(2015). Financing Education: Opportunities for Global Action. Center for Universal Education at The Brookings Institution It is hoped that this year will be marked in history as the year when the world agreed on an ambitious global plan to eradicate poverty and ensure that all children have access to a high-quality basic education. This report focuses on how a subset of the targets related to basic education–that is, that all children should complete high-quality pre-primary, primary and lower secondary education–can be financed. It reviews the financing efforts for the education sector in developing countries during the past decade and assesses what will be required in the coming years to reach the basic education goals by 2030. The authors draw on variety of data sources as well as five country case studies–for Afghanistan, Lebanon, Malawi, Nigeria and Pakistan. Based on their findings, they conclude with four opportunities for global action. Three annexes are included: (1) Projected Total Annual Cost, Domestic Public Spending and Aid for Basic Education in 2020, per Child, constant 2012 dollars;… [PDF]
(2012). Issues and Importance of "Good" Starting Points for Nonlinear Regression for Mathematical Modeling with Maple: Basic Model Fitting to Make Predictions with Oscillating Data. Journal of Computers in Mathematics and Science Teaching, v31 n1 p1-16 Jan. The purpose of our modeling effort is to predict future outcomes. We assume the data collected are both accurate and relatively precise. For our oscillating data, we examined several mathematical modeling forms for predictions. We also examined both ignoring the oscillations as an important feature and including the oscillations as an important element. Our goal was a class project to model casualties in Afghanistan in an effort to support or refute Gen(Ret) McCaffrey's statement that casualties in Afghanistan would double in 2010. The casualty data set is more complex so we began analyzing a simpler data set we found concerning carbon dioxide levels as part of a lab exercise. We used regression packages in Maple using the Fit command as well as we wrote a program to calculate parameter estimates for nonlinear regression using the Levenberg-Marquardt algorithm. The Fit programs produced results that were not useful unless we included "good" initial parameter estimates. Some… [Direct]
(2013). Informing Education Policy in Afghanistan: Using Design of Experiments and Data Envelopment Analysis to Provide Transparency in Complex Simulation. ProQuest LLC, Ph.D. Dissertation, New Mexico State University. Education planning provides the policy maker and the decision maker a logical framework in which to develop and implement education policy. At the international level, education planning is often confounded by both internal and external complexities, making the development of education policy difficult. This research presents a discrete event simulation in which individual students and teachers flow through the system across a variable time horizon. This simulation is then used with advancements in design of experiments, multivariate statistical analysis, and data envelopment analysis, to provide a methodology designed to assist the international education planning community. We propose that this methodology will provide the education planner with insights into the complexity of the education system, the effects of both endogenous and exogenous factors upon the system, and the implications of policies as they pertain to potential futures of the system. We do this recognizing that… [Direct]
(2012). Eyeless in America, the Sequel: Hollywood and Indiewood's Iraq War on Film. Bulletin of Science, Technology & Society, v32 n4 p317-330 Aug. This article builds on conclusions drawn in the article "Eyeless in America," by the same author and considers how 50 American films about the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan intended to function as what Jacques Ellul called "integration propaganda" fared. This article considers and rejects a number of theories about why most feature war films failed between 2002 and 2012 and proposes what war films might look like in the near future. (Contains 1 figure and 3 notes.)… [Direct]
(2014). Health Services Management Education On-Site at a Military Medical Center. Journal of College Teaching & Learning, v11 n2 p53-58. A cooperative educational program with the U.S. military is described to illustrate a unique opportunity that confronted a graduate healthcare management program. The resulting degree program supported the military's operational medical mission but also presented interesting and unexpected challenges resulting from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Pressure to provide cost-effective services has been mounting for many years. Civilian and military cooperative ventures can be highly successful. The program addressed the need for enhanced managerial skills. Program content focused on traditional business and healthcare content with applications tailored to military settings. While instruction was provided primarily by civilian faculty, active duty military instructors were also incorporated into specific course content areas. Program pricing and marketing were critical to success. Technical course delivery issues raised additional challenges due to work obligations and deployments…. [Direct]
