European Educational Research Journal, Volume 4, Number 1, 2005

European Educational Research Journal, Volume 4, Number 1, 2005 Travelling Policy and Local Spaces in the Republic of Tajikistan: a comparison of the...
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European Educational Research Journal, Volume 4, Number 1, 2005

Travelling Policy and Local Spaces in the Republic of Tajikistan: a comparison of the attitudes of Tajikistan and the World Bank towards textbook provision STEPHEN A. BAHRY Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, University of Toronto, Canada

ABSTRACT For newly independent Central Asian republics a debate has arisen about how much of the aims, content and pedagogy of old Soviet-era curricula to retain, how much to revise or replace, and with what. There is a need to replace and revise textbooks, which are wearing out and outdated. Financial crisis has made the financial support of external funding agencies necessary to do so, allowing these agencies great influence on choice of appropriate aims, objectives and pedagogy to be embodied in new textbooks, and thus on educational change in Central Asia. However, attitudes towards strengths and weaknesses of the existing system, and thus the need for change, may differ between Central Asian educational authorities and external donors. Policies recommended by external agencies may be accepted, adapted, resisted or rejected by local educators for various reasons. This study compares attitudes towards textbook provision policy expressed in two normative texts on educational needs in Tajikistan: one produced by Tajikistan authorities and one by the World Bank. While both express the importance of textbook development for educational reform, clear differences in priorities for textbook development and attitudes towards existing aims, content and pedagogies are identified. These differences suggest the need for increased dialogue between local authorities and external donors. Further, such dialogue should be extended to other key stakeholders in the reform process.

Introduction International development agencies have actively tackled the question of equality of access to education worldwide, especially in less developed countries (LDCs), where numbers of children enrolled in school, particularly girls, have long been much lower than in middle-income and highincome countries. This has culminated in the Education for All (EFA) campaign of UNESCO (Jones, 1997). At the same time, education systems of the new states of the former socialist republics of Central and Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union (FSU) have begun to resemble those of LDCs. The collapse of the USSR, economic crisis and the removal of financial subsidies from the all-Union level to the former constituent republics have reduced levels of financing for education. Infrastructure, materials and books have worn out or been stolen without being adequately maintained or replaced; weak finances have delayed or suspended the revision of curricula and textbooks rendered inappropriate by independence; teachers’ salaries and working conditions have deteriorated and many have left the profession; fees have begun to be charged and some students have stayed out of school or left school early, because of the increased costs of schooling (Holmes et al, 1995; Berryman, 2000; Polyzoi & Dneprov, 2003). Despite the great need for investment in education in FSU, governments have found it difficult to fund the revitalization of their education systems, particularly in the poorer regions such as the Central Asian republics, and have turned to external agencies for financial support. Nevertheless, the countries of FSU differ from most LDCs in that, in recent times, they had achieved basic and lower secondary education for all citizens, near-universal adult literacy, and 60

Travelling Policy in Tajikistan relatively high levels of achievement combined with low disparities in access to education (World Bank, 1995; Sutherland, 1999). Travelling Policies and Local Spaces in FSU Education reform policies that originate outside an educational system and are promoted by external educational development agencies such as UNESCO or the World Bank (WB) present particular challenges. Although such policies often have a strong international consensus behind them, they may accord in varying degrees with the actual local circumstances and the views of local education stakeholders. Thus, they may be adopted wholesale, adapted to local conditions, or resisted and even rejected by local educational stakeholders. Such policies originating from outside local education systems have been called travelling policies, and the local factors influencing the acceptance, modification or rejection of travelling policies as local spaces (Alexiadou & Jones, 2001). The FSU presents useful examples for the investigation of the interaction of travelling policies and local spaces. During the Soviet period, the USSR was isolated from political and research trends outside, and developed its own educational and research tradition and considerable educational success as measured by participation, years of education completed, and levels of adult literacy achieved (Popkewitz, 1984; Holmes et al, 1995). Within the Soviet educational tradition, there is a history of alternate policies to draw from, whether from the period of educational reconstruction after the Civil War of the 1920s, where educators such as Makarenko developed an approach to dealing with the education of orphaned street children, or from the period of perestroika (reconstruction) in the 1990s, when many innovative reforms were debated and proposed (Holmes et al, 1995). Given this history, current educational problems in FSU may be regarded by local educators as due to insufficient resources to implement educational policies, rather than to inadequate educational policy development capacity. Indeed, according to a survey conducted by Polyzoi & Dneprov, the former education minister of the Russian Federation, ‘Although funding partners for projects have been actively pursued, there is tacit if not obdurate, resistance on the part of many Russian educators to the adoption of “western-style” models of education’ (2003, p. 28). In a recent study of new post-Communist history textbooks in Russia, rather than a smooth transition to Western thinking, contradictory themes are found coexisting in unexpected combinations: a reformist Communist/socialist vision, a free-market capitalist vision; a Russian nationalist vision, a pro-Western vision and a liberal democratic vision. Textbooks with Russian funding referred more positively to Russian values, Russian nationalism and Russian Orthodox Christianity, while those with Western funding often ignored or deprecated Russian values They referred more positively and frequently to Western values and Westernization than did Russianfunded textbooks (Lisovskaya & Karpov, 1999). In a similar vein, Liu (2003) argues that feedback from Central Asian NGOs to external funding agencies does not fully reflect local opinion and conditions. He claims that staff of these NGOs are affected by the thinking of their funders more than staff of locally funded organizations, and reflect back to external donors the attitudes, expectations and concerns of the external funders rather than actual local opinion. Thus, while travelling policies may be locally adopted or adapted because they are seen by local actors as effective innovative ideas from outside that will permit the successful development of local educational policy, there is also the possibility that policies inappropriate to the local context will travel due to the financial power of external agencies. Travelling Policies and Local Spaces in Tajikistan: new textbook provision Central Asian republics gained much from central Soviet subsidies in education. In 1955, for example, the average number of secondary or higher education students per 1000 population in the Central Asian republics of the USSR was 45 per 1000, while in neighbouring India and Iran, there were only an average of 23 and 5 per 1000, respectively (Medlin et al, 1971, p. xviii). Tajikistan, as the poorest republic in the Soviet Union, gained the most, in relative terms, from central Union subsidies to education and, at the dissolution of the USSR, lost the most (Republic of Tajikistan, 2002; UNESCO, n.d.). In Tajikistan, the normal post-Soviet economic 61

Stephen A. Bahry difficulties of all Central Asian republics have been exacerbated by Tajikistan’s low initial economic base at independence and the enormous destruction of the subsequent civil war. During the civil war from 1991-1993, in addition to the tragic human loss, many schools were also destroyed or robbed. As a result, there are schools where the teacher has the only textbook, a level of textbook provision typical of the poorest of LDCs (Heyneman, 1978; Farrell & Heyneman, 1989; Davlatov & Mulloev, 2000; Niyozov, 2001; Republic of Tajikistan, 2002; UNESCO, n.d.). During the civil war, fighting occurred mainly in southern provinces, largely avoiding the richest district of Khujand (Leninabod), and destruction of schools was greater in southern districts such as the Vakhsh valley of Khatlon province near Qurghonteppa (see Figure 1) (Akbarzadeh, 1996; Wennberg, 2002). Although fighting was concentrated in certain districts, poverty in Tajikistan today is pervasive: besides the capital city, Dushanbe, there are large proportions of poor families in every district. Poverty is not confined to rural areas (Falkingham, 2000a) (see Figure 1).

