Chalkboard has moved!
June 6th, 2008 by kristy
Update your bookmarks: http://chalkboard.tol.org
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TOL online course - improving coverage of education issues
April 28th, 2008 by kristy
TOL is searching for participants for an online course on covering education issues, developed in cooperation with the Guardian Foundation and BBC World Trust. The course is open to journalists from Central and Eastern Europe, Central Asia, and the Caucasus. Applicants should be covering education or have a strong interest in the topic. Application deadline: May 10, 2008
For more information or to apply, go to: http://training.tol.org
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New law goes into effect: new rectors appointed by President
April 24th, 2008 by kzblog
The new law “On Education” has been drafted and passed. It aims to modernize Kazakhstan’s education system and bring it in line with international standards. While the law did call for 12 year secondary schooling, in his Address to the People in February, President Nazarbayev stated that it was too soon and schools were not ready. Some provisions in the law are clear in their purpose of modernization–the transfer to a credit system as the US, the UK, and Europe have is already underway and technology is entering the classroom.
Other provisions of the bill seem to increase centralization and government interference, something not in line with modern systems of education. The bill calls for closing all branches of universities–so that only main campuses will exist. Furthermore universities will be rigorously evaluated and any universities not making the grade will be closed. These two provisions will have the effect of cutting the number of universities in the country by 50% especially outside Almaty and Astana where many universities are in effect branches of major universities.
Finally, rectors are to be appointed by the President directly, which he did for the first time on the 21st of April. The list of new rectors alone gives an idea of the severity of the situation: 8 public universities and institutes in a country of 16 000 000 000 people.
In meeting with the new rectors Nazarbayev emphasized that national universities get more money from the government and therefore must contribute more to the welfare of the country. He also noted that KIMEP (a joint public-private university), has a better rate of graduates with jobs than other universities. Finally he emphasized that corruption in education must be wiped out.
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Call for Papers: European Education
April 18th, 2008 by Cassandra Clifford
EUROPEAN EDUCATION: ISSUES AND STUDIES
(EDITORS: Iveta Silova & Alexander W. Wiseman, Lehigh University)
LOOKING BACK, LOOKING FORWARD:
Continuity and Change in Scholarship on European Education
INAUGURAL ISSUE
The inaugural issue, Looking Back, Looking Forward: Continuity and Change in Scholarship on European Education, will explore the changing contours of European education over the past century and probable directions for the next. In addition to contributions on current debates such as the impact of globalization on education, this inaugural issue will feature articles on broad trends that may shape the future scholarship on education in Europe both theoretically and methodologically. We are especially interested in insightful explorations of broad trends in the past and projections into the future. How has the scholarship and thinking on European education changed since the end of the Cold War? How have theoretical paradigms evolved in a new Europe? What are some of the emerging scholarly debates?
This double issue will investigate the changing face of education in Europe from comparative and international perspectives. We invite article submissions that address a wide variety of topics related to the changing scholarship on education in Europe, including culturally contextualized meanings of European education, European governance of school systems across nations of the Council of Europe, the relationships between globalization and the European dimension of education, current policy trends, European citizenship/identity, migration, philanthropy in education, and others. The intent is to have a combination of state-of-the-field reviews, theory-driven syntheses of current and emerging scholarship, and critical discussions of major policy topics around the inaugural issue’s theme. We expect that this inaugural issue will serve as a “launching pad” for further investigation of key issues related to education in Europe in future regular and specially themed issues of the journal. All manuscripts will be peer-reviewed.
Please submit article manuscripts to europeaneducation@gmail.com by July 1 2008. Manuscripts submitted for review must not have been published or be under consideration for publication elsewhere. All submitted papers must 1) be written in English, 2) include an abstract (limited to 200 words), 3) not exceed 8,000 words in length (notes and references included). See the European Education web site (http://europeaneducation.org/submission.htm) for instructions in preparing manuscripts. The editors will read all submissions and send out for blind, external review those manuscripts developed sufficiently to warrant such review. Please address any questions you may have about this inaugural issue to the European Education editors at europeaneducation@gmail.com.
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Freedom House - Corruption in Education
March 18th, 2008 by kristy
Freedom House’s “Countries at the Crossroads Governance Blog” discusses the hidden costs of education in post-Soviet countries in its latest post [it also references TOL’s education series!]. Check it out!
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English Language Center in Astana
February 24th, 2008 by kzblog
Thanks to English Advantage for writing on the Center for English Language in Astana.