(2014). When Service Members with Traumatic Brain Injury Become Students: Methods to Advance Learning. Adult Learning, v25 n1 p11-19 Feb. The purpose of this paper is to explain which evidence-based interventions in study strategies have been successful in helping soldiers and veterans with traumatic brain injury (TBI) return to the classroom. Military leaders have specifically identified TBI as one of the signature injuries of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq with over a quarter of a million service members diagnosed with a TBI from 2000 to 2012. From the perspective of developmental education practitioners, this narrative examination reviews available research and government documentation to offer an understanding of TBI, effects of TBI on learning, and recommended approaches to provide these students the most beneficial learning experiences. The incorporation of effective learning strategies and appropriate instructional methods are critical in maximizing the learning outcomes of students with this kind of injury. Despite the attention that must be paid to each individual case, it may be beneficial to incorporate… [Direct]
(2011). Mental Health and Childhood Adversities: A Longitudinal Study in Kabul, Afghanistan. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, v50 n4 p349-363 Apr. Objective: To identify prospective predictors of mental health in Kabul, Afghanistan. Method: Using stratified random-sampling in schools, mental health and life events for 11- to 16-year-old students and their caregivers were assessed. In 2007, 1 year after baseline, the retention rate was 64% (n = 115 boys, 119 girls, 234 adults) with no evidence of selection bias. Self- and caregiver-rated child mental health (Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire), depressive (Depression Self-Rating Scale), and posttraumatic stress (Child Revised Impact of Events Scale) symptoms and caregiver mental health (Self-Report Questionnaire) were assessed. Lifetime trauma and past-year traumatic, stressful, and protective experiences were assessed. Results: With the exception of posttraumatic stress, one-year trajectories for all mental health outcomes showed significant improvement (p less than 0.001). Family violence had a striking impact on the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire data, raising… [Direct]
(2011). War and Sacrifice in the Post-9/11 Era. The Military-Civilian Gap. Pew Research Center As the United States marks the 10th anniversary of the longest period of sustained warfare in its history, the overwhelming majority of veterans of the post-9/11 era are proud of their military service. At the same time, many report that they have had difficulties readjusting to civilian life, and have suffered from post-traumatic stress. While veterans are more supportive of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq than the general public, just one-third say that both been worth fighting. This report is based on two surveys conducted by the Pew Research Center: one of the nation's military veterans and one of the general public. A total of 1,853 veterans were surveyed, including 712 who served in the military after the attacks of September 11, 2001. The general public survey was conducted among 2,003 adult respondents. Three appendices are included: (1) Survey Methodology; (2) Topline Questionnaires; and (3) Supplemental Table on Views on Wars in Afghanistan, Iraq…. [PDF]
(2011). Education of Hazara Girls in a Diaspora: Education as Empowerment and an Agent of Change. Research in Comparative and International Education, v6 n1 p79-89. Afghanistan is a country which has experienced years of conflict and war. This unrest has forced large numbers of Afghans into diasporas, Hazaras comprising one of these groups. Hazaras have mainly fled from rural Hazarajat to more urban areas in Pakistan. Marginalization of Hazaras in general and girls in particular, both in Afghanistan and Pakistan, restricts their ability to, for example, access education and challenge traditional gender roles. However, in the authors' view, the change of locality is but one factor that has altered what kind of marginalization they experience, changing, among other things, the sentiments toward girls' education, as well as their access to schools. In analysing interviews conducted with Hazara parents, teachers and female students in Pakistan, the authors argue that this situation in a diaspora has made girls' education more accessible, and can be seen as an agent of change for both individuals and the Hazaras as a group. (Contains 1 note.)… [Direct]
(2014). Conflict, Reconciliation and Peace Education: Moving Burundi toward a Sustainable Future. Routledge Research in International and Comparative Education. Routledge Research in International and Comparative Education When the September 11, 2001 attacks in the United States occurred–causing that nation to wage wars of revenge in Afghanistan and Iraq–the people of Burundi were recovering from nearly forty years of violence, genocide and civil wars that had killed nearly one million and produced another million refugees. Here in this small East African nation, one of the four poorest nations on earth, however, was a desire for reconciliation–not revenge–and it still runs deep today. The University of Ngozi in northern Burundi was created in 1999 and is now dedicated to peace, reconciliation and sustainable development. People in this region tell remarkable stories of tragedy and recovery amid these horrors. Their stories can inspire others to preserve their humanity and resist the urge to continue the violence, focusing instead on forgiveness, reconciliation and a better way forward. This volume presents case study analysis while pointing to the promise of a new kind of education that is… [Direct]