Figure 1. Tajikistan and its current administrative regions (the former regions of Qurghonteppa and Kulob have been merged into one administrative unit: Khatlon Region). Source: http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/commonwealth/tajikistan_pol01.jpg.

The World Bank, the largest international development agency active in supporting educational reform in Central Asia, is contributing substantial funds to Tajikistan’s education system, amounting to 10% of the country’s total education budget (World Bank, 2003). Given this level of 62

Travelling Policy in Tajikistan funding, the attitude of this agency is likely to have a profound effect on educational policies in Tajikistan. Yet, with its high educational levels relative to income level, and its unique experience in Central Asia of civil war, educational authorities in Tajikistan may regard the severity of its educational problems as deriving more from circumstances than from systemic weaknesses. As with India’s experience with the World Bank, Tajikistan authorities may resist or resent policy advice that does not fit its priorities, since they may feel obliged to accept, or seem to accept, policy advice from donor agencies in order to receive funding (Drake, 2001). This article will examine travelling policies and local spaces in Tajikistan through a comparison of attitudes of the Tajik Government and the World Bank towards policy for textbook provision. The focus on textbooks is justified because textbooks play an essential role in the broad development of literacy (Heyneman, 1978; Farrell & Heyneman, 1989) and because textbooks are an indicator of changing attitudes towards identity (Lisovskaya & Karpov, 1999; Crawford, 2002; Zajda & Zajda, 2003). Important in itself, textbook provision policy also serves as a window on attitudes towards society, the aims of education, the curriculum, learning and pedagogy that are embodied in the textbooks. Contribution of Textbooks to Academic Achievement The extensive literature on the importance of textbooks in educational achievement shows that textbooks per student affects achievement more strongly than does teacher training. The effect is greater among children of lower socioeconomic status, who may have little access to books in the home. Thus, textbook provision is an effective means to increase achievement and reduce disparities in achievement, even when students share only one copy per two or three students (Heyneman, 1978; Farrell & Heyneman, 1989; Lockheed & Verspoor, 1991). Where the number of textbooks is extremely low, provision of any textbook at all, regardless of content, is beneficial. Research suggests that textbooks can be important for teachers, as a guide to what information should be included in curricula, how content and language can be sequenced, how lessons can be conducted to engage students actively and supplemented with extra activities in order to be more effective (Chadwick, 1990; Lockheed & Verspoor, 1991; World Bank, 1995). Nevertheless, for maximum effect, new textbooks should be accompanied by detailed teacher’s guides and coordinated with teacher training, since many teachers in LDCs do not know how to use textbooks effectively (Heyneman, 1978; Lockheed & Verspoor, 1991). General World Bank Attitudes towards Textbook Provision The WB’s views of best practice worldwide in education are presented in Priorities and Strategies for Education: a World Bank review. This review affirms that the most effective instructional materials are blackboards, chalk and textbooks, as well as supplementary reading materials. Public investment should be combined with fees, but governments should assist poor families with scholarships at all levels to cover direct and indirect costs of attendance, including textbooks, shoes or uniforms. Finally, linguistic minorities should be offered bilingual education (World Bank, 1995). It is noteworthy that policies regarding textbooks are recommended generally, without advice on how to apply general policy in diverse local circumstances. This abstracted approach raises questions about the way textbooks are seen by the WB and by local interests within Tajikistan. Specifically, 1. How much support is seen as needed for different aspects of textbook provision systems in Tajikistan by: (a) the Tajikistan Government? (b) the World Bank? 2. What priorities for textbook provision in Tajikistan of the government and the WB are most similar? 3. What priorities for textbook provision in Tajikistan of the government and the WB are most different? 4. What factors may be inferred from the data that influence the similarities and differences in attitudes towards textbook provision in Tajikistan?

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Stephen A. Bahry 5. What implications for textbook provision in Tajikistan can be drawn from similarities and differences identified in attitudes of Tajik officials and the WB? One aim of my future doctoral research is to investigate such questions to identify factors that promote increased literacy and achievement and that influence sustainability of curriculum and teacher development reform projects supported through external educational funding agencies in Central and Inner Asia (Bahry, 2003, forthcoming a, b; Bahry & Niyozov, forthcoming). Some factors promoting increased literacy and school achievement are linguistic and relate to the use of language in the classroom. Several innovative non-formal education projects have achieved remarkable results with poor, rural children in LDCs (Lovell & Fatema, 1989; Schiefelbein, 1991; Sarker, 1994; McEwan, 1998; Nath et al, 1999; Sarmiento Gomez, 2001; Farrell, 2003, 2004; Haiplik, 2004; Pitt, 2004). One element of their success may be the high level of oral interaction between teacher and students and among students and the use of innovative teaching materials which allow students to work at their own pace in groups. Another element of the success of these programs may be innovative approaches to teacher selection, development and support. Teachers tend to teach what and how they themselves were taught. It is not enough to plan for teacher training in the use of new textbooks; the form of teacher training and the amount of support for teachers is crucial. Thus, the importance of new textbook development for sustainable educational change is apparent, for the content and approach of new textbooks ‘crystallize’ the intended curriculum and pedagogy for several years until the next generation of textbooks is produced. The greater the difference between old and new textbooks, the greater the risk that their use will not be sustainable in the field, and the greater the importance of well-designed teacher development programs in the effective use of the new materials. The aim of the present article is to identify areas in which Tajikistani educators and external funders are in agreement or disagreement concerning textbook change, which can suggest where some externally funded textbook development projects may face difficulty in successful implementation in the field. The approach used in this analysis draws on Max Weber’s ‘ideal types’ as a basis for comparing the attitudes of educational agencies (Holmes, 1981; Whimster, 2004). Ideals for education in Tajikistan were constructed by (a) surveying literature on education in the USSR, (b) examining normative statements on education originating within the Republic of Tajikistan; and (c) examining policy statements and documents of the WB. Tajikistan government attitudes towards the role of textbooks in the education system were drawn from the EFA 2000 Assessment Country Report on achievement of Education for All (EFA). This document was prepared by the Tajik Ministry of Education (MOE) and submitted to the United Nations (UNESCO, n.d.). World Bank attitudes towards the role of textbooks in the education system were drawn from the Project Appraisal Document prepared by the World Bank for its Tajikistan Education Modernization Programme (World Bank, 2003). Reliability and validity of data concerning attitudes are assumed to be high, since data derive from normative policy statements published by the agencies concerned after internal discussion. However, the methodology depends on subjective interpretation of qualitative terms in the documents, one of which was translated from the original into English.[1] Comparability of the documents is also limited by the difference in dates: the WB document dates from 2003, and the MOE document was submitted in 1999. However, this temporal dimension does offer some insights into the way policy dialogue developed between the MOE and WB over time. These data provide a basis for making inferences about the aggregate attitudes to education negotiated between stakeholders in the Tajikistan education system and in the World Bank. These inferences from data cannot be generalized to all stakeholders in the education system, since the attitudes of some may not have been captured in the process of coming to agreed statements about education in Tajikistan. Equally, the aggregate attitudes do not shed any light on the specific attitudes of different stakeholders within Tajikistan, although contextual information about education in Tajikistan can inform suggestions about the likely orientations of different interest groups. While predictions of success or failure of policy cannot be made from such limited data, tentative inferences may be made about which aspects of WB policy on textbook provision are