As part of the government initiative to get people to learn English, the akimat of Astana has set up the Center with classrooms in many schools throughout the city.
The main office is on Abai Street, near the corner of Sara-Arka in Lycee 35 and classes are conducted in:
Schools 8, 15, 17, 25, 35, 49, 52 and 53.
Schoolchildren can attend lessons for 200 tenge an academic hour (45 minutes).
Adults pay 600 tenge.
So if you need to learn more English, check it out.
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Uzbekistan: Government can’t afford more A-students
February 18th, 2008 by kzblog
No, the issue isn’t grade inflation or cutting down on corruption.
The problem is that university students who get A’s (or 5’s by the Soviet system) for the year get a stipend from the government of 60 000 som ($45). So the more high-achieving students, the more money the government has to pay! The Ministry of Education has therefore ordered universities to cut down on the number of A grades that they give.
Apparently a professor in Tashkent was told to either reduce the number of A’s he gives or have himself and the student called in to pass an exam–presumably to prove the student really deserves the grade AND the professor is smart enough to recognize good students.
As the article suggests, there are a lot of problems in the Uzbekistan educational system from corruption to widespread cheating. It would seem the Ministry would have better things to do with its time than discourage students from achieving high grades. Or one obvious way to cut costs, if necessary, would be to make stipends need-based.
Read the full article on Registan.net
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Call for Academic Writing Instructors
February 13th, 2008 by kristy
CALL FOR ENGLISH ACADEMIC WRITING TEACHERS
FOR SUMMER SCHOOL IN ISTANBUL, TURKEY,
JULY & AUGUST 2008
The Open Society Institute (OSI) is currently recruiting instructors of academic writing in English to teach at the Network Scholarship Programs (NSP) 2008 Pre-Academic Summer Programs in Istanbul. There will be two summer schools held in 2008: the first from July 2-31, the second from August 1-30. Both will be identical in structure and instructors can apply to teach at one or both programs. Instructors will be expected to attend three days of preparation as a part of each school: July 2-4 for the first school, and August 1-3 for the second school.
The summer school is designed to prepare NSP scholarship finalists from the Balkans, the Former Soviet Union, the Middle East and Southeast Asia for graduate studies or faculty exchange programs in the UK or US. The curriculum is an integration of academic writing courses with intensive seminar-style social science courses.
Participants in the summer school take one academic writing course (2 hours a day, 4 days a week) and one social science course (1.5 hours a day , 4 days a week). Academic Writing instructors will work closely with Social Science instructors during the pre-program preparation to coordinate their course approach and writing/research assignments. Each course is expected to have no more than 12 students. The expected total number of students attending each summer school is approximately 85. Students attending the summer school will be entering graduate programs in a range of disciplines, including law, social work, public policy, political science, human rights, international economic theory, gender studies, sociology, and development studies.
The Open Society Institute is calling for experienced teachers of academic writing in English to submit a letter of interest, CV, and sample syllabus for an intensive 3.5 week course in academic writing. Please note that final syllabi and assignments will be worked out during the three day preparation in cooperation with the Social Science instructors. Preference will be given to individuals with significant experience teaching and/or studying in a western graduate program with experience living/teaching in the participants’ regions (Central Asia, the Caucasus, the Middle East, and South East Asia). Due to budgetary considerations, preference will also be given to those who are able to travel inexpensively and conveniently to Istanbul.
Academic Writing instructors will teach one course lasting 3.5 weeks for each summer school. The total number of classes will be 12 per school, with the three last days of the program set aside for instructors to grade projects and work closely with social science instructors on final student evaluations.
Teaching hours:Â Approximately 2 teaching hours per day for four-days a week per course, plus a required minimum of 2 hours a day for student consultations.
Additional responsibilities: Instructors will be called upon and are encouraged to assist with extra-curricular activities and special events during the course of the summer school. They will also be expected to conduct additional lectures or facilitate presentations that orient students to graduate studies in the UK and US.
Remuneration: Instructors will receive $4200 USD per summer school, round-trip travel to Istanbul, and accommodation. Applicants should specify which summer program they are applying for, or whether they are applying to teach at both.
OSI is also recruiting for the position of Coordinator of Studies (COS) for Academic Writing. Duties for this position include managerial and administrative oversight of academic writing instructors and program curriculum in cooperation with the Coordinator of Studies for Social Sciences. The two Coordinators of Study will also plan and facilitate the pre-program planning sessions for instructors. The COS for Academic Writing will not teach a course, but will have additional duties associated with the overall administration of the program. Please note that the successful applicant for this post must be able to act in this capacity for both schools. Applicants should indicate in their cover letter if they are interested in this position.
