University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses

Education as a vehicle for national development in Iraq

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Education as a vehicle for national development in Iraq

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Content EDUCATION AS A VEHICLE FOR NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT IN IRAQ by Hassan Abdulrazzak Al-Kufaishi A Dissertation Presented to the FACULTY OF THE GRADUATE SCHOOL UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA In. Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY (Education) June 1977 Copyright Hassan Abdulrazzak Al-Kufaishi 1977 UMI Number: DP24181 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. Dissertation Pthl.shmg UMI DP24181 Published by ProQuest LLC (2014). Copyright in the Dissertation held by the Author. Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code ProQuest LLC. 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106- 1346 T H E G R A D U A T E S C H O O L £ f cK ~ IU M C . U N IV E R S IT Y PARK LOS A N G E L E S . C A L IF O R N IA 9 0 0 0 7 UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA EtL •77 A 4 i 5 y iz This dissertation, written by . .Hassan. Ab dulr az zak.. Al-Kuf ai&hi.......... under the direction of h...is. Dissertation C o m mittee, and approved by a ll its members, has been presented to and accepted by The Graduate School, in p a rtia l fu lfillm e n t of requirements of the degree of D O C T O R O F P H IL O S O P H Y Dean ACKNOWLEDGMENTS It is with much pleasure and pride that the writer extends his sincerest appreciation to Dr. William Georgi- ades, Chairman of the Doctoral Committee,, without whose patience, encouragement, and guidance this work could not have materialized. The author was fortunate in meeting Dr. Georgiades in i960 while working for the Master's degree. His friendly, humane manners which raise the morale of ambitious students will not be forgotten. Gratitude is extended to Dr. Clive Grafton and Dr. William Gay, members of the doctoral committee, for their assistance and encouragement. The author, as an international student from Iraq, is also indebted to the University of Southern California and expresses his deep gratitude to all the professors and staff for the quality education he participated in and for the understanding imparted. The author is deeply grateful and indebted to the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research of Iraq for having given him the opportunity to study in the United States, for the generous support which allowed him to complete his studies and attend conferences in several states and Canada, and for furnishing him statistical reports and reference books. TABLE OF CONTENTS Page 1 i ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .................................... ii; LIST OF TABLES....................................- v LIST OF FIGURES vii : Chapter ! I. THE PROBLEM 1 i Introduction Background Statement of the Problem Importance and Scope of the Study The Purpose Design and Procedure Definition of Terms Delimitations and Scope Limitations Organization of the Remainder of the Study II. REVIEW OF LITERATURE................... l4 Factors Affecting Development Historical Factors Geographic Factors Economic Factors Political Factors Social Factors Educational Factors III. THE IRAQI EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM .......... 29 Administration,, Organization^ and Framework Preschool Years The Elementary School The Junior High School (Intermediate) Preparatory Stage Vocational Education Chapter Page Foundation of Technical Institutes The University of Technology Higher Education Adult Education. Education of Women IV. THE ROLE OF EDUCATION IN ACCELERATING DEVELOPMENT........................... 9^ Developmental Planning and Compre hensive Five-Year Plans Educational Planning and National Development A Philosophy of Proper Balance Comprehensive Education in Iraqi Schools Individualization of Instruction. Individualizing the Teaching of English Science and Mathematics--An Expanded Role Arabic and Arabization of Higher Education V. SUMMARY, FINDINGS, CONCLUSIONS, AND RECOMMENDATIONS ....................... 158 Summary Findings Conclusions Recommendations REFERENCES . . . 169 APPENDICES........................................ 179 A. A Suggested Dictionary of Unified Vocabulary.................................. l8l B. A Proposed Unified Alphabet ............... 195 REFERENCES TO APPENDIX ............................ 220 LIST OF TABLES Table Page 1. Weekly Hours Schedule-Elementary, Inter mediate, and Preparatory................. 42 2. Public Schools: Number of Student Dropouts and Number that Failed the Scholastic and Baccalaureate Exams, and Percentages of Failure ................. 56 3. Numbers and Percentages of Students Who Passed or Failed in the 10-Year Period, 1963/64 to 1972/73 57 4. Numbers and Percentages of Failure in the Elementary, Intermediate, and Preparatory Baccalaureate Exams for Public, Private, and Irregular Sectors for the 10-Year Span, 1963/64, 1972/73 59 5. Failures and Dropouts in All Grades for Public and Private Schools (Baccalaureate Exams Are Not Included ) ................. 60 6. Projections of Enrollment through 1991 . . - 62 7. Percentages: Vocational Education. Enroll ment Compared to Liberal Education Enrollment................................ 65 8. Graduates of Vocational Education Compared to Graduates of Academic Education .... 68 9. Numbers of Teachers and Assistants, 1975/76 through 1 9 7 9 /8 0 ........................... 71 10. Projected Enrollment Totals of the Techno logical, Agricultural, and Administrative Institutes from 1975/76 through 1979/80 . . 73 11. Higher Education. Enrollment, 1972/1973 . . - 79 12. Progress in. the Elimination of Illiteracy through the Creation, of Teaching Centers. . 84 v Table 13. 14. 15. Page I Science Hours Compared to Total Hours i per W e e k 151 _ Mathematics Hours Compared to Total j Hours per W e e k 151 ■ Weekly Hours of Arabic: Elementary,, Inter mediate,, and Preparatory................. 153 VI J LIST OF FIGURES Figure Page 1. Ministry of Education...................... 31 2. The Education Ladder........................ 45 3. Expansion of Baccalaureate Partakers and Numbers of Students Who Failed in. the 10-Year Span from 1973/1974 ............. 58 4. Percentage of Failures in the Three Bac calaureate Examinations 1963/1964 to 1972/73 .................................... 61 5. Graduates of Vocational Education Compared to Graduates of Academic Education, 1963/1964 to 1972/1973 69 6. Growth in Higher Education Enrollment, 1963/1964 to 1972/1973 78 7. Development of Girls' Education Compared to BoysT from 1963/1964 to 1972/1973 ... 90 8. Utilizing Optimum Benefits of Comprehensive Education along the Ladder ............... 127 CHAPTER I THE PROBLEM Introduction Iraq is one of the Arab countries in the Middle East. It has an area of 169*240 square miles (438.446 kilometers) with a population of 10,380,000 (Ministry of Planning, 1973)j the area that was called Mesopotamia in ancient times, which means "land between two rivers,” namely, the Tigris and the Euphrates. On these banks the first civilization of the world flourished; here man learned to read and devise a system of writing; here temples were built which are standing today in Babylon and Nineveh, Sumer, and Assur. Down through the millennia, Mespotamia still speaks to the world. This land, made productive through irrigation, allowed man for the first time to rise above the level of mere subsistence, giving him the time to think and the resources to develop creatively. Prom the blossoming of ideas, institutions and tech niques that resulted have come major tools of civili zation, since altered in detail but never in basic concept. It was in Sumer that systems of trade and a merchant class evolved. It was there too that the first practical system of writing developed, ini tially so that business accounts could be kept. It was the Sumerians who devised the first wheeled vehicle, the written code of law, the bicameral legislature and government by elected rulers. (Kramer, 19^7) 1 2 Baghdad is the capital of Iraq and was established by Caliph Abu Jaffer Al-Mansour in the eighth century A.D. and flourished until it had grown to be a world center of prodigious wealth and inter national significance^ standing alone as the rival of Byzantium. Its splendor had kept pace with the prosperity of the empire of which it was the capital. It had become Ma city with no peer throughout the whole world." (Hitti, 1 9 6 63 P« 110) During the Middle Ages, Iraq was conquered by the Ottoman Turks and until 1920, at the end of World War I, it formed a part of the Turkish Empire. Prom that time on Iraq was a constitutional monarchy until July 1958 when the Republic was established. A decade later in July 1 9 6 8, a revolution occurred and the present government took the helm, led by the Arab Renaissance "Ba’ath" Socialist Party. Iraq is the fifth largest oil producer in the Middle East and oil constitutes 92 percent of its exports. The vast oil income offers an excellent potential for raising the living standards of its people. Industrial pursuits have not been developed as they should have been and agriculture is suffering greatly because of the pro gressive salinity of the soil. The population is rapidly increasing (3*5^ yearly) and the majority are Arabs ( 78$) and Kurds (18%), The Kurds were recently granted local, autonomous government after staging revolutionary movements for more than 10 years. 3 Background Iraq follows the same educational patterns used in the United States but its system is similar to the French one in that it is highly centralized and each stage cul minates in a Ministerial comprehensive examination adminis tered to all students at the same time and is the same throughout the country. There is unanimous agreement among planners and leaders of development that education is a key factor. In the words of Curie (1970)* The only way out of this dilemma of "backwardness" Is a crash programme of development* and this in turn implies a crash programme of educating* training* encouraging* helping* and organizing enough people to carry weight* in their contribution both to the economy and to the growth of a viable and purposive society. Such a crash program has been shown in the history of Iraq as it is presented today in the historical document entitled "Revolutionary Iraq* 1968-1973;" the political report adopted by the Eighth Regional Congress of the Arab Ba’ath Socialist Party of Iraq (Arab Ba'ath Socialist Party (ABSP)* 197*0 j and referred to in Arabic as "A1 Taqrir El Siasi" (The Political Report). It considered development as a "test for the regime" (p. 1 5 3) recognized education as a decisive battle on the road to change. The Party has consistently urged better educational programmes on all levels from kindergarten through university: programmes that would go hand in hand 4 with the development programme both horizontally and in depth. Large scale efforts have been made during the past few years in providing more schools,, books and equipment. Some progress has been made in build ing and developing technical schools. The number of universities has been increased and the old ones have been expanded. Changes, however, have been princi pally in numbers and equipment, while the intellectual and educational aspect has received scant attention compared to the ambitions of the Revolution and resources that have been put at the disposal of the facility. (p. l8l) The Political Report is currently used by leaders in planning and development in various ministries as a guideline to draw up programs and the implementation thereof. Statement of the Problem Lack of coordination between education and national goals of development has been diagnosed by the Political Report as the main contributor to the fact that Schools and universities are producing annually tens of thousands who are of no use to the industrial, agricultural and services programmes and development. The government finds it necessary to find jobs for these graduates in institutions which are already overstaffed. The institutions are suffering from disguised unemployment. (p. 182) The problem may be traced to the bottleneck that occurs at the end of the secondary school which is seem ingly caused by the baccalaureate examination. This test represents a very important milestone in the life of the student. It is the only criterion used for continuation of studies or for instant employment of the graduate. 5 A study of failures, dropouts, and waste from 1963/1964 to 1972/1973 reveals the staggering percentage of failure--6l percent as an average in the first 4 years of the decade in the baccalaureate examination which culminates the high school years. The average percentage of failure has declined in the last 6 years to an average of 39 per cent, but is still a source of agony and frustration for the students, besides being an economic drain of millions of do'llars that were invested by the government. The one-week "battle" of the baccalaureate examina tion seems to be the result of a serious flaw in the consti tution of the educational establishment. The problem has not developed recently; it has existed in Iraqi education since the first schools were established more than 50 years ago by the British administration to meet the urgent need for educated people to take part in the administration of governmental affairs. This "office worker factory" con tinued to supply the government with needed employees until the saturation point was reached more than 10 years ago. Now Iraq is oversaturated with personnel educated for all types of "white collar" employment. Vocational education for years did not grow nearly as fast as did academic education in Iraq. There were many reasons for this, the primary one being the lack of "pres tige" associated with blue collar jobs, regardless of the 6 income attained. Now,, because of the dearth of employment in white collar positions,, those educated in the academic fields are obliged to accept blue collar jobs when avail able. The government is charged with the responsibility of wasting the time„ effort* and money of the students. The crisis has reached a point where many students are sorry that they attended school at all. They would rather have been trained for a job calling for an apprenticeship that would enable them to earn a living. Importance and Scope of the Study The numbers speak for themselves; the high percent age of failure is a good indicator that the blame is not to be placed on the students alone; it is a result of the system as well. Most students choose academic studies* and those who pass the examination and are not admitted to higher education find themselves in a difficult situation since all their previous training is college preparatory and now this avenue has been blocked to them. There are three aspects to this problem which affect the mental* moral* and physical stability of those involved. The mental area embodies the fact that they are frustrated in their hopes to achieve certain goals. The moral aspect is that* after having had so much education* many people would not consider becoming an ordinary worker 7 or peasant. In the physical aspect* when students choose an academic field* find no work available* then turn to physical work* their psychomotor coordination is somewhat lacking--!.e.* their muscle power is poor from lack of use--and they plainly see that it may take some time to build it up* since they are already 18 years old. Even if they go home to assist their fathers on the farm* they find they are unable to do minor* everyday farm chores* and face the prospect of months of pain and hard work to catch up. Some of them refuse to do this. The successive governments until 1968 did not know how to solve this problem. There were several attempts to "absorb" and contain the emotions of the "aggressive" stu dents* to pacify their feelings of outrage and anger. It was then common for the Ministry of Education to distribute the results of the baccalaureate examination as follows: Almost 50 percent fail to pass* 25 percent pass but are not admitted to any higher institutes* and only the top 18 per cent are permitted to pursue higher education. The Purpose ^ 1 ' 1 n 0 1. To ascertain and investigate those factors which promote educational development and those which may hinder or retard development with examples from developed and developing nations; and to contrast and compare such investigations with the situation in Iraq. 8 2. To explore possible approaches that the educa tional system can take in order to serve the ultimate goals of national development, especially as to how the talents and capabilities of people,, through education, can be coordinated with the labor market. 3. To examine the relationship between higher and secondary education in the United States and to compare it to its counterparts'in Iraq with suggestions for its reor ganization . Design and Procedure The following sources were utilized in this s tu dy: 1. Published data issued by the Ministry of Iraq in a series of annual reports covering the decade from 1 9 6 3 /1 9 6 4 to 1972/1 9 7 3. 2. "Annual Statistical Data" issued by the Iraqi Ministry of Planning that provide information about a vari ety of developmental facets. 3. Data, reports, booklets, and brochures pub lished yearly by the Office of Social and Educational Affairs in the Central Bureau of Statistics that discuss current problems in coordinating education with national development. 4. The daily Iraqi newspaper, Al-Thwarah, the organ 9 of the Arab Ba'ath Socialist Party which was supplied regu larly by the Iraqi Cultural Attache,, and other magazines and newspapers that supplied up-to-date information about Iraqi educational changes. 5. National documents that influence educational development* such as the Political Report, the country's Constitution* the National Covenant, and the March 1970 Manifesto* as well as literature of the Arab Ba'ath Social ist Party that reveals its position towards current issues of development. 6. Visits to many innovative and traditional schools both elementary and secondary* as well as community colleges in neighboring districts and some out of the state of California. Since education should both reflect and assume leadership in a society* any transplantation of ideas should of course take into consideration both the similari ties and the differences of the societies involved. Definition of Terms The Arab Ba'ath Socialist Party (ABSP). The ruling party that came into power in Iraq on July 17* 1968. (The word Ba'ath means renaissance.) Articulation. The relationship and interdependence between two successive levels of an educational ladder which 10 theoretically should furnish a smooth transition between the steps with minimum loss (Bent,, Kronenberg, & Boardman, 1970, p. 19). Baccalaureate. A scholastic examination which culminates the elementary, junior high., and senior high schools. It is administered by the Ministry of Education yearly on the same date., with the same questions to be answered by students throughout the country, and is a requirement for graduation as well as for permission to enter the next level of schooling. The. most crucial bac calaureate examination is the one given at the end of senior high school., which controls the flow of students to higher education. Failures. Students who fail in more than the allowed number of subjects and must repeat the entire scholastic year. Sometimes the failures are called "repeaters" to modify the harshness of the first term. Individualization of Instruction. An innovative technique in which the teacher aims to tailor educational activities and learning packages to the desires, capabili ties, and intelligence of each student, in contrast to traditional group teaching. Intermediate Study (or School). The counterpart of the United States junior high school. 11 Iraqi dinar (I.D.). The Iraqi monetary unit which is equivalent to 3-3 U.S. dollars. Partakers. Students who pass the scholastic exami nations and thus are entitled to participate in the bacca laureate examinations. Pontoon Transitional Design. Two or more classes coordinated^together in a block of time where the teachers operate independently from their students* who are engaged in individualized instruction.(Georgiades & Clark* 197^). Preparatory study (or School). The counterpart of the United States Senior High School. Repeaters. Students who fail in one or more sub jects. and are allowed to take the examination again after the summer vacation without having to repeat the entire year. Scholastic year. The duration of study for a calendar year usually beginning in early September and ending in early June of the next year followed by 3 months of summer vacation. The Iraqi scholastic year is divided into two semesters which are separate considering the time element only* but they function as one credit unit which is continuous and cannot be separated for one-half year credit. 12 Secondary education. The counterpart of the United States high schools., Including junior and senior levels. Single-track school. The school that limits educa tion to a certain subject(s) that leads to only one goal. Its counterpart in the American Comprehensive High School is a particular major subject or field of study in the multi-track system. Delimitations and Scope The study is delimited to the relationship of edu cation to development in Iraq with citations of a few rele vant experiences of other nations. It is realized that such a study is broad by its very nature, but it is badly needed in the author’s home country., Iraq. Limitations The study was limited by the fact that no inter views or questionnaires were used since any material needed was abundantly available and expounded upon in detail by government reports and documents on education. Organization of the Remainder of the Study Chapter II contains a review of the literature on various aspects of development represented in six factors: / historical., geographical, political., economical,, social, and educational. 