Teachers’ Education in Qatar: Devolution and Decentralization

Abstract

This chapter opens with a contextual background focusing on the educational system and then the globalization and educational policy-driven reform that took place in Qatar to improve schools. This is approached in three interconnected phases: before, during, and post-reform. Qatar focused on education as the key to human capital development and as an important driver for its global presence. Given that teaching profession development has real importance for human development, the emphasis will be on providing a critical analysis of the national efforts that have been considered at the top level and that were inspired by developments within the global teaching profession. A holistic picture about the pre-service preparations and in-service on-going teacher professional development will be provided, aiming to offer worthy insights into the topic. As such, the chapter seeks to demonstrate that, while there has been an increased interest in the needs and experiences of schoolteachers in terms of continuing professional development, research in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region in this subject area remains limited.