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Travelling Policy in Tajikistan more or less likely to be resisted by MOE, and where deepened and broadened dialogue between WB and MOE may be useful. Through close reading of the policy texts, statements that implicitly or explicitly refer to textbooks were identified and examined. Ideals for Soviet education and textbooks before and during perestroika and for post-Soviet Tajikistan education were compared to the current ideals of the World Bank to determine whether current educational ideals in Tajikistan are converging with those of the World Bank. The MOE and WB documents were also examined for ‘value-ideas’ concerning textbooks (Lisovskaya & Karpov, 1999, pp. 523-525). Value ideas are derived from identification of valueladen statements that: (a) A is good; (b) non-A is bad; (c) A is present; therefore the result is good; (d) A is absent; therefore the result is bad. Use of a value-laden term was interpreted as implying perceived importance of the associated attitude; greater frequency of use of such terms, as well as use of ‘stronger’ value-laden terms, was taken to indicate strength of associated attitudes. For example, the expressions ‘develop the distribution system’ or ‘create a distribution system’ are interpreted differently: while both suggest having a system is good, the former implies a more positive attitude towards the existing system than the second statement, which suggests either that there is no system (which is bad), or that the system is totally without effect (which is worse). A preliminary survey of the data identified value-laden terms, such as: create, develop, modernize, reform, increase, improve, enhance, strengthen, effective, efficient, strong, which differ in intensity of attitude towards textbook provision. Conclusions on attitudes and the strength with which different aspects of textbook provision are regarded will be derived from juxtaposition and examination of selected statements on this theme (Noah & Eckstein, 1969). Examination of these statements can suggest where, and by how much, attitudes of governments and funders converge or diverge, allowing inferences to be made concerning greater and lesser acceptance by MOE of WB policies. Further, since the WB document is later than the MOE document and negotiated with the Tajikistan Government, changes in attitudes from the earlier MOE document to the later WB document may indicate instances of travelling policies, i.e. changes of local policy towards greater conformity with policies supported by outside agencies. Views on Society, Education and Textbook Provision Soviet Views on Society, Education and Textbook Provision: pre-perestroika (before 1986) Soviet education combined diverse influences: Marxist educational philosophy and Dewey’s progressivism; European enlightenment tradition and local Russian tradition. All children, regardless of family background, were considered equally able to learn; the state’s responsibility was to provide proper conditions, which meant comprehensive schools and a common, encyclopedic, curriculum, providing a broad survey of human knowledge. In the latter decades of the USSR, curricula were prepared by academics who were subject experts, and not by experts in pedagogy and/or teachers, which led to continued increases in content. Curricula became more complex, while providing little or no practical guidance to teachers in how to modify the curriculum according to the needs of their classes. Over the same period of time, the number of years of compulsory education were extended, making the delivery of the expanding encyclopedic curriculum even more problematic for teachers, whose response was often to rely more on memorization of facts than the development of critical thinking. In the 1960s, attempts at reducing curricula were made, but these reforms failed, due to teacher resistance to changes from the familiar textbooks (Skatkin & Kraevskii, 1981; Holmes et al, 1995; Sutherland, 1999). Table I displays key ideals identified for the education system before perestroika, which affected curriculum development and textbook provision (Holmes et al, 1995; Sutherland, 1999).

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Stephen A. Bahry Soviet Views on Society, Education and Textbook Provision: perestroika (1986-1991) During perestroika, debate opened up in relation to problems of Soviet education, such as how to achieve an ideal balance between: centralized and local control, curriculum standardization and diversity, mastery and creative application of knowledge, the place of Russian and other languages of the USSR, teacher-centred and student-centred methodology, and advantaged and disadvantaged areas and republics. Democratization and decentralization of decision making with authority shared between Union, republic, province and school were proposed to guarantee appropriate international, national and regional content of curricula, including increased roles of republican languages in education. Reforms addressing these questions were proposed, some introduced, but few implemented before the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 (Sutherland, 1999). Absolute priority of state implementation Priority of central over republican over provincial authority Equality of learning through uniformity of curriculum throughout USSR Bureaucratic determination and administration of education policy[2] Equality of funding through central financing Table I. Soviet ideals for education before perestroika (1970s-1986).

Table II displays key ideals affecting curriculum development and textbook provision during perestroika (Holmes et al, 1995; Sutherland, 1999). Continued priority of state implementation Increased equality of authority among levels of government Increased equality of learning through differentiation of curriculum Shared democratic and bureaucratic determination of education policy Continued bureaucratic administration of education policy Continued funding through central financing Table II. Soviet ideals for education during perestroika (1986-1991).

Many of the proposals debated during perestroika are reminiscent of recommendations for education made outside the USSR, such as the importance of developing problem solving and critical thinking skills in addition to the mastery of factual knowledge (Landa, 1975; Skatkin & Kraevskii, 1981; Lysenkova et al, 1986; World Bank, 1995). Thus, there is some continuity in proposals for reform from before and after independence, and from within and outside the FSU. Attitudes towards Textbook Provision in Tajikistan: results The MOE’s 2000 Education for All assessment document revealed the main themes related to changes in textbook provision. These are shown in Table III in order of priority based on the associated value-laden language. Priority 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Theme Absolute insufficient number of textbooks Affordability of textbooks Preparation of textbooks in Tajik and other languages Preparation of textbooks in the humanities Changes in aims of textbook content and associated pedagogy Changes in management and financing Changes in teacher knowledge and teaching methods

Table III. Ministry of Education priorities identified for textbook provision in Tajikistan.

