Information

  • Author Services

Initiatives

You are accessing a machine-readable page. In order to be human-readable, please install an RSS reader.

All articles published by MDPI are made immediately available worldwide under an open access license. No special permission is required to reuse all or part of the article published by MDPI, including figures and tables. For articles published under an open access Creative Common CC BY license, any part of the article may be reused without permission provided that the original article is clearly cited. For more information, please refer to https://www.mdpi.com/openaccess .

Feature papers represent the most advanced research with significant potential for high impact in the field. A Feature Paper should be a substantial original Article that involves several techniques or approaches, provides an outlook for future research directions and describes possible research applications.

Feature papers are submitted upon individual invitation or recommendation by the scientific editors and must receive positive feedback from the reviewers.

Editor’s Choice articles are based on recommendations by the scientific editors of MDPI journals from around the world. Editors select a small number of articles recently published in the journal that they believe will be particularly interesting to readers, or important in the respective research area. The aim is to provide a snapshot of some of the most exciting work published in the various research areas of the journal.

Original Submission Date Received: .

  • Active Journals
  • Find a Journal
  • Proceedings Series
  • For Authors
  • For Reviewers
  • For Editors
  • For Librarians
  • For Publishers
  • For Societies
  • For Conference Organizers
  • Open Access Policy
  • Institutional Open Access Program
  • Special Issues Guidelines
  • Editorial Process
  • Research and Publication Ethics
  • Article Processing Charges
  • Testimonials
  • Preprints.org
  • SciProfiles
  • Encyclopedia

sustainability-logo

Article Menu

quality education research paper

  • Subscribe SciFeed
  • Recommended Articles
  • Author Biographies
  • Google Scholar
  • on Google Scholar
  • Table of Contents

Find support for a specific problem in the support section of our website.

Please let us know what you think of our products and services.

Visit our dedicated information section to learn more about MDPI.

JSmol Viewer

Barriers and challenges affecting quality education (sustainable development goal #4) in sub-saharan africa by 2030.

quality education research paper

1. Introduction

2. materials and methods, 3.1. funding constraints, 3.2. access and inclusion, 3.2.1. students with disabilities, 3.2.2. gender disparities, 3.2.3. physical barriers, 3.2.4. inadequate curriculum, 3.3. teacher education, 4. discussion, 4.1. addressing funding constraints, 4.2. increasing access and inclusion, 4.3. addressing teacher education.

…efforts to foster effectiveness would be more productive if a teacher’s awareness and reflection was used as the starting point of training efforts. Teachers should be the originators of and active participants in the design and implementation of teacher training activities. [ 111 ] (p. 157)

4.4. Limitations and Implications

5. conclusions, author contributions, institutional review board statement, informed consent statement, data availability statement, conflicts of interest.