13 Chapter III covers the Iraqi educational system as it is related to the development of the country,, with emphasis on the presentation of selected major problems. Chapter IV offers solutions to the most pressing of the previously stated problems. Chapter V presents the Summary,, Findings, Recom mendations, and Conclusions of the study. CHAPTER II REVIEW OP LITERATURE Factors Affecting Development Background Development In today’s competitive world is increas ingly 'becoming a matter of survival for many nations. Developed nations are enjoying high standards of living., are usually able to produce more food., can avoid diseases through advanced medicine, and have the technology and the wherewithal to produce thousands of commodities for internal use and export. What are the factors that enable some nations to develop both material and human resources while others remain underdeveloped? In the following chapter a brief answer is sought to this question as it might be applied to Iraq. What is development? Development should not be confused with per capita national income. For instance, per capita income is very high in Kuwait., which has nothing to do with development per se, but is the result of high oil income. Development is more accurately thought of as a process of economic and social change based on a phi losophy of humanism which aims at ridding man of exploita- 14 15 tion, poverty, and oppression (Cockroft, Frank, & Johnson, 1972, p. 273). Development is the outcome of a total effort toward modernization. Priorities may be given to those factors that are more urgently needed than others within the capa bilities of the country. Therefore, development can be said to be the final result of many forces, with the aim of educating members of the society to a level that will serve as a springboard for creating material and social advances. There are six factors that have a bearing on development: history, geography, politics, society, economy, and educa tion, each of which can contain subelements. Historical Factors History affects the present in the same way that the present influences the future. Traditions, life styles, taboos, and legislative actions as well as aspirations and national pride are all deeply rooted in history. Thus, the history of a nation may contribute to its present situation in both a positive and negative sense. On the one hand, those nations that developed democratic institutions, love for hard work, respect and obedience to law, scientific thinking, pursuance of inventions, and the like have bene fited immeasurably from them. On the other hand, those nations that display lethargy, superstitious thinking, and disrespect for labor or horticultural work have suffered 16 from underdevelopment. The history of civilization tells us that those nations that did not keep abreast with the times became extinct or were engulfed by others., analogous to the dinosaurs that were unable to adapt themselves to the changing environment. While Europe was mired in the "Dark Ages*" Baghdad was the center of scientific and intellectual study which enabled Europe to develop during the Renaissance and become enlightened through communications with the Near East. This pride in the past is the essence of a movement in the Arab World that was started by the late President Nasser of Egypt and continued by the Arab Ba’ath Party in Iraq which derives its name (Ba’ath) from a word meaning "rebirth" or "renaissance." In literature, Arabic poetry, texts, and writings of the Party, there is an emphasis on the past. Aflaq (1972) maintained that history as a power should be exploited to its utmost. The time is ripe for the Arabs to put their pivotal problem in the right, explicit position. Now is the time that the Arabs must put an end to all alibis, evasions of responsibility, shifting consequences of imperialism, and should give themselves the sole responsibility for their destiny. (p. 1 5) After World War I, France and Britain divided the Arab land into spheres of influence according to the Sykes- Picot Agreement of 1 9 1 6. America itself might not have been able to achieve as much if its founders had not gained independence from England in 1776. 17 Yet historical research demonstrates that contemporary underdevelopment is in large part the historical prod uct of past and continuing economic and other rela tions between the satellite underdeveloped and the now developed metropolitan countries. (Cockroft et al., 1972, p. 3) In the first conference of Arab Educators in Bagh dad., in June 1975^ Di*- Al-Quosie reminded his audience that life in the Arab World was not continuously [progres sive] . . . , but it experienced peaks and valleys between progress and backwardness, increase and decrease,, dependency and independency. . . . The Arab nation had its own glories., but it can have others. The Arabs should not live regurgitating their past glories., . . . but should derive from them the things which could stimulate them to regain their niche in the contemporary world. (Iraqi Ed. & Psych. Ass'n., June 1975^ PP. 550-551) Dr. Al-Quosie concluded that living in the past could sub ject the Arab to a "sense of superiority regarding his ancient history and a sense of inferiority because of the present" (p. 5 5 1). Such contrary feelings are illustrated in what Kramer (1 9 6 7) wrote about the ancient past in Mesopotamia. | Probably it is no exaggeration to say that Mesopo tamian law shed its light over much of the civilized world. Greece and Rome were influenced by it through their contacts with the Near East, and Iraq acquired a formal legal code only after it had conquered the region that is now Iraq, the homeland of ancient Mesopotamia. . . . The wide evidence of Mesopotamia's contributions to civilization in all fields is still only a small fraction of the total--the visible por tion of the iceberg. . . . Future discoveries will undoubtedly add new facets to the picture, and just as surely bring many surprises. But the future can only confirm what is already apparent--that Mesopo tamia with its unique combination of geography and human genius, created a culture without precedent: 18 the land between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers will always be considered the Cradle of Civilization. (pp. 1 6 0-1 6 2) The Arabs charge that their image has been dis- tortedj and so there is a gathering movement to rewrite Arab history., to purify it and tell the facts about it. Thus it can be seen that both favorable and detri mental aspects of history can affect progressive develop ment and if specific, positive action is taken., through informational programs, behavior., and education., benefits will accrue. Geographic Factors The location of a country, its environment, weather,, topography, fertility of soil,, rainfall., water resources, and the like play an essential role in its development. Extreme climatic conditions could hardly support civiliza tion; therefore, it first developed in mild climates. Geographical factors are almost completely unchange able., and people usually must adapt to the environment. This kind of adjustment may be seen in the differences between dwellers of deserts, sea shores, mountains, and plains. Natural history tells the story of the effects of natural environment on flora and fauna which led to the theory of evolution, with the final emergence of man and the present forms of life which are the products of the 19 adaptation,, natural selection., acclimatization, and sur vival of the fittest (Campbell, 197^-). Economic Factors Oil revenues represent the most important factor in the Iraqi economy. The national budget for the year 1977 has been described as the greatest in the history of Iraq: it amounts to I.D. 1 ,6 5 3 million, which is an increase of I.D. 70 million above that of the previous year (Al- Thwarah, December 30 * 1970). According to the Minister of . Finance, the budget is considered balanced with no deficit or overflow. Priority has been given to complete projects that are near completion and those which would be immedi ately remunerative; therefore, housing, health, education, transportation, communication, agriculture, irrigation, dams, and animal production needs will be met. Such an ambitious program may encounter trouble in some sectors since Iraq "has an estimated shortage of 600 million dollars in oil revenues this year, out of a total expected income of around eight billion dollars" (Los Angeles Times, Janu ary 3, 1977). Iraq has the second largest oil reserves in the Middle East (Los Angeles Times, January 3j> 1977) j , but also has a promising income from its discoveries of phos phates that would make it the fourth largest producer in the world following the United States, the Soviet Union, and Morocco (Al-Thwarah, March 16, 1976). The importance 20 of the discovery of phosphates is that now the economy can be diversified and not solely dependent upon oil. These mineral resources will enable the authorities to exploit human resources with capital profits. Agriculture is important to almost any country’s economy. The government of Iraq is paying increasing attention to agriculture, which the President of the Repub lic once described as "undepletable oil.” Gradually, agri cultural reform has been implemented and the farmers are shifting from traditional to modern methods of farming. But with progress comes problems such as the increasing salinity of the soil that has been caused in part by dams and flood control projects. It Is estimated that two bil lion Iraqi dinars will be needed to solve this problem, and that figure is beyond the capability of the Iraqi govern ment at present. However, work is continuing on a "third river" between the Tigris and Euphrates for drainage and to wash the land clear of accumulated salts, carrying them out to sea. Political Factors The Ba’ath government has expressed its desire for progress in a political report adopted by the Party and delivered by the Secretary-General of the Regional Leader ship of the Party on March 5-7* 197^-. The report empha sized the political and economic independence of Iraq, a 21 peaceful solution to the Kurdish problem,, and the declara tion of a nationalistic progressive front in adopting a policy of revolutionary democracy. A radical land reform was put into effect. The Party dedicated its efforts to the improvement of education and health services, and the organization of an army and a police force. The Barath Party stands for democratic socialism represented by a policy of government control leaving room for individual initiative. The present government does not believe in force to bring about changes of traditions., but' rather in the use of persuasion to eliminate shock and allow acceptance without discomfort or confusion. In most instances, the populace has been responsive to the new ideas and modern methods introduced (Sigmund., 1969; Aflaq., 1 9 7 2). The Ba'ath Political Party believes in creating its own experimental form of government; it borrows from many ideologies,, with central focus around three basic goals: Pan-Arab unity,, liberty., and socialism,, The Revolutionary Command Council (RCC) is at the top of the power structure, and is a combination of the legislative and executive authorities of the government. It can both legislate codes and implement them easily. Seminars were held which were attended by lawyers, judges., and concerned citizens and a work schedule was set up for improvements to be made in the code of the Judicial Authority (Al-Jumhoriya. , February 7j 22 1976* February 3„ 1976; Al-Thwarah* February 18* 1976 * February 3„ 1976* February 1 3* 1976). This Is one example of progressive action taken through the political machinery with the participation of Interested professional people. Political leadership is a decisive factor in modern ization and is evidenced throughout history. Iraq is eager to accelerate its development and therefore has launched plans in many areas in spite of a number of inhibitory agents. The leaders do not attempt to impose change unless the proper groundwork has been laid* since this might deter their progress and make them unpopular at a time when they are striving to improve living conditions and modernize. This is clear in the following statement of the Arab Ba’ath Socialist Party: While we are struggling to liberate society as a whole* including women* we must make sure not to take rash steps and irrational decisions* and thus play into the hands of the reactionaries* providing ready made justifications for counter-revolutionary moves. At the same time* we warn against fear of reaction aries and allowing fear to block our progress in drawing up a programme for women’s liberation. (ABSP, 1974) Social Factors The growth and development of any nation cannot proceed in a systematic manner if inherent social factors are detrimental to the process. These are some factors that can be identified: Many of the citizens still adhere to the traditions 23 that dictate how to live almost every phase of life. Fatalism pervades their thinking; when they see others enjoying riches and good health but do not have these things themselves^ they do not ask questions such as ”Why can't I get rich?” ”Why can't I raise my status?” or ”Why am I unhealthy?” They accept the fact as the will of Allah. The outcome of such thinking is evident. How can it bring about beneficial changes? Certain segments of the population live a nomadic life. With the passing of time., many of these people moved from the desert regions to urban centers and only a small percentage remained in the desert. Programs were initiated to assist them in settling and learning farming. The gov ernment set aside 15 million dinars in the 1973 budget to aid bedouin settlement: hundreds of wells for drinking water were dug not only for the purpose of settlement but to lessen the rival tribal bickerings. Health service and police protection were made available to them,, but many of them were suspicious of the program. Eventually,, a number of them did consent to stay in the villages and even inter married with the settled villagers (Dayem, 1975* P* 25). The nomadic people and those who have recently moved to village settlements have governed themselves for so many years that they naturally have some suspicion of civil governing officials and often have to be given 24 explicit instructions for their own safety. Progress has been made in some sections, but there is still much work to be done. Another social custom that is widespread in the outlying districts is the wearing of a veil over a woman's face and the tradition that a woman should not go outdoors unless accompanied by a chaperon— either her father., hus band* or brother. An ancient tradition that could be modified in keeping with other modern countries* is that of arranged marriages* often between first cousins (Sweet* 1970* pp. I3O-I3 6* 145). The populace is unaware of the fact that endogamy can have detrimental effects on the children* so that in many countries in the world* it is forbidden by law to marry first cousins. Another inherited habit that is now abandoned especially in cities is that of early marriage. Many young people now tend to postpone their marriages until a late age which has its biological as well as social and psycho logical dangers. It also has an Inhibiting influence on productivity. As expressed by Toynbee (cited in Los Angeles Times* October 2 3. , 1975) > We force our boys and girls to become sex-conscious at 12 or 1 3* and then we ask them to prolong their postgraduate studies till they are nearly 3 0. How are they to be expected to give their minds to edu cation during those last 16 or 17 sex-haunted years? (part 1* pg. 24) 25 Family planning is another factor which should not be neglected since overpopulation can stifle a country's growth. Greater expenditures are needed to support large families and when land is insufficient or of poor quality and if there are not more jobs available., the only solution is to control the size of families (Pearson, 1970). This applies to Egypt* India* and China but at present does not apply to Iraq* which is. underpopulated. Nevertheless* planners should keep this factor in mind. Another social factor concerns the traditional nega tive attitude toward work. The new Iraqi government has brought expansion of industries and created many jobs* but some of the workers' industriousness slackened to such a degree that money was lost for lack of production. The government started a campaign to counteract this by the use of slogans* rewards for good work* and surprise inspections. Education pointing out the value of working for the develop ment and greatness of a country may be of some help (Dayem* 1975, P. 26). Educational Factors Any nation that desires to experience progressive development has to rely heavily on education. An educa tional policy must be formulated as an active and integral part of the effort to achieve this development (Pearson* 1970). The astounding economic growth in Japan at the turn 26 education and the almost complete elimination of illiter acy. Britain reorganized its educational system after World War II and the United States launched additional and more intense science programs after the Soviets put Sputnik in orbit in 1957* (Russia was a backward country before the Revolution only 40 years previously.) A country will not progress economically or scien tifically if its educational system is backward. Harbison and Myers (1964) cited a correlation between the per capita income of a country (GNP) and the educational level of most of the people (pp. 33-42). Studies have shown that the economic return from the investment in education is some times several times greater than in any materialistic venture. Education must not exist simply for the creation of productive goods and services., nor solely for the increase in personal income; the capacities of man must be developed. "Countries are undeveloped because most of the people are undeveloped, having had no opportunity of expanding their potential capacities in the service of society" (Curie, 1 9 6 2, p. 2 0 0). The builders of economies are the elite of various kinds who may be "revolutionary intellectuals, nationalistic leaders or members of a dynastic or rising middle class" (Harbison & Myers, 1964, p. 14). The education of future leaders involves the development of courses that will 27 utilize their capabilities, increase their effectiveness, and insure humane attitudes. "Thus in a real sense the wealth of a nation and its potential for social, economic and political growth stem from the power to develop and effectively utilize the innate capacities of people" (Harbison & Myers, 1964, p. 2 2 3). A great human loss is occasioned by lack of educa tional opportunities and the training of women. Curie (1 9 6 3) noted that "throughout the world vast numbers of persons are prevented from making contributions to society by reason of their sex" (p. 1 3 6). In Islamic communities one profession in particular is reputable for women, the medical doctor, since tradition dictates that women may not be treated by a male doctor. Women can contribute greatly to the development of Iraq, and the government aims at offering as much schooling as possible to them along with imparting an understanding of the benefits of change. Edu cated women are more respected than the ignorant and can be employed; a paycheck means economic independence and "good bye to the bonds of subservience." For those who want to marry, education and a job are assets since many single men look forward to marrying a girl who works. Adult education can be exploited and those citizens who have skills, abilities, and energies can develop them further in evening schools. Thus, all human resources can be utilized. 28 The Ministry of Information and Culture can be instrumental in persuading people to adopt modern methods in the areas of public health* farming* and social and cultural growth. Education is a key factor to progressive development. CHAPTER III THE IRAQI EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM Administration3 Organization,, and Framework The Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research both undertake the respon sibility of education. They represent two different stages separated by the critical baccalaureate examination of secondary education achievement which as an ultimate goal controls the activities of everyone involved. These two ministries are marked by a highly rigid,, hierarchical cen tral bureaucracy. Uniformity extends to all of the country and decisions made by the leaders at the apex of the pyra mid are applied to all areas regardless of need. However, with the growth of student enrollment, some steps toward decentralization have been taken. Education in Iraq should move toward a mixture (see Chapter IV, a Philos ophy of Proper Balance) of centralization with some decen tralized features which will allow innovations to be intro duced in response to local needs. As Adiseshiah stated, The task of analysis is, therefore, to relate the positive and negative effects of educational decen tralization to the various social and economic objec tives which the human resources development system is required to serve, bearing in mind its dual concept. (1 9 7 2, p. 95) 29 30 The Ministry of Education was established in 1921 when Iraq gained its independence from Britain after World War I. The Ministry's Constitution has been revised sev eral times., but the most drastic change was made after the establishment of the Republic in 1958. The current Minis try of Education Act Number 124 of 1971 has stated as its goal "bringing progress to society, develop[ing] its human riche's, and producfing] citizens believing in God, loyal to their nation, enlightened with knowledge, aware of citizen ship rights and duties." After this broad general state ment, specific ways to achieve these goals are given. In addition there is the "Code of the Ministry of Education" Number 13 of 1972, which specifically states the duties (on 31 pages) of each of its general directorates and divisions (see Figure-l). There have also been the Act of Establish ing Productive Applied Agricultural Schools, the Act to Eliminate Illiteracy, the Act on Technical School of Postal Services, the Order of the Pine Arts, the Order of General Examinations (baccalaureates), and the Act for the Estab lishment of Vocational Education. Scholastic Year The scholastic year rather than the semester or quarter system is followed, so that students who fail are required to repeat one whole year rather than a 4-month semester or 3~month quarter. The school year usually begins Minister / s e c r e t, 'a r y o f ,EDUC* \ BOARD S e cr eta ry l C 'F IC E , EDUCATE ONAL PLANNING SsfiOARP/ GENERM A / VOCATION^ TECHNICAL AFFAIR S I SCHOLAR.