Table IV shows the main themes of the WB document, published in 2003, related to changes in textbook provision in order of priority based on the associated value-laden language. 66

Travelling Policy in Tajikistan Priority 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Theme Changes in aims of textbook content and associated pedagogy Changes in management and financing Changes in teacher knowledge and teaching methods Absolute insufficient number of textbooks Affordability of textbooks Preparation of textbooks in Tajik and other languages Preparation of textbooks in the humanities

Table IV. World Bank priorities identified for textbook provision in Tajikistan.

Absolute Insufficient Number of Textbooks Great concern is felt by MOE about reduced access to textbooks, which decreases educational achievement and increases educational disparities. The lack of textbooks is seen as contributing to a fall in general literacy, but children of the poor, street children and orphans are seen as most at risk of growing up as a ‘lost generation’ without even the most basic skills previously acquired in Tajikistan. Thus, reprinting of old textbooks and translation of textbooks from Russian are mentioned as short-term solutions to textbook shortages. WB supports increasing the absolute number of textbooks and the provision of enough texts for all children as a general long-term goal, but subordinates this aim to the long-term goal of curricular reform, emphasizing support for preparation of new books with new curricula over adapting and translating existing books. Affordability of Textbooks The MOE document expresses great concern also about the contradiction between the constitutional commitment to free education and the inability of the state to pay for textbooks or to compensate poor families for textbook costs that they can’t bear. Reprinting of old books is considered to be one means of providing more affordable books. Other measures such as textbook rental schemes are seen as helpful, but inadequate. The idea of a subsidy system for poor families is proposed for investigation; in the meantime, schools should reduce costs to poor families through the establishment of agricultural enterprises. The latter solution resonates with local experience, perhaps deriving from the Soviet polytechnical education tradition of uniting production and learning through affiliating schools to productive enterprises (Popkewitz, 1984; Holmes et al, 1995), or from the pre-Soviet Muslim tradition of waqf, or funding schools through endowments of land (Medlin et al, 1971). WB promotes reducing costs of textbooks to families by supporting textbook rental programs that provide books at a much lower cost to families than the purchase price, and will support training for textbook rental programs management to reduce inefficiencies and inequities. WB views problems of affordability of textbook rental as technical questions to be overcome by proper management training and properly ‘targeted’ subsidies. Preparation of Textbooks in Tajik and Other Languages MOE regards translating and adapting existing Russian-language textbooks into Tajik as a major task of textbook provision, which requires less time and resources than preparing completely new curricula and textbooks in Tajik. Another major task is the development and publishing of textbooks in minority languages such as Uzbek for ‘national’ schools, a task that was formerly performed outside Tajikistan.[2] A need for professional development in preparing textbooks for the non-Tajik-medium schools is expressed, including preparation of ‘Tajik as a Second Language’ textbooks. MOE will invite experts from the ‘near abroad’ (FSU) and ‘depend on the experience of Russia’. No mention is made of asking for support from WB or other donor agencies, despite WB’s commitment to bilingual education.

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Stephen A. Bahry The WB document makes no specific mention of the special problems of Tajikistan in preparing common textbooks in five or more languages: Tajik, Uzbek, Kyrgyz, Russian, Turkmen, and the many East Iranian languages spoken in mountain areas. Preparation of Textbooks in the Humanities No specific need for revision of mathematics and science textbooks is mentioned by MOE, but more emphasis is given to the importance in education of history, culture and the spiritual legacy of the peoples of Tajikistan. MOE emphasizes the role of schooling in moral development, which is felt to be more urgent than ever and a need for young people to learn first about Tajikistan, then the other countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States and the rest of the world is mentioned. Two differing visions of Tajik identity are presented: civic identity based on residence in the current territory of Tajikistan, and which belongs equally to all ethnicities living in Tajikistan, and national identity based on Tajik ethnicity. The second view is problematic for interethnic relations within Tajikistan and for international relations with Uzbekistan, since a large minority of residents of Tajikistan are not ethnic Tajiks, and a large minority of Uzbekistan residents are ethnically Tajik.[3] No specific mention is made by WB of the philosophical problems Tajikistan faces in creating a new world-view for its youth: how to instill pride in Tajik/Persian heritage, while developing a transcending vision of Tajikistan as a multiethnic, multilingual, ‘spiritual’ society that can peacefully accommodate a variety of differing world-views, from secularism to several interpretations of Islam. Changes in Textbook Content and Pedagogy MOE expresses some dissatisfaction with the curriculum’s emphasis on memorizing facts from textbooks in preparation for testing. Suggestions are made to reduce, rather than eliminate, this type of teaching, and to supplement it with activities that will develop creativity and problem solving skills that can be applied outside school in any sphere. Specific means to do this are not mentioned and little anxiety about ‘the new economy’ is expressed. MOE feels changes in textbooks should be introduced gradually. WB lays great emphasis on the unsuitability of textbooks inherited from Soviet times, and the need to develop completely new textbooks that will prepare youth for the ‘new’ market economy, by emphasizing creative problem solving, and flexible adaptation to rapid workplace changes, which, WB feels, will produce ‘real’ outcomes. Current textbooks are criticized as overloaded, but WB does not propose to introduce textbook changes gradually. Changes in Management and Financing of Textbooks MOE accepts some decentralized financing of textbooks as necessary, due to its inability to meet its financial responsibilities. Improvements in technical methods used in central financing are sought; risks of devolving financing of textbooks to the local level without training are not mentioned. Lack of resources for textbooks is seen more as a consequence of the economic crisis than as a systemic management problem. Lack of books, for example, is blamed more on difficulties in getting paper, than on the inefficiency of central publishing houses. WB sees training in forecasting demand for textbooks, costs for preparation, and efficient collection and allocation of funds as a major means of providing more books, more cheaply, and in a sustainable fashion. WB believes in a mixture of public and private financing, and so supports textbook rental as a long-term scheme to finance textbooks, rather than as a temporary measure. WB supports training of local management in financial management to overcome inefficiencies and inequities in textbook rental implementation and is committed to long-term support of the textbook rental scheme.

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Travelling Policy in Tajikistan Changes in Teacher Ability to Use Textbooks MOE expresses great confidence in the knowledge, ability and judgment of teachers to use new textbooks. Although suggestions are made about some inappropriate emphases in pedagogy, these are blamed on the curriculum more than on the teachers themselves. MOE seems to believe strongly in teachers’ ability to adapt to any changes in textbooks. WB feels teachers are isolated from modern knowledge, conceptions of curriculum, and of effective pedagogy. To teach with the textbooks envisaged by WB, teachers need to acquire new knowledge, become familiar with new curricula and develop new teaching methods. WB is contributing financially to the provision of in-service teacher training programs, and not relying completely on developing a new cadre of young teachers, less committed to the traditional teaching methods. Similarities and Differences in Attitudes When juxtaposed in Table V, we find major differences in MOE and WB priorities for education in Tajikistan. Two themes identified as moderately important to the Ministry of Education have no direct interest for WB in Tajikistan. Agreement on five broad aims for improvement of textbook provision suggests a basis for successful cooperation. However, the differences in ranking of priority of the common themes are large: MOE’s four highest priorities are low priorities for WB or not mentioned by them; WB’s three highest priorities are MOE’s lowest. Theme Absolute insufficient number of textbooks Affordability of textbooks Preparation of textbooks in Tajik and other languages Preparation of textbooks in the humanities Changes in aims of textbook content and associated pedagogy Changes in management and financing Changes in teacher knowledge and teaching methods

MOE Priority 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

WB Priority 4 5 1 2 3

Table V. Comparative ranking of MOE and WB priorities identified for textbook provision in Tajikistan.