  • UN General Assembly. Universal Declaration of Human Rights ; UN: New York, NY, USA, 1948. [ Google Scholar ]
  • UNESCO. World Declaration on Education for All and Framework for Action to Meet Basic Learning Needs ; UNESCO: Bangkok, Thailand, 1990. [ Google Scholar ]
  • UNESCO. A Growing Number of Children and Adolescents Are out of School as Aid Fails to Meet the Mark—World|ReliefWeb ; UNESCO: New York, NY, USA, 2015; p. 13. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Backes, J.G.; Traverso, M. Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment as a Metrics towards SDGs Agenda 2030. Curr. Opin. Green Sustain. Chem. 2022 , 38 , 100683. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • United Nations. The 17 GOALS|Sustainable Development. Available online: https://sdgs.un.org/goals (accessed on 18 May 2022).
  • Aarts, H.; Greijn, H.; Mohamedbhai, G.; Jowi, J.O. The SDGs and African Higher Education. In Africa and the Sustainable Development Goals ; Ramutsindela, M., Mickler, D., Eds.; Sustainable Development Goals Series; Springer International Publishing: Cham, Switzerland, 2020; pp. 231–241. ISBN 978-3-030-14857-7. [ Google Scholar ]
  • McCowan, T. Higher Education for and beyond the Sustainable Development Goals ; Palgrave Studies in Global Higher Education; Springer International Publishing: Cham, Switzerland, 2019; ISBN 978-3-030-19596-0. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Odhiambo, N.M.; Owusu, E.L.; Asongu, S.A. Finance for Sustainable Development in Africa: Evolution, Impact and Policy Implications ; Taylor & Francis: Abingdon, UK, 2023; ISBN 978-1-00-089324-3. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Hassan, E.; Groot, W.; Volante, L. Education Funding and Learning Outcomes in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Review of Reviews. Int. J. Educ. Res. Open 2022 , 3 , 100181. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Nel, M. Inclusive and Special Education in Africa. In Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Education ; Oxford Research Encyclopedias: Oxford, UK, 2020; ISBN 978-0-19-026409-3. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Mpofu, N. Possibilities of Translanguaging Pedagogy for Sustainable Education in Africa. In Sustainable Development in Africa: Fostering Sustainability in One of the World’s Most Promising Continents ; Leal Filho, W., Pretorius, R., de Sousa, L.O., Eds.; World Sustainability Series; Springer International Publishing: Cham, Switzerland, 2021; pp. 221–237. ISBN 978-3-030-74693-3. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Ndayambaje, I. Teaching and the Teaching Profession in a Digital World: Rwanda ; International Labour Organization: Geneva, Switzerland, 2023; p. 36. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Asongu, S.A.; Odhiambo, N.M. Enhancing Governance for Environmental Sustainability in Sub-Saharan Africa. Energy Explor. Exploit. 2021 , 39 , 444–463. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Sifuna, D.; Sawamura, N. Challenges of Quality Education in Sub-Saharan African Countries ; State University of New York Press: Albany, NY, USA, 2010; Volume 1, pp. 1–241. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Bulat, J.; Hayes, A.M.; Macon, W.; Ticha, R.; Abery, B.H. School and Classroom Disabilities Inclusion Guide for Low- and Middle-Income Countries ; RTI International Press: Triangle Park, NC, USA, 2017; p. 38. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Evans, D.K.; Mendez Acosta, A. Education in Africa: What Are We Learning? J. Afr. Econ. 2021 , 30 , 13–54. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Kioupi, V.; Voulvoulis, N. Education for Sustainable Development: A Systemic Framework for Connecting the SDGs to Educational Outcomes. Sustainability 2019 , 11 , 6104. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Ban, S.; Mahmud, S.N.D. Research and Trends in Socio-Scientific Issues Education: A Content Analysis of Journal Publications from 2004 to 2022. Sustainability 2023 , 15 , 11841. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Krippendorff, K. Content Analysis: An Introduction to Its Methodology , 2nd ed.; Sage Publications Inc.: Thousand Oaks, CA, USA, 2004; ISBN 0-7619-1544-3. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Husson, G.; Reugue, N.; Steer, L.; Sherif, Y. Analysis of Education Financing in West and Central Africa within Development and Humanitarian Contexts and Dialogue on Future Prospects in Light of SDG 4. In Proceedings of the Global Partnership Education Conference (GPE), Dakar, Senegal, 1–2 February 2018; pp. 1–2. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Chikoko, V.; Mthembu, P. Financing Primary and Secondary Education in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Systematic Review of Literature. S. Afr. J. Educ. 2020 , 40 , 1–9. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Filmer, D. Long-Lived Consequences of Rapid Scale-Up? The Case of Free Primary Education in Six Sub-Saharan African Countries ; Policy Research Working Paper 10310; World Bank Publications: Washington, DC, USA, 2023. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Sifuna, D.N. The Challenge of Increasing Access and Improving Quality: An Analysis of Universal Primary Education Interventions in Kenya and Tanzania since the 1970s. Int. Rev. Educ. 2007 , 53 , 687–699. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Branson, N.; Lam, D. The Impact of the No-Fee School Policy on Enrolment and School Performance: Evidence from NIDS Waves 1–3 ; Southern Africa Labour and Development Research Unit, University of Cape Town: Cape Town, South Africa, 2017. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Fredriksen, B.; Fossberg, C.H. The Case for Investing in Secondary Education in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA): Challenges and Opportunities. Int. Rev. Educ. 2014 , 60 , 235–259. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Giese, S.; Dawes, A.; Biersteker, L.; Girdwood, E.; Henry, J. Using Data Tools and Systems to Drive Change in Early Childhood Education for Disadvantaged Children in South Africa. Children 2023 , 10 , 1470. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Lewin, K.M. Access to Education in sub-Saharan Africa: Patterns, Problems and Possibilities. Comp. Educ. 2009 , 45 , 151–174. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • UNICEF. Analysis of Education Spending in the West and Central Africa Region ; UNICEF: New York, NY, USA, 2021. [ Google Scholar ]
  • UNESCO. Institute for Statistics The World Needs Almost 69 Million New Teachers to Reach the 2030 Education Goals ; UNESCO: New York, NY, USA, 2016. [ Google Scholar ]
  • UNESCO. The Persistent Teacher Gap in Sub-Saharan Africa Is Jeopardizing Education Recovery. Available online: https://www.unesco.org/en/articles/persistent-teacher-gap-sub-saharan-africa-jeopardizing-education-recovery (accessed on 22 January 2024).
  • Musah, A.; Aawaar, G. Financial Development and Educational Quality in Sub-Saharan Africa. Cogent Econ. Financ. 2022 , 10 , 2131115. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Prady, D.; Sy, M. The Spending Challenge for Reaching the SDGs in Sub-Saharan Africa. Eur. J. Dev. Res. 2023 , 35 , 1102–1126. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Madurai Elavarasan, R.; Pugazhendhi, R.; Jamal, T.; Dyduch, J.; Arif, M.T.; Manoj Kumar, N.; Shafiullah, G.; Chopra, S.S.; Nadarajah, M. Envisioning the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through the Lens of Energy Sustainability (SDG 7) in the Post-COVID-19 World. Appl. Energy 2021 , 292 , 116665. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • UNESCO. Global Education Monitoring Report, 2023: Technology in Education: A Tool on Whose Terms? UNESCO: Paris, France, 2023; ISBN 978-92-3-100609-8. [ Google Scholar ]
  • International Monetary Fund. Crisis upon Crisis: IMF Annual Report 2022 ; International Monetary Fund: Washington, DC, USA, 2022; p. 80. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Wodon, Q.; Male, C.; Montenegro, C.; Nayihouba, A. The Challenge of Inclusive Education in Sub-Saharan Africa. The Price of Exclusion: Disability and Education ; World Bank Publications: Washington, DC, USA, 2018. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Dillenburger, K.; Coyle, C. Education for All: The Good Inclusion Game. Behav. Interv. 2019 , 34 , 338–351. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Ainscow, M.; Booth, T.; Dyson, A. Understanding and Developing Inclusive Practices in Schools: A Collaborative Action Research Network. Int. J. Incl. Educ. 2004 , 8 , 125–139. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Miles, S.; Westbrook, J.; Croft, A. Inclusions and Exclusions in Rural Tanzanian Primary Schools: Material Barriers, Teacher Agency and Disability Equality. Soc. Incl. 2018 , 6 , 73–81. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Jolley, E.; Lynch, P.; Virendrakumar, B.; Rowe, S.; Schmidt, V. Education and Social Inclusion of People with Disabilities in Five Countries in West Africa: A Literature Review. Disabil. Rehabil. 2018 , 40 , 2704–2712. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ] [ PubMed ]
  • Unianu, E.M. Teachers’ Attitudes towards Inclusive Education. Procedia—Soc. Behav. Sci. 2012 , 33 , 900–904. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Chhabra, S.; Srivastava, R.; Srivastava, I. Inclusive Education in Botswana: The Perceptions of School Teachers. J. Disabil. Policy Stud. 2010 , 20 , 219–228. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Avramidis, E.; Bayliss, P.; Burden, R. A Survey into Mainstream Teachers’ Attitudes Towards the Inclusion of Children with Special Educational Needs in the Ordinary School in One Local Education Authority. Educ. Psychol. 2000 , 20 , 191–211. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Nudzor, H.P. Taking Education for All Goals in Sub-Saharan Africa to Task: What’s the Story so Far and What Is Needed Now? Manag. Educ. 2015 , 29 , 105–111. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Dube, T. Gender Disparities in Educational Enrolment and Attainment in Sub-Saharan Africa. J. Educ. Soc. Res. 2015 , 5 , 279. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Wilson, A.; Somhlaba, N.Z. Ghanaian School-Going Adolescents’ Self-Perceived Barriers of Access to Quality Education: A Qualitative Study. Dev. South. Afr. 2017 , 34 , 652–665. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Kassa, G.M.; Arowojolu, A.O.; Odukogbe, A.A.; Yalew, A.W. Prevalence and Determinants of Adolescent Pregnancy in Africa: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Reprod. Health 2018 , 15 , 195. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ] [ PubMed ]
  • Ombati, V.; Ombati, M. Gender Inequality in Education in Sub-Saharan Africa. JWEE 2012 , 3-4 , 114–136. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Yakubu, I.; Salisu, W.J. Determinants of Adolescent Pregnancy in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Systematic Review. Reprod. Health 2018 , 15 , 15. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ] [ PubMed ]
  • Magige, G.E. Effects of Female Genital Mutilation on Girl Child Education: A Case Study of Kuria West Sub-County, Migori County, Kenya. Bachelor’s Thesis, Gretsa University, Thika, Kenya, 2020. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Shell-Duncan, B.; Naik, R.; Feldman-Jacobs, C. A State-of-the-Art Synthesis on Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting: What Do We Know Now? Population Council: New York, NY, USA, 2016; pp. 1–30. Available online: https://www.strategiesconcertees-mgf.be/wp-content/uploads/SOTA_Synthesis_2016_FINAL1.pdf (accessed on 16 January 2024).
  • Macharia, P.M.; Moturi, A.K.; Mumo, E.; Giorgi, E.; Okiro, E.A.; Snow, R.W.; Ray, N. Modelling Geographic Access and School Catchment Areas across Public Primary Schools to Support Subnational Planning in Kenya. Child. Geogr. 2023 , 21 , 832–848. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Bashir, S.; Lockheed, M.; Ninan, E.; Tan, J.-P. Facing Forward: Schooling for Learning in Africa ; World Bank: Washington, DC, USA, 2018; ISBN 978-1-4648-1260-6. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Gunnlaugsson, G.; Whitehead, T.A.; Baboudóttir, F.N.; Baldé, A.; Jandi, Z.; Boiro, H.; Einarsdóttir, J. Use of Digital Technology among Adolescents Attending Schools in Bissau, Guinea-Bissau. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2020 , 17 , 8937. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ] [ PubMed ]
  • Divon, S.A.; Bergstrøm, C.E. Unintended Consequences of Development Interventions: A Case of Diarrhoeal Diseases, Ruhiira, Uganda. Dev. Pract. 2012 , 22 , 71–90. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Caruso, G.; Cucagna, M.; Niu, C. War Exposure and Heterogeneous Impacts across the Educational Stages: Evidence from the First Ivorian Civil War ; World Bank: Washington, DC, USA, 2017. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Akresh, R.; Bhalotra, S.; Leone, M.; Osili, U.O. War and Stature: Growing Up during the Nigerian Civil War. Am. Econ. Rev. 2012 , 102 , 273–277. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Barakat, B.; Urdal, H. Breaking The Waves? Does Education Mediate the Relationship between Youth Bulges and Political Violence? Policy Research Working Papers; The World Bank: Washington, DC, USA, 2009. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Alderman, H.; Hoddinott, J.; Kinsey, B. Long Term Consequences of Early Childhood Malnutrition. Oxf. Econ. Pap. 2006 , 58 , 450–474. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • UNESCO. International Mother Language Day: UNESCO Calls on Countries to Implement Mother Language-Based Education. Available online: https://www.unesco.org/en/articles/international-mother-language-day-unesco-calls-countries-implement-mother-language-based-education (accessed on 22 January 2024).
