were combined, scientific and technical literacy stressed, and closer connections sought between schooling and work. Classes are taught in Arabic, with French considered the first foreign language. Students are oriented either toward secondary school or toward vocational training.

Primary education (Enseignement Primaire ) is organized into three cycles, each comprising of three years. It is compulsory for the nine years between ages 6 and 15. Students completing primary education follow one of three tracks—general, technical or vocational. Students take a final exam (brevet d'enseignement fondamental ) that they must pass for admission to secondary education.

In 1996, the total enrollment in primary schools included 94 percent of the appropriate age groups (97 percent of the boys, 91 percent of the girls). The ministry reports that in 1996 there were 15,426 state primary schools with 4,674,947 students (46 percent were girls) and 149,958 teachers for the first through the sixth years, and 3,038 middle schools (for those age 7 to 9) with 1,762,761 students, of which 38 percent were girls.

There are two types of secondary education: technical and general. Secondary education (Enseignement Secondaire ) begins at age 15 and ends when students take the baccalauréat examination before they proceed to one of the universities, state technical institutes, or vocational training centers, or move directly into employment. The academic year is from September to July, with a 15-day break in December and another in March. Schooling is free, although some scholarships are offered by the state for living expenses.

In 1996, enrollment in the secondary schools included 56 percent of the appropriate age groups (58 percent of the boys and 54 percent of the girls). There were 1,033 secondary schools with 52,210 teachers and 853,303 students. Admission to secondary schools is based upon the student's primary school grades and the student quota at each institution, as set by the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education. Instruction is in Arabic.

Higher education is comprised of universities, national institutes for higher education, engineering schools, and teachers' colleges. The institutions administered by the Ministry of Education produce about 90 percent of the bachelor's degrees. The remaining institutions come under the control of other ministries.

In 1995-1996, a total of 347,410 students enrolled in higher education. Admission is based on the student quota for each institution (set by the ministry) and grades. Allocation to fields of study depends on how well students did in primary subjects in each field. The teaching staff is largely Algerian.

Undergraduate Programs: Admission to undergraduate programs requires the baccalauréat or equivalent (cours préparatoires aux études superiéres, capacité en droit, etc. ). Some popular fields, such as medicine, have additional requirements. Foreign students are admitted if they meet admission requirements and their parents live in Algeria, or if they receive an Algerian scholarship. Scholarships and room and board are arranged by the Centres des Oeuvres Scholaires et Universitaires. The academic year lasts from September to July and consists of two semesters, with a 21-day break in January.

There are two levels of higher education: Level Five, lasting five semesters, and Level Six, lasting eight to 12 semesters. Generally, Level Five leads to qualification as a technologist, while Level Six leads to a first degree (licence ), higher education diploma (diplomé d'études superiéures ), or other professional degree in medicine, dentistry, pharmacy, and engineering.

Graduate Programs: Graduate student enrollment climbed to 11,987 in 1988-1989, an increase of 998 percent from 1974-1975. Graduate education is designed to train teachers and professors, to answer the need for Arabic in teaching, and to get universities involved in Algeria's development effort. Graduate education is not yet fully developed. Master's (magister ) programs require a first degree (license) or equivalent and take two years (four semesters). Students spend the first year on course work, directed research, seminars, and one foreign language. The second year is spent writing a thesis. Entrance to doctoral level programs (doctorat d'état ) requires a master's degree or equivalent. Foreign students are accepted into graduate school if the Ministry of Education authorizes them.

The diploma of magister contains a "mention" of the performance of the student. The possible mentions are: "Passable" when the general average is at least equal to 10/20 and lower than 12/20; "Rather Well" when the general average equals or exceeds 12/20 but is less than 14/20; "Well" when the general average is at least 14/20 and lower than 16/20; and "Very Well" when the general average is equal or higher than 16/20. The general average is calculated by giving equal weighting to the average of the examinations and the thesis defense. Only those who earn the rating of Very Well, Well, and Rather Well can gain admittance to a doctoral program. Doctoral candidates must also complete a thesis reporting original research and an oral thesis defense.

Language: In the postcolonial Arabization program, restoring Arabic as the general language required teaching citizens who had been educated in a foreign language to learn and use their own. The Higher Council for the National Language oversees the Arabization process. Every government organization created an Arabization department to plan lessons for its workers.

