UNESCO sends mixed messages about higher education

ByErin Millar. Irina Bokova, director general of UNESCO, signalled that her organisation’s focus on primary education was expanding to include more work supporting higher education, at the World Innovation Summit for Education held in Doha last week. But insiders suggested otherwise.
“For far too long the international community was focused only on primary education,” Bokova said in an interview with University World News. “This is why we want to focus on secondary and tertiary education.
“We are helping a lot of countries strengthen their tertiary education.”
Recent research suggests that UNESCO’s ambitious Education for All project, which aims to provide primary education for all children worldwide, has stalled. Although there was initially progress after six education goals were set in 2000, few are on track to be completed by the 2015 deadline and many are far behind.
Regardless of the struggle with basic education, Bokova argued for a more holistic approach that includes higher education and lifelong learning. She pointed to teacher training and technical and vocational institutes as priorities.
“We are helping countries develop science education because we think it is important,” she told University World News, pointing to prizes UNESCO awards to young women scientists in partnership with L’Oréal. More...