Discussion Both MOE and WB agree that textbook development and delivery is of great importance, because of their essential role in learning. However, the two groups differ in their perceptions about the need for change in the aims of textbooks and on the appropriate pace at which changed content should be introduced. The WB document was produced later than the MOE document and represents the result of discussions between WB and MOE. Thus, policy differences between the two documents may indicate WB policy travelling within the local space of Tajikistan’s education system. Travelling Policy 1. Textbooks Should Teach Creativity and Problem Solving as Skills for the Market Economy The WB document argues that textbooks should emphasize creativity and problem solving to produce skills for a new economy based on information processing. The MOE had supported this policy, but does not argue for it in economic terms. Further, MOE had given this policy lower priority than providing textbooks as fast as possible to avoid the risk of a ‘lost generation’ with seriously reduced literacy levels. The WB document echoes the general WB attitude for the entire post-Communist zone of Eastern Europe and Central Asia, that the transition to market economies ‘will increasingly require workers with better information-processing, problem-solving, and knowing-how-to-learn skills’ (Berryman, 2000, p. 7). However, this general policy has not been modified in WB’s Tajikistan 69

Stephen A. Bahry document to take into account the local peculiarities of Tajikistan’s regionally differentiated economy or the economic, educational and political differences between, say, the Czech Republic and Tajikistan. WB policy, then, coincides with proposed reforms within the USSR during perestroika to increase creativity and problem solving in education (Holmes et al, 1995). The convergence of Soviet and WB thinking in this area may have influenced the acceptance of this priority by MOE. Nevertheless, the different motivations for the policy may affect its local implementation. The demands for an increased emphasis on creativity and problem solving within Soviet education originated from bottom-up pressure from dissatisfied teachers, largely in the Russian Soviet Federated Socialist Republic and were not motivated by desire to fit students’ skills more closely to the needs of the market economy (Lysenkova et al, 1986; Holmes et al, 1995). During perestroika in Tajikistan, the education reform debate focussed more on the language of education than on creativity in teaching (Akbarzadeh, 1996; Landau & Kellner-Heinkele, 2001). Thus, resistance to the WB policy of using textbooks that promote creativity and problem solving may occur if textbooks are perceived by MOE as focusing too much on the market economy’s needs rather than children’s. Furthermore, it is claimed that authority in Tajikistan depends on traditional relations between patrons and clients, a pattern which has continued throughout pre-Soviet, Soviet and post-Soviet times (Olimov, 1994). Activities in textbooks designed to develop critical thinking may be seen as eroding respect for authority within the school and the broader society, which may also lead to resistance to their use. Travelling Policy 2. Conception of Society as Civic Society The WB generally favours a ‘civic’ conception of society, because the economy thrives where there is a view of national identity that involves ‘a shared commitment, across social divisions, to the rules of social participation, thereby increasing trust and social cohesion’ (Berryman, 2000, p. 7), yet the WB document does not specifically mention the development of humanities textbooks as a priority at all. The MOE emphasizes the development of identity and a sense of spiritual values through schooling, yet presents two visions of identity: one based on common residence on the territory of Tajikistan, the other based in Tajik ethnicity. Such divisions, among the causes of the civil war, remain in Tajikistan, although to a much lesser extent than during the war (Olimov, 1994; Akbarzadeh, 1996; Zviagelskaya, 1997; Wennberg, 2002; Zartman, 2003).[3] The general WB policy (World Bank, 1999) accords more with the territorial vision of Tajik identity than with the ethnic vision. In fact, general World Bank civic identity policy resembles the former Soviet policy, shorn of its socialist content: the view of a common identity for citizens of the state based on common social values rather than ethnicity or religion. Indeed, this vision of identity may have greater support in ethnically mixed provinces, while the view based on Tajik ethnicity may have greater support in less ethnically diverse provinces (Olimov, 1994; Akbarzadeh, 1996; Zviagelskaya, 1997; Zartman, 2003). Thus, the similarity of the vision of Tajik identity based on common territory with that of the World Bank suggests that this view could have ‘legs’ in comparison with the ethnically based view. Nevertheless, given the importance the WB places elsewhere on social cohesion and common values, and the division in attitudes towards identity in Tajikistan, it is noteworthy that the WB Tajikistan document does not raise the question of the development of a shared vision of society. Perhaps WB avoids this theme in connection with the fact that the two competing visions of Tajik identity were associated with different regions and opposed sides in the civil war (Olimov, 1994; Akbarzadeh, 1996). In this case, general WB policy on civic values has not travelled to the WB document on education in Tajikistan; rather the complex debate on identity in Tajikistan may have led WB to downplay its normal policy, for fear of favouring one Tajik faction over another.