^ ,f A D M IN S ' SHIP ; BOARO CULTURAL OENERAL^ INSPECT-, vfON A TRATION RELATION! EOUCATN .EDUCATIOI SC H O U RSHIP BOARO SCHOOL MINISTRY In d u strial PERSONNEL Ten! .books Exchange ATHLETICS Ed uc • FILES Unesco Provincial OF Toachsr \ T rd in in g J ' Agricultural ^ E d u c - J A H a l r i . N /F o llo w up Exam * I n j S<h* Docum J • \ i d j USjm«r r GUIOS S T U D E N T A C T . j Primary Sch. Inspection CULTURAL EDUCATION Commercial c E d u < . J ACCOUNTS Students / SocondaryN Sch. Inspection A.V- Aids SUPPLIES Educ* Figure 1 ' Spec. > Subi. Inspectors BUIL0IN6S LE G A L AOVISOR ! T£ 32 early In September,, then in January the mid-year examina tion is givenj followed by a 2-week Spring recess. In June of the following calendar year,, the final examinations are given, followed by 3 months of summer vacation. This sum mer vacation is useful to students who partially fail the June final examinations (called the first term) or who are "legally" sick and are given the opportunity to take the test again in September (second term). Recently, a variety of activities and training courses have been systematically arranged so that students can benefit from the summer school. In light of the large number of students who must repeat, it would be a great saving in time, effort, and money to shift to the semester system. This system would provide flexibility and enable students to tailor their programs and gain credit even in the summer (Los Angeles Times, August 15* 1976, part 1, pg. 2). Scholastic Day Students study 6 days per week (Saturday to Thurs day) and Friday is their one-day holiday. The scholastic days have 6 periods of 40-45 minute study except Mondays and Thursdays, which have 4. This makes 3^ periods per week. The student-teacher relationship is very formal and some teachers tend to be "easy" graders or devise easy questions. Thus such students are poorly prepared for the 33 baccalaureate. There is no counseling as it Is adminis tered and understood in the United States, and no teacher office hours are available. Many teachers do not even bother to learn the names of their students. "When teachers show genuine interest in their students,, greater learning results (Hunter, 19&7). Finance Expenditures on education are allotted out of the public budget and have accounted for approximately one- fourth to one-fifth of the entire budget, for the past 10 years] The private sector of education has been national ized since the beginning of the 1 9 7 ^ /1 9 7 5 scholastic year under the Act of February 7* 197^ which provided free educa tion for all students in all stages of education and was adopted by the Revolutionary Command Council. This change also included Al-Mustanisariyah University and four reli gious colleges. The Ministry has purchased freight trucks to ship the free school supplies and equipment to the outer regions of the country, and even purchased boats to deliver supplies to the people who live in the marshes of Southern Iraq (Al-Thwarah, May 22, 197^* September 11 and 13* 197^; Al-Jumhooriyah, October 2, 1975; Young, April 1976, pp. 518-519). The central financing of education is bringing a balanced distribution of educational services to all parts of the country. The officials of the Ministry are economy 34 minded and purchases are bought at wholesale prices and in some instances^ the tools that are required are made locally. This type of finance system works well in a coun try the size of Iraq., but total centralization regarding planning leaves no room for local initiative which could be very helpful in bringing about needed diversity in the schools. Experiments that prove fruitful could be adopted throughout the country. The Ministry tries to give atten tion to the aforementioned but does not always implement action. This is understandable because of the burdens which central authority naturally entails. In a country as advanced as the United States., local control is preferable., although some educational leaders advocate more state and federal involvement. As Conant noted: It is quite clear that there is something wrong with the way we finance our public schools. A new look at an old problem is required by state legislatures and the Congress of the United States. (1967.» p. 2) At the same time., other educators actually predict such a trend (Campbell,, 1970., pp. 465-471) . There is an acute shortage of proper school build ings in Iraq and the government has arranged "popular" work campaigns to build them. Students* peasants* and workers have been recruited to help. Students have dedicated sum mer vacations to draining and filling marshes* paving streets* and providing help on farms. In the Baghdad Gov- ernate* 486 schools have been constructed in 4 years* 35 compared to 247 buildings in the previous 5 0-year period (Al-Thwarah, May 1973)• A special technical committee attached to the Ministry of Housing supervises the con struction of schools throughout Iraq. The Ladder The Iraqi educational ladder is similar to the one followed in the United States, of 6-3-3. Since the 1969/ 1970 school year, one year has been added to the old plan of 6-3-2. (The Preparatory Stage began in 1929 with only one year) (Al-Jalili, 1955)• There are 6 years of elemen tary education followed by 3 years of intermediate (junior high) and 3 years of preparatory (senior high). Each of these three schools culminates with a final comprehensive examination called the "Baccalaureate." The baccalaureate examination is what "counts," not the knowledge that has been acquired, in terms of seeking government employment^as well as social prestige. In fact, students who drop out just prior to the baccalaureate are singled out and referred to for the rest of their lives as "failures." The most crucial of all three examinations is the final baccalaureate given at the end of high school. This is often spoken of as the "problem of problems" and the "bac calaureate of baccalaureates." The problems of the educa tional system are centered around this high school test and may be categorized as pre- and post-high school graduation 36 baccalaureate problems. Students who pass may pursue higher education and students who have a low grade point average., when competition is high,, find themselves in "limbo” since they are refused admittance to either univer sities or institutes and are not permitted to repeat the examination. Admission Policy to Higher Education The "Central Bureau for Admission” regulates the acceptance of students to study in universities and insti tutes^ in accordance with the students' desires and their grade point averages on the baccalaureate. The enrollment capacity of each college or institute is also taken into consideration. However, students are not completely free in their choices and are urged to list as many choices as possible. Then, competition among the students is the gov erning factor as to which of the various colleges or insti tutes will accept them. The averages allowed for admission to certain schools are announced to the public and any student who has been refused admission may submit a petition if his total average in the baccalaureate was higher or equal to that of those who were admitted. Some colleges had formerly lim ited the admission of women, but this was later rescinded since such discrimination was considered a violation of equal rights. 37 There is mounting pressure on institutes of higher education as the influx of students increases each year. In 1975^ the number of students admitted was 21,000, repre senting a great expansion compared to the enrollment of 1974 which was 13;89^ students (Al-Thwarah, October 1 3, 1 9 7 5)• The number represents almost one-half of the 40,000 who took the baccalaureate examination that year, which is quite high (Al-Thwarah, April 18, 1975)• The other half is made up of failures and those who are in "limbo.M Kurdish Autonomous Region The Kurds constitute a large minority in the Iraqi population, second only to the Arabs. They live in the northeastern mountains of Iraq, speak the Kurdish language, and share the same religion, Islam, with the Arabs. Kurds were dissident and restive for many years prior to the March 11, 1970 Manifesto which recognized them and allowed them autonomy. A university In the Kurdish city of Sulaimaniyah has been established, as well as a Kurdish Academy. The Kurd ish language has been recognized as an official language, in addition to Arabic, in the Kurdish region and Is taught in schools at all levels. On the fourth anniversary of the March 11th Manifesto, a declaration was made in the region of Kurdistan (the Autonomy Law of March 11, 1974) which 38 granted the Kurds full rights within their homeland and resulted in shared brotherhood, equality, and common responsibility with the Arabs. The city of Arbil was chosen to be the seat of the autonomous administration. However, as the March 11, 1970 Manifesto and the declaration of self-autonomy of 197^ did not satisfy the secessionists, peace came only after the Iraqi troops cap tured the border area of Galilea, the last stronghold of the secessionists, on April 2, 1975 (Al-Thwarah, April 3* 1975; Los Angeles Times, April 3, 1975). As peace settled in Kurdistan, the government adopted a crash program to restore normal life, build factories, roads, and farms. Within a year, there were 698 elementary schools, 26 inter mediate schools, 11 preparatory schools, three teacher- training institutes, and one school of commerce (Al-Thwarah, March 11, 1976). Preschool Years Kindergartens and nursery schools comprise the 2- year pre-elementary stage, and they are being expanded. In the first year, the child plays with toys and is taught some songs; in the second, he learns simple reading and numbers, which prepares him for elementary education. The staff is female and consists of a director, assistant director, teachers, monitors, and janitors. 39 In 1973/197^-j there were more than twice as many students as there were in 1957/1958* One year later (197^/ 1 9 7 5) the number more than doubled again--3 5;3^7 students with 1,391 teachers. This spectacular jump in enrollment was due to the decision to provide free education for all, which reflects the importance vested in encouraging women to join the work force while children are in nursery school. The next few years will witness a greater expan sion in this preschool education; consequently it will be considered as a separate step and as a vital complementary level. The first few years have been recognized by many psychologists as the most important in life (Love & Osborne, 1971; P* 55) • The effects of this age level are so deep that they have a permanent impact: "Even by age four, it may be difficult to change the course of development" (Goodlad, Klein, & Novotny, 1973; P* 9). Iraq is very interested in preschool education in order to provide health services, including free milk and food; offer opportunities for the growth of personality and learning; and free mothers so they may engage in useful work for the advancement of the country as a whole. It is the intention of the authorities to place increasing impor tance on the preschool years in forthcoming plans. 40 The Elementary School The goal of this stage is to enable children to gain substantial essential knowledge in reading* writing* and simple principles of natural and social sciences and citizenship. Children are admitted at the age of 6 to study for 6 years* ending with a public examination admin istered by the Ministry of Education. Out of the commitment of Iraq to the attainment of universal literacy by 1 9 8 0* rapid growth in this stage is promising and expected. The number of pupils enrolled in this stage has jumped from 849*681 in 1 9 6 2 /1 9 6 3 to 1,297,756 in 1972/1973. The number of children who were admitted to the first grade in 1 9 6 1 /1 9 6 2 was 201*194; this figure jumped to 301*245 in the 1 9 7 1 /1 9 7 2 school year* an increase of 50 per cent. The people of Iraq are awakened to the fact that no child should be without schooling. This eagerness seems to have inversed the meaning of compulsory education as a coercion of the government since it bears the entire brunt of providing for education. This deeply-felt acceptance of schooling by an apprehensive* conservative* relucant* and sometimes opposing and resisting people is encouraging and could be called a "landmark” on the road to universal edu cation. The government issued an order for schools not to refuse any child and even to accept all without birth cer tificates. 41 The teachers are trained in 2-year institutes after completing preparatory (3-year) and intermediate schooling. Most of the teachers are poorly trained and have reluc tantly been "chosen" for this profession. Some of them who attend the 2-year institutes do so for economic reasons. After a few years of experience, some are admitted to the school of education to become secondary school teachers. The other kind of teachers are those who gradu ate after 2 years of study in teachers' institutes. Some of them come reluctantly, just because their averages were not high enough for admission to the college or university of their choice. The curriculum includes religion (with the Koran), Arabic and penmanship, English, arithmetic and measures, general life information, agricultural education (in rural areas), object lessons and hygiene, social and national edu cation, drawing, manual arts (boys only), home economics (girls only), and physical education. Students who do not pass the final examination at the end of any one of the 6 years have to repeat the entire year. Graduation from primary school requires passing the Ministry of Education baccalaureate examination given at the end of the sixth grade. Parents now see the value of sending their children to school earlier; therefore, the percentage of 6-year-olds who enter the first grade for the first time compared to the Table 1 42 Weekly Hours Schedule Elementary, Intermediate, and Preparatory Sub.iect Elementary Intermediate Preparatory- Lit. 1 2 10 Sci. 11 12 11 12 Religion Arabic Kurdish Ehglish Math Algebra Geometry- General Knowledge Science Chemistry Physics Biology Bio & Health Social Studies 2 2 2 2 11 11 11 11 6 6 6 2 7 4 5 2 7 4 5 1 6 6 5 1 1 6 6 2 5 5 3 2 8 6 2 2 2 3 3 4 4 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 2 8 2 6 2 2 4 5 6 4 4 4 4 4 4 History 2 2 2 2 3 3 - - Geography 2 2 2 2 3 3 - - Civics 1 1 1 ■.» - - - - Sociology - - - - - - - - - - 2 - - - Philosophy - - - - - - - - - - - 2 - - Economics 2 2 - - Phys Ed. 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 2 2 1 1 1 1 1 Art Ed. 4 4 4 4 4 3 3 2 2 1 1 1 1 1 TOTAL 30 30 30 32 32 32 32 32 32 30 30 30 31 32 43 total number of admissions has increased from 7 percent in 1 9 6 2 /1 9 6 3 to 8 percent in 1971/ 1 9 7 2. In the 1971/1972 scholastic year,, the elementary schools totaled 6,0 0 6: 1 ,3 0 0 for girls only, 225 coeduca tional, and the remainder for boys. An average of 22 stu dents per teacher exists, which should leave no reason for poor performance, but it also reflects the overstaffing which has occurred due to absorption of high school gradu ates who were not admitted to higher education. An urgent need for consolidation is seen if good quality is to be attained in the larger schools. Bad roads, poor transpor tation, the persistent, dominant tradition of separation of boys from girls, and the desire of the educational authori ties to encourage students to attend school by locating the schools in local neighborhoods or villages, etc., are factors responsible for the low density of schools. There are almost twice as many male as female teach ers (3 5j7 0 5*1 7j5 9 2), a ratio that could be reversed to liberate manpower for agriculture and industry, whereas for an Iraqi woman, to hold a teaching position would be desir able work. Some incentives are needed to retain experi enced teachers who have been following a trend of changing to other occupations after their early forties. A second need is in obtaining more adequate facilities, thus elimi nating the crowded school buildings. 44 In the 10-year span from 1963/1964 to 1972/1973 (Table 3)* the 957,555 who took the baccalaureate exami nation,, 2 3 9 ,8 1 1 or 25 percent failed to pass and had to repeat one additional year or more, which is lower than the failures in the other two stages. However,, this percentage is doubled if one takes into consideration the total waste that is represented in the numbers of those who failed to pass the scholastic examination and the dropouts, as indi cated in Table 2 for the years 1970/1971 and 1971/1972. Table 5 shows that the failures and dropouts are a continu ous process in each grade in much lower percentages. The Ministry is considering the abolishment of the baccalaure ate at this stage because of the damaging effects on the children: namely, the harm to their pride and the waste of time., effort, and money (Al-Thwarah, December 1, 1978) . This waste can be lessened considerably by taking note of the literature and applying it. One excellent source states that the system "of marking governed by promotion and examination regulations" may be necessary, but there is room for improvement by the substitution of "teaching by success for teaching by failure" (Brimer & Pauli, 1971)• "Research by psychologists has shown that a pupil's per formance is improved if his correct answers are appreciated and what progress he makes is taken into consideration." Brimer and Pauli continue by saying that "negative judg- SHVEX r^TLM!&S, IH~3Her REFORM THROUGH COMPREHENSIVE EDUCATION AND INDIVIDUALIZATION OF INSTRUCTION STAGE ONEi PRE-BACCALAUREATE STAGE TWOs POST-BACCALAUREATE Graduate Study UNIVERSITIES k, 5$ or 6 Years ON On ON On H ® Q ct H 5.t7_ 46 ments are responsible" for waste of students who could per form well if given encouragement (p. 7 2). The Junior High School (intermediate) The intermediate stage follows the elementary,, is the first part of the General Education stage,, and is of 3 years duration. The second part of preparatory is 3 years long also. The two parts are either in one complete school or are separated. Students choose between the two broad specialties,, literature and science. Teachers of the inter mediate and preparatory levels who hold a B.S. or B.A. in a special major are trained in colleges of education or others of equal accreditation. The intermediate school curriculum is comprised of religious education,, Arabic,, Kurdish (in Kurdish majority schools), English* history* geography* national education* arithmetic* algebra* plane geometry* general science* chemistry* biology and hygiene* physics* art* physical education* home economics (girls only)* soci ology* and economics. See Table 1 that shows the distribu tion of hours per week of subjects in comparison to ele mentary and preparatory studies. Students in the intermediate stage* in general* are younger than their predecessors in the same grade of sev eral years ago; in the year 1 9 7 1 /1 9 7 2 the percentage of 1 2- year-olds to the total of first year intermediate students (seventh grade) was 2 0 .2 percent compared to 11 percent in 47 1962/ 1 9 6 3. Accordingly,, there is a decrease in older stu dents compared to some years ago. This trend is true in the other two stages., also. Today,, classes are more crowded than they used to be. An average of 36 students in each class in 1974/1975 was the pattern (The Educational Convention for the Directors of Education,, 1976, p. 9) . This average, of course, has its negative effect on the quality of education. Much of the statistical data on this stage is on the same charts as the preparatory stage. Thus, according to the 1971/1972 Annual Report of Educational Statistics issued by the Ministry, there were 994 secondary schools: 3O3 of them for girls, 689 for boys, and two coeducational. A belief that girls should have their own schools in this stage inhibits the spread of girls' schools in the country side since in many cases, there are too few girls to jus tify the opening of a school, so they have to stay home. The public schools are distributed unevenly between rural and urban areas (8 6 rural, 788 urban) and the ratio of girls' schools in urban areas is 10 times bigger than in rural areas (3.5$-35^); this reflects the concentration of such vital services in cities only. Much time, effort, and energy are needed in order to afford equal opportunities for girls and boys in both rural and urban areas. The law of compulsory education will eventually lead to the construction of secondary schools throughout Iraq. 48 Though there are no data available for the more recent years, the newspapers of Iraq tell of the proposed con struction of school buildings even in the most remote parts of the country. The ratio of girls to the total enrollment is 29 percents which reflects the belief that elementary education is sufficient for girls. Many of the 13^626 secondary school teachers dislike serving in the country side (especially female teachers), and this resentment led the authorities to force the new graduates to serve 2 years in the villages before they could be transferred to a school in their birthplaces. There are 531 intermediate schools, 91 preparatory schools, and 252 secondary schools which have both inter mediate and preparatory combined., in the public sector com pared to 3 6, 3 j and 8l, respectively, in the private sector. Most of the private schools are evening schools attended mostly by those who failed the maximum of- 2 years allowed in public schools and therefore had to transfer to- private scho.ols. The total enrollment of the intermediate schools is almost twice that of the preparatory (223,845:315,572). There are 112 buildings that house two schools and 35 house three schools. The Ministry pays a high rent for small, inadequate edifices which were originally residences. In 1971/1972 I.D. 81,736 was paid as rent for secondary schools and I.D. 190,268 for elementary schools. 49 Curriculum, student activities, teacher perform ance, and parental concern are all centered around passing the baccalaureate. By the very nature of the system, students, as well as their teachers, concentrate on the single-focus Ministerial examination (baccalaureate). Following each baccalaureate, teachers are either punished or rewarded according to the percentage of failures and suc cesses achieved by their students. The teachers therefore tend to "prepare" their students for an examination given by a different examiner, which is the Ministry. Teachers after a few years of service can and do master this art of "preparation" which is sometimes quite different and often quite removed from what is considered real teaching. The Ministry knows this, as well as the teachers and the stu dents, but for Iraq, this is probably the lesser of evils that might ensue if they did not follow this course, at least for the present. There are a number of accomplish ments which are not tested by the baccalaureate examination and they consist of virtues, morals, patriotism, and good personality characteristics; also not tested are good pen manship in Arabic, pronunciation in English, chapters in some of the subjects taught, artistic skills, practical skills and craftsmanship, athletic abilities, etc. Accom plishments in the aforementioned are left up to each person. A serious imbalance favors the cognitive domain at the 50 expense of the other two domains,, the psycho-motor and the affective domain (Bloom* 1971; Krathwohl* 1971). In the decade between 1963/19^4 and 1972/1973* from a total of 524*394 students* there were 226*088 who failed to pass the intermediate baccalaureate* an average of 43 percent each year (see Table 3)* However* these numbers do not include those eliminated in the scholastic screening test that is a prerequisite to the baccalaureate. Teachers who are punished or rewarded in light of the baccalaureate examination tend to be stringent with the students and con sequently eliminate a large number of them in this scholas tic test. The numbers of failures quoted above do not include those who failed the scholastic examination or who dropped out in desperation. Table 2 shows these three kinds of failure with percentages of each of the 2 years 1970/1971 and 1971/1972 for all three baccalaureates. As for the intermediate* the total failures reached 55 percent and 49 percent of the total waste. This is tantamount to 62 per cent and 53 percent in the two above-mentioned years. How ever* it seems that better results were achieved by the students in more recent years (see Figure 3 and Table 4). In the. future* there should be fewer failures and more suc cesses as planning and reform take place. 