Table showing the extent of Education Facilities for Arabs And Zionist/Jews in Palestine before 1948 (Nakba), British Mandate: A Survey of Palestine: Volume II - Page 638. Chapter XVI: Social Services : Section 2: Description of Education Systems : Table 2

CHAPTER XVI.

41. Education in Palestine is neither compulsory nor universal but would achieve a near approach to voluntary universality if school places were provided.

The extent of the education facilities for the two races (Arab and Jewish) varies considerably as is shown by the following table:

Table 2.

Race

Total school-age population 5-14 years (ten age groups) on 1.7.44

No. of No. of I Percentage of

pupils pupils children age 5

(all age:>)I age 5-1~ to 14 attending on 1.7.44 on 1.7.41 school on 1.7.44

I

I 104 ,GOO 97 ,400

32~%

Arab (including other non-Jewish)

800,000

Jewish

Total:

87,000 _I 99,500 I 84,GOO I

887,000 ! 20*1,l00 J rn2,000.

97 %

There is thus a high percentage of education in the Jewish and Christian communities. From the above data and from other evidence it may be assumed that nearly 100 per cent of the children of these two communities attend school for an average of 9 years, this period being 90 per cent. of the total school-age period from 5 to 14.

42. The Christians, however, are only one-ninth of the Arab population the remainder being Moslems , and in the Arab population as a whole the number of school-places is only about one-third of the school-age population 5 to 14. This low percentage results mainly from the fact that the Moslem community traditionally depends more upon Government help for the provision of educational facilities and the Palestine Government has been unable itself to meet the public demand for schooling or to support more extensively the efforts made by Arab local government authorities. Further, there has not yet been a. universal demand for the education of girls in Moslem villages, although this demand is now increasing. In all villages the inhabitants wish to secure schools for their boys first. But the percentage of school-places to school-age population does not give an accurate picture of the number of children who receive the minimum of schooling necessary for the attainment of permanent literacy. If the period of attendance is not ten but five years the proportion of children aged 5 to 14 who

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