Towards Entrepreneurial Education: Ajloun Youth’s Vision for Education Reform and Jordan’s Development

By: Abdulrahman Al-Samadi – Member of the Safe Rural Youth Political Space

Education is the cornerstone of any national renaissance. For Ajloun Governorate, of which I am a native son, education is not merely an academic process but a gateway out of the cycle of poverty and unemployment. Amid the economic and social challenges facing Jordan, and in light of the high rates of poverty and unemployment in governorates like Ajloun—where unemployment rates have reached high levels ranging between 17.2% and 19.4% at times, and poverty rates exceed the national average, reaching about 25.6%—educational reform becomes an urgent national priority that directly affects the lives of citizens and the future of youth.

National Priorities for Education Reform: Empowerment Before Memorization

Our vision for reform begins with the necessity to move from an educational system focused on memorization and academic success to one that enhances skills and innovation, linking its outputs to the evolving demands of the labor market. From this perspective, we believe that the national priorities for educational reform in Jordan should rest on two fundamental pillars:

1. Aligning Educational Policies with the Labor Market

   
   

   The gap between the majors students choose and the skills demanded by the labor market is one of the main causes of graduate unemployment, as a large proportion of the unemployed hold university degrees. Educational policies should focus on the following:

   
   
   

   • Enhancing Vocational and Technical Education: Despite recent increases in enrollment in vocational education, its proportion of the total number of secondary school students remains historically low. Efforts must be made to improve societal perceptions of vocational education and to develop its schools and curricula to align with modern technologies—especially in sectors like tourism and agriculture, which are prominent in Ajloun.

   • Integrating Cross-disciplinary Skills into Curricula: Students should be trained in critical thinking, problem-solving, entrepreneurship, and technology from early stages to ensure the graduation of a generation capable of competing and creating job opportunities rather than merely waiting for them.

2. Ensuring Educational Equity Between Rural and Urban Areas

   
   

   For a rural governorate like Ajloun, ensuring fairness in the distribution of educational resources is a national priority that cannot be postponed. Quality education should not be a privilege exclusive to major cities.

   
   

   Rural Challenges: Resource and Infrastructure Gaps in Ajloun

   
   

   The reality of education in rural areas, foremost among them Ajloun, faces structural challenges that affect the quality of outcomes and contribute to internal migration to cities in search of better educational opportunities.

3. Lack of Infrastructure and Resources:
   Despite the efforts of the Ministry of Education, some schools in Ajloun still require updates. The reality in Ajloun’s schools highlights the ongoing need to improve and provide fully equipped science laboratories, libraries, and sports facilities, which are essential for a comprehensive educational environment. Additionally, expanding internet coverage and central heating—previously limited to about 50 schools—must continue to include all rural schools.

4. Lack of Equity in the Distribution of Qualified Teachers:
   Rural areas often face difficulties in attracting and retaining outstanding educational talents compared to cities, which affects the quality of education provided to students who are in urgent need of the best teachers. Special incentives must be offered to teachers working in underprivileged areas.

5. Focus on Traditional Academic Education:
   The societal culture in Ajloun, as in other governorates, still prioritizes academic education. This contributes to an increase in the number of graduates in saturated fields that do not align with the governorate’s capacity to provide job opportunities, which in turn raises unemployment rates, especially among university-educated youth.

   
   

   Local Models and Recommendations from Young Leaders: The Role of Youth in Shaping the Future
   As youth within the Safe Rural Youth Political Space, we do not merely observe challenges; we work on formulating practical solutions and recommendations to ensure a brighter educational future:

6. Recommendations Presented by the Youth:

   
   
   

   • Decentralizing Educational Decision-Making: Activate the role of governorate councils and local directorates (such as the Ajloun Education Directorate) to involve local communities in identifying educational needs, allocating budgets more efficiently, and adapting curricula to Ajloun’s environmental, agricultural, and touristic characteristics.

   • Launching Blended Learning Programs: Invest in technology in education to compensate for the lack of resources in rural schools by providing them with advanced digital learning resources and training teachers to use them effectively.

   • Supporting Educational Entrepreneurial Projects: Schools should adopt programs that encourage students toward community entrepreneurship linked to local development, turning challenges in Ajloun (such as poverty and unemployment) into practical and viable job-creating projects.

7. Ambitious Local Success Models:
   Ajloun Governorate can become a national model for sustainable education by leveraging its comparative advantages. For example, specialized vocational schools can be developed in fields such as eco-tourism and organic farming (aligned with the Ajloun Nature Reserve), in partnership with the private sector, to ensure that Ajloun’s graduates are qualified to work directly in the governorate’s developmental projects.

   
   

   The voice of youth—and mine, Abdulrahman Al-Samadi from Ajloun—is a voice calling for radical reform that goes beyond mere patchwork solutions. We believe that investing in the youth of Ajloun and their education is the best investment in Jordan’s human capital, and the only path to building bridges of trust between citizens and decision-makers, as well as creating a fairer and more prosperous future for all of Jordan.