| 1. |
- Arjmand, Reza, 1963-
(author)
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Inscription on Stone : Islam, State and Education in Iran and Turkey
- 2008
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- This study explores the role of education as means of creation and maintenance of religious hegemony in Iran and Turkey. In the context of this study, state-sponsored systems of mass education aim to socialize generations of children into accepting the ideology and values of the dominant groups as the normal state of affairs. Hegemony, thus, is advanced not solely by excluding oppositional forces but by moral leadership throughout the total ideological and socio-political structure. Reviewing the notion of education in Islam and the role of the Quran and Sunna and other sources of knowledge in Islam, the study focuses on the impact of Shari'a in forming the theories of state and education in Islam. Representing two different schools of Muslim thought, Iran and Turkey have different interpretations of the state and its role in education which determines the degree of involvement and extent of authority of the political and religious leaders over education. Unity of Islam and the state in the Iranian theocratic system provides an ideologically-laden education which is rooted in one principle: training a new generation of pious, “ideologically committed Muslims”. However, the endeavors of the Turkish secular state have been focused on establishing a mass popularized secular education in order to produce nationalist citizens. The Iranian revolution of 1979 contributed extensively to the awakening of the religious revival, calling for a shift from a Western model of social order to the one deeply rooted in Islamic beliefs and values. The close link between education and ideology in Iran is apparent from the goals set for educating the young, most of them openly political: acceptance of God's absolute authority manifested through the authority of ulama; support for the political, economic, and cultural unity of all Islamic global community (umma) and for oppressed peoples (mustaz’afin); rejection of every form of oppression, suffering, and domination. The four ideological pillars of the Islamic Republic, inseparability of religion and politics, Islamic revival, cultural revolution, and creation of a committed Muslim, have had a direct impact on Iranian education. The “Unity of Education Act” in the Republic of Turkey placed all educational activities under strict government control by introducing a state monopoly on education. Kemalism is based on an emphasis on national and republican principles and secularism in which religion has no place and is left out of the scope of formal education. Hence, the transmission of religious knowledge from one generation to another was only possible through informal channels such as family, the small community or underground activities of religious orders. Islam, however, gradually penetrated the public life in Turkey and challenged the secularism. The goal of the Turkish national education as to unite the entire nation through a national consciousness, to think along scientific lines, and intellectually as well as worldly, leaves no place for Islamic religious education. In spite of the government's emphasis on a secular and nationalist system, Islam remains as a force, particularly in its capacity to utilize new elements required for a modern society. Although Islam has not yet challenged the supremacy of secular education in Turkey, it expanded its influence both in formal and informal education, content and structure.
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| 2. |
- Biamba, Cresantus, 1964-
(author)
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The Role of Principals in Government Secondary Schools in Cameroon: Demands, Constraints and Choices : A Case Study of Eight Secondary Schools
- 2012
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- The main aim of this research was to explore the present role of the secondary school principals and the challenges they face in carrying out their duties in the Northwest region of Cameroon. The research, which was exploratory and conducted in the interpretive paradigm, is a case study which was carried out at eight secondary schools. Working in an interpretivist research paradigm within a qualitative research design, the study used semi-structured interviews, observation and document analysis methods.The researcher shadowed each principal for a week of intensive observation and interviewing.The findings reveal that tradition, culture and political contexts are crucial factors in understanding what the secondary school principals in Cameroon do and how they conceptualize principalship. The findings show that discussions with parents, staff and desk work were found to be the major job functions taking up most of the principals' time. The findings reveal that principals are agents of accountability and management; they are involved with different regional and local services; are concerned with the safety and security of students; and their day is extended through participation in parent teacher associations and with other local community activities.However, the findings also indicate the multi-varied nature of the principal's role. The principal's day was generally hectic in pace, varied in its composition, discontinuous and superficial in any pursuit of tasks, with the unexpected always as one of the few certainties of the job. The dominant model was that of the transactional leader in fixing things, managing and coping in order to maintain the smooth operation of the school.Results indicated that deputy principals presented similar feedback to that presented by principals. The major difference being in the way deputy principals perceived tomorrow’s principalship ─ one beyond the transactional model of principal as administrator to the transformational model of principal as leading professional.
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| 3. |
- Brattlund, Åsa, 1953-, et al.
(author)
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Educational Strategies Among Some Muslim Groups in Sweden.
- 2004
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In: Educational Strategies Among Muslims in the Context of Globalization. - Leiden : BRILL. - 9004136754 ; , s. 187-207
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Book chapter (other academic/artistic)abstract
- The volume deals with Islamic conceptuaization of knowledge, various types of Islamic education and educational strategies among selected groups of Muslims in Islamized countries (Pakistan, Iran, Marocco, Senegal , and so on) as well as countries in Europe where Muslims form important minorities.
