In all eight predominantly Muslim nations surveyed in 2009 a strong majority say it is equally important to educate girls and boys. This opinion is shared by more than eight-in-ten in Lebanon (96%), Indonesia (93%), Turkey (89%), Pakistan (87%) and the Palestinian territories (85%). Very few in any of these countries say education is more important for either boys or girls. In Egypt (16%) and Jordan (19%) a considerable number say it is more important to educate boys, but in both countries (12% in Egypt and 15% in Jordan) comparable percentages say it is more important to educate girls. Only among Nigerian Muslims do far more say it is more important to educate boys (29%) than say it is more important to educate girls (2%); still a majority (68%) says girls and boys should be educated equally. Egalitarian views are somewhat more widespread than in 2007 in Pakistan (+13 percentage points) and the Palestinian territories (+11 points). Read More

Russell Heimlich  is a former web developer at Pew Research Center.