Articles from 2009/10

 


Towards and beyond global goals and targets

Author: Raj Dhanarajan
The 17th Conference of Commonwealth Education Ministers (CCEM) in Malaysia with its theme ‘Towards and beyond global goals and targets’ could not be happening at a more difficult and challenging time…

Fifty years on   Backwards and forwards in Commonwealth education

Author: Lalage Bown
I have always believed in the Commonwealth, in the idea of a group of states with no military motives, brought together by shared principles, working jointly on practical programmes for human betterment in…

Sustainability for Africa   Promoting sustainability in Africa through higher education

Author: Goolam Mohamedbhai
All the economic, social and human development indicators show that Africa, in particular Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), is the worst developed region of the world. Poverty, malnutrition, food insecurity, early childhood death…

Meeting the MDG challenge   The role, potential and impact of open and distance learning

Author: Denise Kirkpatrick
The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) have become a universal framework for development, and a means for developing countries and their partners to work together in pursuit of a shared future for all. At just past…

Small states’ priorities   Learning from and across Commonwealth small states: Priorities for educational planning and research

Author: Michael Crossley and Mark Bray
Among the Commonwealth’s 53 member states, 30 have populations below 2.5 million and 23 of these have populations below a million. Small states therefore comprise over half of all member states. The Commonwealth has a strong…

Towards the university of tomorrow

Author: Dzulkifli Abdul Razak
Some 1,150 years ago this year, the first ‘modern’ university granting academic degrees was established as the University of Al-Karaouine in Fez, Morocco. According to the Guinness Book of World Records, it is the oldest…

Keeping education on track in times of crisis

Author: Nicholas Burnett
In a microcosm, the 53 states of the Commonwealth capture all the challenges faced across the world in making Education for All (EFA) a reality. They are characterised by a wide array of countries in terms of territory, wealth and population…

The Commonwealth of Learning   The road ahead

Author: Commonwealth of Learning’s
Values and development priorities for 2009–12  Home to 1.9 billion people of every colour, creed and caste, the 53 Commonwealth nations are united by a commitment to common values, notably peace, democracy, equality, good governance and the resolution of conflicts through…

Association for the Development of Education in Africa (ADEA) Biennale 20081   Summary of the outcomes

Author: Wim Hoppers
General outcomes  1. Paradigm shift. Given the many changes in the socio-economic environment of African countries and the challenges these pose for educational development, a paradigm shift in  both the substance of post-primary…

Inclusive education

Author: David Mitchell
Inclusive education ranks as one of the most important challenges  facing governments and educators throughout the world. This  article examines four key questions…

Educational equity for individuals with disabilities

Author: Libby Cohen
Educational equity means that everyone – all individuals – have opportunities to achieve their full potential. Educational equity is about fairness. Social justice, equity, respect and dignity are basic rights for…

Implementing inclusive education in schools   A step in the right direction

Author: Denise Shelley Newnham
A world appeal has been launched by UNESCO for inclusive education. Though there has been much progress in this field, there is still much to be done. New policies create inevitable new problems. This…

Redefining roles and boundaries   Schooling in rural Solomon Islands

Author: Stanley Houma
Schooling has had a tremendous impact on the lives of Solomon Islanders at all levels of society. For some, this has been a satisfying journey; for others, especially those in rural communities, it has been a painful experience…

Community schools and Education For All

Author: Jordan P. Naidoo
This article1 stresses the continuing role for community schools within a multifaceted education delivery system. In suggesting a place for community schools within a diversified system of education provision to meet Education…

Planning for inclusion   Education sector planning for promoting inclusive education for disabled children

Author: Philippa Lei
With children from marginalised groups constituting the majority of those still missing out on quality primary education, progress towards Education for All (EFA) and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) will stall if considerations…

EFA by 2015   A tantalising prospect for Tanzania

Author: Joseph Kisanji
The Education for All (EFA) goals and Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) provide a global policy framework for governments, international organisations, the private sector and civil society to reduce poverty and social…

 Preparing children for the future   Primary Education Review and Implementation Committee Secretariat

Author: Singapore Ministry of Education, April 2009
Singapore’s education system has achieved high academic standards internationally. However, in an increasingly complex and interconnected world, how will Singapore ensure that its children continue to be effectively prepared for the future…