In a radical reversal of policy, the Haut-Commissariat a l'amazighité was created (following an eight-month boycott of school by nearly a million students) and Berber dialects (Amazigh) were introduced into the schools in 1995 by decree of the president. This was a tremendous political-cultural victory for the Berbers (Amazigh means "free men"). Barely 15 years earlier, scribbling a few words in tiffinagh, the characters of the Berber language, meant a stay in prison. One-third of the 48 provinces introduced pilot classes in Berber in the last year of middle school (ninth year) and the first year of high school (tenth year). Training courses for teachers were organized and exams planned for the brevet d'enseignement moyen (middle school certificate) and for the baccalauréat.

Preprimary & Primary Education

The government pays most of the costs (approximately 83 percent) of nurseries, kindergartens, and community-based centers with parents paying the rest. In private centers, parents pay all the costs. Preschool educational institutions, authorized in 1976 by the Ministry of Labor and Social Works are governed by laws updated in 1983, 1985, 1988, 1990, and 1992. Children in preschool public institutions receive basic instruction regarding nutrition, health care, and education. There is no standardized curriculum; each institution decides on the activities in its program. Children receive around eight hours of services each day, approximately 1,280 hours a year.

In 1996, the total enrollment in primary schools included 94 percent of the appropriate age groups (97 percent of the boys, 91 percent of the girls). The Ministry reported that in 1996 there were 15,426 state primary schools with 4,674,947 students (46 percent were girls) and 149,958 teachers for the first through the sixth years, and 3,038 middle schools (for those age 7 to 9) with 1,762,761 students (38 percent were girls).

Rural-to-urban inequities exist in the system. The percentage of children enrolled in school is weakest among farmers and seasonal rural workers. In 1990, 9 percent of the students were repeating grades (boys, 11 percent; girls, 7 percent). In 1996, 10 percent of the students were repeating (boys, 13 percent; girls, 8 percent) and nearly 9 percent of all six-year-olds were not in school.

The accepted goal of primary education is to teach children to "practice, research, observe, and discover, as well as depend on themselves in acquiring knowledge and accomplishing their work." Arabic is the language of instruction, but other languages are not excluded.

Primary schools operate on a three cycle system. The curriculum in the first through third year of primary education (basic cycle) for children 6 to 9 years of age provides manual work with education and training tools to develop motor skills and help children understand and adapt to the environment. The second, or "awakening" cycle, is designed for 9- to 12-year-olds and occurs in the fourth through sixth year of education. The educational focus is on reinforcing skills acquired during the first stage plus continued learning in language, mathematics, environment, and religious and national studies. A first foreign language is offered. The third, or training, cycle (also called the middle school) comprises the seventh through the ninth year of education for children 12- to 15-years-old. The curriculum is dedicated to the study of linguistic, social, cultural, religious, and scientific education, as well as mathematics, physics, and various sciences of applied technology. A second foreign language is offered. At the end of the third stage, students take the final brevet d'enseignement fondamental (foundation education certificate, or B.E.F). If they pass, they gain access to general secondary schools, technical secondary schools, or technical training programs.

Special Education: Children and young people with special needs are neither registered nor categorized for official purposes under a policy of encouraging integration. Ministerial circulars were developed in the mid- 1990s concerning the future education of children with various difficulties, such as sensory impairments or chronic illnesses, such as diabetes or asthma.

Special education takes three forms: special classes in primary schools for children with hearing impairments, courses for students who repeat a year, and transition courses for students who arrive in school late. Special education is the combined responsibility of the Ministry of Education (concerned with pedagogy) and the Ministry of Social Affairs (concerned with administration and resourcing), with some additional responsibility shared by the Ministry of Health. The Office of Special Education within the Ministry of Education administers special education. Administrative decisions are made at national and regional levels. The National Consultative Council is responsible for the coordination of services at the national level. Children with severe handicaps are excluded from the public education system; they are placed directly in special care centers. Special education is financed entirely by the government.

Secondary Education

The first year of secondary education is comprised of a core curriculum in which courses are grouped into three general areas: accala (languages and social sciences), des sciences (natural and physical sciences and mathematics), and technologie (mathematics, physical sciences, design, and technology.) Extracurricular activities, sponsored by the school or parent associations, are important and include music, painting, and sports. Sports, music, and physical education are also part of the curriculum.

