Primary and Secondary Education in Myanmar 175
whether government, monastic, or private. These schools mostly use the
textbooks the ministry has prepared. There are five main subject areas
taught at the primary level: Myanmar Language, Mathematics, English,
Science, and General Studies. The latter includes life skills, social sciences,
and civic education. Lessons are officially taught in the Myanmar language.
Rote learning and group chanting are common.
Spending on Education
In Myanmar society, there is a widespread perception that the quality of
education has declined in recent decades. Although funding has generally
been exceedingly minimal for several decades, government financing for
TABLE 7.1
School Enrollment Statistics, 2011–12Government Schools
Primary 28,968
Post-primarya 6,761
Middle 3,163
High 2,395
Total schools 41,287
Teachers
Primary 184,170
Junior Teachers 67,398
Senior Teachers 26,612
Total teachers 276,180
Students
Primary 5,195,952
Middle 2,332,249
High 672,394
Total students 8,200,595
Note: “Post-primary” refers to a type of school that the Ministry of Education
and the Ministry for Progress in Border Areas and National Races and
Development Affairs have created by adding middle-school levels to primary
schools as a strategy to expand overall attendance rates.
Source: Myanmar, Ministry of Education, “Education for All: Access to and
Quality of Education in Myanmar”, Conference on Development Policy Options
with Special Reference to Education and Health in Myanmar, Nepyidaw,
13–16 February 2012, p. 5.