Education Minister of the Palestinian National Authority

The Ministry of Education and Higher Education of the Palestinian National Authority is the branch of the Palestinian government in charge of managing the education in the Palestinian territories. It was established in 1994 after the formation of the Palestinian National Authority.[1]

Nasser al-Shaer was arrested by Israeli authorities twice for membership in Hamas but released both times. After the Hamas takeover of the Gaza Strip in June 2007, President Mahmoud Abbas dismissed all Hamas ministers including Shaer. The new appointed minister of Education under the internationally recognized Fatah government in the West Bank became Lamis Al-Alami, while in Gaza Strip under the Hamas Government in Gaza the office was taken by Osama al-Muzayni.

The office of the education ministry in Gaza was destroyed in an Israeli air strike, part of offensive Operation Cast Lead.[2]

Activities

Throughout 2001-2005, the ministry finalized the establishment of a Palestinian national curriculum by hiring teachers and providing classrooms and books.

The five programs of the plan were:

  1. Education as a human right Aim to provide an opportunity for all children from kindergarten to secondary school, by recruiting new teachers, adding new classrooms, textbooks, increasing the level of enrollment in the secondary stage, and decreasing the dropout rate.
  2. Education as the basic component of citizenship Developing quality education is the production, assessment, evaluation, and enrichment of school textbooks and instruction manuals for the Palestinian Curriculum as well as teacher and supervisor training.
  3. Education as a tool for social and economic development Developing a vocational and technical training program aiming to meet the basic needs of the local market, and providing a skilled workforce that can contribute positively to the national economy. Providing schools with the necessary equipment and resources.
  4. Education as a tool for social and economic development Developing new programs for general education, pre-school, informal education, adult education, and special education, that is available for the general population.
  5. Education as a continuous, renewable, participatory process Restructuring the financial and administrative systems to ensure efficient use of available resources. The program will include the school-map project, as well as reinforce concepts of strategic planning and organizational administration. Also, developing and reviewing policies, and rules and regulations; updating of position responsibilities and job descriptions; and developing relations between schools and the local community.[3]

Other activities are training and providing income for teachers, increasing the quality of school technology as well as expanding and building new schools.

Education Minister

Name Party Date
Hanan Ashrawi Independent 1996–1998
Nasser al-Shaer Hamas March 2006-June 2007
Lamis al-Alami Independent June 2007–present

References

  1. ↑ The Ministry Palestinian Ministry of Education & Higher Education, 2006.
  2. ↑ Gaza violence goes into sixth day BBC News. 2009-01-01.
  3. ↑ The Five-Year Plan (2001-2005) A Comprehensive Reform of the Educational System: Implementation of the comprehensive Five-Year-Plan Palestinian Ministry of Education & Higher Education, 2006
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