Evaluation is systematic within the secondary school and passage to the next level is based on the results obtained on homework and compositions. Parents are told the results of the evaluations periodically by means of regular bulletins containing each professor's observations and a report at the end of the academic year stating whether the student passed, would be repeating, or would be exclusion (excluded).

At the end of the first year in secondary school, a decision is made as to whether students enter the general secondary education or technical secondary education program based on the wishes of the students, their academic records, and the exigencies of the academic program. For third-year students who have failed the baccalauréate twice, special classes are offered for a total of 19 hours that are tailored to the particular needs of each student. Remedial courses are given daily in the lycées in the evening after normal class hours. The same chance is given to the children returning to the country because they receive a distinct education that permits them to sit for the official exams.

General Secondary Education: The Ministry of Education reports that in 1999, a total of 855,481 students (53 percent girls) were enrolled in secondary education. Students overwhelmingly chose general education (88 percent) over technical education. Some 496,019 students (57 percent girls) were in general education classes while 64,888 students (12 percent girls) were in technical education classes.

General education is considered the most prestigious secondary education and offers five courses of study—exact sciences, natural and life sciences, humanities, foreign language, and religious sciences. The reform of 1985-1986 arranged lessons during the first year of secondary education into core programs to help students identify appropriate specializations by the end of the year. Completion of both technical and general secondary education ends with the baccalauréate examination that determines admission to higher education institutions. Successful completion of general education leads to le diplome de l'enseignement (education diploma).

Technical Secondary Education: There are two types of secondary education: technical and general. Students in technical secondary education study electronics, electrical science/technology, mechanical science, public works and engineering, chemistry, and accounting. Technical education is considered less desirable by Algerians even though new fields of study such as information technology, applied biochemistry, and agricultural education have been added, as well as optional classes in foreign languages and design. Students can specialize in the industrial option of technical education or in the commercial option. The teaching staff is mainly Algerian. Successful study in this program ends with a technical baccalauréate diploma (le diplome du baccalauréat technique ).

Vocational Education: Vocational education in Algeria has a checkered past. Independence from the French found Algeria with no national vocational education policy. Colonial authorities often opened vocational schools as a second-class educational option for the "natives," so not surprisingly, after independence, Algerians expressed a strong distaste for this type of schooling. Also at that time, and for decades to come, the government was the principal employer in the country, and general education was viewed as the appropriate form of training for government employment.

State education initiatives of the 1960s emphasized general education programs, with only limited growth of technical and vocational schools. As late as 1979, only 65 vocational training centers existed, with a combined enrollment of 23,000 students. In the absence of a centralized policy and in spite of slow technical growth in the 1960s and 1970s, technical ministries and public industries developed many training programs to meet the demands for skilled manpower. Most were well managed; the National Petroleum Company's training center (SONATRACH) still functions well. The proliferation of these training programs did result in duplication of effort, however.

In 1983, a Ministry of Vocational Education was created to develop a national training system. Vocational education was expanded and diversified to be available to the large number of students completing primary education but "not qualified by disposition or grades" to continue secondary education.

Vocational education was intended to provide graduates with immediate employment and to provide the country with a trained work force as Algeria concentrated on developing heavy industry. Students were to be trained as apprentices for up to five years. Vocational expansion continued and more than 200 training centers were built, tripling enrollment between 1981 and 1987. In 1990, a total of 325 vocational training schools were in operation and about 200,000 apprentices were in training. Vocational skills were also taught as part of the national service program.

Expansion concentrated on building physical facilities rather than on modern equipment and materials, and without planning for the particular specializations and/or the number of trainees needed. Vocational schools operated without links to specific industries. Vocational training responsibilities were transferred to the Ministry of Education in 1987 when educational philosophy changed. The existing general educational program was refocused toward technical and vocational subjects to change the negative perceptions of technical training and manual labor and to alleviate shortages of skilled workers.

Problems arose in the late 1980s during the worldwide recession. Resources were harder to obtain, training quality declined, and jobs for graduates were scarce. The 1986 drop in oil prices exacerbated the government's financial problems and restricted budget expenditures for education. Only a few training centers actually formed relationships with employers. In spite of decreasing job opportunities, pressure for more vocational training centers increased as a growing school-age population increased the number of dropouts and "push-outs" from the general educational system.

