Should women be educated in Islam?
The first word to be revealed in the Quraan was 'IQRA' which means read.This was the first order given to Muslims.
The Qur'an and Hadiths of the Prophet both obligate Muslim men and women to acquire knowledge and education. It is a duty for every Muslim.
One of the brightest example of this is Aishaa(r.a.).Many of the Hadis followed by Muslims today are narrated on her authority & she is one of the brightest female scholars that Muslims have had.
The Quraan on the contrary says that being uneducated & not having knowledge is not advisable at all.
"Are those equal, those who know and those who do not know? "(39:9)
The Quraan states,those who are rich in knowledge are the most who fear Allah Almighty, through glorifying Him, appreciating Him and Respecting His Mighty Power, for they would have more knowledge about Him than those who don't know.
"Those truly fear God, among His Servants, who have knowledge: for God is Exalted in Might, Oft-Forgiving."(35:28)
Education in the lowest section of society is promoted too
In Arabia the slaves were of the lowest social order.The Prophet(pbuh) promoted education of the female slave too,which can be made clear from the following hadis:
SAHIH BUKHARI, Volume 3, Book 46, Number 723
Narrated Abu Musa Al-Ashari:The Prophet said, 'He who has a slave-girl and teaches her good manners and improves her education and then manumits and marries her, will get a double reward; and any slave who observes Allah's right and his master's right will get a double reward.'
This Saying of our beloved Prophet (pbuh) came when he was gradually eliminating slavery among Muslims. I wonder if women are prohibited to be educated in Islam, then how is the above Saying of our beloved Prophet supposed to NOT contradict that?! It is clear that the right for education in Islam sees no gender discrimination between men and women.
Benifits of gaining knowledge
SUNAN ABU DAUD,Book 25, Number 3634
Narrated AbudDarda': "Kathir ibn Qays said:I heard the Apostle of Allah (pbuh) say:If anyone travels on a road in search of knowledge, Allah will cause him to travel on one of the roads of Paradise."
Right use of knowledge for both men & women
As we know that the Quraan shows its signs by even scientific facts,knowing & understanding these scientific facts also call for deep rooted education.So this knowledge should not be used for only worldly purposes.
SUNAN ABU DAUD,Book 25, Number 3656
Narrated AbuHurayrah: "The Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) said: If anyone acquires knowledge of things by which Allah's good pleasure is sought, but acquires it only to get some worldly advantage, he will not experience the arf(the odour, of Paradise)."
NOTE:Please know that the only country or group of Muslim extremists that ban women from education are the "Taliban" group in Afghanistan. The rest of the 1.4 Billion Muslim populations don't have any laws that prohibit women to be educated or seek the highest academic degrees they desire.The media showing the taliban as representatives of Islam wrongly say that Islam prohibits education to women.