Department of Educational Foundations

There is little research about the potential effects of large-scale institutional changes. Mergers and demergers of educational ministries provide an example of such changes, with their impact on the detailed workings of the organizational mechanics of education systems. The case study reported here is based on the perceptions of the frontline actors concerned by mergers/demergers, none of whom expressed enthusiasm for the merger. Overall, the Malaysian merger, and the demerger two years later, had little overall effect. The short time of the merger was a factor, as well as the existence of autonomous agencies assuring key functions

This paper analyzed elementary teacher education (hereafter 'TED') programs in the top performing European (TIMSS) countries to help inform future elementary TED policy in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Methodological emphasis revolved around how much emphasis should be placed on general content knowledge (GCK), as opposed to general pedagogical knowledge (GPK), as opposed to methodological pedagogical knowledge (MPK). This study explored these questions while analyzing the elementary TED programs of Germany, Finland, and the U.K. relying mainly on peer-reviewed literature on these topics published between 2000 and 2016 in the English language. Three theoretical frames of reference, aside from TIMSS, were also analyzed during this process: whether the programs were consecutive or concurrent, the model of partnership followed between universities and institutions where field experiences took place, and the overall status and role of teachers in the society as categorized by career-based or position-based. It was found that the top performing European TIMSS countries usually: have consecutive and concurrent options; attract the top academic achievers into their programs; have strict filters for admission; provide very intensive TED experiences to their students focusing on practical and diverse field experiences; enforce students to major in at least one academic subject and place more emphasis on academic subject expertise than pedagogy; have challenging criteria (including exams and portfolios) for graduation from the program; have national accreditation institutes for unifying standards; their sponsor countries enforce various types of induction and professional development once in the field; and lastly these countries offer salaries competitive with other professions that require the same amount of years and training since they are usually career-based positions.

This paper analyzed the costs and benefits of attending the top three U.S. elementary teacher education programs by examining how much emphasis is on general content knowledge (GCK), as opposed to general pedagogical knowledge (GPK), as opposed to methodological pedagogical knowledge (MPK), and how this ratio might have affected student outcomes on TIMSS compared to the top performing TIMSS countries in Europe and Asia. Three theoretical frames of reference guided this analysis: program model, field experience model, and status of teacher in society. Methodologically, this study relied mainly on peer-reviewed literature published between 2000 and 2016 in the English language. It was found that although the ratio of GCK to GPK to MPK in the top three U.S. TED programs was similar to what has been reported about the top performing TIMSS countries, student outcomes on TIMSS don " t seem to have been affected due to the fact that performance on TIMSS seems to be stemming mainly from having a very rigorous K-12 education and only admitting the top academic achievers into TED programs.

This study compared how the centralization of Egyptian Islamic Higher Education historically affected educational quality, probity of school management and general levels of and appreciation for Islamic knowledge. This research compared characteristics of Egyptian Islamic Higher Education during four pivotal historical periods: the early medieval period (623-1300s C.E.); the 15th century; the 16th and 17th centuries; and the period of British and French colonization (the 19th and 20th centuries). The logic behind choosing these time periods for comparison was that they represented times of significant centralization/decentralization. Upon analysis of the effects of centralization and de-centralization, it has been found that the centralization of Islamic Higher Education in Egypt has had negative effects. It was identified that the centralization of Islamic Higher Education played a central role in decreasing educational quality, increasing corruption, decreasing general levels of and appreciation for Islamic knowledge, and even supporting Imperial initiatives. Such findings are important given the current geopolitical situation of increasing centralization of Egyptian Islamic higher education.

A Comparative Policy Analysis of Elementary Teacher Education in the Top Performing Asian TIMSS Countries Abstract Purpose: This paper analyzed elementary teacher education (hereafter 'TED') programs in the top performing (TIMSS) Asian (Singapore, Japan, and South Korea) countries to explore how much emphasis should be placed on general content knowledge, vs. general pedagogical knowledge vs. methodological pedagogical knowledge. Design: Three theoretical frames of reference were analyzed during this process: whether the programs were consecutive or concurrent, the model of partnership followed between universities and field experience institutions, and the overall status of teachers in the society as categorized by position-based or career-based. Methodologically, only peer-reviewed literature published between 2000 and 2016 was used. Findings: It was found that the top performing Asian TIMSS countries usually: have consecutive and concurrent options; provide very intensive TED experiences to their students focusing on diverse and practical field experiences; place more emphasis on academic subject expertise than pedagogy; require students to major in at least one academic subject; have national accreditation institutes for unifying standards; their sponsor countries enforce various types of induction and professional development once in the field; offer salaries competitive with other professions that require the same amount of years and training; and most importantly, only accept the top academic achievers into their programs.

