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mcooka

Lebanon - Educational System-overview - Schools, Private, Students, and Lebanese - Stat... - 0 views

  • The Lebanese educational system is divided in two sectors: private schools and universities, for which there is a charge for admission, and public (government) schools and universities that are practically free of charge.
  • Education was once almost exclusively the responsibility of religious communities or foreign groups, but because the number of students in public schools has risen to more than two-fifths of the total school enrollment, the government was pressured to open more public schools to meet the demands of the general public.
  • While public schools have not paid much attention to the preschool phase and have required students to be five-years-old to be accepted in kindergarten until the 1990s, private schools have always had a preschool phase and have accepted students as young as three-years-old
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  • The total duration in school remains intact, 12 years. The primary cycle of general education has been increased by one year, and is divided into two modules of three years each, while the intermediary cycle was reduced to three years instead of four. The first year of general education's secondary cycle must be considered common for all four different series of instruction, and the second year is common to only two out of four series. Lebanese students are not allowed to enter formal technical education before age 12, which is the age limit of obligatory education. The scholastic year was changed to 36 weeks, and 4 supplementary hours per week were added at the intermediary and secondary cycles.
  • The new school curricula was launched in September 1998, and the Educational Center for Research and Development had trained 16,000 teachers in public schools and 6,000 teachers in private schools on the new uses and principles of the new program. The new system took into account economic, social, and national perspectives. The principle characteristics of this new system consist of the following:
  • The Lebanese educational system has usually relied heavily on private schooling to accommodate the evergrowing demand for learning in the country
  • In short, the new formal educational system of Lebanon, like in many other countries, divides the years of instruction as follows: 6-3-3 (six years for the primary cycle, three years for the intermediate cycle, and three years for the secondary cycle), followed by the higher education cycle. Primary school education is followed either by a six-year intermediary and secondary program, leading to the official Lebanese baccalaureate certificate, which was originally based on the equivalent French school diploma, or by a three- to six-year technical or vocational training program.
  • There are 1508 public and private intermediary and secondary schools for the general instruction program in Lebanon, while there are only 262 schools for the technical and professional instruction program divided between the public sector (29 schools) and the private sector (233 schools).
  • Education is compulsory until the end of the intermediate cycle, is available to all Lebanese students, and is attended by nearly 95 percent of school-age children
  • The school year starts in early October and ends in late June. The school day consists of six hours starting at 8:00 a.m. with two hour lunch break and ends at 4:00 p.m. The length of class periods ranges from 50 to 55 minutes. Both public and private schools are supposed to observe official holidays, which are decided by the government; however, Christian-administered, religious private schools take Saturday and Sunday off every week, while Moslem-run religious private schools take Friday and Sunday, and Jewish-run private schools take off all of Saturday and Sunday afternoon only.
  • As to special education concerning handicapped students, there were about 10,000 handicapped people in 1975 (prior to the Lebanese civil war). During the Israeli invasion of Lebanon in 1982, this number reached 13,000; it is more than 15,000 in 2001. About 2,500 handicapped people were being educated and made ready to enter the work market.
  • In addition, females appeared to have a slightly higher percentage than males with regard to attending schools and universities. After age 25 male attendance becomes almost double that of female attendance.
  • the literacy rate was 88.4 percent in 1997
  • ue to the Lebanese people's negative attitude toward manual work, especially in industry and agriculture, students of lower socioeconomic status enroll mostly in vocational and technical schools. Therefore, there is a big difference between the two major types of instruction, as well as the relative numbers of schools and students enrolled in each of these types
  • The brevet certificate is only required by public schools, vocational schools, and teacher training institutes. The baccalaureate part I exam has two main tracks: literary and scientific. The baccalaureate part II has four main tracks: literature and humanities, which includes language, literature, history, philosophy, education, arts, and religion; sociology and economy, which includes economic sciences, politics, business and management, law, and sociology; general sciences, which includes mathematics, physics, chemistry, and their applications at the level of engineering; and life sciences, which includes biology and life sciences, chemistry and their applications in the area of medicine, health, agriculture, and other related subjects.
  • Most institutions of higher education require entrance examinations besides the baccalaureate part II, which is required by law.
  • The grading system is generally based on scales of 0 to 20 or 0 to 100, with 10 or 60, respectively, as passing grades
  • he curriculum in Lebanese schools is somewhat rigid, for all students must pursue the same programs in all three cycles
  • rivate schools can choose textbooks that meet their syllabi, except in the civics area where the Ministry of Education, Youth, and Sport requires them to use the center's textbooks.
  • rabic and either French or English are the languages of instruction in the Lebanese schools.
  • The United Nations Reliefs and Works Agency (UNRWA) provides funds supporting a private nonsectarian school system for Palestinian Refugees in the Middle East. This type of private schooling has been very effective in offering education and social services for children of Palestinian Refugees residing in Lebanon
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    This article gave a great general overview to the education in Lebanon. One of the major components of Lebanon's education system is when they changed it 1999 to reflect the style of French education systems. Additionally, Lebanon has a high rate of 95% attendance for its students and it also has a high rate of literacy at 89%
mcooka

