Abstract: Publication date: May 2019Source: International Journal of Educational Development, Volume 67Author(s): Dante Contreras, José Delgadillo, Gabriela Riveros This study seeks to determine whether overcrowding has a significant effect on students’ academic performance, controlling for variables associated with poverty and low socioeconomic status. It uses data from the international SERCE test conducted in fifteen Latin American countries. Based on multiple specifications and robustness tests, the evidence suggests that overcrowding is a negative and statistically significant factor that even exceeds the impact of certain maternal education levels on a child’s academic performance.
Abstract: Publication date: April 2019Source: International Journal of Educational Development, Volume 66Author(s): Annette Bamberger, Paul Morris, Yaniv Weinreb, Miri Yemini Internationalisation in higher education is often portrayed as a value-neutral intervention driven predominantly by economic motives yet advocated and prescribed for humanitarian purposes. In this study we investigate how internationalisation takes shape in an institution which is characterised by political controversy that hinders and shapes its internationalisation efforts; we explore the rationales for and enactment of internationalisation at Ariel University (AU), Israel’s only university located in the West Bank, part of the occupied Palestinian territories (oPt). We challenge the dominant framing of internationalisation in higher education and shed light on the nature, purposes and forms of internationalisation.
Abstract: Publication date: April 2019Source: International Journal of Educational Development, Volume 66Author(s): Ayman Agbaria, Zach Shmueli This article examines the desired image of the graduate of one secular Israeli pre-military academy. Drawing on a qualitative case study based on in-depth interviews with staff, students, and graduates, it outlines the academy’s vision of the desired graduate, its internal educational processes and situates the academy’s educational discourse in the context of the civic-military relations in Israel. The major findings show how the secular academy under study creates a new ideal of a social soldier in opposition to the ideal of the religious soldier, promoted by the religious-Zionist academies which are the secular academies’ ideological and political rival. The data further describe how the academy seeks to contribute to the army’s community life and values as well as in Israeli society, by creating special tracks in the army, wherein groups of graduates can continue their military service together. A central finding is the redefinition of Jewish identity as secular, cultural and national as opposed to religious Judaism that is promoted by the religious Zionist academies. The article concludes that these findings reflect broader hegemonic transformations in Israel such as the increasing dominance of the religious right, which the secular elites seek to counter and by reclaiming their former influence.
Abstract: Publication date: April 2019Source: International Journal of Educational Development, Volume 66Author(s): Essa Chanie Mussa, Alisher Mirzabaev, Assefa Admassie, Emmanuel Nshakira-Rukundo, Joachim von Braun We examine the long-term effects of childhood work on human capital formation in rural Ethiopia using a unique panel dataset constructed through tracking of children after sixteen years. The findings show that full-time childhood work impedes long-term grade attainment and transitions between school cycles. Furthermore, childhood work-entry age non-linearly affects children’s long-term school transitions. The effects, however, are heterogeneous by child gender and work types. Eliminating full-time childhood work should be at the core of the country’s human capital development agenda. Nevertheless, a blanket ban on all forms of childhood work may be infeasible at best or counterproductive at worst.
Abstract: Publication date: April 2019Source: International Journal of Educational Development, Volume 66Author(s): Caine Rolleston, Padmini Iyer Human capital development, including the expansion and improvement of schooling, has played a crucial role in Vietnam’s strong and relatively inclusive economic growth in recent years. Universal access to primary and lower secondary education have been achieved, but progression to upper secondary remains, for the most part, rationed by entrance examinations and the payment of fees. Both supply and access have improved strongly at upper secondary level since the 1990s, in line with rising demand for higher skilled school-leavers. However, it is less clear whether access to upper secondary schooling, and its wider social and economic benefits, is provided equitably. In this paper we employ a unique longitudinal dataset to examine the patterns of both access and attainment in upper secondary education in Vietnam. We consider their implications for equitable educational progression and the extent to which, in light of these patterns, the system can be described as meritocratic.
Abstract: Publication date: April 2019Source: International Journal of Educational Development, Volume 66Author(s): Patricia Agupusi The core question for this study is - how can we explain gaps in educational attainment of families with the same initial socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds' This study draws from human capital theory to examine the likely effect of parental attitudes towards the educational attainment of their children, and the implications for intergenerational educational inequality. I utilized longitudinal historical narratives to explore two families in Nigeria with identical socioeconomic backgrounds. The findings suggest that 1.) The perceptions of, and attitudes towards education by the first parents of each family have a lingering impact on the educational attainment of their first, second and third generation. 2.) Children of parents with high value and appreciation to education recorded higher educational achievement and socioeconomic mobility than did those with a lower appreciation of education. This study concludes that in addition to other socioeconomic factors, parents' perception and value of education is fundamental to children's educational attainment, which also determines socioeconomic mobility. This study contributes to our understanding of intergenerational transmission and socioeconomic mobility. It also has implications for policy framing, as well as substantial scope for methodological improvement.
