Tajikistan—Educational System
The educational system in Tajikistan has a strong Soviet/Russian influence. During the Soviet era (1918–1991) a comprehensive educational infrastructure and modern educational system provided free education emphasizing sciences, mathematics, and practical skills. By the 1930s the government eradicated mass illiteracy. According to official statistics, in 1989 more than 1.3 million students or approximately 23 percent of the population attended 3,100 schools. In addition, 41,700 students attended forty-two specialized secondary schools, and there were ten institutes of tertiary education. However, knowledge of Russian, which was a medium of instruction at most tertiary institutions, was poor; only 27 percent of Tajiks stated that they were fluent in Russian.
After independence in 1991, the educational system in Tajikistan underwent two major changes. First, there was a greater emphasis on the use of the Tajik language as the medium of instruction. Second, there was a considerable withdrawal of state funding of the educational system as a consequence of the 1992–1997 civil war (in 1998, Tajikistan spent only 2.2 percent of the GDP on education).
The constitution of Tajikistan (1994) stipulates that general education is compulsory and free and that the state guarantees access to free general, vocational, specialized, and higher education in state-controlled educational establishments. Tajik, Uzbek, and Russian are the major languages of instruction. The constitution also guarantees that all ethnic groups may use their mother tongue.
At the age of seven, children begin an eleven-year compulsory education program, composed of four years of primary school and a seven years of secondary school. According to official statistics, in 1998 more than 1.4 million students, or approximately 20 percent of the population, attended 3,522 primary and secondary schools. In addition, there were fifty specialized secondary schools and seventy-four vocational and technical schools. According to official statistics, approximately 94 percent of all those between the ages of seven and sixteen were enrolled in some kind of educational institution, although the dropout rate is high.
After completing a secondary school, students may enter a tertiary educational institution (university or institute), which usually offers a five-year program. According to official statistics, in 1999, 75,400 students attended twenty-four tertiary educational institutions. Students may complete postgraduate studies at a three-year aspirantura program, which combines coursework and dissertation writing. Upon completion of aspirantura students receive a degree of kandidat nauk (equivalent to a Ph.D.).
Throughout the 1990s the quality and accessibility of the educational system in Tajikistan declined due to the civil war, severe economic recession, and chronic shortage of textbooks. According to the United Nations Development Program, fewer female students entered the educational system. The government of Tajikistan is trying to reform its educational system by attracting private investment and international assistance to the educational sector.
Further Reading
Asimov, M. (1984) Encyclopedia: Tadzhikskaia Sovetskaia Sotsialisticheskaia Respublika (Encyclopedia: Tajik Soviet Socialist Republic). Dushanbe, Tajikistan, USSR: Glavnaya Nauchnaia Redaktsia Tadzhikskoi Sovetskoi Entsiklopedii.
Landau, Jacob, and Barbara Kellner-Heinkele. (2001) Politics of Language in the Ex-Soviet Muslim States: Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan. Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan Press.
United Nations Development Program. (1999) Tajikistan: Human Development Report, 1999. Dushanbe, Tajikistan: United Nations Development Program.
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