Education in Jordan - general overview | Jordan Times - 0 views

  • large majority of students attends public schools, often taught by poorly qualified teachers
  • Curricula, teaching and evaluation methods do not permit free dialogue or exploratory learning, and consequently do not open the doors to creative thinking and analysis.
  • “Imparting” knowledge is the dominant feature, which weakens the capacity to hold opposing or various viewpoints.
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  • n Jordan, there is an excessive use of lecturing and memorisation, with little emphasis on analysis of what is being memorised. It is well known that students in public schools are required to memorise endless facts and formulas from a dreary academic curriculum.
  • hile all new theories of language acquisition are based on meaningful communication through which students can acquire English as a second language without translation or focusing on grammatical principles and rules, “grammar translation method” is still the only popular method used in public schools and even at universities in Jordan.
  • Over the years, there has been much talk about reforming the education system in Jordan, but less action. Reform i
  • We need an education through which students are able to connect the facts they learn about to the real world, which helps them innovate, understand social responsibilities, ethics and values.
ysenia

Iran | Countries | NTI - 0 views

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    Overview of Iran as a nuclear threat. Includes treaties, analysis, documents involved in nuclear program. NTI focuses of enlightening reasons why Iran is a threat and focuses on sharing global nuclear policy.
alarsso

Profile: Syria's ruling Baath Party - BBC News - 0 views

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    A brief overview of the beginnings of the Baath Party and summarization of where it stands today.
mharcour

Tufts' Two State Solution - 0 views

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    This Tufts student created website outlines the basis of the two-state agreement and provides an brief overview of the opposition and support of the solution.
alarsso

The al-Assad's Syria: A history of violence - ASHARQ AL-AWSAT - 0 views

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    An overview of the violent acts the Assad regime (Hafez and Bashar) has committed against its own people.
wmulnea

OPEC and oil prices: Leaky barrels | The Economist - 1 views

  • OPEC, which produces about a third of the world’s daily consumption of 90m barrels of crude oil
  • cartel
  • anti-glut group
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  • the country will produce 14m barrels a day (b/d) next year, on a par with Saudi Arabia
  • Iraqi oil exports, stricken by the war and its aftermath, are also set to increase.
  • Libya could be another source of production: its exports have collapsed to only a few hundred thousand barrels a day, against 1.6m in June last year.
  • OPEC’s best hope is continued American protectionism. Any easing of the restrictions on the export of liquefied natural gas (LNG) or crude will exert more downward pressure on the oil price.
  • But that would cede market share to their hated rivals, Iran and Iraq.
  • America’s domestic production of crude (and gas, which displaces some oil) is rocketing.
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    This article briefly addresses the current global petroleum market, outlining the top national producers and their current import/export strategies. The article is a good overview of the global politcs affecting oil prices.
alarsso

BBC News - Arab uprising: Country by country - Syria - 0 views

  • Protests demanding greater freedom and an end to corruption
  • Deraa
  • March 2011.
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  • demanding President Bashar al-Assad's resignation.
  • Opposition supporters began to take up arms, first to defend themselves and then to oust loyalist forces from their areas.
  • February 2012,
  • a new constitution
  • dropped an article giving the ruling Baath Party unique status as the "leader of the state and society"
  • denounced it
  • rebels seized control of large parts of the north and east of the country
  • National Coalition
  • Syrian people's "legitimate representative".
  • 2013,
  • shifting in Mr Assad's favour,
  • government
  • recover territory
  • August 2013
  • chemical weapons attack on the outskirts of Damascus
  • destroy Syria's chemical weapons.
  • peace conference in Geneva in January 2014.
  • more than 100,000 people dead
  • millions from their homes.
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    Overview of revolts in Syria and where it stands as of December 2013
mharcour

Hamas Defined - 0 views

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    Hamas plays a large role in Palestinian politics. Their clash with Fatah in 2007 struck the Gaza strip and led to an outbreak in fighting and sanctions put onto Hamas.
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    This BBC News Profile offers a good overview of the organization, their roots, and their aims for Gaza and their Palestinian supporters.
ysenia

The Politics of Iran's Nuclear Program | The Iran Primer - 0 views

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    A brief overview of why Iran began their nuclear program and what is has progressed into today. It also explains the nuclear process and major players involved in the program.
mcooka

Jordan - Educational System-overview - Students, School, Schools, and Secondary - State... - 0 views