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| 4. |
- Brattlund, Åsa
(author)
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What Role of God and National Curriculum in School life? : A Comparative Study of Schools with a Muslim Profile in England and Sweden
- 2009
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- The purpose of this study is to gain a better understanding of principles and ethics that dominate four schools with a Muslim profile, two in Sweden and two in England.The specific objectives of the study are: to examine educational policies with regard to primary schools with a confessional orientation in Sweden and England; to compare two primary schools with a Muslim profile in Sweden with two such schools in England; and in these four schools to describe and examine the manner in which school heads, teachers and other staff deal with the encounters between the values found in the national curriculum of Sweden and England respectively and the principles and ethics embodied in their private philosophy of life; to describe and examine the views of school heads, teachers and other staff on school leadership and any educational, ideological or personal role model they emulate; to describe and examine the expectations and views of parents with regard to the school with a Muslim profile; and describe the views of the pupils regarding their schools and the norms and values in school and; finally, to examine the attitudes of some local authority politicians in Sweden to MP schools.The findings indicate great difference between the two schools with a Muslim profile in Sweden, on the one hand, and the two schools in England, on the other. The fundamental reason for that lies in the parameters which had been established in these countries as the conditions for being permitted to establish and run a school with a confessional orientation. Since the schools in both countries had conformed to the relevant legislation and framework in their respective countries with regard to such schools, they had therefore consequently developed in different directions.
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| 5. |
- Brooks, Sheila, 1948-
(author)
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Learning Motivation in International Primary Schools : The Voices of Children
- 2005
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- The overall aim of this study is to contribute to a greater understanding of learning motivation in primary school education. Particular emphasis is given to investigating how various contextual or situational aspects of the classroom/school environment affect motivation. The study, further, strives to identify, describe and interpret the views and perceptions of students enrolled in two international schools in Switzerland and Sweden.As globalization processes, world cultural flows and personal mobility expand and accelerate, school populations are becoming increasingly multicultural in composition. Educators are challenged to develop and adapt educational programs to fit heterogeneous rather than homogeneous groups of learners. In this study, a multicultural, international population of learners was selected as a sample as they may be representative of diverse student populations becoming more common in the future. Four classes of grade five students, a total of sixty-six children, were selected as participants in this comparative, case study investigation.An eclectic conceptual approach guided the research including principles drawn from problem-based, constructivist and humanistic theories of learning. Bandura’s social cognitive motivational theory also provided a background for the choice of methods and data collection procedures employed. An exploratory, mainly qualitative approach was taken during the two phases of fieldwork. Participant observations were made and in-depth interviews were conducted; a short questionnaire was also administered to provide background information and to function as a screening instrument or guide for subsequent interviews.The findings indicate that a variety of factors in the classroom/school environment affect students learning motivation. Areas identified and described in the study include what to learn, learning processes, learner autonomy, teacher influences, the physical environment and psycho/social influences. In comparing the results from the two case study schools, notable differences were found in student responses in the areas of learning processes, learner autonomy, teacher influences and overall attitude towards school. Students at the school in Switzerland were consistently more positive than those at the school in Sweden. Most of the differences identified were related to the curriculum model utilized and type of school organization and leadership employed. The findings indicate that the educational program based on constructivist, inquiry-based theories of learning implemented in a cohesive, all-school approach, produced higher levels of motivation in individual students.
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| 6. |
- Daun, Holger
(author)
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A Way Forward
- 2010
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In: Nordic Voices. - : Sense Publishers. - 9789087909727 ; , s. 281-307
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Book chapter (other academic/artistic)
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| 7. |
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| 8. |
- Daun, Holger
(author)
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Childhood learning, life skills and well-being in adult life : a Senegalese case
- 2010
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In: Comparative Education. - : Informa UK Limited. - 0305-0068 .- 1360-0486. ; 46:4, s. 409-428
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Education is not easily converted into human capital and well-being in low-income countries, because these countries do not have a high degree of economic and labour market differentiation that makes it possible to convert acquired knowledge and skills. Consequently, to have completed primary or even secondary education does not necessarily lead to a better life situation than some types of Islamic education. This paper reports findings from an ongoing longitudinal research project in Senegal. The study compares the relationships between educational/learning background, life skills and well-being in adult life among individuals who attended primary school, Quranic, Arabic or Indigenous learning systems at the beginning of the 1980s. The findings illustrate some of the complexities in the relationships between, on the one hand, education and life skills and, on the other hand, individual well-being in a low-income society. Since this study enters into an area that has not been very much researched, this study is explorative and employs concepts heuristically. Some findings in relation to different theoretical approaches are also discussed here.
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| 9. |
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| 10. |
- Daun, Holger
(author)
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Globalization, EU-ification and the New Mode of Educational Governance in Europe
- 2011
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In: European Education. - 1056-4934 .- 1944-7086. ; 43:1, s. 9-32
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The nature of European education systems and their respective modes of governing education were principally determined by factors internal to individual countries until the early 1980s. After the extension of the European Union and the acceleration of globalization, European countries have adopted some features that exist in many countries around the world and that are proposed by the European Union (EU) and other international and supranational bodies. The EU has added a social dimension to the predominantly neoliberal world agenda, and the Europeanizing agenda is disseminated through the Open Method of Coordination, among other measures and channels. However, due to cultural, religious, political, and other national and local patterns, there are still a number of differences among the education systems of Europe. This article reviews the changes in the education sector, especially in governing/governance, during the past two decades in some twenty European countries and then focuses on seven country cases: the Czech Republic, France, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, and Sweden.
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