(2023). Find It on a Map: Country Location Identification in a University Geography Classroom, 2016-2022. Journal of Geography, v122 n5 p105-114. Blank paper maps are often used to assess student location knowledge. A total of 502 students enrolled in 12 undergraduate World Geography classes between 2016 and 2022 were initially asked to find some of the following countries on a blank world map: Afghanistan, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Iran, Iraq, Japan, Mexico, Nigeria, North Korea, Russia, Syria, Ukraine, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Venezuela. Comparing student cohorts, results were generally mediocre and consistent over time, yet changes in identification accuracy appear with the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic and in times of intense US media coverage of a country…. [Direct]
(2024). Principals' Transformational Leadership and Teachers' Emotional Intelligence: A Cross-Sectional Study of Takhar High Schools, Afghanistan. Leadership and Policy in Schools, v23 n3 p550-565. This study explored the relationship between principals' transformational leadership and teachers' emotional intelligence. The authors collected data from 395 teachers at Takhar high schools and statistically analyzed them using SPSS. The study found that there was a statistically significant positive correlation between principals' transformational leadership and teachers' emotional intelligence. It also revealed that there were statistically significant differences in teachers' level of emotional intelligence by their demographic factors: gender, education, work experience, and school location. The finding of the study will lead to the improvement of policies to advance principals' transformational leadership and teachers' emotional intelligence…. [Direct]
(2022). Voices of Afghan Women: Motivations, Challenges, and Resources of Refugees Pursuing Community College Education. ProQuest LLC, Ed.D. Dissertation, California State University, Stanislaus. The purpose of this study was to understand the experiences of Afghan women refugees in community colleges. Using Yosso's (2005) community cultural wealth theory, the study explored Afghan women's motivation for attending college, the experiences that brought them to the college, the challenges they experienced while navigating the institution, and the resources that helped them persist. Qualitative research with a narrative approach was conducted with four Afghan women who came to the United States as refugees. Participants' narratives revealed their deeply held belief in education with its origins in the women's families, culture, community, lived experiences in Afghanistan, and a motivation to earn a degree. Findings revealed the challenges the participants experienced in Afghanistan prior to immigrating and in the US while settling in as newly arrived refugees. Analysis of the narratives also revealed the resources, including their families, community, and the college, that play… [Direct]
(2018). An Analysis of Cultural and Psycho-Social Problems Experienced by Students of Afghanistan Citizenship Studying in Turkey. Universal Journal of Educational Research, v6 n5 p928-935. The purpose of this study is to determine the cultural and psycho-social problems experienced by students of Afghanistan citizenship studying at different faculties of a university in Turkey. With this purpose, human affairs were examined under the titles of accommodation and food, clothing, psychological and social affairs. The sample of the study consisted of 10 students of Afghanistan citizenship studying at Usak University in the academic year of 2015-2016. The data collection tool of the study was a semi-structured interview form. The questions were determined by the researcher by receiving expert opinion. The method of descriptive analysis was used to analyze the data. As a result of the study, it was found that most of the students with Afghanistan citizenship did not experience significant problems in terms of communication and social issues; however, they experienced issues in terms of accommodation, food, clothing and psychological affairs…. [PDF]
(2020). Higher Education Institution Partnership to Strengthen the Health Care Workforce in Afghanistan. International Journal of Higher Education, v9 n2 p95-106. Despite ongoing insecurity, Afghanistan has demonstrated improvement in health outcomes. Reasons for this success include a strategic public-private health service delivery model and investment in Afghan health care workforce development. Afghan universities have the primary responsibility for ensuring that an adequate health care workforce is available to private and public health care delivery settings. Most entry-level health care providers working in Afghanistan are educated within the country. However, university constraints, including faculty shortages and limited access to professional development, have affected both the flow of the health care workforce pipeline and the skill levels and competencies of those who do enter the workforce. Aware of these constraints and workforce needs, the administration at Kabul University of Medical Sciences (KUMS), working in collaboration with the Ministry of Higher Education, prioritized investment in strengthening technical and academic… [PDF]
