Egypt is known for its educational influence over other civilizations and countries. As one of the earliest creators of systems of literacy, mathematics, astronomy, engineering, and science, Egyptians led much of the world in acquiring and applying their knowledge throughout their 5,500 years of recorded history. Egyptian education figured prominently in the formation and spread of Jewish, Christian, and Muslim religions. Modern Egypt is the most populous Arab state and has continued to lead the region in education, literature, music, architecture, cinema, radio, and television. There are few middle Eastern political issues—from the War on Terrorism to the Palestinian Israeli conflict—that can be discussed without involving the impact of Egyptian education and its leadership.

Contemporary Egypt and its connections to antiquity are not always well understood. Educational Roots of Political Crisis in Egypt explores Egypt's political, economic, social, and cultural leadership from the remarkable civilization of the past to the unique socialistic/capitalistic educational conglomerate of today. Cochran details the outcomes of over thirty years of enormous foreign aid allocated to education, particularly from the World Bank and the United States, in never before documented descriptions. Foreign and Egyptian development of education enables readers familiar with some aspects of politics of the Middle East to make predictions about the future.