In the early 1990s, Algeria experienced a vocational "crisis." Low student motivation and aptitude were the norm, as those who "couldn't make it" in general education ended up in vocational centers. Low teacher salaries reduced instructional quality as better teachers went to industry. Language difficulties occurred as most instruction in technical subjects was still in French. Finally, poor management and financial constraints compounded all of the other problems.

The oversupply of graduates created a phenomenon of downward vertical substitution, as people with university degrees couldn't get jobs and accepted lower positions. Employers then raised their requirements for those jobs. The lack of systematic, institutionalized job placements meant employment ended up being a very inefficient system of "who you know." A widespread phenomenon of horizontal substitution developed whereby vocational education graduates ended up in positions not related to their training. Poor quality, insufficient funding, and low external efficiency are signs of malfunctions in vocational education, but they are also a normal and logical result of the other role of these schools, that is, the "social parking" function.

The Offices for Practical Works in Vocational Training, created specifically for aiding the production activities of vocational training centers, act as intermediaries between enterprises requiring products and the training centers that provide them. They identify requirements from enterprises, particularly when the demand for products is too large for a single vocational center, fix prices and deadlines, allocate the product demands among various centers, and provide centers with raw materials.

While these offices permit economies of scale from a business perspective, there are educational problems. The main problem is that production and trading concerns very often tend to prevail over pedagogical interests, meaning trainees work on repetitive and monotonous tasks in which the pedagogical dimension is virtually neglected.

Higher Education

Universities are organized into institutes, each of which coordinates several departments. National institutes of higher education, though smaller than the universities, offer degrees in a variety of fields. The engineering schools (grandes écoles ) include polytechnic, veterinary medicine, architecture and urbanization, agriculture, information, telecommunications, and ocean science. Teachers colleges train teachers for both general and technical secondary schools.

Only the University of Algers predates independence. Founded in 1879 on the French model, it stressed autonomy for the university faculty including designing curricula. The system was unwieldy, with duplication of academic offerings and the complete loss of credits by students changing programs. Not until 1946 did the first Algerian students begin attending the University of Algers, and in 1959, only 600 Algerian students (13 percent of all the university students) were in attendance. Independence in 1962 found university attendance still low, numbering only 2,200 Algerians (from the population of 12 million). Attrition was very high.

The massive influx of students following independence led to the large-scale establishment of universities, university centers, and colleges. Within four years, in 1966, there were six universities, two universities of science and technology, five university centers, one agronomic institute, one veterinary institute, one telecommunications institute, one school of architecture and town planning, and one École Normale Superiéure. Enrollment numbered 160,000 students, with 7,947 academic staff. Additional universities were created and the system was reformed in 1971, with major reforms following in 1988. The universities loosely resemble the French model.

By 2000, enrollment in higher education climbed to 298,767 with 20,026 teachers. The number of universities has risen to nine plus two universities of science and technology, four university centers, and 12 colleges and institutes each coordinating several departments. There is a heavy emphasis on engineering institutes and "hard sciences." The academic year is from September to June. Although the central government coordinates the activities of the institutions, they have a fair degree of autonomy.

The reforms of 1985-1986 were intended to channel higher education students into vocational specializations and exact sciences, or into experimental and human sciences, as such subjects traditionally are nonpolitical. Subjects such as chemistry, biochemistry, and industrial chemistry were to be introduced. The basis for the plan, at least in part, was the perceived requirements of the country in terms of developing industry, agriculture, and the administration, as well as to "form distinguished individuals proud of their cultural heritage, their attempts to change their reality, and their contributions to their country."

The political-religious conflict in Algeria is played out in higher education. When the wave of nationalism of the 1960s and 1970s waned, Islamism took its place. Islamic fundamentalists reigned freely on university campuses in the 1980s. In 2000, Islamic fundamentalists existed as a weakened underground movement on the campuses. They have since been banned from these schools.

In 1987, student riots in Constantine and Setif led to the realization that four main university towns—Algiers, Oran, Constantine, and Annaba—hosted 76 percent of the students in higher education. Efforts were made to find ways of decreasing such large concentrations of students.