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Travelling Policy in Tajikistan Travelling Policy 3. Mother-tongue Education for Linguistic Minorities MOE policy promises education in the native language for all recognized nationalities, in agreement with general WB education policy, which promotes mother-tongue education, especially in primary school (World Bank, 1995). However, a recent WB publication on Eastern European and Central Asian education softens this commitment, suggesting that, despite the educational, social and political arguments in its favour, because of the cost of mother-tongue education, ‘social cohesion can be enhanced in ways that are less costly to individuals, the society and the taxpayer’ (Berryman, 2000, p. 69). The general WB policy on mother-tongue education derives from the argument of educational efficiency, that children develop basic literacy more effectively in the primary years in their mother tongue or with bilingual education than under conditions of submersion in a second language (Cummins, 1986, 2000; World Bank, 1995; Baker, 1996). The current Tajikistan policy of the ‘national school’ with separate schools using the mother tongue of each recognized nationality as medium of instruction resembles the position of UNESCO that every linguistic minority has the right to education in its own language not only for ‘effectiveness’, but also for purposes of cultural and ethnic preservation (Annamalai, n.d.; SkutnabbKangas, 1995).[2] The ‘national school’ is a continuation of Soviet national policy of mother-tongue education for each recognized nationality living in a compact area. Soviet policy primarily served the political purpose of preventing Sovietization from being seen as Russification, which could cause a backlash of non-Russians against the state (Lewis, 1973; Landau & Kellner-Heinkele, 2001). Current language policy for Tajikistan resembles Soviet policy, with the Tajik language officially playing the dominant role formerly played by Russian. Nevertheless, the implementation of the language policy has been incomplete, and Russian is still commonly used as an official language in government and as a lingua franca between different ethnicities. Indeed, political elites in Central Asian republics are said to be more literate in Russian than in their mother tongue (Lewis, 1973; Akbarzadeh, 1996; Landau & Kellner-Heinkele, 2001; Schulter, 2003). Thus, MOE support for mother tongue education may come from converging sources: previous politically motivated Soviet policy, current needs for social cohesion, and the strong commitment to mother tongue education of international agencies such as UNESCO. World Bank (1995) also strongly supports mother tongue education. Given the agreement between MOE and long-standing WB policy on the education of linguistic minorities, it is, therefore, curious that no mention is made in the WB document on Tajikistan education of special needs for textbooks in languages other than Tajik: they are neither supported as in general WB policy (1995), nor qualified as in Berryman (2000). In this case, it seems as if a competing policy on education for linguistic minorities is travelling within the WB, challenging the previous policy (WB, 1995), despite its agreement with MOE opinion. Travelling Policy 4. Parental Financing of Textbooks WB presents textbook rental as an efficient management scheme which allows students to receive new books at a fraction of the purchase cost. WB views the prime barriers to the effective implementation of the program as technical questions to be solved by technical means: training for local managers of the textbook programs and properly ‘targeted’ subsidies for poor parents. WB policy is not modified to accommodate the pervasiveness of poverty, the difficulties of identifying the needy when wealth is determined less by official salary than on assets and unrecorded cashincome (Falkingham, 2000b); nor does it consider that patronage relationships (Olimov, 1994) might reduce effectiveness of textbook rental programs as much as lack of technical management skill. Further, while viewed as an alternative to purchase, rental reduces costs to parents; when viewed as an alternative to free textbooks it results in increased cost to parents. MOE describes textbook rental positively once as ‘updating’ financing; elsewhere it is described as a policy imposed by the weakness of central government finances, and the constitutional commitment to free education, and inequity of access to rental textbooks are mentioned. Thus, while the form of textbook rental policy may have travelled from WB, the 71

Stephen A. Bahry rationale for textbook rental as efficient may encounter resistance. This suggests that textbook rental may be accepted by government as a temporary measure until state revenues strengthen, when pressure will rise to reform or reject this program. Travelling Policy 5. Teachers as Developers of Skills Demanded by the Economy WB is more critical than MOE of teachers’ ability to use new textbooks without extensive retraining. WB feels that Tajikistan teachers deemphasize creativity, flexibility and problem solving in their teaching because they are unaware of the skills needed for the market economy, or how to develop them among students. MOE does not emphasize the economic utility of training teachers to use more creativity and problem solving in their lessons, as does WB. WB policy promoting creativity, flexibility and problem solving seems to have travelled in a weakened form to Tajikistan, yet the motivation for MOE policy may derive as much from a continuation of perestroika-era Soviet debate as from WB policy. Thus, it is likely that there will be some resistance in Tajikistan to the form of WB’s policy, since MOE seems not to share the strong WB concern about preparation for the market economy. Contrasting Conceptions of Education: neo-liberal, neo-conservative and post-socialist Unsurprisingly, WB views can be seen as falling within a neo-liberal classification. Carl (1999, p. 177) distinguishes neo-liberal conceptions of education from neo-conservative conceptions, according to their attitudes towards the students, the parent, the teacher, the school, the curriculum and the state (see Table VI). The WB document on education in Tajikistan speaks frequently of education as preparation for roles in the free-market, knowledge-based economy (2003). In contrast, the views expressed in the MOE document see schooling more in social, cultural or spiritual terms. In Carl’s terms, then, the MOE’s conception of education can fall under a neo-conservative classification, since the importance of education in preparing youth for economic roles is given a lesser importance in comparison with the cultural and spiritual role of education, and in comparison with the views of WB (see Table VII below) (Carl, 1999). Yet, Carl’s categories represent coherent systems which may not be found in their pure form in a transition society; rather, constellations of concepts from various, sometimes contradictory, sources may form new world-views (Lisovskaya & Karpov, 1999). In the post-socialist environment of Tajikistan, there are also cultural legacies from a socialist world-view which persist. Teachers in Niyozov’s study retain many of the values of socialism, yet it would be inaccurate to describe their position as neo-socialist, since they do not describe their world-view in this way, and they combine aspects of other ideological systems in their world-view: such as an acceptance of the market, a commitment to liberal democracy, and their own interpretation of Islam (Niyozov, 2001). Curiously, ignoring the materialism of the socialist tradition in FSU and the theism of a religious tradition, there are commonalities between the neoconservative and post-socialist conceptions of education, in that they both question some aspects of neo-liberal conceptions of education. The student The parent The teacher The school The curriculum The state

Neo-liberal A maximiser, a product, a worker A consumer A producer A shop, a firm A variegated product of supply and demand A referee, a deregulator

Neo-conservative A child A guardian An authority, a foot soldier A sanctuary A canon, a tradition, a set of common values An enforcer, a defender

Table VI. Contrasting views of education. Source: Carl (1999, p. 177).

Although shortages of textbooks are a major weakness in an education system under both views, underlying philosophical differences about the aims of textbooks distinguish them. Former socialists and religious traditionalists in Tajikistan are both likely to resist the use of market 72

Travelling Policy in Tajikistan economics as a main organizing principle for children’s education. Where they will differ is in which canon, or set of common values, should be enshrined in the curriculum. WB policies on providing more textbooks to provide equitable access of education (World Bank, 1995) should travel well, since all parties in Tajikistan recognize this need. However, there is likely to be resistance to WB emphasis on market economics in determining textbook content. Nevertheless, the reification of a complex institution, treating it as if it were an individual with unchanging views, should be avoided; as McGinn & Street (1999, p.118) state, ‘even Governments of military dictatorships are not monolithic or unitary and are highly penetrated and influenced by different individuals and groups’. Perhaps it is too simple to speak of travelling policies from West to East, for some of the evidence of the study points to different currents of opinion within the Tajikistan document as well as World Bank documents. Clearly, there are differences within Tajik society and government on educational questions, and the MOE document is a representation of the strength of some of these views within government circles at the time of writing. There are possible differences between MOE and the Ministry of Finance, which approves MOE’s budget proposals (Davlatov & Mulloev, 2000) and opposed images within MOE of national identity. However, there are also differing policy visions within the World Bank itself. In one WB publication, WB promotes local financing of textbooks by families (World Bank, 2003); in another, WB warns, ‘there are two dangers in overreliance on user charges. First, international studies show that user charges discourage children and youths from poor families from attending school. ... Reliance on user charges, like reliance on local taxes, may increase regional disparities’ (Berryman, 2000, p. 45). After 10 years of experience with educational reform in Eastern Europe, another WB publication warns against uncritical use of travelling polices: it is very clear that there are no blueprints for reform. In the first place, we are facing an unusually intense and rapid experiment in state reform for which there is no precedent. Thus, it is not feasible to relate the challenges and solutions to past experiences (in the same region or elsewhere). Second, the initial conditions are quite different among the countries. (Fiszbein, 2001, p. 6)

Conclusion Juxtaposition of ideals of education determined from WB and MOE documents and literature on Soviet education allows us to identify possible continuities and changes in educational ideals (see Table VII). Over time, educational ideals in Tajikistan (USSR–Republic of Tajikistan) have come closer to those held by the World Bank.