  • Owuor, J. Integrating African Indigenous Knowledge in Kenya’s Formal Education System: The Potential for Sustainable Development. J. Contemp. Issues Educ. 2007 , 2 , 21–37. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Ezeanya-Esiobu, C. Indigenous Knowledge and Education in Africa ; Springer Nature: Berlin/Heidelberg, Germany, 2019; ISBN 9789811366352. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Abeyta, J.; Gachupin, R.; Gulibert, F.; Lovato, R.; Andriamanana, R.; Merchant, B. Indigenous Perspectives on Leadership: A Communal Reflection. J. Cases Educ. Leadersh. 2020 , 23 , 67–92. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Kaya, H.O.; Seleti, Y.N. African Indigenous Knowledge Systems and Relevance of Higher Education in South Africa. Int. Educ. J. Comp. Perspect. 2013 , 12 , 30–44. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Mutekwe, E. Towards an Africa Philosophy of Education for Indigenous Knowledge Systems in Africa. Creat. Educ. 2015 , 06 , 1294. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Bremner, N.; Sakata, N.; Cameron, L. Teacher Education as an Enabler or Constraint of Learner-Centred Pedagogy Implementation in Low-to Middle-Income Countries. Teach. Teach. Educ. 2023 , 126 , 104033. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • UNICEF. Addressing the Learning Crisis ; UNICEF: New York, NY, USA, 2020; p. 15. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Zubairi, A.; Rose, P. Equitable Financing of Secondary Education in Sub-Saharan Africa ; Mastercard Foundation, University of Cambrige: Cambridge, UK, 2019. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Baghdady, A.; Zaki, O. Secondary Education Governance in Sub-Saharan Africa ; Mastercard Foundation: Toronto, ON, Canada, 2019; p. 43. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Bietenbeck, J.; Irmert, N.; Sepahvand, M.H. Teacher Quality and Cross-Country Differences in Learning in Francophone Sub-Saharan Africa. Econ. Educ. Rev. 2023 , 96 , 102437. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Bennell, P. How Well Paid Are Primary School Teachers in Sub-Saharan Africa? A Review of Recent Evidence. Int. J. Educ. Dev. 2023 , 98 , 102755. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Buckler, A. Quality Teaching in Rural Sub-Saharan Africa: Different Perspectives, Values and Capabilities. Int. J. Educ. Dev. 2015 , 40 , 126–133. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Quist, I. Challenges Facing Education in Sub-Saharan Africa. In International Encyclopedia of Education , 4th ed.; Tierney, R.J., Rizvi, F., Ercikan, K., Eds.; Elsevier: Oxford, UK, 2023; pp. 388–397. ISBN 978-0-12-818629-9. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Del Río Castro, G.; González Fernández, M.C.; Uruburu Colsa, Á. Unleashing the Convergence amid Digitalization and Sustainability towards Pursuing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): A Holistic Review. J. Clean. Prod. 2021 , 280 , 122204. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Garcia, J.; da Silva, S.A.; Carvalho, A.S.; de Andrade Guerra, J.B.S.O. Education for Sustainable Development and Its Role in the Promotion of the Sustainable Development Goals. In Curricula for Sustainability in Higher Education ; Davim, J.P., Ed.; Management and Industrial Engineering; Springer International Publishing: Cham, Switzerland, 2017; pp. 1–18. ISBN 978-3-319-56505-7. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Pradhan, E.; Suzuki, E.M.; Martínez, S.; Schäferhoff, M.; Jamison, D.T. The Effects of Education Quantity and Quality on Child and Adult Mortality: Their Magnitude and Their Value. In Child and Adolescent Health and Development ; Bundy, D.A.P., da Silva, N., Horton, S., Jamison, D.T., Patton, G.C., Eds.; The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development/The World Bank: Washington, DC, USA, 2017; ISBN 978-1-4648-0423-6. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Grant, C. The Contribution of Education to Economic Growth K4D Helpdesk Report ; Institute of Development Studies: Brighton, UK, 2017. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Barro, R.J.; Lee, J.-W. A New Data Set of Educational Attainment in the World, 1950–2010. J. Dev. Econ. 2010 , 104 , 184–198. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Hanushek, E.A.; Schwerdt, G.; Wiederhold, S.; Woessmann, L. Returns to Skills around the World: Evidence from PIAAC. Eur. Econ. Rev. 2015 , 73 , 103–130. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • IIASA. Economic Growth in Developing Countries: Education Proves Key ; International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis: Laxenburg, Austria, 2008. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Psacharopoulos, G.; Patrinos, H.A. Returns to Investment in Education: A Decennial Review of the Global Literature. Educ. Econ. 2018 , 26 , 445–458. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Amponsah-Bediako, K. Relevance of Disability Models from the Perspective of a Developing Country: An Analysis. Dev. Ctry. Stud. 2013 , 3 , 121–132. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Krishnaratne, S.; White, H. Quality Education for All Children? What Works in Education in Developing Countries ; 3ie Working Paper 20; 3ie Publication: Washington, DC, USA, 2013. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Prew, M.; Msimango, S.; Chaka, M. Literature Review on School Funding in Sub-Saharan Africa ; The Centre for Education Policy Development: Johannesburg, South Africa, 2011. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Darvas, P.; Balwanz, D. Basic Education beyond the Millennium Development Goals in Ghana: How Equity in Service Delivery Affects Educational and Learning Outcomes ; World Bank: Washington, DC, USA, 2014; ISBN 978-1-4648-0098-6. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Østby, G.; Urdal, H.; Dupuy, K. Does Education Lead to Pacification? A Systematic Review of Statistical Studies on Education and Political Violence. Rev. Educ. Res. 2019 , 89 , 46–92. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Asongu, S.A.; Diop, S.; Addis, A.K. Governance, Inequality and Inclusive Education in Sub-Saharan Africa. Forum Soc. Econ. 2023 , 52 , 43–68. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Baliamoune-Lutz, M.; McGillivray, M. Does Gender Inequality Reduce Growth in Sub-Saharan African and Arab Countries? Afr. Dev. Rev. 2009 , 21 , 224–242. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Aly, H.Y.; Grabowski, R. Education and Child Mortality in Egypt. World Dev. 1990 , 18 , 733–742. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Smith, L.C.; Haddad, L.J. Explaining Child Malnutrition in Developing Countries: A Cross-Coutnry Analysis ; International Food Policy and Research Institute: Washington, DC, USA, 2000; p. 112. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Knowles, S.; Lorgelly, P.K.; Owen, P.D. Are Educational Gender Gaps a Brake on Economic Development? Some Cross-Country Empirical Evidence. Oxf. Econ. Pap. 2002 , 54 , 118–149. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Basu, A.M. Why Does Education Lead to Lower Fertility? A Critical Review of Some of the Possibilities. World Dev. 2002 , 30 , 1779–1790. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Handa, S. The Impact of Education, Income, and Mortality on Fertility in Jamaica. World Dev. 2000 , 28 , 173–186. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Hahn, Y.; Islam, A.; Nuzhat, K.; Smyth, R.; Yang, H.-S. Education, Marriage, and Fertility: Long-Term Evidence from a Female Stipend Program in Bangladesh. Econ. Dev. Cult. Chang. 2018 , 66 , 383–415. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Khandker, S.R.; Samad, H.A.; Fuwa, N.; Hayashi, R. The Female Secondary Stipend and Assistance Program in Bangladesh: What Did It Accomplish? ADB S. Asia Work. Pap. Ser. 2021 , 81 , 1–64. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Asiedu, C. Information Communication Technologies for Gender and Development in Africa: The Case for Radio and Technological Blending. Int. Commun. Gaz. 2012 , 74 , 240–257. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Ahn, J.; Briers, G.; Baker, M.; Price, E.; Strong, R.; Piña, M.; Zickafoose, A.; Lu, P. Radio Communications on Family Planning: Case of West Africa. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022 , 19 , 4577. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Stacey, E. The History of Distance Education in Australia. Q. Rev. Distance Educ. 2005 , 6 , 253–259. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Dugan, J.P. Leadership Theory: Cultivating Critical Perspectives ; Jossey-Bass: Sab Fransisco, CA, USA, 2017; ISBN 978-1-118-86415-9. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Agbedahin, A.V. Sustainable Development, Education for Sustainable Development, and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development: Emergence, Efficacy, Eminence, and Future. Sustain. Dev. 2019 , 27 , 669–680. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Cayambe, J.; Heredia-R, M.; Torres, E.; Puhl, L.; Torres, B.; Barreto, D.; Heredia, B.N.; Vaca-Lucero, A.; Diaz-Ambrona, C.G.H. Evaluation of Sustainability in Strawberry Crops Production under Greenhouse and Open-Field Systems in the Andes. Int. J. Agric. Sustain. 2023 , 21 , 2255449. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Günther, J.; Overbeck, A.K.; Muster, S.; Tempel, B.J.; Schaal, S.; Schaal, S.; Kühner, E.; Otto, S. Outcome Indicator Development: Defining Education for Sustainable Development Outcomes for the Individual Level and Connecting Them to the SDGs. Glob. Environ. Chang. 2022 , 74 , 102526. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Van Der Leij, T.; Avraamidou, L.; Wals, A.; Goedhart, M. Supporting Secondary Students’ Morality Development in Science Education. Stud. Sci. Educ. 2022 , 58 , 141–181. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Leal Filho, W.; Vidal, D.G.; Chen, C.; Petrova, M.; Dinis, M.A.P.; Yang, P.; Rogers, S.; Álvarez-Castañón, L.; Djekic, I.; Sharifi, A.; et al. An Assessment of Requirements in Investments, New Technologies, and Infrastructures to Achieve the SDGs. Environ. Sci. Eur. 2022 , 34 , 58. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Taylor, S.; Spaull, N. Measuring Access to Learning over a Period of Increased Access to Schooling: The Case of Southern and Eastern Africa since 2000. Int. J. Educ. Dev. 2015 , 41 , 47–59. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Strong, R.; Baker, M.; Dooley, K.; Ray, N. The Often-Forgotten Innovation to Improve Sustainability: Assessing Food and Agricultural Sciences Curricula as Interventions in Uganda. Sustainability 2023 , 15 , 15461. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Sanfo, J.-B.M.B.; Malgoubri, I. Teaching Quality and Student Learning Achievements in Ethiopian Primary Education: How Effective Is Instructional Quality in Closing Socioeconomic Learning Achievement Inequalities? Int. J. Educ. Dev. 2023 , 99 , 102759. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Grow, G.O. Teaching Learners to Be Self-Directed. Adult Educ. Q. 1991 , 41 , 125–149. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Charokar, K.; Dulloo, P. Self-Directed Learning Theory to Practice: A Footstep towards the Path of Being a Life-Long Learne. J. Adv. Med. Educ. Prof. 2022 , 10 , 135–144. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Banerjee, A.; Banerji, R.; Berry, J.; Duflo, E.; Kannan, H.; Mukherji, S.; Shotland, M.; Walton, M. Mainstreaming an Effective Intervention: Evidence from Randomized Evaluations of “Teaching at the Right Level” in India 2016 ; National Bureau of Economic Research: Cambridge, MA, USA, 2016. [ Google Scholar ]
  • Teachers in Developing Countries: Improving Effectiveness and Managing Costs ; Economic Development Institute of the World Bank: Washington, DC, USA, 1993.
  • Soares, D.; Lopes, B.; Abrantes, I.; Watts, M. The Initial Training of Science Teachers in African Countries: A Systematic Literature Review. Sustainability 2021 , 13 , 5459. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Barnes, A.E.; Boyle, H.; Zuilkowski, S.S.; Bello, Z.N. Reforming Teacher Education in Nigeria: Laying a Foundation for the Future. Teach. Teach. Educ. 2019 , 79 , 153–163. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
  • Ali, S.M.; Appolloni, A.; Cavallaro, F.; D’Adamo, I.; Di Vaio, A.; Ferella, F.; Gastaldi, M.; Ikram, M.; Kumar, N.M.; Martin, M.A.; et al. Development goals towards sustainability. Sustainability 2023 , 15 , 9443. [ Google Scholar ] [ CrossRef ]
The statements, opinions and data contained in all publications are solely those of the individual author(s) and contributor(s) and not of MDPI and/or the editor(s). MDPI and/or the editor(s) disclaim responsibility for any injury to people or property resulting from any ideas, methods, instructions or products referred to in the content.