51 Preparatory Stage The preparatory stage Is synonymous to its American counterparty the 3-year senior high school. The first year (tenth grade) is general, while the last two are divided into the literary and scientific areas. In the literary branchy students study historyy geographyy sociologyy and economics; in the scientificy they study mathematicsy physicsy chemistryy and biology. Twice as much Arabic lan guage study is required in the literary as in the scien tific branch. Kurdish is also taught, but to students of the literary branch only. Religious education, physical education, and art education are similar in both branches. Home economics is for girls only and English is heavily stressed for both boys and girls. The teachers of this stage are usually senior and experienced teachers. The per centage of 1 5-year-olds to the total admissions has risen from 6 .7 percent in 1 9 6 2 /1 9 6 3 to 21.2 percent in 1971/1972. According to the 1971/1972 data, there are 91*727 students in this stage divided between the public sector (79*783) and the private sector (11,9^0 • The private are now all public schools. The ratio of girls to boys at that time was 1:2 in public schools and 1:6 in private schools. This difference in ratio was due to the fact that most pri vate sector schools were evening schools where many fami lies feel uncomfortable sending their daughters after dark. 52 The percentage of girls to the total enrollment is 20 per cent at this stage^ compared to 22 percent in the inter mediate and 24 percent in the elementary. This decline of percentage of girls is calculated from the numbers of stu dents participating in the three baccalaureates (see Table 3). As for a comparison of the scientific to the literary branchy the numbers are almost equal, which is detrimental to national development and should be based upon modern science and technology. There should be a well-planned effort for adequate counseling to convince able students to choose a scientific field of study. One simple incentive is to grant higher salaries to science graduates than to literary graduates, as is done in Saudi Arabia. Also, since girls were found to score high in all subjects^ those with latent ability should be encouraged to study science and overcome the belief that it is more feminine to be a litera ture major than a science major. The failures in this stage are more numerous than in the other two. In the decade shown in Table those who passed were almost equal to those who did not: 5 1'^9- As in the other two examinations, these results do not tell the whole story of failure; Table 2 and Table 5 show different categories of failures. Table 6 shows a follow-up study of the number of students who passed the three barriers in the decade 1963/1954 to 1972/1973- This is based upon the 6 scholastic years preceding the decade^ and projected 53 to 6 years thereafter. The projections, however., are sub ject to change under the new planning effort, the effect of compulsory elementary education, and the changes in popula tion growth. They may be useful in order to extend the same trends of the past to the future, and to credit any other difference to the power of planned change to control the flow of graduates to serve national development. For instance, there will be approximately ^ 1 3000 students who will pass the baccalaureate in the scholastic year 1990/1991. Half of this number will be graduates in the literary branch whose services are not in demand, partly because of the scientific and technological advances being made in many areas and partly for lack of positions since the economy has been sated with them year after year. Although the percentages of failures decreased in the last few years, they were insufficient to be considered a return to a "normal" rate. The percentage of failures was 46.2 percent compared to 59-2 percent in 1973 (Al-Thwarah, July 8, 1974) . In 1975.5 the first-term baccalaureate per centage of failure was 50 percent for the scientific branch and 59 percent for the literary branch (Al-Thwarah, July 25, 1975)• This is compared to corresponding results in 1976, when the percentages of failure were 46 percent and 6 2 .7 percent for the scientific and literary branches, respec tively (Al-Thwarah, July 21, 1976). The elementary bacca 54 laureate first-term percentage of failure in the same year was 40 percent for Al-Karakh Baghdad schools (Al-Thwarah, June 18, 1976). In an interview with the Minister of Edu cation,, the correspondent from Al-Thwarah asked the Minis ter the following question: Question: What is your evaluation of the results of the public exams especially in the preparatory classes and what is your depiction of the failure phenomenon? Are there any new examining programs that take into consideration the objective situation of the student in light of the revolutionary changes? Answer: It should be mentioned before answering such a question that our understanding of the exams coin cides completely with the new educational concepts of an exam used merely as a tool or an evaluatory process which is comprehensive and continuing in that it takes place throughout the scholastic year to test the stu dent's understanding of the study materials rather than being used as a frightening and terrifying thing that repels students. . . . As for our evaluation of the public exams and especially at the appropriate stage,, this scholastic year,, it should be stated here that the historical decision that was issued by the Revolutionary Command Council of Free Education for All in all stages has opened new, wide horizons and unlimited equal opportunities for all citizens of the nation; hence many people registered in the schools and especially minor government officials, members of the armed forces, workers and peasants pursued their education, especially in the secondary stage in the evening schools. So, there has been an excessive increase compared to the last 2 years of those who participated in the baccalaureate exams. This increase had its effect on increasing the percentage of failures for all three baccalaureates, especially, the effect of the percentages of the evening schools. We would like to assure the public that the per centages of success in the government daily schools are increasing steadily and at an obvious rate com pared to the previous years. This increase in per centages of successes occurred in spite of the vast expansion that took place in the last 2 years which resulted in a proportionate decrease in available 55 school building space. This led to an Increase in class density and a corresponding decrease in the number of teachers. Consideration must be given to the imbalance of the distribution of the teaching efficiencies between urban and rural areas,, . . . etc.j and according to the above information, the percentages of success especially for the elementary level for the last 5 years have reached an average of approximately 90^. Hence they more than exceed what is needed for the educational plan in the target year. A similar situation exists in the intermediate, pre paratory and vocational levels. It is our hope that these percentages of success will increase in the coming scholastic year as educational and cultural awareness increases among parents, along with the care given to the improvement and development of the quality aspects of education in curriculum, texts, study aid materials, school buildings, teacher training, develop ment of evaluation procedures, exams and educational supervision. The Ministry is studying the negative effects of the exams and is deeply concerned with the development of new exam questions and is on the way to completing new studies concerning the use of student profiling and follow-ups. They will be used first in the elementary level and then in the following educa tional stages. (Al-Thwarah, October 20, 1976} The Ministerial Examinations, ' “ Baccalaureates u The baccalaureate examinations are comprehensive and intensive tests administered by the Ministry of Education at the end of the elementary, intermediate, and preparatory stages of schooling. They are both a blessing and a curse and have been severely criticized as having several short comings, but it seems that these examinations will be indis pensable for a number of years at least or until better criteria are discovered to evaluate student;, work. With the rise in the percentage of failures each year, the examinations tend to be a source of anxiety, unhappiness, .and—worry-.------------------------------------------ ---------- Table 2 Public Schools: Number of Student Dropouts and Number that Failed the Scholastic and Baccalaureate Exams, and Percentages of Failure Tear 1 Grad© Number in Class N Dropouts Failed School Exam S Bacc. Par takers B Bacc, Fail ures b f Total Waste D + S + b Total S Failed + b I 1 -___ D g- xl00 W W N xiOO F F r - —X 100 N H \o "0 6th 118,088 13,132 30,290 87,484 26,446 30 69,868 59 56,738 48 O I 1 H 9th 52,900 3,590 18,112 41,911 11,283 27 32,985 62 29,395 55 ! 12th 20,7?6 221 2,341 20, 045 6,678 33 9,238 44 9,017 43 i t ~ > I 'O 1 " " O 6 th 131,646 11,030 40,388 103,842 13,088 13 64,506 49 53,476 41 H I N > 9th 52,990 2,648 17,605 45,845 7,733 1? 27,986 53 25,338 49 L____ 12th 25,41? 500 7,038 24,099 5,083 21 12,62,1 50 12,121 48 Source: Ministry of Education, Educational Statistics, annual reports. ui. 57 Table 3 Numbers and Percentages of Students Who Passed or Failed in the 10-Year Period, 1963/64 to 1972/75 PARTAKERS PASSED Number i FAILED Number f 724,920 527,204 79 197.716 21 232,635 190,558 82 * * 2,095 18 957,555 717,762 75 239,811 25 407,028 213,257 52 193,771 48 117,366 85,049 72 32,317 28 524,39*+ 298,306 57 226,088 43 226,577 107,052 47 119,525 53 55,399 36,915 66 18, 98* * 34 282,476 143,967 51 138,509 49 122,746 69,432 *7 > i 53,314 43 159,730 74,535 **7 85,195 53 282,476 143,967 51 138,509 49 99,055 53,544 54 '+5,511 46 23*691 15,388 6 7 7,803 33 122,746 69,432 57 53.314 43 127,522 53,508 **2 7**,01** 53 32,208 21,027 65 11,181 35 159,730 74,535 **7 85,195 53 § Boys (H S 63 Girls 0 ^ Total " Boys s . „ g Girls j £ H 5 Total b Boys Girls Total s? Scien tific o r~f f i . p if Liter- t u S O g*^ ary Total e $ £ Boys c t f • r * P 44 & 8 Girls O *H r 4 Total Boys o . o vi i d f e j S Girls P-; -+i O «H 5 ^ > - 5 Ft Total lko 110 100 90 80 70 60 50 ko 30 20 10 0 ' - 60 *3/64 64/65 ■65/66 66/67 67/68 68/69 69/70 70/71 71/72 72 m gure 5. Expansion of baccalaureate partakers and numbers of students who failed in the 10-year span from 1963/6k to 1973/7^ (see Table k). For each school year shown the columns represent Elementary, Intermediate, and Preparatory Education (from left to right). The bottom portion of each column represents the number of students who failed. U1 00 Table 4 Numbers and Percentages of Failure in the Elementary, Intermediate, and Preparatory Baccalaureate Exams for Public, Private, and Irregular Sectors for the 10-Year Span, 1963/64, 1972/75’ Year ELEMENTARY intermediate . PREPARATORY Partakers Failed Partakers Failed Partakers Failed No. * ’ No. % No. 63/64 69,695 22,557 32 40,669 . 20,624 51 22,840 13,305 58 64/65 82,890 30,788 37 44-, 380 ,24,909 66 29,212 19,547 67 65/66 88,629 24,486 28 47,606 27,905 59 33,087 20,327 61 66/ 6? 87,517 27,404 31 51,954 22,786 44 37,602 22,894 61 67/68 98,796 16,384 17 55,780 25,475 46 40,639 16,055 39 68/69 98,767 15,404 16 60,347 30,728 51 17,715 11,236 63 69/70 97,417 25,085 26 41,485 12,661 31 14,473 3,905 27 70/71 90,430 27,190 30 52,698 18,958 36 24,483 9,873 40 71/72 103,842 13,088 13 59,354 16,763 28 30,918 9,341 30 72/73 139,935 37,769 27 70,108 25,236 36 32,458 12,023 37 Table 5 Failures and Dropouts in All Grades for Public and Private Schools (Baccalaureate Exams Are Not Included) 1970/1971 1971/1972 . Total FaiJL Dropout ■ Total Fail Dropout Grade - ............- ? In Class No. ' i No# % Grade In Class No. % NO. i 1st ■ 271,158 45,938 17 24,203 9 1st 301,245 51,228 17 23,348 8 2nd I 198,440 31,697 16 9,130 5 2nd 225,487 32,647 14 8,080 4 3rd {16?,681 24,847 15 7,470 4 3rd 181,579 24,402 13 6,054 3 4th 1163,534 36,366 22 9,932 6 4th 170,926 33,888 20 7,716 5 5th : 176,593 56,911 32 17,127 10 5th 181,657 63,609 35 14,801 8 6th 121,4?4 30,795 25 13,292 11 | 6th 134,641 40,952 30 11,117 8 1 7 th 90,152 28,752 ; 32 10, 91? 12 j 7th 31,751 29,039 36 6,331 8 8th 73,322 19,922 27 7,476 10 j 8th 75*201 123,119 31 5,041 7 9th 61,944 19,323 31 5,424 9 I 9 t h 66,893 23,535 35 3,931 6 10th 28,247 2,861 10 1,669 6 j 10th 32,711 3*215 10 1,127 3 11th j 26,074 3.110 12 886 3 \ ; n t h 28,112 3,677 13 74? 3 12th 24,497 3,402 14- 408 1 0 j 12th 30,905 | 9,984 32 820 '!2 J Figure Preparatory Intermediate _— . Elementary Percent ON V j \ H H H VO vO NO ON ON ON V jn ON • nJ ON ON On ON 'O C O H H NO NO NO ON On - n3 00 NO O ON - nJ vO O H U) k. Percentage of failures in the three baccalaureate examinations (see Table 4) Table 6 Projections of Enrollment Through 1991 Admitted to . First Grade Pass El Bacc* After 6 Years Pass Int Bacc After 9 Yrs Pass Prep Bacc After 12 Yrs l ! iYear Number Year Number Year Number Year Number | 57/58 j58/59 159/60 160/61 j61/62 | 62/63 I —.... 111,879 189,018 63/64 64/65 65/66 66/67 67/68 68/69 98,867 50,369 ; 59»974 81,842 82,412 83,363 66/67 67/68 68/69 69/70 70/71 71/72 30,275 29,888 29,619 28,829 33,790 92,591 69/70 70/71 71/72 : 72/73 73/79 79/75 12,335 19,6101 21,577 s 20,935! jTotalf300,897 406,836 189,937 68,957 j i ! Avers i 150,448 \ i 7 9 67,806 31,656 17,239 I j i - | | | [63/69 180,508 | j 64/65 197,983 | j 65/66 197,803 |j66/67j203,?-?5 j j 67/68) 209,961 |68/691213, 9^3 j j 69/70! 242,316 j70/71|27l,l58 J71/72S297.158 j 72/73| 318,454- 69/70 70/71 71/72 72/73 73 M 79/75 75/76 76/77 77/78 78/79 j 90,254 98,741 98,901 101,637 102,223 106,971 121,158 135.579 148.579 159,227 72/73 73/79 79/75 75/76 76/77 77/78 78/79 79/80 . 80/81 81/82 95,127 99,370 99,950 50,818 51,115 53,985 60,579 67,789 ; 79,289 79,613 75/76 76/77 77/78 78/79 79/80 80/81 81/82 82/83 83/89 89/85 r • ' “1 2 2, 563j 29,685! ; 29,725 i j 25,909 j 25,557 j 26,792 1 30,289; | 33,899 37,199 39.805 | An average yearly increase in first grade enrollemnt of j 14 9645 or 15,000 is seen during the 10-year period from \ 63/6k to 72/73 and is used for future projections as an | index0 173/79 j 79/75 j 75/76 i 76/77 ( 77/78 i78/79 1 ' * ' ' • J 333.000 348.000 363.000 j/7^3,000 393,000 '+08,000 : 79/80 80/81 j 81/82 | 82/83 : 83/84 i 84/85 166,000 1?4,000 181,000 189,000 19?,000i .204,000 i 82/83 83/89 m/85 85/86 86/87 87/88 83,000 87,000 90,000 99,000 98,000 102,000 85/86 86/87 87/88 88/89 89/90 90/91 91.500 93.500 95.000 ! 98.500 99.000 i 51.000 | 63 The baccalaureate examination creates an anxiety in students and parents alike., who hope to make high grades amidst the severe competition. This results in making the examination an end in itself rather than a means to an end. Some students hire a tutor who crams material into their minds primarily to enable them to pass the test. Others depend almost exclusively on condensed versions of various texts. To curb this practice., the Ministry of Education placed a taboo on the practice of "cramming" as well as on tutoring, which was considered by them a circumvention of the authentic., genuine efforts of a student working on his own. The public examinations are increasingly becoming more and more like police work rather than educational evaluation. There were 36 students out of 600 who passed the baccalaureate and yet errors were found in the simple addition of the grades of the questions (Al-Thwarah, August 18 and 20, 1976; Al-Jumhoriya, June 8. , 1976) . The dilemma of the preparatory schools is that they are merely "preparatory” in the full meaning of the term "preparation," and nothing else: they are simply a bridge and nothing more for those who cross it and expect to arrive at their destination on the other side of the river. This is not the case for many students whose destination is the preparatory school. In contrast, the American compre 64 hensive high school is an end in itself for many students who learn a variety of subjects and skills that they can use. The name of this stage might be changed from "prepara tory" or "Al-Idadiya" to "Direction!st, r or "Al-Tawjihiya*" which is more "educational" in the sense that it does not imply the sacrifice of one stage for the sake of the other and eliminates the confusion caused by the use of the term "preparatory" which is used for the intermediate stage in neighboring Arab countries. Vocational Education The relationship between the needs of industry and industrial education is reminiscent of that famous enigma, "What came first* the chicken or the egg?" Should we intro duce good industrial education programs and glut the market with partially and highly skilled* technically trained people so that they may help industry to develop and expand? Or should we wait until expansion has occurred and then advise students to study for positions they can fill in the factories? Experience has demonstrated that the most advisable idea is, to plan for both industrial expansion and at the same time* train the students who can fill the positions that will become available. Vocational education in Iraq was established at almost the same time as liberal education* but while the first became popular slowly* the second developed rapidly 65 and attracted the confidence of the people. The first graduates from the vocational schools faced difficulties in finding jobs relevant to their training and because of this risk., others did not enroll in such schools. If college preparatory education is undertaken,, they 'will face the high probability of not finding positions. They cannot change to vocational studies unless they begin at the lower stages again. Table 7 Percentages: Vocational Education Enrollment Compared to Liberal Education Enrollment Year i Year 1 o 1958/59 9.9 1965/66 4.2 1959/60 8.5 1966/67 4.6 1960/61 7.0 1967/68 5-9 1961/62 5.7 1968/69 20. 0- 1962/65 5.0 1969/70 16.0 1965/64 4.5 1970/71 15.0 1965/65 4.1 1971/72 1972/73 11.0 The percentages quoted above are much lower than indicated because they are inflated by the number of students taking commercial studies, which is semi-white collar work. Also included is women's home arts education which, regardless of its importance, does not belong to this category since it is not tied to work in industry or agriculture. Another reason that students do not choose voca tional education stems from the old attitude that manual work is undignified and menial. The Ministry had to initi 66 ate a campaign to inform the people of the importance and the dignity of this type of work. In the United States* the advocates of the Comprehensive High School find it an excellent vehicle which applies the principle of equal opportunity and affords social status and prestige* while the labor unions secure the economic status of the voca tional school graduates. The industrial education program in Iraq is offered after the sixth year of elementary school and in the 6 years of high school,, in both the junior and senior stages. In the year 1971/1972 there were 11 industrial schools (four of them in Baghdad) with a total enrollment of 2*680. They had 3^4 teachers, giving a ratio of 7.4 students per teacher; the number of these students compared to students enrolled in all academic stages equaled .17 percent. The ratio was 28 students per 100 . , 0 0 0, , compared to 3. , 238 aca demic students. The industrial and agricultural as well as home economics (girls) schools should enjoy the same status as the preparatory (senior high) because they are of the same length— 3 years after passing the intermediate level-- and also culminate in Ministerial baccalaureate examina tions. After the July 17, 19^8 regime gained power, an unprecedented emphasis was placed on vocational education. In 1976, the number of industrial and agricultural schools was raised to 23 and 18* respectively. Twenty-eight new industrial and agricultural schools are planned for the 67 near future. Girls were admitted for the first time in 1976 to study radio and television. Steps are being taken to expand this experiment to include all other branches of industrial and agricultural education. For the year 1976/ 1977j of the student population of 15*086, 3*284 were girls who were admitted to vocational education, 7*724 in the industrial area, 4,028 in the agricultural department, and 3,334 in commercial pursuits. It is planned to admit 149*381 students in the following 4 years. The 1971/1972 statistics show that there were 13 agricultural schools with a total enrollment of 3,202 stu dents and 395 teachers, which measures out to a ratio of 8:1, close to that in industrial education. There are only 33 students per 100,000 contrasted to 3 ,2 3 8 in liberal arts. As the number of students increased, the government decided to replace the Directorate of Vocational Education with the Foundation of Vocational Education, and allowed a greater degree of independence. Slow advances-are being made in vocational fields of study and a 5~year plan for growth has been initiated. There are 17 schools for women (home economics):three in Baghdad and one in every governate. Most of the gradu ates of these schools studied to become efficient house wives, but many of them were appointed as elementary school 68 Table 8 J Graduates of Vocational Education Compared | to Graduates of Academic Education I Academic Vocational itatio of Year Sci& Lit Agri Ind Total 1 Voc s ( } Acad 1963/6^ 9,535 320 326 646 1 : 15 196^/65 9.665 190 348 538 1 s 18 1965/66 12,760 292 245 537 1 X 24 1966/6? 14,?08 395 227 622 1 : 24 1967/68 24,585 697 302 999 1 s 25 1968/69 6,479 581 443 1,024 1 s 6 1969/70 10,568 1,297 57? 1,874 1 X 6 1970/71 14,610 1,097 598 1,695 1 X 9 1971/72 21,577 1,249 882 2,131 1 s 10 1973/73 20,435 1,228 820 2,048 1 s 10 Total (tan years) 144,923 7,346 4,?60 12,114 1 s 12 Source: Ministry of Education, Educational Statistics, annual reports. Academic 10 Vocational (Agricultural + Industrial) 1963/64 1964/65 1965/66 1966/6? 196?/68 1968/69 1969/70 1970/71 1971/72 1972/ 7| Figure 5* Graduates of vocational education compared to graduates of academic education (see Table 8) 70 teachers. This campaign for spreading and improving voca tional education culminated with a decision of the Planning Council to evenly split the flow of student graduates from junior high school between academic and vocational educa tion (Al-Thwarah, , January 24, 1977). Foundation of Technical Institutes The Foundation of Technical Institutes is the Iraqi counterpart of one type of American community college. The name mirrors the old separate 2-year institutes that were attached either to the Faculty of Technical Institutes in the University of Baghdad., or to the Ministry of Education. In 1972., the scattered institutes consolidated under one independent administration under the new name of nMaussat Al-Maahid Al-Faniya" or "The Foundation of Technical Insti tutes." The Arabic word "Maahid" or "institute" means a school in which study is limited to less than 4 years, and this title does not enjoy the prestige that the American community college does. Two factors contributed to the growth and rapid proliferation of these institutes: first, pressure on the universities because of their limited capacity; second, the need for skilled workers and semi technicians who could fill the gap between professionals and unskilled workers. Employees in such work allow the engineers and other top men more time to devote to their specialties. 