(2020). Creativity in Higher Education; A Way to Achieve Sustainable Development in Afghanistan. Shanlax International Journal of Education, v9 n1 p51-55 Dec. In the new age and the conflict of competition between societies, the superiority of countries depends on the extent to which they benefit from modern science and knowledge, and ultimately the scientific effort and technology that generates creative and efficient human resources as the main factor Finding development. Higher education represents an important type of investment in human resources and contributes to sustainable development by providing and promoting the knowledge, skills and attitudes needed by learners. Higher education promotes knowledge and new research and scientific advances. And this new knowledge owes much to human creative thinking. Therefore, creativity is one of the most important and pervasive human activities. Higher education as a manifestation of the culture of any society has a great role in the dynamism and creativity of learners. Looking at the events of the last hundred years in Afghanistan, we will know that what should have been considered in the… [PDF]
(2021). Feedback Loops in Teacher Professional Development: A Qualitative Study in Herat Province of Afghanistan. Cogent Education, v8 n1 Article 1954466. The purpose of this qualitative study was to understand how feedback loops function within the Ministry of Education (MoE) Provincial Education Directorate (PED) in Herat province of Afghanistan, how the MoE/PED collects, analyzes, and uses feedback for improving its policies and programs, and responds to the issues and barriers identified at the school levels. To narrow down the research, it investigated the feedback loops around teacher professional development (TPD). We used semi-structured interviews and document analysis to collect data. The participants were 34 individuals selected purposefully from six schools, one CBE, and Herat educational offices. We used thematic analysis methods for analyzing the data. The findings indicate that the MoE/PED did not collect regular or quality feedback about TPD activities, usually offered as teacher training workshops, from this study participants. Besides, we did not find any evidence that the MoE/PED has used the rarely collected… [Direct]
(2022). Let Us Learn: Making Education Work for the Most Vulnerable in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Liberia, Madagascar and Nepal. UNICEF Office of Research – Innocenti Learning remains largely out of reach for many of the most vulnerable children around the world. In low- and middle-income countries, an estimated 56% of children cannot read a simple text by the age of 10. This share is projected to rise to 70% after the pandemic. The school closures imposed by the COVID-19 outbreak, coupled with an enduring tendency in low-income countries to allocate a limited share of the national education budget to the most vulnerable, are further widening inequalities in the global learning crisis landscape. The Let Us Learn (LUL) initiative implements innovative education programmes to improve learning for the most vulnerable children in five countries with high levels of out-of-school children: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Liberia, Madagascar and Nepal. This report documents the outcomes, lessons learned and recommendations based on the experience of the initiative across four types of learning programmes spanning the education lifecycle: (1) pre-primary… [PDF]
(2022). Critical Realism and Education Policy Analysis in Conflicts and Crises: Towards Conceptual Methodologies. Compare: A Journal of Comparative and International Education, v52 n6 p998-1014. This paper considers the utility of critical realism as an ontological foundation for the analysis of education policy in emergencies. By exploring the synergy between critical realism and a method to analyse policy known as Critical Policy Analysis, the paper argues for the use of "conceptual" analytical tools when examining education policy in conflict-affected contexts. It illustrates the value of theory-informed analysis by reflecting on a recent study of Afghanistan's higher education strategic planning, and advocates for critical engagement with broader cultural, political, and economic factors in the analysis of education policies during conflicts and crises…. [Direct]
(2022). Does Literacy Benefit Internally Displaced and Returnee Women and Children?. Education Economics, v30 n5 p465-480. In this study we evaluate the impact of a literacy program for internally displaced female refugees in Afghanistan. The results of the evaluation show that the program was beneficial both for the women who received it and for their children, as participants were 50% points more likely to be able to read and write and 19% points more likely to work. The program also had positive effects on their children who were 2.6% points more likely to be enrolled in secondary school. Overall, the evaluation results suggest that adult literacy programs may mitigate intergenerational poverty traps…. [Direct]