Share and Cite

Zickafoose, A.; Ilesanmi, O.; Diaz-Manrique, M.; Adeyemi, A.E.; Walumbe, B.; Strong, R.; Wingenbach, G.; Rodriguez, M.T.; Dooley, K. Barriers and Challenges Affecting Quality Education (Sustainable Development Goal #4) in Sub-Saharan Africa by 2030. Sustainability 2024 , 16 , 2657. https://doi.org/10.3390/su16072657

Zickafoose A, Ilesanmi O, Diaz-Manrique M, Adeyemi AE, Walumbe B, Strong R, Wingenbach G, Rodriguez MT, Dooley K. Barriers and Challenges Affecting Quality Education (Sustainable Development Goal #4) in Sub-Saharan Africa by 2030. Sustainability . 2024; 16(7):2657. https://doi.org/10.3390/su16072657

Zickafoose, Alexis, Olawunmi Ilesanmi, Miguel Diaz-Manrique, Anjorin E. Adeyemi, Benard Walumbe, Robert Strong, Gary Wingenbach, Mary T. Rodriguez, and Kim Dooley. 2024. "Barriers and Challenges Affecting Quality Education (Sustainable Development Goal #4) in Sub-Saharan Africa by 2030" Sustainability 16, no. 7: 2657. https://doi.org/10.3390/su16072657

Article Metrics

Article access statistics, further information, mdpi initiatives, follow mdpi.

MDPI

Subscribe to receive issue release notifications and newsletters from MDPI journals

quality education research paper

You can publish an open access article in this gold open access journal by paying an article processing charge (APC).

Quality Education for All

  • Submit your paper
  • Author guidelines
  • Editorial team
  • Calls for papers & news

Before you start

Open Access and Article Processing Charge

This is a fully open access journal, which means all articles are published under the gold open access route, using a Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 user licence . Open access journals are supported through the payment of an article processing charge (APC). APCs are typically paid for by the author’s funder or institution. Emerald determines the APCs of its open access journals by benchmarking against comparable journals in the same or closely aligned research field and taking into account editorial, production, archiving and promotion values and costs.

Emerald will cover the publication costs of articles submitted to this journal until September 1st 2024 (and subsequently accepted), and thereafter the APC will be £1250 (plus VAT) per article accepted.  More information on the benefits of publishing open access with Emerald is available on our Publish Open Access page .

Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY)

All Open Access articles are published under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Public Licence, (CC BY License). If your article is accepted, you will be asked to complete a CC BY Licence through ScholarOne. This licence permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, providing that the original author and source are credited. This is fully compliant with current funder mandates. For full details of the licence please see http://creativecommons.org/licences/by/4.0/legalcode .

For queries relating to the status of your paper pre-decision, please contact the Editor or Journal Editorial Office. For queries post-acceptance, please contact the Supplier Project Manager. These details can be found in the Editorial Team section.

Author responsibilities

Our goal is to provide you with a professional and courteous experience at each stage of the review and publication process. There are also some responsibilities that sit with you as the author. Our expectation is that you will:

  • Respond swiftly to any queries during the publication process.
  • Be accountable for all aspects of your work. This includes investigating and resolving any questions about accuracy or research integrity .
  • Treat communications between you and the journal editor as confidential until an editorial decision has been made.
  • Include anyone who has made a substantial and meaningful contribution to the submission (anyone else involved in the paper should be listed in the acknowledgements).
  • Exclude anyone who hasn’t contributed to the paper, or who has chosen not to be associated with the research.
  • In accordance with COPE’s position statement on AI tools , Large Language Models cannot be credited with authorship as they are incapable of conceptualising a research design without human direction and cannot be accountable for the integrity, originality, and validity of the published work. The author(s) must describe the content created or modified as well as appropriately cite the name and version of the AI tool used; any additional works drawn on by the AI tool should also be appropriately cited and referenced. Standard tools that are used to improve spelling and grammar are not included within the parameters of this guidance. The Editor and Publisher reserve the right to determine whether the use of an AI tool is permissible.
  • If your article involves human participants, you must ensure you have considered whether or not you require ethical approval for your research, and include this information as part of your submission. Find out more about informed consent .

Generative AI usage key principles

  • Copywriting any part of an article using a generative AI tool/LLM would not be permissible, including the generation of the abstract or the literature review, for as per Emerald’s authorship criteria, the author(s) must be responsible for the work and accountable for its accuracy, integrity, and validity.
  • The generation or reporting of results using a generative AI tool/LLM is not permissible, for as per Emerald’s authorship criteria, the author(s) must be responsible for the creation and interpretation of their work and accountable for its accuracy, integrity, and validity.
  • The in-text reporting of statistics using a generative AI tool/LLM is not permissible due to concerns over the authenticity, integrity, and validity of the data produced, although the use of such a tool to aid in the analysis of the work would be permissible.
  • Copy-editing an article using a generative AI tool/LLM in order to improve its language and readability would be permissible as this mirrors standard tools already employed to improve spelling and grammar, and uses existing author-created material, rather than generating wholly new content, while the author(s) remains responsible for the original work.
  • The submission and publication of images created by AI tools or large-scale generative models is not permitted.

Research and publishing ethics

Our editors and employees work hard to ensure the content we publish is ethically sound. To help us achieve that goal, we closely follow the advice laid out in the guidelines and flowcharts on the COPE (Committee on Publication Ethics) website .

We have also developed our research and publishing ethics guidelines . If you haven’t already read these, we urge you to do so – they will help you avoid the most common publishing ethics issues.

