(2008). Back to School in Afghanistan: Determinants of School Enrollment. International Journal of Educational Development, v28 n4 p419-434 Jul. One of the first achievements of post-conflict Afghanistan was to bring almost 4 million children back to school. Issues remain daunting, however, with low primary enrollment especially for girls and in rural areas and very weak learning achievements. We review some key features of the education system in Afghanistan. By matching household and school data, we assess the impact of various factors on enrollment. Overall, the analysis indicates that further increasing supply alone is unlikely to lead to higher enrollment. The analysis confirms the importance of demand factors such as the education of parents, the family language, and other community and ethnic factors…. [Direct]
(2011). Community Engagement in Local History: A Report on the Hemel at War Project. Teaching History, n145 p4-12 Dec. This article, by Lynda Abbott and Richard Grayson, offers a fascinating example of collaboration between school and university, focused on the development of a community archive. The project–run as an extra-curricular activity–was originally inspired by a concern to preserve the personal stories of those whose lives were affected by the Second World War. As students have gained experience in researching local stories, developing interviewing skills and learning how to locate and interrogate different kinds of archival material, so their range has expanded, drawing in the experiences of combatants and non-combatants in conflicts ranging from the Boer War to recent missions in Afghanistan and Iraq. The article reveals the wide range of ways in which different participants have benefited from the construction, collection and dissemination of these personal narratives. (Contains 7 figures.)… [Direct]
(2011). Army Strong, Superintendent Savvy. District Administration, v47 n5 p71-74, 76-77 May. Brigadier General Anthony "Tony" Tata of the U.S. Army had one of those "ah-ha" moments in April 2006 when, on the eve of an operation he was heading in Afghanistan, an Al Qaeda rocket shattered a nearby school. The attack killed a teacher and seven students and wounded dozens more. The rocket incident eventually nudged Tata toward a new mission: improving public education in America. After retiring from the military in 2009, Tata became the chief operating officer of the District of Columbia Public Schools. A year and a half later, in December 2010, his reputation as a direct communicator and level-headed leader earned him the top job at the nation's 18th-largest district, the Wake County (North Carolina) Public School System…. [Direct]
(2007). Meeting EFA: Afghanistan Community Schools. Academy for Educational Development From 1979 to 2002, Afghanistan was in a near constant state of war and exhibited some of the lowest levels of development in the world. While local conflicts and Taliban remnants continue to challenge Afghanistan's reconstruction and stabilization, significant progress has been made since the 2001 U.S. led invasion and subsequent fall of the Taliban. Since the mid-1990s, a small number of nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) have promoted community and home-based schools as approaches to expanding access to primary education, despite Afghanistan's challenging and ever-changing political landscape. CARE Afghanistan launched its first small pilot education access program in Khost province in 1994. The initiative has evolved into the Community Organized Primary Education (COPE) program and now operates in nine provinces. This EQUIP2 Case Study examines the model and outcomes of the COPE program as well as the institutional and cultural context of the areas in which COPE schools operate…. [PDF]
(2009). Cross-Cultural Psychiatry in the Field: Collaborating with Anthropology. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, v48 n9 p873 Sep. Psychiatric and anthropological collaborations have produced robust literatures on varied topics but there are challenges in the working relation between these two fields. A research into how cultures deal with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorders in Afghanistan is discussed to highlight the challenges in the working relations between psychiatrists and anthropologists…. [Direct]
(2010). Warriors to Workers. Training, v47 n5 p14-18 Sep-Oct. Pentagon data reveals that more than 1.6 million military personnel have been deployed to the Middle East since the war in Afghanistan began in late 2001. But when they return home, these veterans face an extraordinary high unemployment rate. This article describes the transitional and technical training provided by two nonprofit groups (the Wounded Warrior Project and the United Association of Plumbers, Pipefitters and Sprinklerfitters (UA) Veterans In Piping (VIP) Program) to returning veterans and the career opportunities and mentors offered by companies such as AlliedBarton…. [Direct]