The teacher’s voice   Reflections of a Malaysian schoolteacher

Author: Ms Nirmala Ramakrishnan
In this paper, I share my thoughts as a teacher in the form of conscious and spontaneous reflections that have guided my actions and decisions on my professional journey for more than two decades…

Flexible education   Reaching nomadic children in Africa

Author: Florence Mugoya Malinga
Nomads in Africa roughly constitute about 6 per cent of the population and are found in 21 African countries: Nigeria, Ghana, Cameroon, Niger, Mali, Senegal, Chad, Mauritania, Algeria, Egypt, Eritrea, Sudan, Ethiopia, Somalia…

Buddy Stops   Making learning fun

Author: Jacinta Leong, Sabah State Education Department, Malaysia
‘Accelerating and Enhancing the Teaching and Learning Process through Buddy Stops’ is a support programme introduced by the State Education Department in Malaysia. Stops/stations are created around the school compound…

Supporting education in difficult circumstances

Author: The primary school of Ba’ Kelalan, Malaysia
Policy-makers, educationists and others parties involved in education are all seeking ways in which to fully utilise limited resources efficiently to identify and solve problems in the education sector and to provide quality…

Total Involvement of the Community in Improving the School Performance

SK Ulu Lubai School, Borneo
Introduction  The school, SK Ulu Lubai, is located in a remote area of Sarawak, Borneo, East Malaysia. It has always been handicapped by limited facilities and financial constraints. Neither the parents of the children nor the…

Parental involvement in rural Kenya   The why, how, who, when and where of parental decision-making on children’s education in rural Kenya

Author: Fibian K. Lukalo
The 2003 commitment by the Kenyan government to prioritise primary education was not the first time that Universal Primary Education (UPE) was touted as ‘free’ or as a basic human right for all children. Neither was…

Gender and political-economy in Caribbean education systems   An agenda for inclusion

Author: Barbara Bailey
Caribbean education: post emancipation  Anglophone Caribbean countries share a common political history, and their education systems to a large extent represent the same package, albeit in…

Language matters and gender equality   A Malaysian perspective

Author: Bahiyah Dato’ Hj. Abdul Hamid
Malaysia, a sovereign nation of 51 years, is now midway through attaining developed nation status by 2020. To achieve this goal, the National Mission, a policy and implementation framework outlining Malaysia’s priorities…

Gender-inclusive higher education   How is Africa faring in this key area of university education?

Author: Forum for African Women Educationalists (FAWE)
As Africa advances into the 21st century, rapid change brought about by technological, scientific and economic advancements, globalisation and migration are transforming the continent’s university environment, making it…

Images of sexuality and HIV/AIDS in Sub-Saharan Africa   Voices of Ghanaian young people

Author: Georgina Yaa Oduro
The effect of HIV/AIDS on the health and socio-economic development of Africa is well acknowledged. The disease is identified as the fourth biggest killer of people (UNAIDS, 2005). Although a little more than…

Leadership in 21st-century schools

Author: Chia Loy Tian, Principal of the Senior Methodist Girls’ School in Kuala Lumpur
Introduction  Students of the 21st century want an environment that is about learning, not just memorisation. They want to be part of the process of learning, to build connections that would foster ‘learning to learn’…

Professional development needs of school principals

Author: Petros Pashiardis and Stefan Brauckmann
Context and challenges for school leaders in the 21st century  We live in an era of complexity where the only stable factor is constant change. In the last 30 years we have seen change as never before. There is a new international economic order and, it could be argued…

Internationalising teachers and teaching

Author: Mary Thornton
Internationalisation could be seen as the defining feature of human society today. Modern travel, ease of communication, and economic and environmental interdependence, make it vitally important that teacher educators transform their own…

The centrality of teacher management to quality education   Lessons from developing countries.

Author: Susy Ndaruhutse
In 2008, CfBT Education Trust, in partnership with Voluntary Services Overseas (VSO), published a research report ‘Managing Teachers. The centrality of teacher management to quality education. Lessons from developing…

Accelerating catch-up   Tertiary education for growth in Sub-Saharan Africa

Author: Shahid Yusuf and Kaoru Nabeshim
Introduction  Following more than two decades of economic stagnation, GDP growth in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) accelerated to over 6.0 per cent during 2002–07. This remarkable economic turnaround is the result of increasing…

Tertiary education reforms in Botswana

Author: Patrick D. Molutsi
Introduction  Like many other countries around the world, Botswana began a major programme of reform of its tertiary (post-secondary) education system at the beginning of the 1990s. The reforms focus on increasing access to…