A few key points:

  • Any manuscript you submit to this journal should be original. That means it should not have been published before in its current, or similar, form. Exceptions to this rule are outlined in our pre-print and conference paper policies .  If any substantial element of your paper has been previously published, you need to declare this to the journal editor upon submission. Please note, the journal editor may use  Crossref Similarity Check  to check on the originality of submissions received. This service compares submissions against a database of 49 million works from 800 scholarly publishers.
  • Your work should not have been submitted elsewhere and should not be under consideration by any other publication.
  • If you have a conflict of interest, you must declare it upon submission; this allows the editor to decide how they would like to proceed. Read about conflict of interest in our research and publishing ethics guidelines .
  • By submitting your work to Emerald, you are guaranteeing that the work is not in infringement of any existing copyright.

Third party copyright permissions

Prior to article submission, you need to ensure you’ve applied for, and received, written permission to use any material in your manuscript that has been created by a third party. Please note, we are unable to publish any article that still has permissions pending. The rights we require are:

  • Non-exclusive rights to reproduce the material in the article or book chapter.
  • Print and electronic rights.
  • Worldwide English-language rights.
  • To use the material for the life of the work. That means there should be no time restrictions on its re-use e.g. a one-year licence.

We are a member of the International Association of Scientific, Technical, and Medical Publishers (STM) and participate in the STM permissions guidelines , a reciprocal free exchange of material with other STM publishers.  In some cases, this may mean that you don’t need permission to re-use content. If so, please highlight this at the submission stage.

Please take a few moments to read our guide to publishing permissions  to ensure you have met all the requirements, so that we can process your submission without delay.

Open access information

This is a fully open access (gold open access) journal. If you submit to this title and your paper is accepted, you will be required to pay an APC (article processing charge). Your article will be published with a Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 user licence , which outlines how readers can reuse your work.

We have established partnerships with national consortium bodies and institutions to offer APC discounts, or a number of APC vouchers for eligible regions and institutions. 

For UK journal article authors - if you wish to submit your work accepted by us to REF 2021, you must make a ‘closed deposit’ of your accepted manuscript to your respective institutional repository upon acceptance of your article. Articles accepted for publication after 1st April 2018 should be deposited as soon as possible, but no later than three months after the acceptance date. For further information and guidance, please refer to the REF 2021 website.

You can find out more about our open access routes, our APCs and waivers and read our FAQs on our open research page. 

Find out about open

Transparency and Openness Promotion (TOP) Guidelines

We are a signatory of the Transparency and Openness Promotion (TOP) Guidelines , a framework that supports the reproducibility of research through the adoption of transparent research practices. That means we encourage you to:

  • Cite and fully reference all data, program code, and other methods in your article.
  • Include persistent identifiers, such as a Digital Object Identifier (DOI), in references for datasets and program codes. Persistent identifiers ensure future access to unique published digital objects, such as a piece of text or datasets. Persistent identifiers are assigned to datasets by digital archives, such as institutional repositories and partners in the Data Preservation Alliance for the Social Sciences (Data-PASS).
  • Follow appropriate international and national procedures with respect to data protection, rights to privacy and other ethical considerations, whenever you cite data. For further guidance please refer to our  research and publishing ethics guidelines . For an example on how to cite datasets, please refer to the references section below.

Prepare your submission

Manuscript support services.

We are pleased to partner with Editage, a platform that connects you with relevant experts in language support, translation, editing, visuals, consulting, and more. After you’ve agreed a fee, they will work with you to enhance your manuscript and get it submission-ready.

This is an optional service for authors who feel they need a little extra support. It does not guarantee your work will be accepted for review or publication.

Visit Editage

Manuscript requirements

Before you submit your manuscript, it’s important you read and follow the guidelines below. You will also find some useful tips in our structure your journal submission how-to guide.

Article files should be provided in Microsoft Word format.

While you are welcome to submit a PDF of the document alongside the Word file, PDFs alone are not acceptable. LaTeX files can also be used but only if an accompanying PDF document is provided. Acceptable figure file types are listed further below.

 Articles should be between 6000  and 9000 words in length. This includes all text, for example, the structured abstract, references, all text in tables, and figures and appendices.

 Please allow 280 words for each figure or table.

A concisely worded title should be provided.

The names of all contributing authors should be added to the ScholarOne submission; please list them in the order in which you’d like them to be published. Each contributing author will need their own ScholarOne author account, from which we will extract the following details:

(institutional preferred). . We will reproduce it exactly, so any middle names and/or initials they want featured must be included. . This should be where they were based when the research for the paper was conducted.

In multi-authored papers, it’s important that ALL authors that have made a significant contribution to the paper are listed. Those who have provided support but have not contributed to the research should be featured in an acknowledgements section. You should never include people who have not contributed to the paper or who don’t want to be associated with the research. Read about our for authorship.

If you want to include these items, save them in a separate Microsoft Word document and upload the file with your submission. Where they are included, a brief professional biography of not more than 100 words should be supplied for each named author.

Your article must reference all sources of external research funding in the acknowledgements section. You should describe the role of the funder or financial sponsor in the entire research process, from study design to submission.

All submissions must include a structured abstract, following the format outlined below.

These four sub-headings and their accompanying explanations must always be included:

The following three sub-headings are optional and can be included, if applicable:


You can find some useful tips in our  how-to guide.

The maximum length of your abstract should be 250 words in total, including keywords and article classification (see the sections below).

Your submission should include up to 12 appropriate and short keywords that capture the principal topics of the paper. Our  how to guide contains some practical guidance on choosing search-engine friendly keywords.

Please note, while we will always try to use the keywords you’ve suggested, the in-house editorial team may replace some of them with matching terms to ensure consistency across publications and improve your article’s visibility.

During the submission process, you will be asked to select a type for your paper; the options are listed below. If you don’t see an exact match, please choose the best fit:

You will also be asked to select a category for your paper. The options for this are listed below. If you don’t see an exact match, please choose the best fit:

 Reports on any type of research undertaken by the author(s), including:

 Covers any paper where content is dependent on the author's opinion and interpretation. This includes journalistic and magazine-style pieces.

 Describes and evaluates technical products, processes or services.

 Focuses on developing hypotheses and is usually discursive. Covers philosophical discussions and comparative studies of other authors’ work and thinking.

 Describes actual interventions or experiences within organizations. It can be subjective and doesn’t generally report on research. Also covers a description of a legal case or a hypothetical case study used as a teaching exercise.

 This category should only be used if the main purpose of the paper is to annotate and/or critique the literature in a particular field. It could be a selective bibliography providing advice on information sources, or the paper may aim to cover the main contributors to the development of a topic and explore their different views.

 Provides an overview or historical examination of some concept, technique or phenomenon. Papers are likely to be more descriptive or instructional (‘how to’ papers) than discursive.

Headings must be concise, with a clear indication of the required hierarchy. 

The preferred format is for first level headings to be in bold, and subsequent sub-headings to be in medium italics.

Notes or endnotes should only be used if absolutely necessary. They should be identified in the text by consecutive numbers enclosed in square brackets. These numbers should then be listed, and explained, at the end of the article.

All figures (charts, diagrams, line drawings, webpages/screenshots, and photographic images) should be submitted electronically. Both colour and black and white files are accepted.

There are a few other important points to note:

Tables should be typed and submitted in a separate file to the main body of the article. The position of each table should be clearly labelled in the main body of the article with corresponding labels clearly shown in the table file. Tables should be numbered consecutively in Roman numerals (e.g. I, II, etc.).

Give each table a brief title. Ensure that any superscripts or asterisks are shown next to the relevant items and have explanations displayed as footnotes to the table, figure or plate.

Where tables, figures, appendices, and other additional content are supplementary to the article but not critical to the reader’s understanding of it, you can choose to host these supplementary files alongside your article on Insight, Emerald’s content hosting platform, or on an institutional or personal repository. All supplementary material must be submitted prior to acceptance.

, you must submit these as separate files alongside your article. Files should be clearly labelled in such a way that makes it clear they are supplementary; Emerald recommends that the file name is descriptive and that it follows the format ‘Supplementary_material_appendix_1’ or ‘Supplementary tables’. . A link to the supplementary material will be added to the article during production, and the material will be made available alongside the main text of the article at the point of EarlyCite publication.

Please note that Emerald will not make any changes to the material; it will not be copyedited, typeset, and authors will not receive proofs. Emerald therefore strongly recommends that you style all supplementary material ahead of acceptance of the article.