Implementation Level of Authority

Pre-perestroika Soviet ideal State

Perestroika ideal State (some de facto Private) Central = Republic = Province

Curriculum Orientation

Central > Republic > Province Undifferentiated Knowledge

Determination of Policy

Bureaucratic Top-down

Administration of Policy Funding

Bureaucratic

Bureaucratic & Democratic Bottom-up & Topdown Bureaucratic

Central

Central

Differentiated Knowledge > Skills

Tajikistan MOE ideal State > Private

WB ideal for Tajikistan State and Private

State Control

State and Local

Differentiated Knowledge > Skills Bureaucratic > Democratic Top-down > Bottom-up Bureaucratic

Differentiated Skills > Knowledge

Central > Local

Local > Central

Bureaucratic

Bureaucratic

Table VII. Changing ideals of education in USSR and Tajikistan (based on Holmes et al, 1995; Sutherland, 1999; World Bank, 2003; UNESCO, n.d.).

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Stephen A. Bahry Once unimaginable, private education is now tolerated by MOE; where education was once exclusively centrally funded, local funding exists along with central funding. Over all periods, there is a preference for bureaucratic determination of policy shared by all organizations. Despite demands from teachers for input into policy formation during perestroika, the need for consultation with the teachers and the public for their input in advance of new textbook development is given little attention in either the MOE or WB documents. Drake (2001) suggests that the management structure of the World Bank has more in common with systems of government where policy is decided within the government with relatively little public debate. He claims that China and the World Bank, despite many philosophical differences, have had an effective relationship because of similar authority structures, while India, where public debate on policy is greater, has had an uneven working relationship with the WB. Although a weak state in comparison with China, political actors in Tajikistan are said to have developed strong negotiation skills through constructive social engagement with opposed parties in which understanding of the other side is achieved and fundamental views are changed, allowing a stable common position to develop (Zartman, 2003). If Drake and Zartman are correct, this suggests the possibility of successful dialogue between the MOE of Tajikistan and the World Bank. Although the documents studied do not describe the process of consultation between MOE and other agencies, the WB document was produced in support of an agreement between the Government of Tajikistan and the WB. Thus, the differences between the earlier MOE document and the subsequent WB documents are sufficiently great to raise questions about the process of dialogue involved in their preparation. If the WB document has the full support of the MOE, the MOE seems to have shifted some of its priorities for textbook provision in a very short period of time to come closer to several of those of WB. Whether such shifts in MOE thinking represent adoption of WB policy, adaptation of, or resistance to, WB policy cannot be determined from the documents studied. Nevertheless, the strength of concern in the MOE document about a ‘lost generation’, a fall in general literacy of youth, production of textbooks in Tajik and other languages of Tajikistan lead one to predict that MOE policies expressed in the EFA document that are not apparent in the WB document may resurface after the WB project term is up. Further, the documents studied provide little evidence of how far policies on textbooks have travelled among teachers, who, in the end, are the ones to implement them. Thus, there may be a need for broadened bottom-up dialogue between WB, MOE and teachers, using teachers’ experience not only for feedback on proposed textbooks, but involving them more deeply in the entire process of curricular reform and textbook development. The contribution of WB to training for prospective textbook manuscript authors (World Bank, 2003) is a positive step in this direction. Moreover, a recent classroom observation study of two creative teachers in the poorest province of Tajikistan (Niyozov, 2001) suggests that if teachers were asked, based on their recent experience, what they would choose to teach and how, both MOE and WB might be surprised. Reduction of state support has made these teachers more resourceful, flexible, reflective and independent compared to their earlier practice. Having passed through 10 years of change and challenge, with almost no curriculum guides or textbooks, these teachers are forging their own ideas of what it means to learn, to teach, to be a citizen responsible for the education of children surrounded by poverty, corruption and drug smuggling, independent of the ideas of the state and of external agencies. Just as ideas from outside the former Soviet Union have entered Russian education in unexpected ways, forming ‘constellations’ (p. 522) from a variety of ideological sources (Lisovskaya & Karpov, 1999), so some teachers in Tajikistan are synthesizing views derived from socialism, Islam, democracy, and the market economy, for example, using the images of both Lenin and a Muslim spiritual leader as models of service and devotion to others (Niyozov, 2001). Such teachers may prefer to continue teaching in their own way and resist new textbooks, or the uses proposed by experts. How new textbooks will in fact be used by teachers cannot easily be anticipated by curriculum developers without extensive consultation in the field, for, as Michael Fullan says (1999), ‘If knowledge is imposed, rather than “grown”, it will fail’ (cited by Polyzoi & Dneprov, 2003, p. 28).