Building human capital   Using general studies components to build the bricks of student excellence in higher education: Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia

Author: Zarina Othman, Khalim Zainal and Khairul Anwar Mastor
To quote the former Malaysian Prime Minister, Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, ‘Education is an important tool in building human capital’. In the educational system of Malaysia, there are two ministries that…

The missing ingredient   Headteacher leadership development in Sub-Saharan Africa

Author: George K.T. Oduro
Introduction  Governments in Sub-Saharan Africa have, since the 2000 World Education Forum in Dakar, demonstrated high commitment to achieving Education for All (EFA) by 2015. In collaboration with development partners…

The doors have been left ajar   Women in contemporary African higher education

Author: Joy Constance Kwesiga
Introduction  Why are we still doing the same thing (finding out determinants of gender inequalities in education) since we have known the causes for a long time? Why is the list of obstacles getting longer instead of demonstrating the gains…

Addressing global challenges in higher education   A Malaysian initiative

Author: Gurnam Kaur Sidhu and Mehander Singh
Globalisation and internationalisation are trends that have brought about a new world order that is characterised by complexity, interconnectedness and diversity. These increasingly challenging contexts are…

Teaching the teachers   Assessing the effectiveness of using distance education to train teachers in Africa

Author: Tony Mays and Jennifer Glennie
This is an abbreviated version of a paper developed for the African Council on Distance Education conference in Nigeria in 2008. The paper explores the current and future potential of the use of distance…

Public-private partnerships in education

Author: Michael Latham
Many governments are exploring options and mechanisms to involve the private sector in providing education. This involvement comes in many forms. From the supply side, the public sector may fund private school operations…

ActionAid’s education evolution

Author: David Archer
ActionAid is one of the leading international non-governmental organisations (NGOs) working on poverty and development, with its headquarters in South Africa and an annual budget of over US$100 million. It works in……

Making education work   The gender dimensions of the school-to-work transition

Author: East Asia and Pacific Regional United Nations Girls’ Education Initiative (UNGEI)
The United Nations Girls’ Education Initiative (UNGEI) is the Education For All flagship for girls’ education and the principal movement to narrow the gender gap in primary and secondary education, and to ensure…

Working in partnership   How Link Community Development works alongside district local government: The case of Masindi

Author: Link Community Development
Introduction  Link Community Development’s (LCD) mission is ‘to work in partnership to improve the lives of children and young people in rural communities in sub-Saharan Africa’. In recent years the programme has grown to service over…

Educational media initiatives   Commonwealth Educational Media Centre for Asia (CEMCA) reports on its work

Author: Sreedher Ramamurthy
Commonwealth Educational Media Centre for Asia (CEMCA) is the only office of the Commonwealth of Learning (COL) outside Vancouver, Canada. CEMCA functions through networking and information transfer…

Stakeholders’ Forum   A place from which to plan and influence ministers at the 17th Conference of Commonwealth Ministers

Author: Commonwealth Foundation
The theme for the fiftieth anniversary of the 17th Conference of Commonwealth Ministers (17CCEM) is ‘Education in the Commonwealth: Towards and beyond global goals and targets’. The 17CCEM will…

Commonwealth scholarships   Fifty years of achievement for the Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship Plan

Author:  John Kirkland
50 not out, and approaching a second half-century with confidence. That’s the message that the Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship Plan (CSFP) will deliver to Commonwealth education ministers in Kuala Lumpur this June…

Community learning   Perspectives on the role of media in non-formal education

Author: Ian Pringle, Mikey Rosato and Charles Simbi
Lack of learning opportunities as a barrier to development  There is a profound lack of appropriate and effective learning opportunities in remote, rural and resource-poor parts of the world. Schools, by and large, do not cater to non-formal or lifelong learning needs of adults or youth…

Renewing interest in the quality of education   Have we lost sight of what education is all about?

Author: Akanksha A. Marphatia
Whether education is seen to be part of the solution to the current financial crisis remains to be seen. When the G20 met in London in March 2009 they emphasised the importance of education and training as a catalyst to…

It’s time for the paradigm to shift – youthwise

Author: Dr Fatiha Serour
The future of the Commonwealth lies in its young people with all their creativity, potential and energy. They are our students, our young entrepreneurs, our workers and eventually our carers. They are also the very people who society is leaving…