Abstract: Publication date: April 2019Source: International Journal of Educational Development, Volume 66Author(s): Janeli Kotze, Brahm Fleisch, Stephen Taylor Structured pedagogic programmes are emerging as a promising approach to address low learning outcomes in developing countries. The delivery model of these programmes matters, and on-site instructional coaching has been shown to be a key component. In this article, we report on a series of government-led randomised experiments in South African primary schools, which evaluates the efficacy of different aspects of instructional coaching as part of structured learning programmes. In the first multi-year on-site coaching study, we found that the structured pedagogic programme combined with coaching was substantially more cost-effective than the structured pedagogic programme that used conventional centralised teacher training. The ability to scale up on-site coaching, however, is an open question. In the current experiment, a virtual coaching model that includes provision of a tablet with additional electronic resources was tested. The article reports on the midline evaluation results, which show that after one year of intervention, virtual coaching was no less effective than on-site coaching at improving both the instructional practice of teachers and the targeted literacy outcomes. This points to the potential for technological innovations to enable wider rollout of coaching programmes, even in contexts where teachers are not familiar with new technologies.
Abstract: Publication date: April 2019Source: International Journal of Educational Development, Volume 66Author(s): Jaime Andrés Sarmiento Espinel, Adriana Carolina Silva Arias, Edwin van Gameren Education is an instrument for citizens to improve their welfare and income, but opportunities to access and attain education are unequally distributed. This paper analyzes how predetermined characteristics affect students’ achievement in two standardized tests, one taken at the end of their secondary education (between 2000 and 2007) and the other when finishing their undergrad studies (2011). The results, using data from Colombia, indicate that the inequality of educational opportunities at both levels of education has increased over time, but that students who finish their undergrad studies in less time manage to mitigate part of the inequality of opportunities.
Abstract: Publication date: April 2019Source: International Journal of Educational Development, Volume 66Author(s): Lorraine Pe Symaco, Meng Yew Tee This article discusses the role of ASEAN universities in social responsibility and sustainable development. Selected country case studies are presented to describe the changing role of universities situated in a region with great diversity and potential for further economic growth, as we explore the opportunities and challenges in promoting higher education institutions (HEIs) for greater sustainable development of communities. While there is a wide variety of initiatives—including engaging diverse communities in health, education and environmental sustainability projects— social responsibility and sustainability development is still far from being fully integrated into the core activities of the HEIs. This paper will examine the broader capacity of the universities’ engagement in social responsibility, as interpreted within Boyer’s framework on the scholarship of engagement. We argue that when HEIs develop an integral socially-responsible collaboration with the broader community, opportunities are created for unique epistemic advances for stakeholders involved.
Abstract: Publication date: April 2019Source: International Journal of Educational Development, Volume 66Author(s): Michelle S.M. Momo, Iryna Rud, Sofie J. Cabus, Kristof De Witte, Wim Groot We investigate the importance of contextual variables in explaining the differences in the correlation of education from parents to children in 48 developing countries. The contextual characteristics are internationally comparable macro-economic and institutional indicators. We use measures on GDP and industrial development, public spending, the education system, infrastructure, health outcomes, political stability and accountability. Our results show that contextual characteristics account for 39% of the explained cross-country variation in the education correlation across generations. The quality of the education system is the most important explanation of the variation of the intergenerational education correlation in the developing countries.
Abstract: Publication date: April 2019Source: International Journal of Educational Development, Volume 66Author(s): Anne C. Campbell, Aryn R. Baxter Through a multi-case study, this research explores how three higher education alumni associations organize to influence social change in Georgia, Ghana, and Mongolia. All organizations started as international scholarship program alumni associations, yet findings show they developed into social change organizations over time. In the absence of extensive financial support, these associations sustained their network based on close personal relationships among members. Targeted social issues varied by country, as did relationships with the scholarship funder. Results aim to inform those who consider how international higher education contributes to social change in low- and middle-income countries, especially through alumni networks.
Abstract: Publication date: April 2019Source: International Journal of Educational Development, Volume 66Author(s): Enes Gök, Burak Aydın, John C. Weidman This study investigated the effect of college on unemployed people’s attitudes toward gender in Turkey. Gender, age, income, and the number of household members were also included in the model as well as college and gender interaction. The data were publicly available and collected by a team of researchers sponsored by the World Bank), the Spanish Impact Evaluation Fund, the Gender Action Plan, and the Turkish Labor Agency (İŞKUR). The study included responses from a random sample of 5902 unemployed people in Turkey. Findings from the multivariate analysis revealed that unemployed people with a college degree have more egalitarian gender attitudes than unemployed people who did not hold a college degree, and females were found to be more egalitarian compared to their male counterparts. Findings did not reveal any significant effects of a college by gender interaction on gender attitudes. The number of household members had a meaningful impact on people’s gender attitudes. The results confirm a college and gender effect on the attitudes of people toward dual-earning. Income is also a significant predictor on how people see dual-earning in the family. In the second level analysis, findings indicate that people living in cities with higher socio-economic development scores have more egalitarian attitudes toward gender.