Emerald Insight can host the following file types and extensions:

, you should ensure that the supplementary material is hosted on the repository ahead of submission, and then include a link only to the repository within the article. It is the responsibility of the submitting author to ensure that the material is free to access and that it remains permanently available.

Please note that extensive supplementary material may be subject to peer review; this is at the discretion of the journal Editor and dependent on the content of the material (for example, whether including it would support the reviewer making a decision on the article during the peer review process).

All references in your manuscript must be formatted using one of the recognised Harvard styles. You are welcome to use the Harvard style Emerald has adopted – we’ve provided a detailed guide below. Want to use a different Harvard style? That’s fine, our typesetters will make any necessary changes to your manuscript if it is accepted. Please ensure you check all your citations for completeness, accuracy and consistency.

References to other publications in your text should be written as follows:

, 2006) Please note, ‘ ' should always be written in italics.

A few other style points. These apply to both the main body of text and your final list of references.

At the end of your paper, please supply a reference list in alphabetical order using the style guidelines below. Where a DOI is available, this should be included at the end of the reference.

Surname, initials (year),  , publisher, place of publication.

e.g. Harrow, R. (2005),  , Simon & Schuster, New York, NY.

Surname, initials (year), "chapter title", editor's surname, initials (Ed.), , publisher, place of publication, page numbers.

e.g. Calabrese, F.A. (2005), "The early pathways: theory to practice – a continuum", Stankosky, M. (Ed.),  , Elsevier, New York, NY, pp.15-20.

Surname, initials (year), "title of article",  , volume issue, page numbers.

e.g. Capizzi, M.T. and Ferguson, R. (2005), "Loyalty trends for the twenty-first century",  , Vol. 22 No. 2, pp.72-80.

Surname, initials (year of publication), "title of paper", in editor’s surname, initials (Ed.),  , publisher, place of publication, page numbers.

e.g. Wilde, S. and Cox, C. (2008), “Principal factors contributing to the competitiveness of tourism destinations at varying stages of development”, in Richardson, S., Fredline, L., Patiar A., & Ternel, M. (Ed.s),  , Griffith University, Gold Coast, Qld, pp.115-118.

Surname, initials (year), "title of paper", paper presented at [name of conference], [date of conference], [place of conference], available at: URL if freely available on the internet (accessed date).

e.g. Aumueller, D. (2005), "Semantic authoring and retrieval within a wiki", paper presented at the European Semantic Web Conference (ESWC), 29 May-1 June, Heraklion, Crete, available at:  ;(accessed 20 February 2007).

Surname, initials (year), "title of article", working paper [number if available], institution or organization, place of organization, date.

e.g. Moizer, P. (2003), "How published academic research can inform policy decisions: the case of mandatory rotation of audit appointments", working paper, Leeds University Business School, University of Leeds, Leeds, 28 March.

 (year), "title of entry", volume, edition, title of encyclopaedia, publisher, place of publication, page numbers.

e.g.   (1926), "Psychology of culture contact", Vol. 1, 13th ed., Encyclopaedia Britannica, London and New York, NY, pp.765-771.

(for authored entries, please refer to book chapter guidelines above)

Surname, initials (year), "article title",  , date, page numbers.

e.g. Smith, A. (2008), "Money for old rope",  , 21 January, pp.1, 3-4.

 (year), "article title", date, page numbers.

e.g.   (2008), "Small change", 2 February, p.7.

Surname, initials (year), "title of document", unpublished manuscript, collection name, inventory record, name of archive, location of archive.

e.g. Litman, S. (1902), "Mechanism & Technique of Commerce", unpublished manuscript, Simon Litman Papers, Record series 9/5/29 Box 3, University of Illinois Archives, Urbana-Champaign, IL.

If available online, the full URL should be supplied at the end of the reference, as well as the date that the resource was accessed.

Surname, initials (year), “title of electronic source”, available at: persistent URL (accessed date month year).

e.g. Weida, S. and Stolley, K. (2013), “Developing strong thesis statements”, available at: (accessed 20 June 2018)

Standalone URLs, i.e. those without an author or date, should be included either inside parentheses within the main text, or preferably set as a note (Roman numeral within square brackets within text followed by the full URL address at the end of the paper).

Surname, initials (year),  , name of data repository, available at: persistent URL, (accessed date month year).

e.g. Campbell, A. and Kahn, R.L. (2015),  , ICPSR07218-v4, Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research (distributor), Ann Arbor, MI, available at:  (accessed 20 June 2018)

Submit your manuscript

There are a number of key steps you should follow to ensure a smooth and trouble-free submission.

Double check your manuscript

Before submitting your work, it is your responsibility to check that the manuscript is complete, grammatically correct, and without spelling or typographical errors. A few other important points:

  • Give the journal aims and scope a final read. Is your manuscript definitely a good fit? If it isn’t, the editor may decline it without peer review.
  • Does your manuscript comply with our research and publishing ethics guidelines ?
  • Have you cleared any necessary publishing permissions ?
  • Have you followed all the formatting requirements laid out in these author guidelines?
  • If you need to refer to your own work, use wording such as ‘previous research has demonstrated’ not ‘our previous research has demonstrated’.
  • If you need to refer to your own, currently unpublished work, don’t include this work in the reference list.
  • Any acknowledgments or author biographies should be uploaded as separate files.
  • Carry out a final check to ensure that no author names appear anywhere in the manuscript. This includes in figures or captions.

You will find a helpful submission checklist on the website Think.Check.Submit .

The submission process

All manuscripts should be submitted through our editorial system by the corresponding author.

The only way to submit to the journal is through the journal’s ScholarOne site as accessed via the Emerald website, and not by email or through any third-party agent/company, journal representative, or website. Submissions should be done directly by the author(s) through the ScholarOne site and not via a third-party proxy on their behalf.

A separate author account is required for each journal you submit to. If this is your first time submitting to this journal, please choose the Create an account or Register now option in the editorial system. If you already have an Emerald login, you are welcome to reuse the existing username and password here.

Please note, the next time you log into the system, you will be asked for your username. This will be the email address you entered when you set up your account.

Don't forget to add your ORCiD ID during the submission process. It will be embedded in your published article, along with a link to the ORCiD registry allowing others to easily match you with your work. Don’t have one yet?

It only takes a few moments to register for a free ORCiD identifier .

Visit the ScholarOne support centre  for further help and guidance.

What you can expect next

You will receive an automated email from the journal editor, confirming your successful submission. It will provide you with a manuscript number, which will be used in all future correspondence about your submission. If you have any reason to suspect the confirmation email you receive might be fraudulent, please contact the journal editor in the first instance.

Post submission

Review and decision process.

Each submission is checked by the editor. At this stage, they may choose to decline or unsubmit your manuscript if it doesn’t fit the journal aims and scope, or they feel the language/manuscript quality is too low.

While all journals work to different timescales, the goal is that the editor will inform you of their first decision within 60 days.

During this period, we will send you automated updates on the progress of your manuscript via our submission system, or you can log in to check on the current status of your paper.  Each time we contact you, we will quote the manuscript number you were given at the point of submission. If you receive an email that does not match these criteria, it could be fraudulent and we recommend you contact the journal editor in the first instance.

Manuscript transfer service

Emerald’s manuscript transfer service takes the pain out of the submission process if your manuscript doesn’t fit your initial journal choice. Our team of expert Editors from participating journals work together to identify alternative journals that better align with your research, ensuring your work finds the ideal publication home it deserves. Our dedicated team is committed to supporting authors like you in finding the right home for your research.

If a journal is participating in the manuscript transfer program, the Editor has the option to recommend your paper for transfer. If a transfer decision is made by the Editor, you will receive an email with the details of the recommended journal and the option to accept or reject the transfer. It’s always down to you as the author to decide if you’d like to accept. If you do accept, your paper and any reviewer reports will automatically be transferred to the recommended journals. Authors will then confirm resubmissions in the new journal’s ScholarOne system.

Our  Manuscript Transfer Service page  has more information on the process.

If your submission is accepted

Open access.

If you’ve chosen to publish gold open access, this is the point you will be asked to pay the APC (article processing charge).  This varies per journal and can be found on our APC price list  or on the editorial system at the point of submission. Your article will be published with a Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 user licence , which outlines how readers can reuse your work.

All accepted authors are sent an email with a link to a licence form.  This should be checked for accuracy, for example whether contact and affiliation details are up to date and your name is spelled correctly, and then returned to us electronically. If there is a reason why you can’t assign copyright to us, you should discuss this with your journal content editor. You will find their contact details on the editorial team section above.