(2008). Education for Demilitarizing Youth in Post-Conflict Afghanistan. Research in Comparative and International Education, v3 n1 p65-78. This article examines both the largely negative role that education has played historically in contributing to conflict in Afghanistan and the ways that education has been purposefully employed as a post-conflict strategy aimed at building peace and social cohesion. The growing attention among academics and policy makers to the role of youth in post-conflict contexts, and the urgent need to reintegrate ex-combatants has led to the implementation of educational programming directed at Afghan youth as a central part of the country's Demobilization, Demilitarization, Reintegration (DDR) effort. Drawing on the author's field research and experience working on literacy programming for youth and adults in Afghanistan, this article investigates how the unfulfilled aspirations and needs of a "lost generation" of young Afghans have been addressed within DDR processes. It argues that the adoption of a more dialectic approach to the educational programming provided through DDR–one… [Direct]
(2011). Family Reintegration Difficulties and Couples Therapy for Military Veterans and Their Spouses. Cognitive and Behavioral Practice, v18 n1 p108-119 Feb. There is compelling evidence that mental health problems complicate the process of family reintegration of military service members after a wartime deployment. Couples in which one spouse has recently returned from military deployment in Iraq or Afghanistan and are experiencing marital problems can present a significant treatment challenge. There is little empirical evidence regarding effective treatments for this population, and these couples tend to exhibit a wide range of difficulties, including the following: conflicts about reintegration, problems with posttraumatic stress disorder and/or depression, chronic injury, infidelity, and personal and social challenges associated with rejoining civilian life. Behavioral couples therapy provides a useful framework for intervention with these couples, combined with individual treatment and education about the impact of combat deployment. This paper discusses considerations for integrating these treatment approaches and future clinical… [Direct]
(2011). Problems Related to Alcohol, Other Drugs, and Violence among Military Students. Prevention Update. Higher Education Center for Alcohol, Drug Abuse, and Violence Prevention According to a Research Update from the National Institute on Drug Abuse, ongoing operations in Iraq and Afghanistan \continue to strain military personnel, returning veterans, and their families. Some have experienced long and multiple deployments, combat exposure, and physical injuries, as well as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and traumatic brain injury (TBI)… Although less common, substance abuse is also a key concern. While the 2008 Department of Defense Health Behavior Survey reveals general reductions over time in tobacco use and illicit drug use, it reported increases in other areas, such as prescription drug abuse and heavy alcohol use. In fact, prescription drug abuse doubled among U.S. military personnel from 2002 to 2005 and almost tripled between 2005 and 2008. This paper presents data on problems related to alcohol, other drugs, and violence among military students…. [PDF]
(2012). Debates in the Literature on Islamic Schools. Educational Studies: Journal of the American Educational Studies Association, v48 n2 p156-173. Contemporary global events, such as the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the unresolved conflict in the Middle East, and the pessimistic relationships with Muslim countries, pose challenges for Muslims living in the United States in all walks of life. In addition, Muslims encounter daily struggles to live within a society that follows considerably dissimilar beliefs, norms, and way of life. Therefore, Islamic schools and other organizations emerged in response to those challenges. There are several debates in the literature about Islamic schools; among those debates is whether Islamic schools segregate Muslim students, inspire religious intolerance, and rejection of social pluralism's ideals. In addition, there are debates of whether Islamic schools are capable of developing a strong Muslim identity skilled to tackle future challenges. Discussing these debates is considered the first step to critically tackling the challenges meeting Islamic schools, their relevance, and their… [Direct]
(2013). The Effectiveness of University Programs, Services, and Practices in Retaining Student Veterans Transitioning to Higher Education: Voices of Student Veterans–A Case Study Analysis Approach at Two Universities. ProQuest LLC, Ed.D. Dissertation, California State University, Los Angeles. With an active war ongoing for nearly thirteen years, the nation has been experiencing hundreds of thousands of returning solders as a result of the military drawdown of troops from Iraq and Afghanistan. The intent of this research study was to understand the effectiveness of university programs, services, and practices in retaining student veterans transitioning to higher education. This qualitative case study analysis approach was informed by persistence theories in order to analyze and understand the challenges, obstacles, and experiences of student veterans attending two universities and to hear the persistence stories or voices of student veterans as they transition to institutions of higher education. This study interviewed 20 presumptively selected participants who were student veterans enrolled at two universities in California. Data collection methods for this study included face-to-face individual interviews, focus group discussions, field notes, and text-based documents…. [Direct]