After the cancellation of the state elections in 1992, protests by the militants quickly spread to university campuses. Low-level violence started in 1992 (usually arson) and escalated dramatically in succeeding years. The violence resulted in a mass exodus of academics from the country, especially in 1994–1995. Between 1992 and 1997, nearly 1,000 academics fled Algeria and settled in France. Many more tried but failed to secure French visas.

Academics have been the victims of assassination since 1992. Faculty members are not the only targets. Rectors and students have been killed, and female students are threatened. One report states that in 1994, by official count, there were more than 2,725 acts of terrorism, more than 80 teachers assassinated, and more than 600 schools, three university centers, and nine training institutes burned down or blown up. Other victims include Communist Party members, socialists, left-wing secularists, academic and intellectual defenders of cultural freedom, academics and scholars who run research centers or who hold government positions, academics known for their fundamentalist Islamic beliefs, and foreigners.

By some accounts, the toll of violence has reached 40,000 to 50,000 victims. The assassinations are reported to be part of the strategy of Islamic fundamentalists to deter peace efforts and, in the case of foreigners, deter foreign investment. In addition to the assassinations, increasing violations of university freedoms originate from a number of sectors. Police come on campus and arrest fundamentalist teachers and staff and people professing opposition to dictatorship and other "unpopular" views. Fundamentalists pressure teachers at all levels with threats (especially foreign-language teachers) to quit teaching. Faculty members are reportedly losing control over their syllabi and careers as well as promotion standards. The Teacher Training Institute library in Algiers was turned into a prayer room, thereby forcing an end to the debates and cultural activities previously held there. University officials are pressured to separate males and females in cafeterias. "Nosey Parkers" (universitycreated security forces) harass students, thwart trade union organizing among faculty, and systematically encroach on union free speech and right of assembly. Universities interfere in the bar exam registrations by providing special dispensations to matriculate without taking the examination.

Universities are characterized by huge classes, aging equipment, out-of-date materials, equipment shortages, inadequate supervisors, and diminishing faculty control. The Arabization that already occurred in the social and human sciences reached the exact sciences in 1997. Without Arabic books and instructional materials, such as software, keyboards, and publications, and given a lack of Arabic-speaking teachers, instruction suffers. Access to the science and technology of western cultures is restricted by language limitations. Poor working conditions, inflation-eroded salaries and poor housing led teachers, professors, and assistants in Oran to strike in 1997, a strike that immediately spread to other universities.

Complementary Education: Some complementary education is found at the foreign cultural centers, where language instruction is available, such as English (Centre Culturel Britannique et Centre Culturel Américan) and French (Centre Culturel Français). With one-third of Algeria's postgraduate students studying abroad in 1992, bilingualism remains a crucial asset. Libraries and documentation services at these centers are frequented and solicited by students who find the public and university libraries, as well as the bookstores, insufficient. Other activities at these centers (not so heavily frequented) include painting, photography, music, theater, and more.

Libraries: Major libraries in Algiers include the University of Algiers library containing 800,000 volumes; the National Library housing 950,000 volumes, with special collections including Africa and the Maghreb; the National Archives of Algeria; and the Department for the Distribution of Scientific and Technical Information at the French Cultural Center in Algiers. A Municipal Library containing 25,000 volumes is located in Constantine. Library holdings at universities include Batna (55,000 volumes), Mentouri (240,000 volumes), D'Oran Es-Senia (200,000 volumes), and Abou Bekr Belkaid (Tlemcen: 66,000 volumes). The university center at Mostaganem holds 75,000 volumes and a number of colleges hold modest collections, as do museums and art galleries.

It is difficult to assess the library resources, given that budget restrictions reportedly have forced many to curtail periodical subscriptions. Semiannually, the National Library issues the national bibliography. Separate lists of periodicals are not issued, nor are lists of periodical articles. The National Library is open eight hours a day. There are three library science institutes and one center that provide special training in scientific and technical information.

Some cultural centers are developing children's libraries. Student use of libraries in cultural centers is high. In Oran, Algiers, and Constantine, there are an estimated 50 readers for every reading location. School libraries are poor or nonexistent. No specific budget is allocated to libraries in Algerian schools. Few public libraries have children's sections, as loaning books to children is unlikely. There are no specialized bookshops for children's literature; few keep a section for children's reading. No publishing house specializes in this field. There is no listing of Algerian writers of children's books or systematic advertisement of children's books.