  • The present structure of the Jordanian educational system comprises formal and nonformal systems
  • A compulsory stage for children ages 6 to 15 (grades 1-10), consisting of primary school (grades 1-6) and preparatory school (grades 7-10).
  • A comprehensive secondary education (academic and vocational) and applied secondary education (training centers and apprenticeship).
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  • Higher education, either a two-year intermediate level course offered by community colleges or four years of university level courses, either in public or private institutions. The student's achievement on the General Secondary Education Certificate Examination is the sole criterion for admission into higher education institutes.
  • Under this system, students in grades 4 through 10 may repeat a grade twice. After that they are automatically promoted. In the preparatory stage, grade repetition is allowed only once. At the secondary level, students are allowed to repeat once in a government school provided they are younger than 17; otherwise they must transfer to a private school.
  • Community colleges and universities vary in required attendance from two years in community colleges to six or more in universities based on the type of institution and specialization
  • he majority of students are enrolled in schools directly controlled by the MOE. Some schools fall under the jurisdiction of the cultural bureau of the Ministry of Defense. The Ministry of Health oversees students studying for medical careers; it established the first nursing school in 1953-54.
  • Instruction is in Arabic, but English is introduced in public schools in the fifth grade and is widely used. A new policy was recently approved to start teaching English in the first grade beginning in the academic year 2001-02
  • The school year runs for 210 days from September to June.
  • All public schools and most private ones use the same textbooks. Under Law 16 of 1964, the School Curricula and Textbooks Division of the MOE is responsible for producing and printing the textbooks. They are distributed free of charge during the compulsory stage, but there is a nominal fee at the secondary stage.
  • Jordanian public schools are single sex schools.
  • In 1997, however, only 16 percent of students were attending two shift schools and 11 percent went to rented buildings.
  • As a whole, education in Jordan is considered an investment in the future. Skilled citizens are necessary. Before the Gulf War, most graduates could find good jobs in the oil-rich countries, and the money they sent home helped the Jordanian economy to grow. It is not uncommon for a family living at subsistence level to be able to send a child to a university (Abu-Zeinh).
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    This article goes into great depth about Jordan Educational systems. Things such as public vs private, which still use the same books, and single sex schools. It also talks about public and two-year junior college education system. 
ysenia

The Iran nuclear framework deal: A definitive, research-based guide from Harv... - 0 views

  • However, in order to utilize the plutonium for a weapon, Iran would still have to build a reprocessing plant to be able to separate plutonium from spent fuel.
  • [I]t will reduce the risk of Iran getting a bomb better than any of the realistic alternatives. Iran has agreed to physical limits on its ability to produce weapons-grade materials that will assure a break-out timeline of roughly a year for the next 10 years, as well as additional restraints and verification measures to monitor compliance and detect cheating. If the U.S. rejects the deal and returns to sanctions, Iran is certain to return to what it was doing before the interim agreement: installing additional centrifuges, enriching uranium, increasing its stockpile of enriched material, developing more advanced centrifuges, and completing the Arak heavy water reactor. The agreement does not solve the problem, but it reduces the risk for now and buys substantial time to resolve the threat in the future.
    • ysenia
       
      reduces risk of future issues
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    Overview of the Nuclear Deal as well as the pros and cons. A more in-depth evaluation of facts about the program and the benefits of global intervention.
aromo0

Women's Rights Under Sharia - 0 views

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    "An overview of the lack of equality and oppression of women under Sharia - the position of women in Muslim majority societies." Women have little to no rights under sharia law and insist on revoking said law.
yperez2

Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting: A statistical overview and exploration of the dynami... - 0 views

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    This report presents the issue of female mutilation. Within the report, percentages are found for various countries showing how many women are for change and against female genital mutilation.
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    This report presents the issue of female mutilation. Within the report, percentages are found for various countries showing how many women are for change and against female genital mutilation.
sheldonmer

Timothy Spangler: Ukraine's brief social-media coup - The Orange County Register - 0 views

    • sheldonmer
       
      This article gives an overview of what is currently going on in Ukraine. It talks about how social media is being used in the area. Russia swears that it isn't getting involved in the conflict, but on one of Russia's government Facebook pages, soldiers have been posting things on social media that are geotagged inside of Ukraine. People are now suspicious that they are fighting alongside local military.
sheldonmer

Can the Arab revolutions survive Syria and Egypt? - Opinion - Al Jazeera English - 0 views

    • sheldonmer
       
      This article provides a great overview of the "Arab Revolutions". This article covers the uprisings in Oman, Yemen, Egypt, Syria and Morocco. This article compares all of this in light, but mainly focuses on the carnage inside Syria. This articles questions whether or not the Middle East will crumble under the Egyptian and Syrian Revolutions.
mharcour

The Failed Camp David II - 0 views

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    This New York Times article discusses the lead up to, the details of, and the resultant trilateral agreement that came from the Middle East Peace Talks that President Clinton held at Camp David in July of 2000. While talks initially seemed to be going well, negotiations reached an impasse over the control of Jerusalem. While Barak agreed to lesser control of East Jerusalem, Arafat would not consider anything of the sort. Both Clinton, Barak, and the media blame Arafat for the failed discussions.
jordanbrown16

Profile for Iran | NTI - 0 views

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    "The Nuclear Threat Initiative works to strengthen global security by reducing global threats from nuclear, biological and chemical weapons." Here, the NTI gives a brief overview of Iran's advanced nuclear program and the direction it is headed.
wmulnea

Libya country profile - Overview - BBC News - 1 views

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    This article provides more background information concerning the history and current situation of Libyan government.
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