(2012). Developing a New Transition Course for Military Service Members in Higher Education. College and University, v87 n4 p33-36 Spr. As a result of President Obama's drawdown of military troops in Afghanistan and Iraq, many service members will be returning to the United States. With service members returning to civilian life and to campuses, the relevance to a changing education environment is enormous both for this population and for today's higher education institutions. Some institutions have determined that a transition course is needed to support service members during their anticipated influx into higher education. A transition course provides opportunity for military service members to develop the skills required for success in the classroom, to include meeting academic responsibilities and coping with the transition from military to college life. A transition course using the technological process is one recommendation for meeting the need to help service members succeed academically and become fully acclimated to the campus environment. In developing a new transition course, administrators and teachers… [Direct]
(2013). Experiences and Expectations of an African American Male Veteran Student in Higher Education. ProQuest LLC, Ed.D. Dissertation, East Tennessee State University. Since the Post-9/11 GI Bill an increasing number of veterans and military students are seeking to complete degrees online and through enrollment at campuses across the nation (Brown 2011). The increased number of military students in postsecondary education settings presents challenges and opportunities for both the veteran student and institution of higher education. Military students also referred to as veteran students are choosing to pursue postsecondary education for occupational and employment opportunities, personal growth and enrichment, and to use their Post-9/11 GI education benefits. It is expected that military personnel with past military service in Afghanistan and Iraq will become a growing student population enrolled in U.S. postsecondary education. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the experiences and expectations of an African American male veteran student at an institution of higher education. This qualitative research study included an in-depth interview… [Direct]
(2012). Aspects of Education for Democratic Citizenship in Post-War Germany. Oxford Review of Education, v38 n5 p567-581. Interest in post-crisis education and concomitantly in education for democracy and citizenship, manifest in a large number of recent initiatives and publications, provides an opportunity to revisit the period of occupation in Germany after the Second World War, when there was concern–at least in the Western Zones–to create an awareness of the citizen's duty to participate in the democratic processes on which a future state could be built and to oversee educational development in such a way as to encourage those processes. That interest has been reinforced through consideration of the consequences of military intervention in Afghanistan and Iraq. The necessity to plan for what needed to be done–in education as well as in other fields–in the post-conflict conditions in those countries was clearly not given the attention it deserved by the eventual victors, and any lessons of history, it seems, were barely considered. Occupied Germany provides an instructive example. This paper… [Direct]
(2008). Teacher Training in Afghanistan: Intersections of Need and Reality. Convergence, v41 n2-3 p27-40. As post-Taliban Afghanistan moves toward the establishment of a viable educational system, key stakeholders and donors are faced with the formidable challenge of how to most rapidly implement teacher training within an environment of diverse, changing, and largely unassessed training needs. The current article explores the dilemmas inherent in establishing a national teacher training programme which precedes comprehensive monitoring, evaluation, and needs assessment, as well as the pressing arguments in favour of such action. Utilising data from a pilot teacher training programme which took place in two provinces of northern Afghanistan in 2006 and 2007, this article examines the direct responses of local teachers to the training programme; describes the problematic gap which they described between theoretical objectives and practical application; and discusses the vital relevance of creating a training programme which sufficiently bridges this educational gap. (Contains 1 note.)…