Abstract: Publication date: April 2019Source: International Journal of Educational Development, Volume 66Author(s): Cyril Owen Brandt Through qualitative research in the Democratic Republic of Congo, this article explores the deployment of internally displaced teachers. Rather than understanding deployment as a technical matter, the article uses a “real governance” approach to analyse teacher deployment. It reveals how education is organized during displacements and why teachers return to their villages after displacements. The article argues that state actors with weak capacities in service delivery can be able to exert influence over public school teachers, even in remote conflict-affected zones. It makes this influence palpable through an analysis of concrete practices and relations. The article concludingly questions the appropriateness of the concept of resilience and reflects about the implications of the analysis for policy-makers.
Abstract: Publication date: April 2019Source: International Journal of Educational Development, Volume 66Author(s): Joanna Härmä Low-fee private schools are currently relied upon by many low-income families, particularly in urban areas under-served by government. A common response includes calls for effective regulation if they are to be allowed to operate. This paper goes beyond the common theoretically-based perspectives and documents key stakeholders’ experiences, and finds that Ministries of Education in three African capital cities are failing in their roles as regulators of both government and private education. Unrealistic regulations and under-resourced inspectorates have resulted in patchy oversight systems of which rent-seeking has become an integral part, failing most school-going children.
Abstract: Publication date: April 2019Source: International Journal of Educational Development, Volume 66Author(s): Su Jung Choi, Jin Chul Jeong, Seoung Nam Kim Vocational education and training has played a central role in promoting the school-to-work transition of young people. Despite this role, the return to Vocational Education and Training (VET) has been neglected in previous studies. This paper aims to examine individual returns to VET over a lifespan and to assess the effects of national VET systems, including school-based and work-based VET systems, on economic outcomes. We use the OECD’s Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) dataset for conducting our analyses. The results of this study indicate that vocational track graduates are more likely to have literacy skill disadvantages, short-term employment advantages, and long-term employment disadvantages compared to general track graduates. The most significant finding is that there are substantial differences between work-based and school-based VET systems with regard to their literacy and employment effects. Compared to VET graduates from general education-oriented countries, VET graduates from work-based VET-oriented countries are initially more likely to be employed, but that employment premium narrows faster over time. Therefore, a lifespan overview and the characteristics of national VET systems should enter into policy debates on national educational systems.
Abstract: Publication date: April 2019Source: International Journal of Educational Development, Volume 66Author(s): Sebastian Ille, Mike W. Peacey Egypt stands as a showcase for a practice of private tutoring which severely impedes quality of education. Teachers compel students to pay for additional private tutoring, putting increased financial strain on the poorest members of society. Based on an original dataset on primary education in public schools, this paper joins empirical data and evolutionary theory to study the impact of policies to alleviate Forced Private Tutoring (FPT). Our model explains the limited impact of increases to teachers’ wages in 2012. We identify alternative policies which foster a FPT-free social norm and improve the quality of education in public schools.
Abstract: Publication date: April 2019Source: International Journal of Educational Development, Volume 66Author(s): Sonia Languille This article examines the budget dimension of the rapid expansion of secondary education in Tanzania since 2004. It aims to illuminate important challenges associated with the current international call for universal secondary education and for domestic revenue mobilization to fill the significant financial gap to achieve SDG 4 by 2030. The article sheds light on critical political factors that shaped Tanzania’s education budget allocation, a topic scarcely scholarly investigated. In light of the analysis, the article concludes that tax justice, at global and national level, needs to guide any ambitious agenda for action to finance quality education for all.
Abstract: Publication date: April 2019Source: International Journal of Educational Development, Volume 66Author(s): Morten Greaves, Mona Nabhani, Rima Bahous There is broad international consensus that education provides a pathway towards rehabilitation for children affected by conflict. However, educators working in the field of refugee education must negotiate the complexity of trauma and utilize psycho-social protection strategies if educational interventions are to be successful. This case-study explores how two teachers employ psycho-social protection strategies in the context of a non-formal refugee education program in Lebanon. The data shows how the two participating teachers draw upon their personal experiences as refugees when inductively creating educational practices that help to ensure the psycho-social wellbeing of the children in their care.
Abstract: Publication date: April 2019Source: International Journal of Educational Development, Volume 66Author(s): Alexander Cromwell This article examines the impact of four peace education programs involving Pakistani youth to illuminate peace education’s role in peacebuilding efforts in conflict contexts. It argues that alumni tried to replicate their individual transformations as stimulated by these peace education programs. They did so through community-level projects modelled after the same program processes that had transformed them. Impact on peacebuilding was supported by peace education programs combining different theories of change, focusing on follow-on projects, and providing support structures for alumni. Because alumni modelled their projects after their program experiences, programs should be more transparent in order to maximize impact.
