History and Problems of Education in Afghanistan

Abstract

The formal education institutions in Afghanistan never existed from its establishment (1747) until 1875. Despite that the foundation of modern education was laid in 1875, the number of established schools didn't exceed four until 1919. King Amanullah Khan (1919-1929) made the primary schools compulsory to all, for the first time he opened schools for girls and sent some female students to Turkey for education. This led to his exile from Afghanistan. From 1929 to 2001 there were enhancements in the educational fields although some obstacles emerged especially to female educators during some periods. The education is better today in comparison with previous periods; but there are still some problems in this field. The aim of this paper is to evaluate briefly the important developments which happened in the education system from the 4th century until today and the problems that have impeded the education in different periods in Afghanistan. This article focuses on the official education institutions from the establishment of Afghanistan (1747) until today. History of education in Afghanistan is ranked according to periods and the positive and negative developments in each period are also briefly discussed.