Administration, Finance, & Educational Research

Government Educational Agencies: Algerian education remains highly centralized even though there is a stated aim of gradual decentralization. The Ministry of National Education is the controlling body. The ministry is charged with all activities relative to the education of children of school age (foundation, general secondary, technical secondary, and tertiary) including the programs, evaluation, orientation, communication, finances, planning, cultural, sports and social activities, legal studies, and personnel.

The central administration of the Ministry of Education is comprised of the Secretary General, the Cabinet, and the Inspector General, plus various directors. Four regional offices (north, south, east, and west) are concerned with pedagogy, financial, administrative, and cultural affairs, and, at the local level, each of the wilayas has a Director of Education (D.E.) to implement programs and operations.

The Ministry of Higher Education and Research administers the universities and engineering schools (grandes écoles). It also is responsible for teacher's colleges (écoles normales superiéure and école normale superiéure d'enseignement technique ) and national institutes for higher education (instituts nationaux d'enseignement superiéure ) that train teachers for secondary schools.

The Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education administers preuniversity institutions (foundation and secondary schools). A number of other ministries also contain (specialized) institutes. L'Inspector Générale, created in 1995, is directly under the Minister of Education and is charged with inspecting, controlling, and evaluating local educational institutions. This office coordinates approximately 500 inspectors. There are inspectors concerned with the formation of academic disciplines, lycées and colleges, finances, and scholarly and professional orientation.

A national center (L'office national des examens et concours ) prepares the annual exams; another (Le center national de documentation pédagogique ) purchases all books and educational documents. CNDP (L'Institut national de recherch, pédagogique ) is concerned with pedagogical research and the evaluation of the educational system. The institute is comprised of university professors who serve three-year terms on a scientific council. CNF (Le centre national d'enseignement generalizé ) is charged with distance education and audiovisual methods of instruction for people who cannot go to school.

Educational Budgets: The government alone funds education. In 1994, expenditures on education totaled 79,889,000,000 dinars (5.6 percent of the gross national product and 17.6 percent of total government expenditures.) Capital expenditures totaled 10,200,000,000 dinars. In the 1997 budget, 12.5 percent of the administrative budget was allocated to education and training. Priorities were teacher training, the development of technical and scientific teaching programs, and adult literacy and training initiatives.

Algeria received substantial assistance from the World Bank. Between 1973 and 1980, Algeria contracted five education loan agreements for sums totaling US$276 million. The World Bank has continued to provide funds and technical assistance in connection with fundamental reform in education, the latest phase of which occurred in 1992.

Since the 1980s, funds for the purchase of books and the renewal and maintenance of library collections, journal subscriptions, and laboratory equipment have been reduced dramatically. The reductions coincided with swelling enrollments from the post independence baby boom.

Universities were hurt by the country's economic crisis in the 1990s. In particular, the restrictive measures imposed on the operating and equipment budgets of the Algerian state by the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank heavily impacted higher education and scientific research.

Educational Research: Research, an essential ingredient of academic excellence, has returned to the Education Ministry again after a decade of reforms that splintered the national research center, split responsibility for research and higher education, and left academic researchers swamped with teaching assignments. The INRE (Le center national de formation des cadres de l'éducation ) is expected to participate in educational research and experimentation.

The University of Algers houses the National Documentation and Research Center for Education (Centre National de Documentation et de Recherche en Pedagogie ), or CNDRP. In addition, the Center for the Coordination of Studies and Research on the Infrastructure and Facilities of the Ministry of Education and on Scientific Research (Centre de Coordination des Études et des Recherches sur les Infrastructure, les Equipements du Ministére de l'Enseignement et de la Recherche Scientifique ) is located in Algiers. The University d'Algers also hosts the Institut de Psychologie et Sciences de l'Education.

Generally in Algeria, an educational institution is evaluated in terms of quantitative internal criteria such as rates of success, failure, retention and attrition. Rarely are external criteria used such as performance tests, interviews with graduates, employers, and the like.

Nonformal Education

Literacy: Adults who acquire literacy through adult programs have great difficulty retaining it, a problem that also occurs with early school dropouts. Post-literacy programs, therefore, are more than remedial measures for ensuring the retention and stabilization of literacy skills. They are intended as lifelong education aimed at improving the quality of life through the continuation and application of learning. Literacy is viewed as an integral part of continuing education.

