The Mutualistic Relationship Between Education and Development

Education and development are two concepts closely tied; it would seem as though education yields development and vice versa. They have a mutualistic relationship, and this is evident in a multitude of ways. To fully understand the relationship between development and education, it is necessary to understand the drivers of education. People, culture, politics, and more all contribute to what is taught in schools, and the intentions that the education system has in terms of what is best for the community. There are certain challenges education systems face in terms of culture, gender discrimination, low resources et cetera that also indicate the relationship between education and development. Lastly and perhaps most importantly, there are outcomes of education, one of which is development but also encompasses social, economic, and political growth, all which contribute to a societies development.

Most people have a fairly concrete understanding of what education is, but development is more of an enigma, so it’s helpful to understand what is called the “six different dimensions of the education context in developing countries,” (Harber and Davies, 2005). They list these off as: “the demographic context, the economic context, the resource context, the context of violence, the health context, and the cultural context.” It is important to grasp what development is in order to relate it to education.

The drivers of education are critical to the concept of education as we know it. The drivers of education are the stakeholders; they are the ones who determine what is being taught and why. They care about access; a critical aspect of development in terms of education, and they are concerned with quality and content as well as the benefit...

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...outcomes of education are perhaps the most obvious benefits of education in terms of development; educated people will be more efficient, they will find jobs and this means there will be an increased GDP. Education results in less poverty and sickness which also create a more economically sound society.

Education and development thrive off of one another; when one is prospering, so is the other. What is important is to get all countries to a point of development where they can help themselves. Nelson Mandela said, “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world,” and this is true. But in order to change and progress this world we live in, all human beings must receive an education.

References

Harber, Clive, and Lynn Davies. School management and effectiveness in developing countries: The post bureaucratic school. Continuum, 2005.