Applicants should submit sample syllabi and CV electronically to NSPSummerSchool@sorosny.org. For more information about the Open Society Institute please visit: www.soros.org, and for the Network Scholarship Programs: www.soros.org/initiatives/scholarship.
Submission deadline:Â March 21, 2008
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Call for Social Science Instructors
February 13th, 2008 by kristy
CALL FOR SOCIAL SCIENCE INSTRUCTORS
FOR SUMMER SCHOOL IN ISTANBUL, TURKEY,
JULY & AUGUST 2008
The Open Society Institute (OSI) is currently recruiting instructors of social sciences and the humanities to teach at the Network Scholarship Programs (NSP) 2008 Pre-Academic Summer Programs in Istanbul. There will be two summer schools held in 2008: the first from July 2-31, the second from August 1-30. Both will be identical in structure and instructors can apply to teach at one or both programs. Instructors will be expected to attend three days of preparation as a part of each school: July 2-4 for the first school, and August 1-3 for the second school.
The summer school is designed to prepare NSP scholarship finalists from the Balkans, the Former Soviet Union, the Middle East and Southeast Asia for graduate studies or faculty exchange programs in the UK or US. The curriculum is an integration of academic writing courses with intensive seminar-style social science courses.
Participants in the summer school take one academic writing course (2 hours a day, 4 days a week) and one social science course (1.5 hours a day, 4 days a week). Social Science instructors will work closely with Academic Writing instructors during the pre-program preparation to coordinate their course approach and writing/research assignments. Each course is expected to have no more than 12 students. The expected total number of students attending each summer school is approximately 85. Students attending the summer school will be entering graduate programs in a range of disciplines, including political science, human rights, international relations, economics, gender studies, sociology, law, history, and development studies.
The Open Society Institute is calling for experienced instructors of social sciences/humanities to submit a letter of interest, CV, and sample syllabus for an intensive 3.5 week course of their choice. Please note that final syllabi and assignments will be worked out during the three day preparation in cooperation with the Academic Writing instructors. Preference will be given to individuals with significant experience teaching and/or studying in a western graduate program with experience living/teaching in the participants’ regions (Central Asia, the Caucasus, the Middle East, and South East Asia). Due to budgetary considerations, preference will also be given to those who are able to travel inexpensively and conveniently to Istanbul.
Social Science instructors will teach one course lasting 3.5 weeks for each summer school. The total number of classes will be 12 per school, with the three last days of the program set aside for instructors to grade projects and work closely with Academic Writing instructors on final student evaluations.
Teaching hours:Â Approximately 1.5 teaching hours per day for four-days a week per course, plus a required minimum of 2 hours a day for student consultations.
Additional responsibilities: Instructors will be called upon and are encouraged to assist with extra-curricular activities and special events during the course of the summer school. They will also be to do additional lectures in their field or to facilitate presentations that orient students to graduate studies in the US and UK.
Remuneration: Instructors will receive $4200 USD per summer school, round-trip travel to Istanbul, and accommodation. Applicants should specify which summer program they are applying for, or whether they are applying to teach at both.
OSI is also recruiting for the position of Coordinator of Studies (COS) for Social Sciences.  Besides teaching, duties for this position will involve managerial and administrative oversight of Social Science instructors and program curriculum in cooperation with the Coordinator of Studies for Academic Writing.  The Coordinators of Study will also plan and facilitate the pre-program planning sessions for instructors. Please note that the successful applicant for this post must be able to act in this capacity for both schools. Applicants should indicate in their cover letter if they are interested in this position.
Applicants should submit sample syllabi and CV electronically to NSPSummerSchool@sorosny.org. For more information about the Open Society Institute please visit: www.soros.org, and for the Network Scholarship Programs: www.soros.org/initiatives/scholarship.
Submission deadline:Â March 21, 2008
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Overcrowding in Shimkent
February 10th, 2008 by kzblog
According to Liter.kz (via Newzzz), South Kazakhstan schools are so overcrowded that some students study in an old hospital, other schools are using all available space including the toilets as classrooms, and some schools are even working in four shifts to accomodate all the children. South Kazakhstan is the biggest oblast in Kazakhstan by population. Every year, according to the article, schools must take on 50 000 new first-graders. Aggravating the problem is that construction of new schools doesn’t occur on schedule forcing schools to be creative.
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