71 To fulfill this need, there are now 15 institutes (Al-Thwarah, May 14, 1976) scattered all over the country that cluster Into four main areas of instruction: technology agriculture, medical administration, and home arts. This type of training will grow rapidly as the demand for such proficiency in personnel increases to fulfill the ambitious 5-year plan of development of the country. The greatest obstacle in the way of this growth is the shortage of well-trained teachers. To preclude this, a plan has been prepared (in coordination with the national 5-year plan) to train 11,212 teachers and assistants as shown in the schedule below (Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, June 2, 1975, P- 3): Table 9 Number of Teachers and Assistants, 1975/76 through 1979/80 Technological Agri cultural Administrative Total Teach- Teach- Teach- Teach- Year ers Ass'ts ers Ass'ts ers Ass'ts ers Ass 1 ti 1975/76 159 258 65 98 120 90 344 426 1976/77 244 366 96 144 192 144 532 654 1977/78 376 564 168 252 320 240 864 1,056 1978/79 612 918 312 468 480 360 l,4o4 1,746 1979/80 2,219 3.328 1,073 1,601 1,704 1,278 4,996 6,216 Totals 5,5^7 2,674 2,982 11, 212 72 The number of teachers needed was calculated at one teacher to 15 students and one assistant to 10 students. To Increase the number of teachers and assistants* 200 scholar- ships had been granted to students to study abroad for 4 or 5 years so they could be well-qualified for these teaching positions. To insure small classes* the Ministry has planned to hire 130 non-Iraqi teachers. Some students who have failed in university studies are permitted to transfer to one of the institutes. In spite of the relative increases in the enrollment of these Institutes* the percentage of increase of higher education enrollment did not exceed 4.2 percent (2 *0 8 5 students) at the beginning of the academic year 1972/1973 (Ministry of Planning* 1973^ P* 537)* The number will be increased to 6*110 for the year 1976/1977 (Al-Thwarah* "Projected Needs for Teachers*" July 2 5* 1976* p. 3)* The Institute of Technology has four departments: electrical technology* civil* chemical industries* and mechanics* with several branches in each. The Civil depart ment incorporates Masonry and Construction* Engineering Drawing* Surveying* Irrigation and Desalinization* and Water Projects. Electrical Technology incorporates branches of Radio and Television* Electrical Installment* Electrical Machines* and Teacher Training for Industrial Schools. Chemical Industries includes one branch for operating industrial units. 73 The Technical Agricultural Institute incorporates seven departments which are: Agricultural Machinery* Soil* Field Crops* Horticulture* Crops Protection* Animal Produc tion* and Home Counseling. The Technical Medical Institute has two departments* one of Pathological Analysis and the other of Prosthodon- tics. The Administration Institute has departments of Accounting* Secretary Training* Store Management* and Statistics. The Home Arts Institute has branches of Technical Tailoring* Factory Tailoring* and Internal Design. A plan of expansion in enrollment within the needs of the 5-year national plan to produce 43*920 graduates out of the 48*656 actually needed* is shown in the following: Table 10 Projected Enrollment Totals of the Technological* Agricultural* and Administrative Institutes from 1975/76 through 1979/80 Year Technological Agricultural Administrative Total 1975/76 1*500 600 1*080 3*180 1976/77 2*160 84o 1*800 4*8oo 1977/78 5*480 1*680 3*000 8*160 1978/79 5*700 3*000 3*48o 12*900 1979/80 6,720 3*480 4*680 i4*880 Totals 19,560 9*600 l4*760 43,920 7 4 The problem Is that students are not happy with such "dead end" institutes, because the credit given for the studies cannot be used to pursue their education in the Technological University. There is an urgent need for full-time instructors, scientific texts, laboratories, libraries, and so on (Al- Thwarah, May 22, 1974) • The University of Technology The University of Technology was established in May 1975 to solve the imbalance between academic and technical education. For years requests were made to accommodate bright, ambitious students who would have liked to pursue their studies in higher technological education. This need was satisfied by the opening of the new school. The four departments of the college were expanded to a total of 10 including departments for graduate studies in Meteorology and Geo-Technics, Production, Industrial Control and Sys tems, Chemical Engineering, Architecture, Hydraulics and Water Resources, Oil Technology, the Science of Humanities, and Physical and Applied Mathematics. Plans were drawn up to admit 1,500 students in the year 1975; a number which was then reduced to 1,400. In addition, there were 540 students in a variety of in-service training and continuing education situations. Scholarships were given to 111 students to study abroad. An initial 75 survey showed the projection of a need for 648 teachers and professors for the scholastic year 1975/ 1 9 7 6. , the first year of the university. The goals of the university have been stated as follows: 1. To make engineering cadres available in sufficient numbers to achieve the economic and social goals of the country. 2. To prepare the educational cadres needed for institutes., industrial schools, and vocational training centers. 3. To provide for personnel who will be able to assist in handling problems of scientific con sultation related to national industry. 4. To provide graduate studies to serve refined specialization and to develop graduate studies which can serve the requirements of the country's growth. 5. To found new approaches for engineering education and in-service training to keep abreast of the progress of technological development in coordi nation with the needs of the country for its engineering specialties. 6. As a general goal., the task of building a develop ing society is vested in the university which will 76 keep apace with the development of science and technology in the more advanced countries (Al- Thwarah , September 8* 1974, August 8, 1975)• The plans involve the admission of 3 0 ,0 3 6 male and female students in 5 years as follows: 3,6^ in 1975/ 1 9 7 6; 4 ,8 6 5 in 1976/1977; 6 ,0 6 7 in 1977/1978; 7 ,1 8 0 in 1978/1979; and 8,080 in 1979/1980. A plot of land in the suburbs of Baghdad called Al-Taji which covers an area of 2,5 0 0 ,0 0 0 square me'ters was dedicated for construction of this new university. The construction will take the form of a uni versity city, which includes buildings for all the depart ments of study, lecture halls, auditoriums, laboratories for engineering, workshops, homes for the faculty members, dormitories for the students, activity centers, and other service facilities. Foreign contractors were invited to submit bids. A few have been chosen and it is intended that this university will be one of the most modern in the world. Higher Education Figure 6 shows that Iraqi higher education has more than doubled in the 1963/1964 to 1972/1973 decade. There are almost 2 0 ,0 0 0 students in the University of Baghdad alone and almost 30,000 more distributed in four other uni versities and institutes: A1-Mosul, Al-Bashra, Al-Sulmaniya, Al-Mustansiyria, the Technical Institutes establishment, and four small theological colleges. Al-Mustansiyria Univer- 77 sity and the theological colleges are now tuition free,, in comformity with the government decision of 197^. The first college (the College of Law) was established in 1928,, fol lowed by several others under separate administrations* until 1958 when a decision was made to unify them under the title* the University of Baghdad. A plot of land was selected on which to establish new buildings* and this is still incomplete. Students rushed "en masse" to pursue higher education* motivated to raise their standards of living as well as to attain prestige for themselves and their families. Higher education is not considered a lux ury any longer and even those who manage their living in well-rewarding positions attend evening classes at Al- Mustansiyria University. Some of them commute daily from fairly distant cities. Today* parents are sacrificing life savings* borrowing extensively (usually at usurious rates)* selling property* and postponing many of their urgent needs in order to send their sons and daughters to a university. This mania for a university education has led to unplanned and uncontrolled growth that has resulted in suffering from real or disguised unemployment. The Political Report of the Eighth Regional Congress of the Arab Ba'ath Socialist Party stated: Schools and universities are producing annually tens of thousands of students who are of no use to the industrial* agricultural* and services programs and development. The government finds it necessary to Thou sands Total j Boys ! 12 - Girls Figure 6. Growth in higher education enrollment -g oo Table 11 Higher Education Enrollment, 1972/1975 r\ ^ \ \ o0. \ % V \ ^ BAGHDAD ts £ JS s 0 < 2 B S'S P CO ► |s a. I , /iw 43 1 1 3 TECHNOLOGY > COLLEGES OF RELIGION FDN O F TECH INSTITUTES T 0 t a 1 Engineering 1,462 706 873 280 3,321 Medicine 1,660 442 874 2,976 Dentistry 483 483 Phai'inacy 546 546 Nursing 177 177 Veterinary 494 494 Science 2,831 1,199 1,233 1,388 710 7.361 Agriculture 1,128 239 935 401 2,703 Adraini stration & Economics 1,907 932 995 3,808 7,642 Literature 5,083 1,214 1,025 4,228 164 11,714 Law and Politics 1,091 2,992 4,083 Physical Education 739 739 Aeadery of Fine Arts 557 557 Technology 113 776 1,106 1,995 Colleges of Religion 2,318 2,318 Two-Year Institutes 2,085 2,085 TOTAL 18,158 4,845 4,940 13,192 1,555 1,106 2,318 2,085 49,194 80 find jobs for these graduates in institutions which are already overstaffed; the institutions are suffering from disguised unemployment. (197^-* P« 182) In certain underdeveloped countries where resources are scarce, consideration should be given to educating the population as a whole which will probably mean a slower growth in the area of higher education. This does not mean forsaking the development of universities completely, but it likely means that more effort will be made to disseminate knowledge throughout the population, hence serving as a check on the privilege of specialized professions. The results of such a policy would probably influence the selection procedures for university training, requiring that service be placed on a par with intel ligence in the admission of students. (Feinberg, 1974, p. 2 3 9) Graduate Study The universities of Iraq are increasingly producing knowledge rather than merely transmitting and promulgating it. The research centers are under a different administra tion than the Ministry of Education, and there is more emphasis on creative and original studies, with the award of staff promotions as an incentive. This incentive is also offered for theses and dissertations of graduate work. In 1973.* there were 705 students graduated from the University of Baghdad in the fields of engineering, medi cine, pharmacy, science, agriculture, administration and economics, literature, and law and politics. The University of Mosul granted 37 graduate degrees in that year. There was a total of 130 females among all the graduates. Those engaged in graduate studies and research are given more_____ 81 attention in coordination with the requirements of the national development plan (Al-Thwarah* June 28* 1973). In 1973 339 students were admitted to such studies* 22 of them for doctorates* 98 for masters* and the rest for higher diplomas. Study is being made of the needs of industry for imported raw materials with the aim of creating domestic supplies* improving the efficiency of various industries* decreasing depreciation* and making suggestions as to the quality of products. Such studies are the topics of dis sertations and theses of graduate studies* especially in the engineering fields. Then* in 1975^ this trend extended to include the recently established University of Technology. In 1978* the Council of Higher Education and Scientific Research presided over by the President of the Republic himself drew up detailed plans to support graduate studies and placed emphasis on the importance of coordination between the national comprehensive plan of development and the plans of higher and graduate studies (Al-Thwarah* February 12* 1978* March 11* 1978). Now graduate studies include Chemistry* Physics* Geology* Biology* Mathematics* Arabic Language* History* Philosophy* Sociology* Archeology* English Language* Busi ness Administration* Economics* Accounting* Pharmaceutics and Drugs* Pharmacological Chemistry* Oral Surgery and Dentistry* Orthodontics* Animal Husbandry* Horticulture* 82 Soil Studies,, Food Industry,, all branches of Engineering, Educational Psychology, Urban and Regional Planning, Library Science and Documentation, and many others. Stu dents who are admitted to graduate studies are being deferred from military service until after graduation, as was done in the United States for a number of years. This expansion was prompted by the urgent need for graduates to participate in the continuance of, national development plans. Originally, studies abroad were encouraged and scholarships were granted to thousands of students to study at the expense of the government or for partial support. Some people were even given leaves of absence from positions with their salaries intact, including free passage, book grants, clothing, tuition, and other related expenses. Unfortunately, many of the Iraqi students who studied abroad did not return (Adiseshiah, 1972, p. 4l). Then, in May 1967* this law was rescinded and there were discussions regarding its failure. Under the pressure of the scholars who were inside the country, the same con cessions were extended to those who had returned from studying abroad in previous years before the grants were awarded; these numbered several times as many as those for whom the law had been formerly passed. In October 1976, all scholarships abroad were abol ished except for those directly related to the National Development Plan. 83 Adult Education In underdeveloped countries such as Iraq* the pur pose of adult education Is to eliminate illiteracy rather than to concentrate on subject matter,, as in highly devel oped countries. This is one of the great differences in the concept of adult education compared to the type of pro gram presented in the United States which is "continuing! T and often highly specialized education. Such education is intended to advance citizens in their field of endeavor, whereas in Iraq,, most are beginning their education., learn ing how to read and write. In Iraq adult education Is a dire necessity, while in most cases, in the United States it is a luxury. Some of the dangers of Illiteracy are as follows: 1. Illiteracy is a stumbling block, I.e., a direct deterrent to economic growth. Bettering the methods of production can only come through edu cation of the workers, Including those In agri culture who are slow to change their old methods until they learn to read and write and therefore benefit from the progressive methods that are known and practiced In other countries. 2. The national plans for new industry and many enterprises will be retarded and are difficult to accomplish without well-trained and educated admlni strators. 84 3. The full benefits of all governmental services-- schools,, hospitals* etc.— will not be attained unless literacy Is gained through education (Political Report* January 1974* p. 1 8 5). Progress is being made in the elimination of illit eracy through the creation of teaching centers. In the year 1 9 7 1 /1 9 7 2 there were 3 ,5 1 7 centers with 161*245 adult students. These were subdivided under various director ships as shown below: Table 12 Progress in the Elimination of Illiteracy through the Creation of Teaching Centers Directorship No. of Centers No. of Students Ministries 1,330 4l*l86 Directorates of Education 1*625 84*482 Workers1 Cultural Establishment 313 lh,h-J3 General Confederation of Iraqi Women 109 6,329 Presidency of "Al-Awqaff" headquarters 6 99 Teachers Corporation 15 450 Fundamental 119 14*226 Totals 3,517 161*245 Source: Ministry of Education* Report* 1971/1972. Educational Statistics Annual 85 Iraq had struggled for many years to find a solution to the problem of illiteracy. In 1971 Law Number 153 ini tiated Compulsory Adult Education,, and achieved partial success. In January 197^j the Political Report stated: "Experience, however, has shown that classical methods of adult education cannot produce much. No less than a national campaign under the leadership of the party and the government is required" (p. 186). This report also empha sized the need for designing a new method of education. Although extensive efforts were made during the past phase to eradicate illiteracy^ they did not wholly fulfill their objective. The coming phase must wit ness a reappraisal of the means used so that we can make the transition from the phase of reducing illit eracy to the phase of its complete eradication. (p. 259) In the week of May 8 to 15, 1976, educators from Iraq and other Arab countries convened to discuss the best methods for the compulsory eradication of illiteracy. A repre sentative from UNESCO attended the conference and plans were drawn up for a massive national campaign under the leadership of the ABSP. Since that time^ the patriotic newspapers have been flooded with a variety of reports on the activities and progress of the campaign. The pictures show the conserva tive Iraqi women wearing the traditional veil* faces uncovered now, listening to a male instructor or writing on the blackboard. Some of the sentences they were taught were as follows: 86 The Arab Ba'ath Socialist Party came to elevate the level of the struggling class. The Ba'aths have been born to enlighten all. With the birth of Ba'ath,, a new human being has been born. Al-Ba’ath is a contri bution and a revolution to the backwardness of some existing situations: a revolution in ignorance, dis ease., and imperialism. (Al-Thwarah, May 19* 1978) The aim of the campaign was extended to rrsocial illiteracy” as well as "alphabetical illiteracy, as shown in the political connotation of the phrases and sentences used. Imperialism, reactionary forces and feudalism were lax, only sometimes attempting the eradication of alphabetical illiteracy, but we stand vigorously against the eradication of illiteracy unless it is seen in its social comprehensive meaning. (Al- Thwarah, May 1 9, 1 9 7 6) Prizes and trophies were distributed to top students and later certificates of completion were issued. Such an enthusiastic campaign may be attractive to the female element, and this constitutes the greatest part of the task. As noted by the U.S. Conference on Women con vened in Mexico City, In education, the statistics are just as stark. Most of the world's 700 million illiterates are women. In the Arab countries, more than 85$ of the women are illiterate. In Africa, the percentage is 8 3; in Asia, it is 5 8. Male illiteracy exists in these areas as well, but the percentages are far lower. (Los Angeles Times, June 28, 1975.* part 1, p. 1 0) In Iraq the percentage of illiterates 15 years and older was 40 percent for male and 75 percent for female (Al- Thwarah , May 12, 1978). Young people between the ages of 7 and 15 have to attend separate schools that were estab lished especially for them. 87 Education of Women The status of women In Iraq is a complicated, highly sensitive problem that should he dealt with very gingerly and with extraordinary caution. This is because the cur rent shackles, bonds, and traditions that enslave women have been established for several centuries and are inter twined with religious beliefs. Regardless of this, Iraqi women have been able to progress, but they still have a long way to go. One may discern 3 overlapping stages that characterize today’s emancipation of women in Iraq. The first has its roots deep in history and extends to the end of World War I, when contact with Western civilization began to take place. The second period extends over 50 years between 1918 and 1 9 6 8, when the leaders of the July 17th Revolution introduced an unprecedented, well-planned, and wisely-guided path towards women’s liberation. The third phase is undefined and includes the present. The First Phase The first phase includes what is often broadly referred to as "outworn traditions that minimize the status of women" such as the wearing of the veil, complete separa tion of the sexes, the idea that woman’s place is in the home, and denial of the right to work or travel unless accompanied by a "Maharam" who is her father, husband, or brother. Girls were allowed to read but not to write 88 because they supposedly had no need for this. Reading was taught in such a manner that the girls were able to read only the holy Koran and a few religious books. Marriages were always arranged and in many cases., the groom-to-be did not know what his future wife looked like until the consummation night. These traditions are still generally upheld but to a lesser degree, except in the villages where they are in full force. The Second Phase The second phase may well be described as a transi tional period. The idea of unveiling women was always a controversial issue up to the late 1940’s and 1950!s. Now the veil ("abayah,r) is a relic of the past among the younger generation. When women’s education was first introduced., some scholars claimed that it was "religiously [1haram1] forbidden" and were scandalized by the idea. Today., "formal public education for girls has become much more common not only in the cities but in villages as well" (Berger, 1964., p. 130)« The Third Phase After the present government came into power on July 1 7* 1 9 6 8. , it launched a national campaign toward liberating women and exploited every opportunity to emphasize "the liberation of the Arab Woman" and her "release from anti 89 quated economic,, social and legal bonds.'1 The expansion of the women's role has been one of the major aims of the Arab Ba'ath Socialist Party, for without it "the Arab woman would not be able to participate fully in society as an economic and legal equal to. man" (Political Report, 1974, p. 184). Further progress is being made and is evidenced by the fact that frequent cultural seminars are being held with the aim of "Unveiling of the reactionary, backward attitudes and ideas that belittle the status of women and look at the existence of women from one corner only" (Al- Thwarah , October 13* 1975)* Comparing the ratios of girls and boys in Table 12, there are one-fourth (21:77) as many girls as boys in higher education. The corresponding ratio in elementary school is little more than 1 to 2 (l,73^:71l)- This reflects the prejudice against women, especially in higher education. Figure 7 shows the growth of girls' education com pared to boys' in the 10-year span from 1963/1964 to 1972/ 1973 as reflected by the number of students who partici pated in Elementary, Intermediate, and Preparatory Minis terial public examinations. It is expected that the number of girls attending schools will soon reach that of the boys, especially since the enactment of the 1974 legislation for compulsory education. Figure 7 Development of girls' education (lower segment/each column) compared to boys' (upper) from V ) 6 j > / 6 k to 1972/73- The three columns indicate total participants taking the final Ministerial exams at the Elementary, Intermediate, and Preparatory stages (from left to right, respectively). 