Abstract: Publication date: April 2019Source: International Journal of Educational Development, Volume 66Author(s): Abdul Waheed Mughal, Jo Aldridge, Mark Monaghan The world can only meet prescribed educational targets of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) if all boys and girls complete free, equitable and quality primary and secondary education by 2030. However, the problem of dropping out from school is a barrier to such goals in poor and developing countries. In Pakistan, in total, 73% of children aged 5–16 (classes 1 to 10) drop out before reaching the final grade of secondary school. It is important to listen to the personal stories of dropped out children in order to design better and more effective policy responses. In this study, 18 secondary school dropped-out boys were interviewed in order to explore the social and cultural contexts around their dropping out and the competing economic, social and family demands placed on them. The findings show that a range of ‘push’ and ‘pull’ factors, that operate at individual, family and structural levels – and that at times intersect or combine – influence children’s willingness and ability to attend school.
Abstract: Publication date: April 2019Source: International Journal of Educational Development, Volume 66Author(s): Fredrick Muyia Nafukho, Caroline S. Wekullo, Machuma Helen Muyia The purpose of this study was to examine research productivity of faculty at two leading Kenyan public universities. The analysis showed that the research productivity of faculty varied by gender, institution, terminal degree, rank, discipline, and years of work experience. Individual characteristics (gender, rank, terminal degree, and experience) and institutional characteristics (number of undergraduate students enrolled, percentage of Ph.D. students enrolled, and funding allocated for research function) are significantly associated with faculty research productivity. Faculty’s experience was not a determinant factor of their research productivity. More experienced faculty were less productive. The study has significant implications to shift from performance contracts and self-reported instruments currently used in Kenyan public universities and enhance research productivity of faculty, in their pursuit of the stated institutional vision, mission and goals.
Abstract: Publication date: April 2019Source: International Journal of Educational Development, Volume 66Author(s): Ragui Assaad, Rana Hendy, Djavad Salehi-Isfahani Education is widely considered as the most important path to social mobility in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), yet there are very few studies of the extent to which it fulfills this promise. In this paper we use survey data from eight MENA countries to understand the relationship between schooling attainment of youth and the circumstances into which they are born, namely gender, parental education, parental household’s position in the per capita expenditure distribution and urban/rural location. We consider various attainment levels from the chance of entering any kind of schooling to attending upper secondary schooling and address the fact that many children are still in school by using a censored ordered probit model. We find high degrees of inequality of opportunity in school attainment, especially with respect to attending secondary school. The most opportunity unequal countries in this respect are Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Yemen. Jordan, Palestine and Tunisia are the least opportunity unequal in this respect. This paper builds on a previous study of inequality of opportunity in educational achievement, which showed that in most MENA countries, learning opportunities are not equal. In this study, we find that - even in attending and staying in school- the playing field is not level.
Abstract: Publication date: April 2019Source: International Journal of Educational Development, Volume 66Author(s): Akanksha A. Marphatia, Alice M. Reid, Chittaranjan S. Yajnik We developed a biosocial life-course conceptual approach to investigate maternal and household predictors of secondary school dropout, and to ascertain whether the consequences of dropout differ between girls and boys. We analysed longitudinal biomedical data on 648 mother-child dyads from rural Maharashtra, India. Both maternal (low education, early marriage age, shorter pregnancy duration) and household (low paternal education, low socio-economic status) traits independently predicted dropout. Poor child growth and educational trajectories also predicted dropout, mediating the association of only maternal education. Some girls married despite completing secondary education, suggesting the value of education may be subordinated to the marriage market.
Abstract: Publication date: April 2019Source: International Journal of Educational Development, Volume 66Author(s): Kerrie Proulx, Frances Aboud Research on disaster risk reduction (DDR) initiatives for preschool-aged children is lacking and the potential contribution of young children (e.g. under 6 years old) to reducing the risks and impacts of natural disasters has been largely overlooked in DRR programming. Using a quasi-experimental evaluation design, this study examines the short-term effects of a preschool-based DRR program in rural Indonesia on children’s early learning and the quality of preschool settings. The randomly selected sample comprised of 102 children who had attended preschools with the DRR program (intervention group) and 101 children who had attended neighboring preschools without DRR programming (comparison group). Overall, the results provide preliminary support for the integration of DRR into the early childhood education sector. The DRR intervention improved the quality of the preschool environment and young children’s DRR-related knowledge. Results on children’s early learning outcomes (e.g. reading, writing, mathematics) were mixed. Recommendations for further research are outlined and considerations for future programming in this emerging area.
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