(2016). An Autobiographical Narrative towards Critical Practitioner Inquiry and a Counter Hegemonic Southern Network. Journal for Critical Education Policy Studies, v14 n1 p102-126 Mar. This paper is an autobiographical narrative to demonstrate how educational practices and ideas travel through time. It demonstrates how pedagogy based on solidarity and counter hegemonic ideas combined with scholastic perspectives build coherent practices in different social contexts. The work as a teacher, teacher educator, and researcher in Sweden created an experiential and scholastic foundation for a critical pedagogical perspective that was further developed in the global South. The colonial spectres are still haunting the capitalist development paradigm as a cure against poverty and so called backwardness. Furthermore, the time when education was seen as an emancipatory activity has now been replaced by the entrepreneurial saints of individualism and marketizations. In spite of the present hegemonic perspectives there is room for counter hegemonic thinking and pedagogical practices struggling for a re-emancipatory and re-enlightening vision of pedagogy. Critical Practitioner… [Direct]
(2011). The Comprehensive Soldier Fitness Program: Family Skills Component. American Psychologist, v66 n1 p52-57 Jan. Field combat stress clinics and research have identified the signature event that precedes thoughts of suicide and homicide in combat soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan: a distressing personal relationship event with a stateside partner. In response to this alarming information, we have identified critical factors and precipitating incidents as well as critical social skills that form the basis for changing communication between soldiers and their stateside partners. A pilot program is described that proved effective with small groups of soldiers who were led by a male-female professional team and given structured reading and social skills training exercises based on Gottman and Silver's (1999) book "The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work." Recommendations for future training are made based upon our assessment of the family issues facing the combat soldier in Iraq and Afghanistan. In conclusion, we describe the family fitness interventions and program elements of the… [Direct]
(2012). Speaking Personally–With Paul Avon. American Journal of Distance Education, v26 n4 p260-265. This article presents an interview with Paul Avon, the former executive director of the Canadian Virtual College Consortium. Avon has spent over fifteen years in the distance learning (DL) field managing the production and delivery of online learning at TVOntario, Humber College, the Sri Lankan National Online Distance Education Service, and the American University of Afghanistan. Avon is now living in Sri Lanka and working on commercial online projects. In the interview, Avon shares his experience and insights on distance education. He describes the scope and focus of the consortium that he coordinates, and how long it has been in operation…. [Direct]
(2009). Curriculum and Civil Society in Afghanistan. Harvard Educational Review, v79 n1 p113-122 Spr. Although research has traditionally discussed the ways in which societies in conflict develop educational practices, only recently have scholars begun to examine the role of education in creating or sustaining conflict. In Afghanistan, changing regimes have had an impact on state-sanctioned curricula over the past fifty years, drastically altering the purpose and ideology of education. In this article, Adele Jones traces the changing nature of Afghan curricula since the 1960s, highlighting the conflict surrounding curricula during the Soviet regime. She posits that resistance to state-sanctioned curricula was seen as resistance to the state regime, often putting schools at the center of conflict. This continues today, as Taliban groups resist the Western-influenced curricula of modern Afghanistan. Jones argues that understanding this cycle of resistance is critical for Western agencies aiming to support educational efforts in the country. (Contains 5 notes.)… [Direct]
(2012). Eyeless in America: Hollywood and Indiewood's Iraq War on Film. Bulletin of Science, Technology & Society, v32 n4 p294-316 Aug. This article examines 50 films produced and released between the years 2001 and 2012 that are concerned with the American wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Using Jacques Ellul's theories set out in his book "Propaganda," the article argues that while the films have failed at the box office, they were intended to function as integration propaganda. The article proposes six different tropes or common frames for understanding how the films avoid dealing with problems raised by the wars. Why the films failed, and what functioned as integration propaganda instead, is the subject for a second article titled "Eyeless in America, the Sequel." (Contains 12 notes.)… [Direct]