Estimates of adult (15 years and older) literacy in 2000 ranged from 62 to 72 percent, with male literacy estimated to be from 73 to 80 percent and female literacy, 48 to 63 percent. The National Centre for Literacy Education came into being in 1964 and adopted the concept of functional literacy education with the intent of providing social, political, and vocational education in addition to traditional reading, writing, and counting literacy education.

Adult Education: Continuing education includes all age groups. It is not limited to vocational instruction. Its aim is continuing progress in all fields. Following independence, teachers in all primary schools were compelled to give part of their time to adult education.

From 1988 on, social factors fostered the development of voluntary educational activities. Conditions such as the growth of unemployment among young people, qualified as well as unqualified; the inflexibility of public schools; the effects of the French-Arabic language conflict on the educational system; and other factors led to voluntary educational activities. Some activities are aimed at making up for the inadequacy of the public schools, others are more lifelong in nature, and some provide complementary training for social groups with religious or political motivation.

Distance Education: There were 3.1 million televisions and 7,000 fax machines in 1997, and there was one Internet provider in 1999 with 2,250 Internet users. Algeria's distance education programs, utilizing 18 television broadcast stations in 1999 (not counting low power stations), are run by CNEG (Centre National d'Enseignement Généralisé ). CNEG is charged with the organization, administration, and teaching methods of the country's education system. The range and scale of CNEG's operation and activities is extensive. In 1991, it was reported that since the inception of CNEG's distance teaching programs, more than one million people had enrolled in the various courses and programs offered—including many females.

In 1990 there were approximately 100,000 students enrolled at the institution. Regional centers provide nationwide coverage of CNEGs activities. Courses are offered in general and technical education up to the baccalauréate, for certificates and diplomas at various levels, and for specialist (professional) training. Courses in education, humanities, music, arts, languages, social sciences, economics, mathematics, science, medicine, medical jobs and professions, and first aid are taught.

The first American production subtitled in Arabic was broadcast in July 1990 on ENTV, the Algerian television network. Some 85 percent of the programs on ENTV were already in dialectical Arabic and Berber as early as 1992, even though dubbing and subtitling are both difficult and expensive. French broadcasts have declined. Funding comes from the government, student fees, and receipts from the sale of course materials. The media and methods of instruction include printed course materials, local press, audio/video cassettes, radio broadcasts, telephone, and group study.

Teaching Profession

Training & Qualifications: Primary school teachers are trained at institutes of educational technology (institute de technologie de l'éducation ). Students graduating from intermediate schools enroll in these institutes for two years, the last year as a student teacher. Success on the terminal examination leads to the certificate of general culture (certificat de culture generale et professionelle ). Students who obtain a baccalauréate train at the Institut de Formation de Professeurs École Moyenne (Middle School Teacher Training Institute) to become middle (third-cycle foundation) schoolteachers. Teachers for special education are recruited from those with teaching experience in regular schools; they can participate in special education training courses lasting for one or two years.

Teachers for general and technical secondary education come from the teachers' colleges (écoles normales superierures and écoles normales d'enseignement technique ) and national institutes for higher education (institutes nationaux d'enseignement superiéure ). Secondary teachers are more specialized than foundation schoolteachers, either in a particular field such as mathematics or in a more general area such as social science. Entry-level teachers at the universities require at least the third-cycle master's-level qualification. Teacher's salaries are low, which has led to strikes at the universities.

Adult Instruction: Each group of teachers and instructors is given approximately one month of instruction on how to teach adults. Adult instructors fall into three categories. Full-time instructors, considered the best and most likely to try new methods and systems, are viewed as the backbone of the system. Second are the part-time instructors who hold other jobs. They are not under supervision and cannot be required to use specific educational methods, but nevertheless are important. The third type include the workers from different sectors who understand their sector and the workers in it, but who rarely have any training in teaching.

Summary

Arabization in the education system included replacing foreign instructors with Arabic teachers, replacing the Eurocentric curriculum with an Arabic/African one, and replacing French with Arabic as the medium of instruction. Not everyone was pleased with the results. "The Arabization in the schools has actually often been managed under disastrous conditions and has delivered a generation of illiterate bilinguals mastering neither Arabic nor French," say the critics.