91 It has been recommended during the celebration of Women's International Year (1975) that educational and cul tural emphasis be placed upon the changing of school cur ricula to include the problem of women from an "equality" perspective and in the field of social activities. Concern ing working women, it was stated that laws should be passed to include the protection of motherhood and childhood and make available the active participation of women in the work force. In the legislature, it has been recommended that measures be enacted to create revolutionary and pro gressive laws that would enhance the role of woman and her status in society. The participation of women in the labor force is discouraged by social taboos, but Iraqi women are gradually invading positions that were formerly restricted to men. Some are working as traffic officers, some as paratroopers, and others participate in civil defense and the Popular Army, yet no women have been seen as waitresses or even as cashiers in crowded, double-deck fleets in Baghdad. In a study conducted by the Ministry of Planning, it was found that the fields of work most favored by women were educa tion (3^K medicine and pharmacy professions (3 1 fo), para medical work (29^), and chemistry and physics professions (2 5$) (Al-Jumhoriya, January 3 0, 1975)• Woman's liberty is not incidental in the history of our Arab nation. History has witnessed the partici pation of Arab women in social, political and mill- 92 tary affairs . . . and the feudal,, reactionary, back ward mentality should be dropped because it is in discord with our authentic Arab and Islamic tradi tions^ and has seeped out to our society from some alien nations that dominated it. (Al-Thwarah, October 13, 1975) "Concepts against women's equal rights are also in conflict with the values and concepts of the Party,, the Revolution and the needs of modern timesT t (Political Report, , 1974:> p. 184). The same report states: While we are struggling to liberate society as a whole,, including women, we must make sure not to take rash steps and irrational decisions, and thus play into the hands of the reactionaries,, providing a ready-made justification for counter-revolutionary moves. At the same time, we warn against fear of reactionaries and allowing fear to block our progress in drawing up a program for women's liberation. (p. 2 5 9) The cautious policy towards women as cited above reflects a dispute in the matter. Therefore,, the Party has decided to endorse those actions suitable for the present and to postpone other steps until later: i.e.„ there might be a lengthy time lapse before the government decree on "equal shares in inheritance" is put into effect since it is clearly stated in the Koran that the share of the boy is twice that of the girl. The Party desires to minimize the resistance to change as much as possible,, and therefore calls for people to "respect time" and to "advance within the available possibilities but yet not lose sight of the goals." 93 The role of the Party and Its position towards women since Its establishment does not stop at the point of "encouraging" but takes off from the position that women are equal to men and should practice their full rights and duties. (Al-Aiysami. , Al-Thwarah., October 1 0, 1 9 7 6) In the year 1975* which was declared by the United Nations as Women's Year,, the press wrote numerous articles to bolster women's status. An information week was declared,, seminars were held,, lectures were delivered., and leaflets were distributed concerning the role of women in development. During information week, 10 minutes each day was set aside in all schools for the discussion of the par ticipation of women in the,development of society. Conventions in each governate, village,, and borough were dedicated to the discussion of this subject. A cam paign against women's illiteracy was launched and several legislative actions were adopted with the connotation of "equality for women." There is much more to be done in this regard and the government is not satisfied with the limited achievements that have been made so far in this area. They are resolved to continue working on this. CHAPTER IV THE ROLE OF EDUCATION IN ACCELERATING DEVELOPMENT Developmental Planning and Compre hensive Five-Year Plans Development is a broad term that includes a cluster of factors which create essential changes in the life style of people. Today's world is generally divided into devel oping and developed countries. Harbison and Myers (1964* p. 3 2) gave a list of various stages of development: undeveloped (level l)* partially developed (level 2 .) , semi advanced (level 3)* and advanced (level 4). The term development is at times used to mean mod ernization (Beling & Totten* 1970* p. 22)* which is the attainment of life styles existing in already developed countries in contrast to their traditional ways of living. Modernization is seen more as a goal* while development is seen as a process. In Arabic* the term development* "altanmyia*M is more popular than the word modernization* Mal tahadeeth* n which is the basic word "novelty* , T a derivative from the adjective "hadeeth" which means mod ern. Several characteristics can be observed among the 94 95 traditional societies as compared to those termed "mod- ern"--prevailing illiteracy, simple technology,, primitive social relations built upon clan and extended family., non- scientific and superstitious thinking, and high resistance to change and apathy in general. These characteristics contrast with innovation, progressiveness, rationality, advanced technology, and deep interest in modernization of the country in the progressive countries to slow down and/ or prevent rapid growth and development. To close the gap (Ward, 1971) between the two types, there should be an organized effort made toward developmental planning. Bendix in "What is Modernization?” explains that it is defined historically by the economic advances brought about by the industrial revolution which occurred in the eight eenth century in England and the American colonies which not only accelerated economic development but were accom panied by democratization and "especially the destruction of inherited privileges and the declaration of equal rights of citizenship" (1970, p. 4). Developmental plan ning is by its very nature an integral process that involves many facets of growth, such as economical, agri cultural, educational, social, etc. It is almost impos sible to build a sophisticated industry without developing human resources or modernizing agricultural methods (Poignant, 1 9 6 7)* which reminds one of the enigma "Which came first, the chicken or the egg?" ; 96 ' i | Developmental planning Involves the organization i and control of societal activities to bring forth optimum ; j results. Several economists have introduced theories j i towards accumulation of growth through motivating people j (Kaynor & Schultz,, 1973^ PP • 148-162). Savings, capital j formation, technological inventions, and educational i improvements are some factors that contribute to beneficial ■ '.development. Per capita income is an indicator of measur- ; ing development and is obtained from dividing the Gross j | National Product (GNP) by the total population. Planning ! is a process that leads to a preset goal. National devel- ' opment planners must fully understand the national goals I ! 'before they design methods for achieving them (Galbraith, 1962, p. 6 0). The goals might be authentic desires to achieve maximum economic growth or may be merely symbolic. ■ The symbolic modernizational goals are designed to give the developing country the aspect, not necessarily the substance, of development. Many governments do much in modernizing the capital city and allow the rest of the country to remain backward. The result of this is that many citizens migrate to live in the capital. Although other symbolic goals such as the luxury of a color TV j station, an ostentatious airport, and skyscrapers, are j important in one way, priority should be given to indus- j i 1 try, the elimination of illiteracy, the improvement in \ 97 living conditions, etc. Another goal of development plan ning is to attain the greatest possible increase in per capita income and gross national product. For example, the per capita income for the United States is $6,640, which ranks fifth after the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Sweden, and Switzerland. Some poor coun tries have a per capita income as low as $70. Therefore, with the population of the United States at 215*3 million, by simple multiplication, the U.S. GNP is $35* 192.0 mil lion (L.A. Time's, May 1 3, 1970) . Planners of developing countries across the world differ in whether their goal should be to ,rcatch upr r with other developed nations or initiate their own goals. "Development is- and should be the faithful imitation of the developed," said Harvard's J. K. Galbraith (1971* P* l6l) , while others simply state that there are insufficient resources in the world for all nations (Meadows, 1973) to imitate a highly developed country such as the United States. Donella Meadows summarizes the problem of growth limits, saying -that "the application of technological solutions alone has prolonged the period of population and industrial growth, but it has not removed the ultimate limits of growth" (1973)• The view taken by Guerreiro-Ramos of the University of Southern California regarding the selection of a model 98 country* in contrast to using a model such as the United States which is already highly developed* is termed "Theory p" (1 9 7 0, pp. 2 1-2 3). Theory P* in relation to modernization* has two main characteristics: (l) it supposes that modernity is not located anywhere in the world* that is* that no archetype exists to which underdeveloped nations must aspire; and (2) it holds that any nation* what ever its contemporary configuration* contains its own possibilities' of modernization* the implementa tion of which could be hindered by attempts to fit it to a model* extrinsic to those possibilities. Ramos goes on to state that many authors are reluctant to state exactly what the term modernization actually means since its meaning depends upon the type* size* location* and personality of a particular nation. "However* if we examine their writings* we see that they can be placed on a continuum*" the poles of which extend from Theory N regard ing the necessities of that country to the application of Theory P (Guerrero-Ramos* 1970* PP. 21-23). Developmental planning as an effective instrument for improving living conditions has been widespread since World War II and many developing countries have been advised to adopt such techniques. Even when the goals are not attained* governments gain favorable publicity when advertising their plans. These plans can be general guide lines or they can be highly detailed plans that supervise/ control minute activities of the bureaucracy. The details are often controversial* but the procedure of planning in general is very neutral. If it has been misused* that is not the fault of planning itself but rather the fault of those that misuse it. Such a controversy can be observed in the "U.S. Planning Bill" sponsored by Senators Hubert Humphrey (D-Minn.) and Jacob Javitz (R-N.Y.) in "the United States Congress. This bill has been awaiting legislative decision for over a year and is now an important subject of discussion in the electoral campaign. In the task of planning for effective economic developmentj a great amount of statistical data is needed for comparison of examples where success was attained with out overlooking the social acceptance of change by the populace. Much work is being done on observing* research ing* and adapting the techniques of well-developed coun tries* in an attempt to glean those developmental approaches, which are the easiest to transfer. Information is needed on functional literacy* school attendance* present indus trial skills* agricultural production* and the labor force. Developmental Planning in Iraq Planning has played a pivotal role in achieving progressive development in Iraq since 1950* when the oil income started to rise. The "Construction Council" was established in 1950 to supervise the development of Iraq's resources and raise the standards of its people. Then in 1953 a special "Ministry of Construction" was established. 100 The first five-year plan for the period 1951-1956 was estab lished with the help of the International Bank for Recon struction and Development. The plan failed to achieve its goals* which were the ''increase of national income and bet terment of living standards.” After that* another five- year plan was established to cover the period 1955 to 1 9 6 1. On July 14* 1958 the Army took over* a republic was estab lished* and in 1959 the "Planning Economic Council and a Ministry of Planning" were established. Policy was more specific and more importance was allocated to industry. In 1966 other developmental sectors were added to the economic council and were termed "planning councils." Several com prehensive plans were drawn up covering the periods of 1959/ 1 9 6 0-1961/ 1 9 6 2* 1961/ 1 9 6 2-1965/ 1 9 6 6* 1965/ 1 9 6 6-1 9 7 0* 1 9 7 0-1 9 7 4* and 1975-1979. The plans were only partially successful because of lack of the means of execution* lack of coordination* lack of comprehensiveness* and lack of dependable statistics. After the July 17* 1968 Revolution* emphasis was placed on producing commodities to lessen the dependence on imported goods such as rayon* sulfer extraction paper* fertilizers* medicine* glass* electrical equipment* agricultural tools* spinning and textiles* liquid gas* electrical power* irri gation* desalinity and land reform* roads* bridges* air ports* and many services in the fields of education* trans portation* and agriculture. 101 The National Development Plan* 1970-1974, was based upon the participation of newly established state bodies with the Ministry of Planning. The total investment in this plan was Iraqi Dinar (i.D.) 1143.7 million,, compared to I.D. 821.0 million for the I9 6 5-I969 plan. Then., as the state oil revenues rose, the plan was revised. Emphasis was placed upon dams and reservoirs., Irrigation,, drainage,, livestock, canning, cement, sugar, transport, communication, hospitals, and the oil industry. "Planning and growth" Is now the all-encompassing goal in Iraq and almost every activity is tied closely to It. This planning is characterized by both material and social growth, based upon scientific planning In lieu of partial improvisations, and widespread local participation. It also has a highly advanced statistical organization, which has aligned the Investment policy and the savings policy In order to finance national development. It is agreed that any changes should be confined to the smallest area possible. The present party plans for "the development of all modern conveniences and raising the standard of living con tinuously for the masses by following flexible and advanced methods to face the challenge" (Eighth Regional Conference, 1974, p. 1 5 3)* order for the persons directing the changes to translate their strategy of growth into concrete 102 projects and programs, they had to take a number of steps Involving total planning 'which were: 1. Implementation of the scientific method in plan ning by making comprehensive studies instead of the segmented and instant economic procedures. 2. Preparation of a comprehensive plan for economic and social growth involving a detailed programme of production, income, labour, consumption, sav ings, and foreign trade with all requisite invest ments and resources. 3. Participation of all economic sectors in planning and discussions with experts. 4. Strengthening the executive structure in the public and private sectors. 5. Strengthening and development of the statistics and planning machinery. 6. A realistic and accurately calculated policy of loans. (Eighth Regional Conference, 1974, p. 156) The rapid progressive "development in Iraq after the revo lution did not come as a result of an increase in oil income only, but also from growth in other sectors of the economy." This proved the value of planning for progres sive development. Educational Planning and National Development Planning can be called "readiness." Being prepared means that there exists a goal to be achieved and one has worked hard to achieve this ultimate goal so that when the opportunity presents itself, he is prepared to meet it. The period between the two world wars witnessed the birth of modern educational planning. It mushroomed after 103 World War II, with the sharp rise in population, though some countries began this policy after World War I (Nozhko, Monoszon, Zahmin, & Severtsev, 1 9 6 8). A number of develop ments were put into effect, some of the major ones being the signing of the United Nations charter and the conse quent formation of UNESCO, and the universal written recog nition of the rights of humans. Among these rights was the right to an education and the responsibilities of countries to extend such opportunities to their citizens. The increase in educational responsibilities imposed commitments entailing financial as well as other burdens, which were so extensive in nature that it was almost impossible to solve the problems posed by any short- range, spontaneous programs. In the United States, local and state educational authorities resorted to quite elab orate planning to handle the backlog of postponed school construction to meet the educational needs of returning veterans and to prepare for the educational consequences of the war-induced baby boom (Coombs, 1970, p. 21; Callan, 1 9 7 3)• In addition to social, humanist, and demographic factors that dictated educational plans, the economists had their effect. The view of education as consumption had been changed and people were now called , r human resources” and educational finances were referred to as ”investment which should have a proper outcome.” io4 Educators are frankly fearful that the material istically-minded economists would subvert the tradi tional, noble values and purposes of education. At times the interchange between these new allies resembled a dialogue of the deaf. They spoke through different jargons and often used the same terms to mean different things. It was only later, when they had educated each other, that their seem ing differences bwgan to evaporate and they dis covered many mutual interests. (Coombs, 1970, p. 2 3) Therefore, this economic effect on education by its very nature led to comprehensive and integral planning in educa tion. The main benefits of educational planning are that it: 1. Offers continuity so that a newly-elected educa tional leader begins where his predecessor left off, not from the beginning of the road. 2. Leads to less waste and eschewing of unnecessary duplication. 3. Leads to full employment. 4. Offers better quality through distribution of roles so that every person knows his position in advance. 5. Is especially useful to the developing world in enabling it to catch up with the developed coun tries . 6 . Supplies the readiness to cope with or avoid crises. Expected crises are not as devastating as the unexpected ones. 105 7. Represents a short cut between present needs and future goals. 8. Forbids fossilization and is responsive to neces sary changes and innovations,, or in the words of Thomas F. Green, "shapes the quality of life" (1971, p. 9). 