Proofing and typesetting

Two to three months before the scheduled print publication of an issue, we carry out editorial checks on your paper and a pre-typeset version appears in the Accepted Articles section of the journal’s online content. Your paper is then copyedited, typeset, and proofs are sent to you (if you are the corresponding author) for your review. You receive advance notification of this.  Please note, this is your opportunity to correct any typographical errors, grammatical errors or incorrect author details. We can’t accept requests to rewrite texts at this stage.

How to share your paper

Visit our author rights page  to find out how you can reuse and share your work.

To find tips on increasing the visibility of your published paper, read about  how to promote your work .

Correcting inaccuracies in your published paper

Sometimes errors are made during the research, writing and publishing processes. When these issues arise, we have the option of withdrawing the paper or introducing a correction notice. Find out more about our  article withdrawal and correction policies .

Need to make a change to the author list? See our frequently asked questions (FAQs) below.

Frequently asked questions

The only time we will ever ask you for money to publish in an Emerald journal is if you have chosen to publish via the gold open access route. You will be asked to pay an APC (article-processing charge) once your paper has been accepted (unless it is a sponsored open access journal), and never at submission.

At no other time will you be asked to contribute financially towards your article’s publication, processing, or review. If you haven’t chosen gold open access and you receive an email that appears to be from Emerald, the journal, or a third party, asking you for payment to publish, please contact our support team via .

Please contact the editor for the journal, with a copy of your CV. You will find their contact details on the editorial team tab on this page.

First, log into your author centre on the journal's ScholarOne site. Click on and check the column of the table at the bottom of the page. If the editor has assigned your paper to an issue, the volume and issue number will appear. If they have yet to assign it, you can email them to request further details. You will find their contact details on the editorial team tab on this page.

Please email the journal editor – you will find their contact details on the editorial team tab on this page. If you ever suspect an email you’ve received from Emerald might not be genuine, you are welcome to verify it with the content editor for the journal, whose contact details can be found on the editorial team tab on this page.

If you’ve read the aims and scope on the journal landing page and are still unsure whether your paper is suitable for the journal, please email the editor and include your paper's title and structured abstract. They will be able to advise on your manuscript’s suitability. You will find their contact details on the Editorial team tab on this page.

Authorship and the order in which the authors are listed on the paper should be agreed prior to submission. We have a right first time policy on this and no changes can be made to the list once submitted. If you have made an error in the submission process, please email the Journal Editorial Office who will look into your request – you will find their contact details on the editorial team tab on this page.

chris-brown

Meet our editors

Chris Brown is a Professor in Education and Head of Southampton Education School at the University of Southampton and Distinguished Visiting Professor, University of Tübingen.

Learn more about Chris

Chris has a long-standing interest in how people go about harnessing great ideas to improve the human condition.

He has written or edited some 22 books and 100 journal articles in the broad sphere of research, evidence and ideas use.

Connect with Chris

graham-handscomb

Graham Handscomb is Honorary Professor at University College, London (UCL) and Visiting Professor at Durham University and the University of Bolton.

Learn more about Graham

Graham was previously Dean and Professor of Education of the College of Teachers.

He is a fellow of numerous organisations and universities and editor of a number of journals including Professional Development Today. He works as an educational consultant. 

Connect with Graham

  • Professor Chris Brown University of Southampton - UK
  • Professor Graham Handscomb UCL - UK
  • Sharon Parkinson Emerald Publishing - UK [email protected]

Journal Editorial Office (For queries related to pre-acceptance)

  • Gauri Naik Emerald Publishing [email protected]

Supplier Project Manager (For queries related to post-acceptance)

  • Sonali Durge Emerald Publishing [email protected]

Editorial Advisory Board

  • Professor  Vivienne Baumfield University of Exeter - UK
  • Professor Carol Campbell University Of Glasgow - UK
  • Professor Mahmoud Emam Sultan Qaboos University - Oman
  • Professor Toby Greany University of Nottingham - UK
  • Professor Qing Gu University College London (UCL) - UK
  • Professor Kerstin Göbel University of Duisburg-Essen - Germany
  • Professor David Hopkins University of Bolton - UK
  • Associate Professor Mei Kuin Lai University of Auckland - New Zealand
  • Professor Anthony Mackay Swinburne University - Australia
  • Dr Gavin Murphy Trinity College Dublin - Ireland
  • Professor Carla Muñoz Universidad Catolica del Maule - Chile
  • Professor Wakio Oyanagi Kansai University - Japan
  • Dr Sara Romiti Department for Innovation and Development - Italy
  • Professor Pasi Sahlberg University of Melbourne - Australia/Finland
  • Dr Leyton Schnellert University of British Columbia - Canada
  • Professor Jon Supovitz University of Pennsilvania - USA
  • Professor David Woods Visiting Professor, University College London (UCL) - UK

Reviewer information

Peer review process.

This journal engages in a double-anonymous peer review process, which strives to match the expertise of a reviewer with the submitted manuscript. Reviews are completed with evidence of thoughtful engagement with the manuscript, provide constructive feedback, and add value to the overall knowledge and information presented in the manuscript.

The mission of the peer review process is to achieve excellence and rigour in scholarly publications and research.

Our vision is to give voice to professionals in the subject area who contribute unique and diverse scholarly perspectives to the field.

The journal values diverse perspectives from the field and reviewers who provide critical, constructive, and respectful feedback to authors. Reviewers come from a variety of organizations, careers, and backgrounds from around the world.

All invitations to review, abstracts, manuscripts, and reviews should be kept confidential. Reviewers must not share their review or information about the review process with anyone without the agreement of the editors and authors involved, even after publication. This also applies to other reviewers’ “comments to author” which are shared with you on decision.

quality education research paper

Resources to guide you through the review process

Discover practical tips and guidance on all aspects of peer review in our reviewers' section. See how being a reviewer could benefit your career, and discover what's involved in shaping a review.

More reviewer information

Calls for papers

Alternative education: investigating equality, inequity and opportunity through education outside of school.

Introduction Over the last few decades, a myriad of pedagogic approaches, community learning...

Quality Education for All publishes its first article!

Emerald Publishing is delighted to announce that Quality Education for All has published its first article! The article "...

Quality Education SDG4 is a United Nations Sustainable Development Goal with the aim of making universal lifelong learning available to everyone. This open access journal addresses the fundamental challenges facing education and learning today and, in the future, to ensure that this goal is supported and achieved. The article processing charge (APC) will be waived for content submitted to this journal before 31 December 2024.

Signatory of DORA logo

Aims and scope

Quality Education for All welcomes original research articles (including technical papers and conceptual papers), case studies, reviews (including literature, systematic, or general), methods, viewpoints, and editorials that address all areas of education and learning ranging from early education through to lifelong learning, with a special emphasis on improving access, inclusion, quality, and participation.

Topics for coverage include:

  • Reducing inequality through access to and engagement in education and learning
  • Remote teaching, learning and collaboration
  • Innovation and the design of learning environments
  • Lifelong learning
  • Creativity and critical thinking in education
  • Educational leadership
  • Comparative education
  • Numeracy and literacy
  • The ideas-informed society

The article processing charge (APC) will be waived for content submitted to this journal before 31 December 2024.

Latest articles

These are the latest articles published in this journal (Last updated: July 2024 )

Initial teacher education 2024: why inclusion matters

Exploring the efficacy of writing comics as a tool for enhancing efl writing skills of undergraduate ecuadorian polytechnic students, quality education for all in an ideas-informed society: exploring idea-engagement amongst friendship networks and how education can prevent idea "echo-chambers", top downloaded articles.

These are the most downloaded articles over the last 12 months for this journal (Last updated: July 2024 )

Examining the impact of a strength-based program to enhance teacher-trainees' critical thinking abilities: a pilot study

Multicultural values: meeting point of two forces in developing islamic education, professional learning networks: a descriptive phenomenological study with primary school teachers in greece.

quality education research paper

This journal is aligned with our quality education for all goal

We believe in quality education for everyone, everywhere and by highlighting the issue and working with experts in the field, we can start to find ways we can all be part of the solution.

SDG 4 Quality education

Related Journals

This journal is part of our Education collection. Explore our Education subject area to find out more.  