Arabization was intended to be the vehicle for creating a national identity. Whether or not this has happened, it has created a number of problems, including linguistic generational differences. Parents, particularly middle class parents educated in French, have difficulty following their children's education and in transmitting to their children the culture and cultural information that they themselves have acquired, thereby depriving children of considerable cultural knowledge.

The most experienced administrators find it difficult to communicate to their young recruits (mostly Arabic speakers) their knowledge and their savoir-faire. The communication difficulties occurring between officials of different generations are due not only to purely linguistic differences, but also to psycho-cultural factors bound up with the linguistic differences.

Additional problems occur at training centers where the teachers are often technicians and qualified workers who most often acquired their knowledge and experience in the French language. The students, however, often have poor command of both French and Arabic.

In higher education, the government sought to ease the transition to Arabic by organizing a summer crash course for French-speaking teachers, promising adequate supplies of Arabic science manuals and a working party to establish new terminology. The decree proved impossible to enforce. Many academics did not take the crash course, much of the teaching material is still in French, and the student level of classical Arabic is often inadequate. There are difficulties for students entering sciences, and in particular, medicine, without adequate knowledge of French. Some of the best secondary students fail or quit.

Literacy rates have steadily risen since independence, reaching between 62 and 72 percent in 2000. These are "nominal" literacy rates, which undoubtedly overestimate functional literacy. Too often individuals barely achieving literacy don't retain it.

The first year for students at a university proves to be terribly overcrowded and the students, who are poorly prepared by the lycées, are left to the least competent staff because fully qualified academics do not take first-year students. Many university teachers began teaching when they were taking graduate courses and eventually became permanent staff members without completing their studies. With the mass exodus of the teachers fleeing the violence, a large part of the experienced teaching staff left just as the student numbers increased from 300,000 to 384,000. The exodus has seriously affected scientific research. The universities are further stressed by huge classes, overstressed infrastructures, inadequate and unskilled supervisors, insufficient and old equipment, and a lack of up-to-date educational and scientific materials.

Vocational education suffers from problems with the language of instruction, poor teaching, haphazard job placement (lack of systematization), lack of industrial linkages, and lack of flexibility. These problems produce graduates with inadequate skills in unwanted areas and the inability to adapt.

Algeria still has the fact-acquisition orientation to instruction. It is woven into the fabric of education. The teachers, as their teachers before them, are themselves products of the lecture-rote memorization system (both a French and Islamic heritage) thereby automatically perpetuating the system. The fact-recall examinations further reinforce this orientation. Teachers teach for the exams and until higher order skills such as critical thinking are measured, the situation will not change. Outdated methods and materials and a lack of internships means that students don't get practical hands-on experience. Knowledge is often out of date, citing 10-year-old computer programs. Students complain of insufficient class hours, as classes are often reduced because of strikes.

Funding is inadequate in every sector. Poor pay deters better students from entering teaching. Absent or obsolete equipment and materials lower instructional quality, as do overcrowded schools, classes, and education conducted in multiple shifts.

The Franco-Arabic language split impacts both vocational and collegiate education. The language skill levels of students and of instructors are factors, as is the availability of manuals and teaching materials in the language of instruction.

Since the late 1980s, every sector of Algerian society has been affected by a deep and on-going crisis of violence. This crisis has touched every aspect of life. It is the most serious problem impacting Algerian education today. The violence is a reaction to grinding poverty and blocked opportunity. It is far more a power struggle than a religious issue, and it will continue until the socioeconomic underpinnings are alleviated. The violence has damaged educational progress on every front.

Education in Algeria is clouded by the civil war. Beyond the human and physical damage is the damage caused by the restrictive direction the Islamists seek to impose. The isolationist approach, evidenced by the violent opposition to all foreign ideas and influences, operates to cripple educational progress. Until the violence and intimidation are curtailed, it is hard to foresee a bright future.

Illiteracy rates are still high, but literacy efforts appear to be working and need to be continued as a priority. There are major problems of educational quality and quantity that need to be addressed. Increased funding is part of the answer, but will not by itself cure the problems of ineffective pedagogy, language splits and fluency, lack of coherence between educational levels, and absence of linkages to the work world and to the users of the system. Rigid bureaucracy is slow to react and out of touch with the realities of the work world. Teacher training needs upgrading with models of better pedagogic techniques through in-service training, distance learning, and improved teaching materials and equipment.

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—M. June Allard and Pamela R. McKay