9. Represents the optimum harnessing of available resources. (Coombs, p. 2 3) Planning begins with the individual and ends with the international community. Personal planning is one of the., most neglected but most important categories of all. It has been mentioned earlier that planning is a charac teristic of human beings. A person may think of himself, his income, his way of life, then look forward to a better life and hope to achieve a happy future. Young people should be encouraged to plan for their lives (Gardner, 1984). Counselors may be of assistance, but if they are not available, then "self-counseling" books could be intro duced. Dr. Abdul Aziz El-Quasi, ex-president of the Regional Institute of Educational Planning in the Arab World, Beirut, expressed this need at the Arab Educators Conference convened in Baghdad, 7 to 15 June 1975. He said, There would be no benefit in the Improvisatory tendency that makes a person leave his affairs to be decided at the last moment, then find himself with little time and much work to be done. He can be compared with the European who arranges for a summer vacation one half year earlier. . . . One of these desirable attitudes 106 that we want to Implant is to live a planned life, so planning will be a life style for our citizens. We don't want to have merely a state-wide higher council for planning without formation for laymen to have planning habits for their own private lives and with out them being aware of planned enlightenment. (Iraqi Educational and Psychological Association, 1975* P* 560) In the absence of counseling in the schools of many devel oping nations, the only alternative is rTself-counselingT T or personal planning that will help a person to become his own advisor. Plans for the International Community might include guidelines which list possible goals to be pursued, such as adult education, education for peace and international understanding, and the nomination of a year to be dedicated to one special goal, such as 1975 for the liberation of women (pertinent in those countries where they are still being dominated). Most of these programs could be spon sored by the United Nations and UNESCO, but individuals and associations could contribute as well. Educational Planning in Iraq More than a billion dollars has been allocated to education in the 1976-1980 National Plan; in the following years, the expenditures on education surpass those in any other sectors of the annual budget. An average of 7 per cent of the GNP and one-fourth to one-fifth of the national budget is currently spent on education; this ranks as one 107 of the highest amounts in the world. The extent of waste experienced by Iraq must be lessened or eliminated In time,, since there Is a disparity between the Income and the resulting outcome (Brimer & Pauli, 1971j Coombs, 1 9 6 8). However, there have been difficulties in this area; during one period, there were more failing students than success ful ones. A percentage of those who passed did not find employment commensurate with their education (Adiseseshiah, 1972, p. 8l). How can a country solve such problems and avoid them in the future? Student power was important in bringing about bene ficial political changes. Some of the past regimes did not seek long-range solutions to educational problems, but made quick decisions in order to quell the unrest. One of the early dilemmas was the limited number of positions In higher education, with ten times as many applicants as seats available. Sometimes, the baccalaureate examination was used to control and select the graduates to fill the positions, since It was made very difficult to pass. At other times, many students were able to pass the bacca laureate examination, so they overran the capacity of the universities. It was then decided to admit them to 2-year teachers’ institutes. After 2 years, there were more teachers than could be employed, so the Institutes had to be closed for several years because of this. _____________________________________________________________________________ 108 : The number of teachers who will find employment j depends directly on the job market. A year ago,, there was j such a need for engineers that they were allowed to gradu ate 1 year earlier than usual. For the same reason, stu dents who were admitted to become mathematics teachers were t allowed to change their majors and become engineers. But several years ago, a turnabout in employment opportunities j occurred and many engineers were forced to leave the coun- ; i try and find employment elsewhere. For many years, there j was discussion about the necessity to change the school plan from 6-3 -2 to 6-3-3, tout this did not materialize until 1 9 6 8, when thousands of the previous year’s graduates I f stormed the Ministry, seeking a solution to their problem. The Ministry decided (l) to admit those who had previously been refused, and (2) to achieve better quality by adding 1 more year to the preparatory education level, for a total . of 3. In 1 9 6 8, because high school was extended 1 year, there were no high school graduates; therefore the uni versities accepted those students who were waiting for an opportunity to be admitted. After the July 14, 1958 revolution, students stormed the Ministry of Defense and refused to leave the | premises until their requests had been granted. The next day, student failures and dropouts of previous years staged j i I 1 a protest demanding equality. This caused a stalemate and j 1 the authorities turned these students away. 109 In previous years., Women Education Institutes' graduates were prepared only for elementary school posi tions^ but lately^ they have been allowed to choose courses from a wider range of studies. They petitioned and demon strated because of lack of employment opportunities. The Ministry told them that they could be satisfied by becoming housewives and did not have to get positions as teachers., but the economic crisis was such that the young men pre ferred to marry young women who were employed or could find employment and thus contribute to the home budget. The result was that unemployed young women were unable to find mates. People were complaining that it was "unfairr T for a young man of working age not to be employed., while in some families, every member of the family had a position. There fore, the Ministry issued a directive not to employ married women. Many students, therefore, to counteract this, did not declare their marriage status, so that their wives could find jobs. Between the two July revolutions of 1958 and 1968, many students failed to pass the high school examination. The authorities did not concern themselves with this fail ing but passed the blame to the students, saying that they did not study seriously enough. But they had to face the problem when newly passed students found classes already jammed with the students of previous years who had failed. Thus another type of problem had to be contended with and a 110 solution was contrived called "The Attempts System." According to this,, students who fall are not allowed to sit In classes but may study on their own until they know the material and can pass. As time passed, this system was abandoned. The time is right to move to quality education and well thought out educational planning. The 197^-1980 plan. This plan has been drawn up according to the report of the Barath "Renaissance" Party of 1974. The Party decided to place more emphasis on quality by increasing the level of preparation of teachers and inspectors, by an increase in the use of audiovisual materials, and by the broadening and improvement of school activities. Iraq is on the threshold of offering education to the masses, of extending elementary education by 1980 to all school-age children, and then embarking on an ambitious project to extend education to include the intermediate school so that 9 years of education would be compulsory. There exist external and internal pressures on Iraq to plan its educational program: internal pressures come from the rapid increase in population (3-5$ annually) and the increasing faith of the citizens in education; the external pressures are obvious, and stem from competition with other countries. But the greatest and most effective pressures Ill come from the government Itself and the party leaders who are earnestly working for the welfare of the country and are ambitious to make Iraq an example to be followed by the rest of the Arab world. A Philosophy of Proper Balance The decisions in an educational plan are polit ical in their nature and in their effects. . . . The difficult task is to balance what is the best with what is possible. This is also required of the statesman. (Rowley., 1971) With this statement Rowley concludes his book entitled The Politics of Educational Planning in Developing Countries. His words are identical in meaning to those made by the Vice President of the RCC when he spoke about "the possible and the ambition" and the necessity of maintaining both (The Iraqi Educational and Psychological Association* 1975^ p. 80). The philosophy of seeking balance in various areas of life has been pursued by the new regime in Iraq. In education the phrase "proper balance" has con cluded many polemic articles* terminating in coalitions between two ends of a spectrum (Trump & Miller* 1 9 6 8* p. 6 8). In the evaluation of many educational dichotomies* balance is considered essential in the formulation of decision alternatives such as the model described by Stufflebeam of Ohio State University entitled* CIPP (Con text* Input* Process* Product) (Worthen & Sanders* 1973^ p. 1 2 9). ‘112 ! Iraqi education has suffered from being out of j jnormal balance. In recent years this problem has been ;aggravated,, especially in the area of the proper balance between academic and vocational education., which results in a high percentage of waste and failure each year at the end of high school. Details can be found in Chapter III. In attempting to discourse on such a widespread problem, there was a need to determine priorities. The 'researcher thought of some possible guidelines for educa- ■tional planners. Each of these aspects is presented as a duality to represent as objectively as possible the extent .of the problem. It is not the objective of this study to decide where the fulcrum may be most advantageously placed since ■this depends on several factors and each should be consid ered a separate case. It is useful to seek a balance, emphasizing the pros and cons of each of the polarized views. A program of investigation of these dichotomies is suggested. Each continuum is very much like the bar of balance in physics, where the fulcrum may be placed anywhere under the rod according to the weight of the object or the force exerted on either end. Geologists tell us that volcanoes erupt because of 113 ' imbalance and hurricanes move to remove the imbalance 9 between low and high pressure areas. Water evaporates, ! forming clouds,, which in turn precipitate into rain which j in some areas evaporates again in a continuing cycle. Biology teaches us that different species are in natural I balance. The overpopulation of the earth was thought by I Malthus to be balanced by famines., disasters,, plagues,, etc. , i (Gill, 1973). ! • In the present era, man observes these imbalances j and may overcome most of them; for example, he may control j population increases by "family planning" and/or increasing food supplies. j i A number of educational issues can be studied and the following is a list of them in the form of dichotomies, i in four separate categories. i I. Administration and Organization j I 1. Centralization vs. Decentralization: In many ; developing countries, centralization is favored j because a central system is stronger and more j economical than a decentralized one and can be j operated by fewer highly trained personnel. In addition to the fact that the oil revenues are in the hands of the central government, Iraq is also suffering from the bureaucracy of its rigid central system. A number of researchers have 114 suggested that authority should be delegated to the provinces to keep pace with the new adminis trative laws, but as yet no remarkable changes have been effected (Cramer & Biorme, 1 9 6 5. ? Part II) . 2. Central Planning vs. Free Natural Growth: As a result of the crisis in education in Iraq, the Central Planning Bureau is working to coordinate the needs of various areas with the suggestions that arise in different provinces. 3. Keeping the Baccalaureate Examination vs. Abol ishing It: The attempt to abolish this examina tion has not met with success. However, several alternatives have been suggested to alleviate the dependence on only one examination to decide the destiny of students, such as an evaluation taking into consideration scholastic work during the year by a weighted percentage. 4. Higher Failure Rate (currently 62%) vs. a Lower Percentage: Needless to say, this failure rate reflects a problem in Iraqi education and one could say that it reflects the failure of its whole educational system. 5. Open-door Policy vs. Higher Restrictions on Admissions: Currently 20 percent of the stu- 115 dents are admitted to higher education Institutes. A matching percentage might be able to attend the Community College referred to In other reports (Gardner* 1961* P* 76). 6 . Semesters or Quarters vs. Scholastic Year: Experiments should be conducted to determine the advantages of the semester system as contrasted with the scholastic year. 7. All-Year School Sessions vs. Long Summer Vaca tion: The hot summers of Iraq encourage students and staff to enjoy a fairly long vacation period. The advantages of an all-year session should be taken Into consideration. II. Curriculum and Instruction 1. Technical vs. Academic: Any reform in Iraqi education should emphasize the role of tech nical (manual) education since it would be false to prepare all students for academic roles. 2. Quality vs. Quantity: Since 1958* the beginning of the Iraqi Republic* the emphasis has mainly been on quantity at the expense of quality in education. Years of political turmoil have affected the quality of education. 3. National vs. International: Decision makers may encounter some difficulty in considering such 116 areas as Iraqi national history,, its heritage., its traditions* its national language and identity* and how the emphasis on these should be balanced with the appreciation of other cultures* civiliza tions* religions* and foreign history or languages (Brown* 1973j > P* 16* Haavelsrud* 1974p. 282; Cobban* 19^9; King* 1971). 4. Native Language vs. Foreign Languages: Some edu cators believe that the teaching of any foreign language should be postponed until students gain a good command of the native language* while others favor the teaching of.foreign languages at an early age when minds are sharp and tend to grasp words rapidly. Iraq and Egypt debated over the appropriate year in which they should start teach ing English. Egypt favors that it be taught 2 years later than the year Iraqis have scheduled it* namely* the fifth year of elementary school. 5. How to Study vs. How to Teach: The major concern of teacher training institutes has always been on producing more capable teachers. Now* because of the individualization of instruction movement* the burden of learning is shifting to the student. The teacher teaches him how to study (Maddox* 19^3). 6. Elective Courses vs. Required Courses: There are no elective courses at present. The curriculum 117 is uniform throughout the country. This could very well be the cause of the high failure and dropout rate. 7. One-Track Program vs. Comprehensive Education: Recently Iraq sought the cooperation of the Inter national Bank and obtained a loan of 40 million dollars to establish four experimental Compre hensive Junior-Senior High Schools. 8. Individualization of Instruction vs. Traditional Instruction: In the current educational apparatus,, the individual differences of students are ignored. To keep a proper balance, the best of traditional studies, i.e., certain lessons that do not lend themselves easily to individualization, should be retained. 9. Curriculum Rigidity vs. Curriculum Flexibility: This is closely related to numbers 6 and 7. A number of factors contribute to this rigidity, one of them being the baccalaureate examination; others include the central system, the absence of electives, the inspection apparatus, and the no unit credit system. 10. Interest vs. Effort Exertion: There are no provi sions for students' interests and most of their achievements come about through the goading of teachers and the exertion of great effort. 118 11. Science vs. Literature: The country needs twice as many science specialists as literature gradu ates,, but the high schools furnish them in the opposite ratio. 12. Student-Centered Program vs. Curriculum-Centered Program: It is not difficult to recognize that the student should be the center upon which the curriculum should be built, not the other way around. 13. Shorter (or Longer) Time Periods Required to Finish Schools vs. the Same Time Period for All Students: Iraq follows the 6-3 -3 plan and no student may graduate before the required years have been com pleted. Failure to pass a specified number of classes might bring need for repetition of,the entire year. 14. Emphasis on Mental Side of Education vs. Total Integrated Personality: The bias is toward emphasizing mental work which neglects the physical, affectional, social, and philosophical needs of students. 1 5. Core Curriculum vs. Co-curricular Activities: Under the pressure of the highly competitive examinations, the co-curricular activities are considered secondary and are given little or no attention. 119 16. One General Unified and Required Vocational Pro gram vs. A Variety of Vocational Elective Pro grams: The industrials agricultural* and com mercial schools and/or the comprehensive high schools might not succeed in attracting students; therefore., it is recommended that courses in vocational education be added to the curriculum and required just as academic courses are required, to avoid the claims of the country school students that they receive only vocational education classes. 17. Breadth vs. Depth: Taba explained breadth as a course presented to cover a wide scope of knowl edge to serve a greater variety of needs and depth as that which gives full understanding of the sub ject with application as well (1 9 6 2). III. Foundations (Social., Philosophical* and Psychological) 1. Individualism vs. Totality of Society: This is one of the oldest controversies in education as well as in life. Some maintain that society* its heritage and traditions mean more than the indi vidual* and others say the individual should be afforded more rights. If every individual is sacrificed to society* then what is the benefit of society [Kant]? The democratic countries tend 120 to be biased toward the individual and in contrast, the totalitarian countries are biased toward soci- ety (Toffler, 197^, p. 1 3 6). 2. Boys' Education vs. Girls' Education: Girls' edu cation lags behind that of boys. This idea stems from the beliefs held by the populace: some believers in education for girls agree that they attend school only up to the elementary level. Early marriage in the countryside is an influential factor. An effort to bring this dichotomy to a more normal balance could be made. 3. Urban vs. Rural: This imbalance in Iraq is dan gerous. The majority of the rural populace need more and better schooling. Most of the educational services are concentrated in the cities. 4. Religious vs. Secular: Iraq manages to balance this quite well, but the religious curriculum does need a thorough revision (Adams & Bjork, 1972, p. 80). 5. Change vs. Stability: In general, change is con sidered with suspicion; educators as well as the public are still somewhat averse to change. In other countries complaints are heard that too much change too rapidly is not appreciated. 6. Education for All. vs. Education of the Elite: It is the main line of the educational policy to offer 121 free public education for all (Popham, 1969* p. 295) . 7. Literacy vs. Illiteracy: The majority of the nation is illiterate; the percentage is higher among the villagers and women. Currently a campaign is in progress against illiteracy and the beginnings are successful (Smith, Aher, & Kidd, 1970)* 8. Manufactured Knowledge vs. Imported Knowledge: There is a fear of many ideas, novelties, and fads which are described as "imported. , T Some imported knowledge may not be needed in certain countries and while ministries should figure out solutions to their own problems, at the same time, it is profitable to import other knowledge. 9. One-Sex Schools vs. Coeducation: Coeducation Is not accepted in high school. In some elementary schools both sexes attend the same classes. Strict adherence to such a policy makes it difficult to maintain a school system in the rural areas, where too few students of one sex are found; therefore, a separate school for each cannot be founded. 10. Traditional vs. Modern: The teaching methods are highly traditional. Innovations tend to be dis couraged by the central, rigid system (Trump & Georgiades, 1975^ p. 99? Phi Delta Kappan, March 1977). 122 11. Preparation for Life vs. Life Itself: John Dewey claims that education is life itself rather than a preparation for life. The Iraqi schools are poor in the facilities which would make schools part of "life” rather than a simple., dreary place where one learns lessons. 12. Heritage vs. New Ideas: Is one of the functions of education that of preserving the heritage of a country? Or should It also Include the task of purifying it and working hard to enrich it? This is one of those dichotomies in which each pole could be integrated and/or supplemented by the other, like the two parts of a scissors work in unison (Al-Thwarah Pub., 1972). 1 3. Agriculture vs. Industry: Both of these are lag ging behind the times (Rowley, 1971^ P.. 52) . Iraq is attempting to gain balance between these two by building up industry and at the same time improving agriculture so that each can serve the other in a mutually symbiotic relationship. 14. Public Education vs. Parochial: Private education is discouraged and sometimes persecuted, while it is necessary to support it. 15. Higher Financial Allotments to Education vs. Less Generous Allotments: Iraq is spending a great deal 123 of money on education,, yet the outcome is not as it should be. Much of this waste could be avoided. IV. Employment and Pinal Goals 1. Production vs. Conception: Greater emphasis should be placed on productive projects. Education should be considered as a producer rather than as a con sumer, for obvious reasons (Meier„ 1 9 6 5)• 2. Supply vs. Demand: Educators could gather informa tion regarding amounts and types of employment3 or services that are needed; then these demands can be met by educating a percentage of students to fill the needs (Berg„ 1971)• 3. A Unified Salary Schedule According to Diploma vs. Different Salaries According to What the Person Knows or Can Do: The salary schedules for govern ment employees are related to their level of educa tion. This tends to make the government very aware of the "quality" of graduates. 4. Adult Education vs. Compulsory Education: The urgent need of the country for trained manpower leads some decision-makers to argue that more emphasis should be placed on the field of adult education rather than on compulsory education for all children. 5. Pull Governmental Commitment for Employment vs. Laissez Faire Policy: There is a moral as well as a legal responsibility of the government to find suitable jobs for graduates. This gives the govern ment the right to control the number of graduates according to the opportunities available (Tubain., 1 9 6 6, p. 2 9 3). Comprehensive Education in~Iraqi Schools Americans originated the concept of comprehensive education, which is increasingly gaining support from the rest of the world. The comprehensive school is not merely a mixture of different branches into one general area of study,, but has different characteristics from its contrib uting schools. Students who attend comprehensive schools may shift from one branch of study to another without ,rlosing face" and have no need for a "certificate of transition." Those who choose vocational and apprentice-work studies are no longer looked down upon for attending a vocational or agri cultural school, but continue to be deprived of the many other privileges of comprehensive education. Although their education may lead to jobs that are equal or better in pay than the jobs of professional workers, they still suffer from the lower social value placed on their occupa tions. However, the government that came into power on July 17., 1968 has encouraged vocational and agricultural 125 schools,, which has resulted in an Increase in enrollment from 4.7 percent in 1 9 6 8 /1 9 6 9 to 9-9 percent in 1972/ 1 9 7 3- The crisis in education represented by the fact that more than half the students fail to pass the high school baccalaureate examination and that more than half of those who pass are refused admittance to universities, has pushed Iraqi- educational authorities to experiment with comprehensive high schools. In 1970 Iraq asked for a loan from the World Development Bank to finance four comprehen sive high schools; the World Bank agreed to make a loan of 30 million dollars for the project. The community college idea is part of a movement to reduce expenses and to offer massive popular education for all, including desires for very limited courses, desires for short-term studies for those who want to improve their present positions, and expansion of knowledge for retired people (Los Angeles Times, December 9j> 1973) • Many advanced countries such as Britain and Prance as well as some developing countries such as India, Ceylon, Iran, Jordan, and Brazil are adopting this idea with suc cess (Yarrington, 1970). In Iraq many of the 2-year institutes established in the early sixties suffered from instability and some of them either closed or were extended to become 4-year col leges. The 2-year institutes are in danger unless ’ transfer credit is given for courses taken at the 2-year institutes 126 for students who decide to continue their education in advanced schools (Kelley & Wilbur,, 1970, pp. 17* 18) . It Is suggested that the Institutes mentioned In the last chapter be consolidated Into community colleges. They could then offer ah education that would be suitable for most capabilities* interests., and specialties. In the future the needs for trained and educated semi-skilled workers in almost every field of endeavor will expand. Are we going to plan an institute for each career? In California there are hundreds of courses being introduced in community colleges which may be segregated under these categories: (l) Agriculture., (2) Business and Office Work,, (3) Communications, (4) Criminal Justice,, (5) Electrical-Electronics, (6) Engineering Technology, (7) Environmental and Natural Resources, (8) Health Services, (9) Home Economics and Pood Services, (10) Mid-Management and Supervision, (ll) Science and Laboratory, (12) Service, and (1 3) Trades and Industries. This is in contrast with the four types of institutes in Iraq--Agricultural, Tech nological, Medical, and Home Arts. Even if other fields of study were incorporated under one of the four or if a fifth one were added, it would still be the same to the students; attending an "institute'' is still quite different from going to a "college" (Brossman & Roberts, 1973)* Two difficulties that have been encountered by the CURRENT SYSTEM SUGGESTED SYSTEM Academic Universities Techno logical University r H o • H T? £ S i o *H • H -P K f © • r i £ O •H • s p >» © - p d a, 4- rH O © O o £ Oh c S S h bD o 04 O £ - • rH « r ! •H U -P w 0 'd o •H iP CO K, < D g o o c o s Intermediate Elementary Unified and Comprehensive Universities COMMUNITY ! COLLEGES ! I COMPREHENSIVE PREPARATORY! 