See all related journals

Education + Training

Education + Training addresses the increasingly complex relationships between education, training and employment and the...

quality education research paper

International Journal of Educational Management

The International Journal of Educational Management provides those interested in the effective management of the...

quality education research paper

Quality Assurance in Education

Quality Assurance in Education publishes original empirical or theoretical articles on Quality Assurance issues...

quality education research paper

Journal for Multicultural Education

The Journal for Multicultural Education is a double-anonymous peer reviewed journal. Published quarterly, the editorial...

quality education research paper

International Journal for Lesson and Learning Studies

The first journal of its kind, the International Journal for Lesson and Learning Studies publishes lesson and learning...

quality education research paper

Quality in Education—Concept, Origin, and Approaches

  • First Online: 27 September 2017

Cite this chapter

quality education research paper

  • Charu Jain 3 &
  • Narayan Prasad 4  

920 Accesses

2 Citations

Being instrumental in bringing about the economic development of a country, education and is one of the basic services offered by government and stakeholders to society. However, as mere quantitative expansion would not generate the desired results unless a particular standard of quality is maintained, it is essential that policies shift their focus from increasing enrolments to quality improvement in all spheres—beginning from making school facilities available to students, developing their learning skills which is not just limited to curriculum knowledge, and initiating efficient teaching practices. The concept of quality in the field of education is not new; therefore, it is even important to understand how the quality debate has evolved over the years and how it has come to be linked with the provision of education. This chapter describes the theoretical aspect of quality concept, its historical origin in the field of education, various related models and approaches. It is being argued that the concept of quality in education is multifaceted; it does not possess any specific definition; different scholars have interpreted the concept differently. The differences lie not only in the way this concept is defined, but is also reflected in the manner in which quality is measured. Although, worldwide, research initiatives has been undertaken to identify the quality indicators, measuring the educational outcomes, in the Indian context, little evidence is available, particularly in case of secondary education.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Subscribe and save.

  • Get 10 units per month
  • Download Article/Chapter or eBook
  • 1 Unit = 1 Article or 1 Chapter
  • Cancel anytime
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
  • Durable hardcover edition

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Adams, D. (1993). Defining educational quality. Improving Educational Quality Project Publication , 1.

Google Scholar  

Delors, J. (1996). Learning, the treasure within . Report to UNESCO of the international commission on education for the twenty-first century: Highlights, UNESCO Publications.

Deming, D. W. (1986). Out of crisis . London: Cambridge University Press.

European Commission. (2000). Report on the quality of education 16 quality indicators .

Goddard, D., & Leask, M. (1992). The search for quality: Management in education . London: Paul Chapman.

Grisay, A., & Mahlck, L. (1991). The quality of education in developing countries . IIEP, Paris: A Preview of Some Research Studies and Policy Documents.

Hanushek, E. A. (2002). The importance of school quality . (pp. 141–173). Stanford, CA: Hoover Institution Press. http://hanushek.stanford.edu/publications/importance-school-quality .

Hoy, C., Bayne-Jardine, C., & Wood, M. (2000). Improving quality in education . London: Falmer Press.

Kumar, K., & Sarangapani, P. M. (2005). History of the quality debate . Paper commissioned for the EFA global monitoring report 2005, the quality imperative, UNESCO.

Linston, C. (1999). Managing quality and standard . Buckhingam: Open University Press.

NUEPA. (2014). Education for all: Towards quality with equity India (1st ed.) Ministry of Human Resource Development, GOI, August 2014.

Reddy, S. (2007). School quality: Perspectives from the developed and developing countries , AzimPremji Foundation. http://www.azimpremjifoundation.org/pdf/ConsolidatedSchoolQualityreport.pdf .

Sallis, E. (1996). Total quality management in education . London: Kogan Page.

Stephens, D. (2003). Quality of basic education. Background paper for education for all global monitoring report 2003–04, Gender and education for all: The leap to equality.

UNESCO. (1990). World declaration on education for all : Framework for action to meet basic learning needs , Jomtein, Thailand from March 5–9, 1990. http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0012/001275/127583e.pdf .

UNESCO. (2005). Understanding education quality. EFA global monitoring report 2005.

UNESCO. (2005). The importance of good quality: What research tells us. EFA global monitoring report.

UNESCO. (2009). World conference on higher education: The new dynamics of higher education and research for societal change and development held in Paris, 5–8 July 2009. Draft Communique (1st Draft 26 June 2009), ED.2009/CONF.402/2.

UNICEF. (June 2000). Defining quality in education . A paper presented by UNICEF at the meeting of the international working group on education florence, Italy, Working Paper Series, Education Section, Programme Division, United Nations Children’s Fund UNICEF, USA.

Wadsworth, H. M., Stephens, K. S., & Godfrey, A. B. (2002). Modern methods for quality control and improvement . New York: Wiley.

Download references

Author information

Authors and affiliations.

National Council of Applied Economic Research, New Delhi, Delhi, India

School of Social Sciences, Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU), New Delhi, Delhi, India

Narayan Prasad

You can also search for this author in PubMed   Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Charu Jain .

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2018 Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.

About this chapter

Jain, C., Prasad, N. (2018). Quality in Education—Concept, Origin, and Approaches. In: Quality of Secondary Education in India. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-4929-3_2

Download citation

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-4929-3_2

Published : 27 September 2017

Publisher Name : Springer, Singapore

Print ISBN : 978-981-10-4928-6

Online ISBN : 978-981-10-4929-3

eBook Packages : Education Education (R0)

Share this chapter

Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content:

Sorry, a shareable link is not currently available for this article.

Provided by the Springer Nature SharedIt content-sharing initiative

  • Publish with us

Policies and ethics

  • Find a journal
  • Track your research

IMAGES

  1. (PDF) Improving Quality and Efficiency of Education

    quality education research paper

  2. (PDF) The Effect Of The Artificial Intelligence On Learning Quality

    quality education research paper

  3. The Role of Technology in Quality Education

    quality education research paper

  4. Paper

    quality education research paper

  5. (PDF) FEATURES OF QUALITY EDUCATION

    quality education research paper

  6. Quality Education, the Need of the Hour in the Societ Free Essay Example

    quality education research paper

COMMENTS

  1. (PDF) FEATURES OF QUALITY EDUCATION - ResearchGate

    FEATURES OF QUALITY EDUCATION. September 2009. Authors: S.G.N Eze. Enugu State University of Science and Technology. Citations (12) References (11) Abstract. Introduction. These two words,...

  2. THE CONCEPT OF QUALITY IN EDUCATION: A REVIEW OF THE ...

    The paper starts by differentiating education from schools and argues that any framework to conceptualize educational quality is necessarily value-based. Two broad approaches to understanding quality are then outlined in Part 2 and a selection of key texts reviewed that falls into each approach.

  3. Full article: In the pursuit of “Quality Education”: From ...

    The article begins with a discussion on the importance, subjectivity, and longstanding search for a definition for Quality Education (QE). It conceptualizes QE in terms of “resilience” and “responsibility towards other”. It reviews the theoretical landscape and philosophical contributions of philosophers and learning theories to the ...

  4. Assessing the Quality of Education Research Through Its ...

    The findings suggest that using RPPs to assess the quality of education research enhances the relevance to policy and practice as well as attention to the quality of reporting, and pivots from the preeminence of methodological quality.

  5. Educational Equity and Quality in K- 12 Schools: Meeting the ...

    This paper discusses the importance of equity and quality education in K-12 schools and how employing equity and quality strategies in classroom instructional practices and school culture can positively change children’s lives.

  6. A Proposed Unified Conceptual Framework for Quality of ...

    Our proposed conceptual framework for quality of education in schools is among the first frameworks for quality of education to use a systemic approach in conceptualizing quality of education, where components of quality of education (inputs, processes, and outputs) are considered at all the levels of the education system at once.

  7. Barriers and Challenges Affecting Quality Education ... - MDPI

    Abstract. Education is a fundamental human right and a crucial tool for sustainable human capacity development, which can advance the economic growth of a country. Yet for many children in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), quality education remains out of reach.

  8. Quality of Research Evidence in Education: How Do We Know?

    The persistence of inequitable education is the fundamental fact facing education researchers as we reflect on the quality and value of the evidence we produce ( American Educational Research Association & National Academy of Education, 2020; Educational Opportunity Monitoring Project, 2020 ).

  9. Quality Education for All | Emerald Publishing

    Research paper. Reports on any type of research undertaken by the author(s), including: The construction or testing of a model or framework; Action research; Testing of data, market research or surveys; Empirical, scientific or clinical research; Papers with a practical focus; Viewpoint.

  10. Quality in Education—Concept, Origin, and Approaches - Springer

    1 Historic Origin of Quality Concept in Education. The available literature asserts that quality debate evolved with the advent of industrialization as the need to ensure that products conformed to specifications escalated and customers began to demand value for money (Sallis 1996 ).