(2021). The Role of Education in Combating Violent Extremism in Developing Countries with an Emphasis on Afghanistan. Shanlax International Journal of Education, v9 n3 p273-287 Jun. Education as a pervasive process has affected all aspects of individual and group life, and today, almost all those seeking development and reform start from all over the world. Preventing radicalization and violent extremism is one of the most controversial issues in the world in this century. In addition, it was found that some extremist groups are recruiting in educational settings. These findings led to a new approach to the education sector as a prominent partner in preventing and combating the radicalization of young people. Education faces many challenges in developing countries, including Afghanistan. With the change of world views, cultures and different beliefs of human beings, the goals of education have also changed and according to this, there is a direct relationship and coordination between society and education. The inefficiency of the education system in different sections of the society will have adverse effects and dangerous consequences, as can be seen from the… [PDF]
(2021). Investigating the Challenges and Factors Influencing the Use of the Learning Management System during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Afghanistan. Education and Information Technologies, v26 n5 p5165-5198 Sep. Successful implementation and use of learning management systems (LMSs) have become a critical challenge for many higher education institutes during the COVID-19 pandemic. Although LMSs with lots of features were developed for universities, the success of those systems is highly related to a detailed understanding of challenges and factors influencing the use of the systems among their users. HELMS (Higher Education Learning Management System) is a countrywide LMS used for teaching and learning during the quarantine period caused by covid-19 in Afghanistan universities. As it was the first experience of Afghan universities in using the learning management systems during the pandemic, challenges were expected to appear. No previous research has been conducted on either studying the challenges of using the HELMS or investigating the factors influencing the use of HELMS during the COVID-19 pandemic in Afghanistan. Hence, there was no unified view of the potential challenges of using… [Direct]
(2024). Reflecting the Voices of EFL Teachers in the World of Intelligent Computer-Assisted Language Assessment (ICALA): An Insight into Teacher Immunity, Reflective Teaching, Job Satisfaction, and L2-Teacher Grit. Language Testing in Asia, v14 Article 43. Artificial intelligence (AI) and Intelligent Computer-Assisted Language Assessment (ICALA) are transforming the educational landscape by radically changing how lessons are taught and students are evaluated. As the masterminds behind the curriculum, it is critical to consider the emotional and mental health of teachers who applied ICALA as part of their language instruction. To this end, this study's primary objective was to examine the connections between ICALA, teacher immunity, reflective teaching, job satisfaction, and l2-teacher grit. To achieve this goal, 221 English as a foreign language (EFL) university teachers from Afghanistan participated in the current research. The research outcomes identified and quantified the influences of teacher immunity and reflective teaching on job satisfaction and L2 teacher grit by data screening utilizing confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and structural equation modeling (SEM). According to the results, TI and RT are vital in implementing AI… [Direct]
(2018). Education in Afghanistan: A Historical Review and Diagnosis. College and University, v93 n2 p55-60 May. In Afghanistan, the education system from primary school to higher education has faced longstanding problems related to access, quality, limited resources, and equal opportunity. The nation is one of the most impoverished, ravaged, and beleaguered in the world. Since 2001 and the collapse of the Taliban, both the government and the international community have been exploring opportunities to reform the education system. However, despite billions of dollars having been spent on reforming curricula, training teachers, upgrading facilities, and procuring equipment and resources, their efforts have not been successful. This is because often, only current needs were addressed while the roots of the challenges were neglected. Identifying the major factors and understanding the changes the education system has undergone are integral to re-shaping its future. This article describes the different types of education that existed during different periods as well as the historical, political,… [PDF]
(2017). The Rise, Removal, and Return of Women: Gender Representations in Primary-Level Textbooks in Afghanistan, 1980-2010. Comparative Education, v53 n4 p578-599. Nearly four decades of instability and fragility have led to many changes in the status of women and girls in Afghanistan. Yet, little research focuses on these changes within the education system. To understand the country's stance toward gender issues in formal practice, we examine gender representations in Afghan primary-level Dari language arts textbooks. Using a qualitative content analysis and longitudinal data, we examine how ideologies about gender have been politicised in Afghanistan and are reflected in school textbooks from 1980 to 2010. Findings suggest that tumultuous political events and power struggles in the recent history of Afghanistan have led to many changes in how the daily social and working lives of Afghan women and girls have been portrayed in textbooks. As seen in the textbooks, it appears that efforts are being made within the current regime to balance competing gender norms. We conclude with suggestions for policy-makers…. [Direct]