In a time of increasing anxiety between 'The Muslim World' and 'The West', it is important to investigate the philosophical assumptions that seem to undergird the two parties' Weltanschauung1—particularly as we are slowly realizing that they are not neccesarily exclusive entities. However, given the gravity of what is at stake, it seems imperative to undergo such an exploration through a concrete case-based philosophical study in how these worldviews approach education instead of a merely theoretical discussion. This article is a comparative analysis between Nel Noddings' concept of Ethical Care—and it's application by scholars such as Thomas Lickona and Becky Bailey—and the author's selection of what seem to be the most relevant aspects of Islamic Pedagogy. Particular emphasis is placed upon comparing the Secular Humanist philosophical assumptions underlying Ethical Care in its Western form and the Islamic philosophical assumptions underlying Islamic Pedagogy with the objective of finding common ground between two worldviews presumably in tension—while acknowledging differences where each can benefit from the other.

This study explored the interaction of school and students’ cultures
at a Latino academic/social enrichment after-school programme in
Georgia, USA. I researched if and how students used language, a
defining aspect of cultures, as cultural capital while negotiating
school and student discourses. This study is particularly important
due to the current debates over the definition of American
identity. This interpretive ethnographic research utilised Sociolinguistic
and Critical Theory lenses. I found that there was a wide
disparity in cultural capital between home and school discourses,
and that although Latino students in this study realised this and
were often disempowered when they did not participate in the
mainstream school culture, they also knew how to negotiate
between institution and discourse identities at times through their
language use to suit their interests. Thus, this article is added
evidence in the growing literature that cultural capital can be fluid
rather than static.

In a time of increasing anxiety between 'The Muslim World' and 'The West', it is important to investigate the philosophical assumptions that seem to undergird the two parties' Weltanschauung-particularly as we are slowly realizing that they are not neccesarily exclusive entities. However, given the gravity of what is at stake, it seems imperative to undergo such an exploration through a concrete case-based philosophical study in how these worldviews approach education instead of a merely theoretical discussion. This article is a comparative analysis between Nel Noddings' concept of Ethical Care-and it's application by scholars such as Thomas Lickona and Becky Bailey-and the author's selection of what seem to be the most relevant aspects of Islamic Pedagogy. Particular emphasis is placed upon comparing the Secular Humanist philosophical assumptions underlying Ethical Care in its Western form and the Islamic philosophical assumptions underlying Islamic Pedagogy with the objective of finding common ground between two worldviews presumably in tension-while acknowledging differences where each can benefit from the other.

This study explored the interaction of school and students' cultures at a Latino academic/social enrichment after-school programme in Georgia, USA. I researched if and how students used language, a defining aspect of cultures, as cultural capital while negotiating school and student discourses. This study is particularly important due to the current debates over the definition of American identity. This interpretive ethnographic research utilised Sociolinguistic and Critical Theory lenses. I found that there was a wide disparity in cultural capital between home and school discourses, and that although Latino students in this study realised this and were often disempowered when they did not participate in the mainstream school culture, they also knew how to negotiate between institution and discourse identities at times through their language use to suit their interests. Thus, this article is added evidence in the growing literature that cultural capital can be fluid rather than static.

This paper analyzed elementary teacher education (hereafter ‘TED’) programs in the top performing European (TIMSS) countries to help inform future elementary TED policy in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Methodological emphasis revolved around how much emphasis should be placed on general content knowledge (GCK), as opposed to general pedagogical knowledge (GPK), as opposed to methodological pedagogical knowledge (MPK). This study explored these questions while analyzing the elementary TED programs of Germany, Finland, and the U.K. relying mainly on peer-reviewed literature on these topics published between 2000 and 2016 in the English language. Three theoretical frames of reference, aside from TIMSS, were also analyzed during this process: whether the programs were consecutive or concurrent, the model of partnership followed between universities and institutions where field experiences took place, and the overall status and role of teachers in the society as categorized by career-base...

This paper analyzed the costs and benefits of attending the top three U.S. elementary teacher education programs by examining how much emphasis is on general content knowledge (GCK), as opposed to general pedagogical knowledge (GPK), as opposed to methodological pedagogical knowledge (MPK), and how this ratio might have affected student outcomes on TIMSS compared to the top performing TIMSS countries in Europe and Asia. Three theoretical frames of reference guided this analysis: program model, field experience model, and status of teacher in society. Methodologically, this study relied mainly on peer-reviewed literature published between 2000 and 2016 in the English language. It was found that although the ratio of GCK to GPK to MPK in the top three U.S. TED programs was similar to what has been reported about the top performing TIMSS countries, student outcomes on TIMSS don’t seem to have been affected due to the fact that performance on TIMSS seems to be stemming mainly from havin...

