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| Pan-Arab
Education Reform
At
a recent summit of the Gulf Cooperation Council, a body that links
six oil-rich Arab monarchies, Saudi Arabia’s rulers joined
in a common pledge to reform religious education across the region.
The
Shura Council — the Saudi Parliament whose members are appointed
by the king — has passed an education bill that explicitly
calls for new emphasis on moderation in religion classes. A 70-strong
group of academics and reformers has been appointed to debate reform
and suggest remedies. At the last session, the group presented a
paper detailing how textbooks inculcate values that conflict with
both the modern age and the spirit of Islam. As a result, some textbooks
have already been removed from classrooms. The national dialogue
calls for further revision of the curriculum to promote the values
of tolerance and moderation. But purging textbooks of all incitement
will be hard.
Across
the region, Islamist hardliners are interpreting change as part
of a U.S.-inspired plot to destroy Islam. A review of Kuwait’s
religious curriculum has been met by heated protest from fundamentalist
parliamentarians. In Jordan, members of Parliament have decried
new textbooks that describe suicide attacks on civilians as a form
of terrorism. The current tussle over education coincides with a
wave of popular anti-Americanism that boosts the appeal of extremist
xenophobia. For these reasons, backers of educational reform have
been careful to stress that change is needed for reasons other than
to placate non-Muslims.
—
The
Economist
Jan. 24, 2004
|
BAHRAIN
Manama
Awaits New University
A new private university in Bahrain, specializing in information technology
and business, is set to open this month. With the establishment of its
Manama campus, Kingdom University will be one step nearer to the completion
of Phase 1, according to the adviser to the board of trustees, Yousef
Abdul Ghaffar. The campus, in the Zinj area, can accommodate 500 students.
In December, Ghaffar said work on a second campus, in Hamad Town, was
to begin in January.
The university
will offer bachelor’s and master’s programs in business administration,
information technology, finance and computer science.
—
Gulf
News
Dec. 12, 2003
ISRAEL
Moldovan
University Latest Institution Embroiled in Degree Forgery
Dozens of teachers, principals, psychologists, administrators and social
workers from northern Israel are suspected of having knowingly purchased
forged master’s and doctoral degrees, purportedly from Ion
Creanga Pedagogical University in Moldova. According to police, the
university says it has never enrolled any Israeli students and has never
opened a branch in Israel.
The fraud
squad began investigating the situation several months ago in response
to a complaint by the Civil Service Commission. The commission said several
government ministries, including the Education and Health ministries,
had noticed a surprising stream of diplomas from Ion Creanga University
submitted by employees who were either requesting wage increases on the
strength of these documents or using them to support an application for
promotion. Police questioned dozens of people holding Ion Creanga diplomas.
According to Superintendent Herbie Primat, commander of the Northern District
Fraud Squad, several of them admitted to having bought the diplomas for
US$2,000 to $10,000, depending on the degree and the subject. He said
the fraud went on for approximately two years, from 2001 through 2002.
The investigation
comes on the heels of a similar investigation into the validity of degrees
of about 5,500 government employees suspected of having fictitious diplomas
from the Israeli extension of British University of Humberside, the University
of Latvia and American Burlington Academy (see Sept/Oct WENR
2003).
—
Haaretz
Jan.
19, 2004
KUWAIT
Textbooks,
Curriculum to Be Revised
Kuwait has decided to revise textbooks and the school curriculum to promote
religious tolerance, government officials announced in January. Parliament
had been debating the changes announced by Education Minister Rasheed
Al Hamad, who said such issues as terrorism had come under scrutiny in
the latest selection of new textbooks. Though the minister defended the
existing curriculum, he said some pupils could be led astray by the tone
and content of some texts. “[Books] should not encourage pupils
to hate other people and religions,” Al Hamad said told a Kuwaiti
newspaper.
Parliament
began debating the revisions after a group of Islamic lawmakers voiced
their opposition to the proposed changes. Al Hamad responded by denouncing
anyone who sought to “make the young generation think in a fanatic
way, which leads them to take aggressive initiatives.” Earlier in
January, the Gulf Cooperation Council agreed on educational reform as
a way to combat religious extremism among Muslims.
—
United
Press International
Jan. 2, 2004
| U.S.
