Education is The Key to Prosperity

History of the Education System in Madagascar

The first formal European-style school was established in 1818 on the east coast of Madagascar at Toamasina by members of the London Missionary Society (LMS). King Radama I (1810-1828), the first sovereign to bring about half the island of Madagascar under his rule, was interested in strengthening ties with European powers; to this end, he invited LMS missionaries to open a school in his capital at Antananarivo within the Rova palace compound to instruct the royal family in literacy, numeracy and basic education. This first school, known as the Palace School, was established by LMS missionary David Jones on December 8, 1820, (source : K12 Academics)

Some useful reference materials from UNESDOC digital library:

Learning to be: the world of education today and tomorrow

Drivers and Barriers for Implementing Learning for Sustainable Development in Pre-School through Upper Secondary

Education and the State of the World Affairs

The world in which we live in is filled with suffering due to poverty, social imbalance, injustice, environmental degradation and immorality. As a result, It has destroyed our very social human fabric. Poverty and disunity have crippled our core moral values and our material and spiritual progress all over the world. Many rural communities, particularly in the Third-World countries, are most affected. We can reverse the course of this suffering if governments, organizations, institutions, at all levels, and individual citizens truly take responsibility. Education plays a crucial role in reducing poverty and in preparing the children and the youth for their future and that of their communities.

In light of the collective effort that all citizens of the world must rise up and fight global poverty, a list of links, to name a few, is made available below.

• Ending Poverty
• Sustainable development begins with education
• Reducing poverty through education and how
• Inequality is today’s greatest challenge to fostering learning

Education System and Society

In 200 years of existence, education in Madagascar was and still is an elitist system. Despite all the post-colonial effort to democratize it, the rural areas are still left behind. The gap between urban and rural schools is not only due to inequitable distribution of resources but also due to the illusion of setting the same approach for all (the cultural factor is not taken into account).

“Development results from the knowledge and understanding that a society has of itself and its environment; and then her ability to organize herself to meet the challenges she faces. ” Christophe Biays

Traditionally nature has always been the source of knowledge thanks to the empirical experience of the previous generations. For instance, the use of plants for therapeutic purposes has always been practiced in Madagascar. This knowledge has been passed on from generation to generation. Schooling in some rural communities is a very important factor in rationalization and standardization of that knowledge. Here is an opportunity to tie in health and environment .

Redefining School From a Grassroots Movement

“The solution must come from the inside” ! Not from the outside world, not even from the national government .

Premise for Building Rural School

If school is a tool for acquiring knowledge then it is important to develop critical thinking on everything that is surrounding it: nature and the environment, people and community. The student should be in a situation of connecting the dots offered by his or her observations, comparisons, analyses, applications and solving issues.