This study compared how, over time, the centralization of Islamic Higher Education affected educational quality, probity of school management and general levels of and appreciation for knowledge. This research involved comparing characteristics of Egyptian Islamic Higher Education at three pivotal points in time: the early medieval period (623-1300s C.E.); the 15th century; and the period of British and French colonization (the 19th and 20th centuries). The logic behind choosing these particular time periods for comparison was that they represented times of significant centralization/decentralization of Egyptian Islamic Higher Education. Upon analysis of the effects of centralization and de-centralization, it has been found that the centralization of Islamic Higher Education in Egypt has had negative effects. It was found that, over time, the centralization of Islamic Higher Education played a central role in decreasing educational quality, increasing corruption, and decreasing gene...

ABSTRACT: This paper analyzed elementary TED (Teacher Education) programs in the top performing TIMSS ( Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study ) Asian, i.e. Japan, South Korea, and Singapore countries to explore how much emphasis should be placed on general content knowledge, versus general pedagogical knowledge, and versus methodological pedagogical knowledge. Three theoretical frames of reference were analyzed during this process: whether the programs were consecutive or concurrent; the model of partnership followed between universities and field experience institutions; and the overall status of teachers in the society as categorized by position-based or career-based. Methodologically, only peer-reviewed literature published between 2000 and 2018 was used. It was found that the top performing Asian TIMSS countries usually: have consecutive and concurrent options; provide very intensive TED experiences to their students focusing on diverse and practical field experi...

In this dissertation, I will explore the intellectual foundations of Egyptian national education to understand the paradoxical existence of a Secular Humanist rooted national education system in a Muslim-majority country (MMC). Such an inquiry is critical at a conjuncture that Egyptians are beginning to unshackle themselves from a thirty-year puppet regime. Given the return to an Islamic identity since the 1970s 'Islamic Awakening', it is expected that such newfound freedom could give national education a more Islamic hue. This investigation will start with a discussion of the complex relationship between Secular Humanist philosophy (SH) and Western colonization. Given the colonizing effect that I have found in utilizing SH worldviews in discussing indigenous peoples, I will suggest Critical Indigenous Methodology (CIM) as the least restrictive approach in breaching the gulf between SH and I have noticed that no author writes a book and finishes it, except that the next day he says, 'If I had only changed this part, it would have been better; and if only I had added this fact, it would have been appreciated more; and if I had only made this section earlier, it would have been easier to comprehend; and if I had only left this section out, it would have been more beautiful.' And this, in fact is one of the greatest lessons and points to ponder over, for it is a clear indication of the inferiority of the nature of man [sic].

Quand le chercheur s’investit dans son action de recherche, il entretient un rapport cognitif et affectif avec son objet d’étude. Dans cet article, nous souhaitons aborder comment la question de l’implication du chercheur est un enjeu de la recherche et en quoi l’analyse des processus à l’oeuvre pour le chercheur peut devenir un objet de réflexion qui permet aussi une compréhension de l’objet d’étude. Dans le cadre d’une recherche doctorale sur le rôle de la religion et de l’école dans la construction identitaire des jeunes, notre immersion dans une école primaire au Québec nous place au coeur d’un processus réflexif sur la posture du chercheur, sur sa réflexivité et sur son positionnement par rapport à soi-même, à ses sujets de recherche et à ses outils de collecte de données. Dans cette étude, l’observation ethnographique comme outil de collecte de données nous a placé au coeur d’un processus conversationnel continu avec les sujets, avec les données et avec soi-même. Le processus ...

This study addresses the religious identification of young people from an immigrant background in the context of a sociological perspective. This study is essentially focused on young people's perceptions of their religious identities. We tried to understand the religious markers exhibited by young people attending a religious Muslim school in Canada. How do these students construct identity in the gears of religion, school, home society and parental culture? Young people are thus given the opportunity to express their identity-building perspectives. Through an ethnographic stay, the data collection took place in a private school located in Quebec, Canada. The data analysis allowed us to identify some religious identity markers developed by participants during their biographical and social paths. Participants are hence distinguished as a cultural group in a minority context. These religious markers also seem more adapted to the context of young people and more open to others

This study relates to private schools in Quebec, which primarily shelter Muslim immigrant children. In Quebec, although society is delighted with its public education, which has become officially secular, the number of religious school has quickly increased after the events of September 11, 2001. The ministry of education counts 252 religious schools, which, in 2012, served 126,000 students 1. Often being called religious or ethno-religious schools, these institutions present the formal curriculum and claim to provide students with an educational environment that meets the requirements of the religious community in the land of immigration. However, Statistics Canada polls show that immigrant youth appear to be twice as likely to attend religious services as their Canadian peers 2. Hence, the role of these schools is often questioned, causing great concern about their roles and goals in a secular society like that of Quebec. especially with the rise of Islamist terrorism in West We use participant observations to describe the religious character of these schools, particularly the Muslim schools faith, and to understand their role in Quebec society through the ethnographic accommodation.