Style Universities Picking Up Some of Slack
With
Saudi students finding it increasingly difficult to get U.S. study
visas, many are being forced to consider other options. This can
be particularly difficult for those who started courses in the United
States but are unable to continue their studies there. If they want
to transfer their credits, they must find a U.S.-style institution
— but outside the United States.
According
to the U.S.-based International Institute
for Education, approximately 4,000 students — mostly from
Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Morocco and Egypt
— did not make it to the United States for the start of the
2002-03 academic year. The terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001,
and the U.S administration’s anti-terrorism campaign have
made student visas particularly difficult to acquire or renew.
Saudi
Arabia was perhaps the hardest-hit country of all — 1,400
fewer students traveled to the United States. However, the American
University in Cairo (AUC) and other American universities in
Dubai, Sharjah and Beirut are stepping in to fill the gap. The AUC
is a liberal arts institution based on the U.S. model of education.
Incorporated, licensed and fully accredited in the United States,
it functions in Egypt under an agreement between that government
and the United States.
—
Arab
News
Dec. 17, 2003 |
American
University to Open in September
The Kuwaiti Ministry of Education and the Board of Private Universities
granted American University
of Kuwait (AUK) its final license on Dec. 17, 2002, paving the way
for the university to commence classes this September. The university
will comprise three schools: business, engineering and architecture and
arts and sciences.
Dartmouth
College in Hanover, N.H., will provide a series of advisory and cooperation
ventures over the next five years to help AUK establish itself as Kuwait’s
first private, liberal arts university.
—
AMIDEAST
Jan. 12, 2004
LEBANON
Baccalaureate
Replaced
As of the 2000-01 academic year, the Lebanese General Secondary Certificate
(shahaada thaanawiya amma) has replaced the Lebanese baccalaureate. The
secondary tracks were also revised. The maximum points possible on the
exam are as follows:
General sciences
— 570 points
Humanities
(insaniyaat) — 480 points
Life sciences
(uloum al-hayaat) — 560 points
Social and
economic sciences (uloum iqtisadiya wa ijtima’iya) — 530 points
—
AMIDEAST
Jan. 23, 2004
QATAR
New Zealand
Organization Consulting on Education Reforms
A New Zealand organization will play a key role in bringing educational
reforms to Qatar. Multi Serve Education
Trust has reached an agreement with Qatar to help upgrade the oil-rich
country’s education system. The reforms include giving considerably
more autonomy to some existing schools and to others that have not yet
been built.
Initially,
Multi Serve will mentor five Qatari schools through an 18-month transition
to self-management, providing the schools with input on infrastructure
and administration, as well as recruiting teachers and other staff. If
this pilot project proves successful, Multi Serve will have broader involvement
in the Qatari education system, including the construction of schools.
Multi Serve is New Zealand’s leading independent service provider
to schools. The Qatar program is the organization’s first multi-school
project overseas.
The reforms
in Qatar (see March/April 2003 WENR)
will focus on autonomy, accountability, parental choice and diversity.
By moving away from its previous, more centralized approach, the country
hopes to lift educational standards and ensure that young Qataris can
fully participate in today’s globalized economy. At the same time,
Qatar wants to preserve its values, culture and beliefs.
—
Scoop
Jan. 15, 2004
SAUDI ARABIA
New Medical
College Opens
Saudi Arabia’s first private college of dentistry and pharmacy opened
Feb. 7. The school’s aim is to provide Saudi professionals in a
field now dominated by expatriates. A complete hospital will soon be built
to meet the requirements for a university, which is the eventual goal
of the founders. According to officials, the college will serve as the
nucleus of a future university and will offer courses in all medical branches.
Citing an
official study, one of the college owners, Dr. Al-Shamamry, said the kingdom
would be able to meet only 40 percent of its needs in medical education
by 2020. He also pointed out that there was an acute shortage of facilities
for medical education in the country.
The medium
of instruction at the new college is English, and admission is open to
both Saudis and non-Saudis. Highly qualified professors are being recruited
for the new college, which will also have a Web site for hosting lectures
and facilitating interaction between the college and its counterparts
in other countries.