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Travelling Policy in Tajikistan Implications for European Agencies Local attitudes within the Russian education system towards ‘external change agents’ are apparently ‘ambivalent (Polyzoi & Dneprov, 2003, p. 26). A recent survey of local educators found that, despite major activity of external NGOs in Russian education reform, ‘the majority … did not perceive these interventions as significantly having shaped the nature of the innovations that took place in the country’ (Polyzoi & Dneprov, 2003, p. 28). Some educators in Tajikistan are likely to have similarly ambivalent attitudes towards external change agents, leading them to value outside partners more for their financial input to projects than for their insight into the needs of Tajikistan’s educational system. Such local skepticism can derive from the perception that external agencies have too little appreciation for local history and conditions and/or too differing conceptions of education to give effective policy advice. European and other agencies have a constructive role to play in educational development in Tajikistan. First, there is a need to support a broad policy dialogue on educational reform with the aim of resolving divisions within Tajikistan on aims and approaches to education. These divisions need to be resolved internally, but European and other external agencies can provide support for the process of national and interregional dialogue on education, as Tajikistan peace negotiations were supported by external agencies (Zartman, 2003). Second, European and other agencies can complement large agencies such as the WB and fill a niche in educational policy dialogue. The Tajik document points out the importance of providing language and humanities curriculum and textbooks for a pluralistic, secular society, areas where European and other countries’ experience of bilingual and multicultural curriculum, and of civic education that supports development of identity not based on ethnicity, region, or religion will be worth sharing with Tajikistan’s educators (Baetens Beardsmore, 1995; Skutnabb-Kanga, 1995; Cummins, 2000). Indeed, CIMERA, a Swiss NGO, is expanding its pilot bilingual education project in Kyrgyzstan to three kindergartens in northern Tajikistan in cooperation with MOE and with funding from the Netherlands and the Eurasia Foundation (Eurasia Foundation, 2004). The Aga Khan Foundation is coordinating work on a humanities curriculum for Tajikistan, drawing on the region’s rich traditions from the past to support present goals such as developing ‘tolerance, ethics, and civic virtues’ (Aga Khan Foundation, n.d.) that are justified, not in economic terms, but as valuable in themselves. Finally, there is a need for staff of educational agencies working in Tajikistan to have detailed knowledge of national and regional characteristics and local languages, allowing communication with a broad range of local stakeholders who will be able to arrive at a greater appreciation of the limitations of external policies. In constructivist dialogue, all stakeholders try to understand the views of the other, and in the process adapt their own views, through the attempt to understand the other. In such a process external agencies as well as local actors would change their initial views (Zartman, 2003). In such circumstances, the spread of travelling policies is more likely to reflect local interests and needs well, and less likely to lead to harmful unintended consequences of applying general principles without sufficient regard for the local terrain. Notes [1] The Tajik document is in English, translated from Tajik or Russian. [2] Recognized national minorities are expected to study in national schools, where the mother tongue is the medium of instruction and Tajik is taught as a second language. Uzbeks, Kyrgyz, Turkmen, and Russian are the recognized nationalities. East Iranian speakers (non-Tajik Iranian languages) are considered ethnic Tajiks, and are guaranteed only four years of primary education in the other tongue to be followed by Tajik-medium schooling. Tajikistan is not able to pay for imported texts from Uzbekistan and the new Uzbek curriculum is unacceptable in Tajikistan, due to its nationalist content. [3] Uzbekistan’s secular government intervened in Tajikistan during the Civil War on the side of the Popular Front, whose support came from regions with large Uzbek populations against an opposition much of whose support came from regions where the Uzbek population is low.

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Stephen A. Bahry References Aga Khan Foundation (n.d.) Aga Khan Humanities Project. Available at: www.akdn.org/humanities/ Humanity.htm Akbarzadeh, S. (1996) Why Did Nationalism Fail in Tajikistan? Europe–Asia Studies, 48(7), pp. 1105-1129. Alexiadou, N. & Jones, K. (2001) Travelling Policy/Local Spaces, paper presented at the Congrès Marx International III: Le capital et l’humanité, Université de Paris-X Nanterre-Sorbonne, 26-29 September. Annamalai, E. (n.d.) Report on the UNESCO Conference on Linguistic Heritage in India and Asia. Available at: www.terralingua.org/Conf%20Reports/UNESCOConfLgsIndia.html Baetens Beardsmore, H. (1995) The European School Experience in Multilingual Education, in T. SkutnabbKangas (Ed.) Multilingualism for All. Lisse: Swets & Zeitlinger. Bahry, S.A. (2003) Involving Staff in Curriculum Design: revision of the Teacher Development Curriculum for university English teachers and secondary school teacher trainers in Tajikistan. Paper presented at the Sixth International Conference on Language and Development, October 15-17, 2003, Tashkent, Uzbekistan. Bahry, S.A. (forthcoming a) Language, Literacy and Education in Tajikistan: a survey of key issues affecting educational policy, in The Domestic Environment of Central and Inner Asia. Toronto Studies in Central and Inner Asia No.7. Toronto: University of Toronto. Bahry, S.A. (forthcoming b) The Potential of Bilingual Education in Educational Development of Minority Language Children in Mountainous Badakhshan, Tajikistan, in Proceedings of the Sixth International Conference on Language and Development. Tashkent: The British Council. Bahry, S.A. & Niyozov, S. (forthcoming) Challenges to Education in Tajikistan: the need for research-based solutions, in J. Earnest & D. Treagust (Eds) Educational Change and Reconstruction in Societies in Transition: international perspectives. Perth: Black Swan Press. Baker, C. (1996) Foundations of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters Berryman, S.E. (2000) Hidden Challenges to Education in Transition Economies. Washington, DC: World Bank. Carl, J. (1999) Parental Choice as National Policy in England and the United States, in N. McGinn & E. Epstein (Eds) Comparative Perspectives on the Role of Education in Democratization, Part I: Transitional States and States of Transition. London: Peter Lang. Chadwick, C. (1990) Instructional Development and Third World Textbooks, Educational Technology Research and Development, 38(3), pp. 51-59. Crawford, K. (2002) Researching the Ideological and Political Role of the History Textbook – issues and methods, International Journal of Historical Learning, Teaching and Research, 1(1). Available at: www.ex.ac.uk/education/historyresource/journal1/journalstart.htm Cummins, J. (1986) Empowering Minority Students: a framework for intervention, Harvard Educational Review, 56(1), pp. 18-36. Cummins, J. (2000) Language, Power and Pedagogy: bilingual children in the crossfire. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters. Davlatov, I.D. & Mulloev, S.M. (2000) Educational Financing and Budgeting in Tajikistan. Paris: UNESCO International Institute for Educational Planning. Drake, E. (2001) World Bank Transfer of Technology and Ideas to India and China, in R. Hayhoe & J. Pan (Eds) Knowledge Across Cultures: a contribution to dialogue among civilizations. Hong Kong: Comparative Education Research Centre, University of Hong Kong. Eurasia Foundation (2004) Group of Schools Selected in Eurasia Foundation, Netherlands Embassy-funded Ferghana Valley Multilingual Education Project. Press release available at: www.eurasia.org/news/ Kyrgyz_FV%20education_03.19.04.htm Falkingham, J. (2000a) A Profile of Poverty in Tajikistan, CASE paper 39. London: Centre for Analysis of Social Exclusion, London School of Economics. Also available at: http://sticerd.lse.ac.uk/dps/case/cp/ CASEpaper39.pdf Falkingham, J. (2000b) Women and Gender Relations in Tajikistan. Manila: Asian Development Bank. Also available at: www.adb.org/Documents/Books/Country_Briefing_Papers/Women_in_Tajikistan/ prelims.pdf Farrell, J.P. (2003) The Egyptian Community Schools Program: case study. Toronto: Ontario Institute for Studies in Education/University of Toronto.

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STEPHEN A. BAHRY has an MA in linguistics from the University of Toronto and has worked as an English as a Second and Foreign Language teacher, teacher trainer and curriculum developer in Canada, China and Tajikistan. He recently worked with a team at Khorog State University in Tajikistan developing linguistics curriculum for English majors and pre-service training of school teachers of English. Currently he is a doctoral student in the Comparative, International and Development Education program at the University of Toronto. Correspondence: Stephen A. Bahry, Comparative, International and Development Education Centre, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, University of Toronto, 252 Bloor Street West, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5S 1V6 ([email protected]).

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