—
Arab
News
Jan. 20, 2004
Education
Reform Moves Forward 
Interior Minister Prince Naif recently stated that the aims of Saudi Arabia’s
educational reforms, announced in November, are the enhancement of Islamic
values, the promotion of moderation and the strengthening of the concepts
of flexibility and respect for the opinions of others. The reforms also
aim to put greater emphasis on the need for scientific and technical training
to meet the future needs of the labor market, government officials have
stated. In November, the government allocated funds for the training of
100,000 Saudis and announced the establishment of 20 new technical colleges
for 60,000 students and of 39 technical training institutes for 40,000
students.
The educational-reform process is being supervised by a high-level committee
of academics and experts. Officials have said the committee has already
completed the required study and forwarded its recommendations to a decision-making
level for the benefit of the national educational process. Saudi officials
have also denied reports recently that they are under pressure from the
United States and other Western countries to change the national curriculum,
pointing out that the kingdom is revising the curriculum for the educational
development of its people and that the decision was its own.
—
Arab
News
Jan. 22, 2004
SYRIA
Military
Withdrawn From Universities
Syria’s cabinet has issued a decree formally ending the half-century-old
militarization of higher education. The decision, which is being applied
to all colleges and universities in Syria, will result in the disbanding
of the Military Training Board and the removal of all military personnel
and equipment. Courses in political and military indoctrination taught
by military officers, under the auspices of campus branches of the Training
Board, will also be abolished.
Mandatory
military training for college students previously had occupied one day
of each week of the academic year. Syrian scholars say they are encouraged
by the new openness and focus on studies.
—
The
Chronicle of Higher Education
Dec. 19, 2003
3 Private
Universities Licensed Under New Private Education Law
The country’s first two private universities were issued licenses
in August under the nation’s 2001 Private Education Law, and a third
was licensed in September. Qalamon University, being established in Deir
Attyoeh, and Maamoun Private University for Sciences and Technology, being
established in Hasaka province with a branch in Aleppo, were licensed
in August. A private university of science and arts, as yet unnamed, is
also being established in Aleppo.
—
Syria
Live
Sept. 24, 2003
TUNISIA
Newly
Established Private Sector Growing
Since 2000, 17 private schools have been accredited, four of which opened
this academic year. These actions were in response to serious overcrowding
and underfunding at public institutions of higher education. In 2000,
the government adopted legislation allowing for state regulation and recognition
of private institutions of higher education, which it hoped would ease
the strain on state schools.
In 2002,
there were 270,000 students enrolled in the Tunisian higher education
system; in 2003, there were more than 300,000. That figure is projected
to near 500,000 by 2010. Government officials hope the private sector
will be able to help fill the gap, and that in three years 30,000 students
will be enrolled in private schools. To ensure the quality of credentials
and learning outcomes, and in line with a July 2001 education law, successful
completion of the baccalaureate is a prerequisite for entry to newly accredited
private schools of higher education.
A list of
licensed private higher education institutions can be found at: www.universites.tn/anglais/divers/enseignement_prive/prive2.htm
—
La
Presse
Nov. 10, 2003
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
Second
Australian Campus Launched
The University of Wollongong’s
second Dubai campus was launched in December. The university’s international
arm, Illawarra
Technology Corp., opened its first campus in Dubai nine years ago,
when other Australian universities were heading to Asia. It is still the
only Western university with its own campus in the UAE. The new campus
is situated in the government-funded “knowledge
village” — a 395-acre technology park that also houses
media and Internet “cities” (see July/August WENR
2003).
—
The
Australian
Nov. 26, 2003
Indian
Entrance Exam Available in Dubai
Dubai will become the first overseas center for the All-Indian Engineering
and Medical Entrance Examinations. The decision to make Dubai a center
for the 2004 exams grew out of strong demand for such a facility by Dubai’s
large minority Indian population. The examinations will be conducted directly
by the Commissioner of Entrance Examinations and supervised by the Indian
consulate in Dubai. Interested candidates can log on to www.cee-kerala.org
and download the forms.
The Kerala state government has also proposed starting courses equivalent
to the Secondary School Leaving Certificates, in the wake of a new regulation
in the UAE that stipulates such a certificate is a minimum education qualification
for a laborer.
—
Gulf
News
Dec. 9, 2003
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