12 11 10 COMPREHENSIVE INTERMEDIATE Elementary with Wider Scope Curriculum | Figure 8. Utilizing optimum benefits of compre hensive education along the ladder institutes are that they offer general diplomas only and that they lack flexibility in their curriculums. The 'courses come in a "package deal": one either takes all of it or none of it. In contrast, the American community colleges offer many courses that do not necessarily lead to a degree, nor do they have to be taken in conjunction with a required group of courses, and many different certifi cates of completion are awarded (Dressel, 1971). The curriculum of American community colleges has general guidelines, but often leaves the details to the students except in specified majors. Each course has a specified number of credit units, usually three or four depending on the number of instruction hours per week given The total number of units required for graduation is from 60 to 64. Requirements include 12 units of residence, 18 in the major, 15 required, and 15 to 19 units of electives. The spirit of American community colleges has been explained: Among the explanations for the rapid advance of the community colleges are their open-admission poli cies, their geographic distribution in many states and their usually low tuition policies. They offer more varied programs for a greater variety of stu dents than any other segment of higher education. They provide a chance for many who are not fully committed in advance to a four-year college career to try out higher education without great risk of time or money. They appeal to students who are undecided about their future careers and unprepared to choose a field of specialization. And, last but by no means least, they provide an opportunity for continuing education to working adults seeking to upgrade their skills and training. (Brossman & \ Roberts, 1973. P- 13) | i The community college does more than just prepare | students for a vocation. In brief, it has the following functions: 1. Vocational education: This is the training of t students in a skill beneficial to society and themselves. j This is the "bread and butter" aim of community colleges. ! Sometimes in-service training is introduced to update. \ i knowledge, or retrain people for other vocations. ! 2. General education: The aim is to build an i integrated person who will make a good citizen in a demo cratic society. 3. Transfer education: Students who would like to; work for a bachelor’s degree may take transfer courses for ■ which they will receive credit in the university. In spite of the fact that half of the students who take transfer * i i courses do not pursue their studies, their credits will j still be good if they decide to study further. : i 4. Continuing education: This is mostly adult education and community services. 5. Guidance: This assists the student in making decisions about how to make the.most of his capabilities. i I Much counseling is done by instructors themselves, though i there are specialists for some cases. 6. Remedial education: This required and basic 130 study compensates for or reinforces learning for persons who did not have the opportunity in the past for such study,, or who made low grades.(Thornton* 1 9 7 2* pp. 64-74). If the scattered Iraqi institutes are reorganized into a community college model* they will be able to intro duce the services mentioned above to meet such needs as helping to eradicate illiteracy among adults. This type of school could replace the 18 schools being planned to accom modate youths between the ages of 7 and 16 who cannot be admitted to elementary schools because they are over 6 years of age* and also cannot be admitted to adult centers because they are less than 17 years of age (Al-Thwarah* October 14* 1976* p. 5) • A special effort should be made to encourage students to attend this kind of school. The gap between fully-qualified and semi-skilled workers is widening each year. The proportion is estimated as 5 1° 10 cadres required for each engineer* but the current num bers show that there are 5*375 middle cadres to 10 *1 0 0 engineers. This means a reverse ratio of 2:1; two engineers share every cadre (Al-Thwarah* September 29* 1976, p. 6) . Individualization of Instruction Educators and social scientists agree that all human beings are unique* not accounting for the general unilarities of some groups. Although this fact seems 131 quite obvious, it is often ignored. John Dewey in Democ racy and Education concluded that education has two func tions: first, to care for the individual— his competencies, his desires, his interests--and second, to protect society as a whole and strive for the general welfare of the people. Neither of these goals is subordinate to the other. Our society must be as stable as is possible and yet contain the "machinery" which will enable it to progress. In the book Individualization of Instruction, A Search, the authors stress that schools must educate citizens to become capable of independent action, self-direction, and self propulsion in order that the whole society will be viable and dynamic through them and thus allow for experimentation and change (Howes, Hunter, Keuscher, & Tyler, 1 9 6 7). There Is no single standardized approach to Individu alized Instruction. All approaches, however, have one element in common: the emphasis Is upon the indi vidual child rather than the group. In actual prac tise, the many forms of. Individualized instruction all use self-pacing by the child. Individualization does not rule out common learning objectives. As In the traditional setting, instruction seeks to teach the child to read, write, spell, calculate and other wise perform prescribed learning tasks. (National School Public Relations Association, 1971* P* 3) The current literature Is replete with practical suggestions on the practice of Individualized instruction and a number of them will be described. Impellitterla and Pinch (1 9 7 1) refer to the complete array of forms It has taken which were noted by Gibbons (1970) and are as follows: 132 1. Tutoring 2. Correspondence courses 3. Self-paced unit plans 4. Programmed and computerized instruction 5. Independent study programs--the Trump Plan and the Montessori Method 6. Grouping for individualization 7. Administrative plans 8. -Personal programs--NeillJ , Erickson,, Friedenbergj, Goodman,, and Holt 9. Remediation and teaching exceptional children (p. 4). Often,, misunderstanding can occur when a new idea is attempted in various schools and by educators who are not all in accord; therefore,, it is informative to note the following description by Disick (1 9 7 5) as to what "indi vidualized instruction is not." He points out some common misconceptions about it: Individualization is not synonymous with permissive ness. Even in upper-level language classes,, a teacher . . . does not say "Students,, what do you feel like learning today?" Rather,, the teacher pre sents a list of possible subject areas and solicits additional student suggestions. Does not mean that the classroom is converted into a study hall. Individualization can lead to marked improvement in listening and speaking by providing for small-group practice and for oral testing. ................................................. Not to be given hurriedly as "Here are your packets. Now go and learn." There will and should be super- 133 vision by teachers since no learning at all can take place if students are left unsupervised altogether since many of them need guidance as to how to study and then they can progress to a point where less teacher supervision will be needed. Intelligent use of large- and small-group instruction can reduce the necessity of explaining the same topic again and again. The primary fact of individual differences should serve as a guide in all levels of educational activities. Not only is ''inherited” intelligence varied^ but also innate characteristics are diverse and increase as the individual matures. The foregoing describes the differ ences between teaching and learning. The term "teacher” is derived from the transitive verb "to teach,, " where an object,, the student,, is required to be the recipient of the action. The word "learner” is derived from the intransitive verb "to learn," and the process is "learning." The movement toward individualiza tion of instruction has shifted the burden of the respon sibility for learning to the student. There are many dif ferences between the processes of "learning" and "teaching" as follows: 134 TEACHING 1. Refers to the teacher and requires teacher training in how to teach which is accom plished by educational insti tutes (Postman, 19^9I Blount & Klausmeier, 1968). 2. Teacher talks "too much" or most of the time. 3- A transitive verb "to teach" whose object is the student. The burden is on the teacher in such a way that he is tired of teaching and students are tired of listening. 5. Less value to the student in breadth and depth 6. Happens only when teacher is present 7- Takes place in school only and to some extent in the family 8. Assumes the student is a "tabula rasa" (blank slate) in the words of Freire ( 1973)> a depository bank (p. 58). 9. Usually creates disciplinary problems because it is not easy to listen LO. Tends to support the old "fac ulties" and "mental discipline" theory LEARNING Refers to the student (learner) Students listen most of the time, while learning only occurs when the teacher stops talking (accord ing to Trump). Learning method usually heuristic or discovery. An intransitive verb where the student is the teacher of himself; he is both object and subject. The burden is on the learner and he is the only one who knows of when to learn and when to rest. Wider scope and more concrete and stable since his mind is actively involved in the process Happens everywhere, always Takes place everywhere, in life The student is like a lamp to be lit. Neglects (usually) training of the student on how to study (Crow, 1963). Fewer disciplinary problems because the student is busy teaching himself Its foundations are in the new modern psychological theories of learning— Skinnerian,-Behavioris tic Psychology, S-R, etc. 135 1 1. Student may pretend he is paying attention but really is not 1 2. Student tends to he passive or negative 13* Teacher might teach above or below the pace of the student lb . Deprives students of the pleasure of discovering facts by themselves 1 5. Often accompanied by tension,, which reduces learning and retention span 16. Represents an indirect experience 17* Student must follow teacher's pace 18,, Aids motivation (Katz, 1972) Student must pay attention Student is active or positive Student proceeds at his own pace Students enjoy the pleasure of discovering facts by themselves Students are more relaxed Represents a direct experience Student progresses at his own pace Motivation is at low ebb if student is bored. In the Arabic language there is much confusion between ,fteaching" and "learning" because the words are written and pronounced almost alike: the word for "learn ing" is "afcalum" . ( ) and the word for "teaching" is "ataieem" ( ) . The first is derived from the Intransitive verb "yatalam" ( ). and the second from "yualirn" ( ) . The educational process depends on many factors in addition to development of the students' abilities and goals. The curriculum is responsible for the partial failure of the old methodology courses that emphasize the 136 role of the teacher who limits his courses and who chooses the methods that he prefers. The instructional process, on the other hand, is neither chiseled in concrete nor simple, and any innovative change should involve the entire educa tional apparatus from top to bottom. The dilemma of Iraqi education is caused by its stability and rigidity in a rapidly changing world. It has been more than 50 years since its establishment, and it has fossilized as the years have passed. Toffler (1971^ PP. 9- 10) contends that too much change in a very short time is not desirable and might not be possible because of many factors, including reactions by the populace. In order to find a solution to the educational difficulties in Iraq, an effort must be made to utilize new ideas such as the indi vidualization of instruction. Curriculum improvement necessarily entails the reor ganization of pupil experiences and the reorganiza tion of the academic program. ... As society changes, . . . courses must constantly be added, subtracted, or combined. . . . Many national proj ects have helped immeasurably in bringing the cur riculum up-to-date. Updating content is a continu ous process. (Georgiades & Clark, 197^-j p. 56) One organizational pattern is team teaching, and the pontoon-transitional design is one step higher. Team teaching requires large group presentations, small discussion groups, and individual study. The pontoon concept incorporates all of these plus the inter-relationship of various disciplines in a flex ible block of time. ... In some areas we are work ing toward "total1 1 learning. (Georgiades & Clark, 1974, p. 57) 137 If the subject matter of several courses is correlated, students may see "biology in relation to world history and English . . . and integrate the subjects in a more meaning ful and lasting way" (Georgiades & Clark* 1974* pp. 57j 58). In the pontoon design* team teaching is the hub about which rotating schedules are set up which incorporate a generous amount of independent study time for students. Some advantages for students of the pontoon design are cited by Georgiades and Clark (197^0 • 1. Students may be subgrouped in small numbers according to ability* need* or specialized interest. 2. More interaction occurs between student and teacher in small groups than in large ones. 3. Many field trips can be taken within the block of time without disrupting other classes. 4. There is more freedom to work on research in ways which encourage real learning. 5. Student boredom is reduced because students no longer are required to sit in a classroom for 50 minutes every period. 6. Better attendance patterns and fewer drop-outs often result. (Research has shown improvement in attendance* fewer drop-outs* and an increase in IQ in many cases.) 138 Some of the advantages for teachers as well as for students are: 1. It allows for "more strength through team effort.'' a. Problems are given consideration by several people rather than by just one teacher. b. It encourages a broad approach to learning. c. It involves the staff in decision making. 2. It allows the opportunity to Interrelate sub- j*ect areas. (A paper in history might serve as an essay In English.) 3. It places a greater responsibility on the teacher for planned Instruction on a long-term basis. 4. It provides in-service training for new teachers as they work with experienced teachers. 5. Substitutes are not necessary when a member of a team Is absent. This can result In a finan cial saving to the district., or the money can be used for other Instructional activities (Georgiades & Clark., 1974., pp. 64., 6 5). In addition to the above advantages., a feature of the pontoon-transitional design Is that it is Instantly reversible to the traditional departmentalized format If necessary. A novel way of describing individualization is to compare the new teacher to a cook who works "behind the 139 coulisse11: he (or she) prepares the "food for the mind” in the educational "kitchen” so that when students come to class they find the material ready to "eat" (digest), choosing what they "like” (the various projects, alterna tive reports, etc.)* Therefore, no information is spoon fed nor is there any dogmatism. The administrator may be the chief "chef" and in addition to the "cooks” (teachers), there will be a need to employ many "waiters and wait resses, 1 1 who are the teacher's aides. In the same way that a dish can be prepared more tastily using a good recipe, so lessons can be presented in a more "palatable" manner. During class hours, the teacher helps his students with regular lessons, and advises the students who have finished an old assignment what projects they may attempt. He also answers questions and demonstrates solutions to the more complex problems. Therefore, the teacher can work wi th his students instead of dominating them; he is the students' helper, advisor, director, and rector. This is the essence of Holt's book, The Underachieving School (1 9 6 9). Teachers must be careful not to give students too much of the same items, since it would not be good for their "health." This restaurant variety is one of the key study modes. A school functioning in this fashion has led some educators to use the term "smorgasboard" (Holt, 1 9 6 9) or educational "banquet." As Lewis stated, "I knew that I 140 had to provide an educational 'banquet' which was more mean ingful and more appetizing for children ,p(Lewis,, 1971j > p. 2). Another and better allegory is found in the idea of thinking, of the school as a tailoring establishment where the tailor makes garments of all different sizes,, fabrics,, colors, and ma-terials, in order to allow each individual to choose what is suitable and what pleases him or her. Whatever instructional medium is used, textbooks will play an important role, but they must be well written. Audiovisual aids and techniques will greatly reduce some of the diffuculties inherent in self-teaching by students: for instance, the tape recorder and cassettes in foreign lan guages can be put to use with excellent results, to learn pronunciation, and in science, a student can rerun the lesson as often as necessary for him to learn it. Indi vidualization is not a miracle system and cannot be put into effect overnight; therefore, the teacher should.prepare students for independent study by structuring learning so that students work some of the time by themselves. This should be done with the goal of teaching them to make decisions by themselves, assume responsibility, and eventu ally learn how to help themselves (Dunn & Dunn, 1975)• In Iraq, individualization is of limited value at present because of an educational system that does not allow enough flexibility to incorporate this technique. The Ministry of Education might create a Directorate for i Individualization of Instruction to coordinate the task i with the teachers, provide them with materials needed, and 1 train them in the field. | Individualized instructional programs must be devel- I oped in a flexible school environment. The flexible ; school provides an atmosphere which encourages ■ greater interaction between students and their peers, j between students and teachers, and among professional staff. (Bishop., 1971* p. , | The teaching of foreign languages (especially ! English) would profit by individualization through the use of cassettes, since the proper pronunciation can be played j back as often as needed without embarrassment. Recorded j cassettes are the most economical of the audiovisual equip- ! ment that has been suggested for language study (Grittner, 1 9 7 3). The innovative aspect of individualization is embodied in four Major National Programs as follows: 1. The ES ’70 (Educational System for the 1970's) by Bushnell of the United States Office of Education 2. The LCS (League of Cooperating Schools) by 1 Goodlad of the University of California at j i Los Angeles 3. The MSP (Model School Project) by Georgiades of the University of Southern California and j Trump of the National Association of Secondary School Principals 4. The PLAN (Project for Learning in Accordance with j t Needs) by Flanagan of the Center for Research and Evaluation in Applications of Technology in Edu cation,, Palo Alto., California (Journal of Secondary j i Education* 1971). | Of these four projects., the MSP seems to be the \ most influential* as more schools adopt it because of its j I 'easy application* low cost* and no harm results in case of j 1 failure. A basic rule in individualization of instruction is to organize the educational process with as little com- | 'petition as possible. As expressed by Trump and 4 * Georgiades* "program evaluation that aims mostly to compare i schools is difficult and unwise*" since ''schools are sub- ; ject to local control" and therefore not all alike (NASSP ; bulletin* May 1975^ p. 100). This has recently been recog-! i nized by the State of California as a prominent factor to , be incorporated in educational reform (LA Times editorial* i March 6 * 1977). 1 The program is part of innovative studies under- | taken by the USC School of Education and consequently* the j writer had the opportunity to visit most of the schools j involved in the program in Los Angeles; Bakersfield; 1 Dallas; Everett* Washington; and Calgary* Canada. 143 Individualizing the Teaching of English The English language Is Increasingly becoming a "problem,," not only In the countries where It Is the native tongue* but In countries where It Is spoken as a second language* (see below). A variety of measures have been 2 h taken and various suggestions have been made. Individu alized instruction is a promising solution to the problem. In a study conducted in the elementary schools of Iraq* it has been found that English and mathematics are the main contributors to failure and the reason given is that social studies* science* hygiene* and Arabic are verbal examinations and emphasize rote memorization* in con trast to the study of English and Mathematics which emphasizes conceptions and applications. (Al-Bazaz* El-Shibly* & Bunni* 1973* PP* 24* 6 6) Therefore* it is suggested that English and mathematics studies be changed so that teaching is less dependent on teachers and more dependent on students. Two things may *Los Angeles Times issues of December 16* 1974; August 31* 1975; May 26* 1976; July 2 3* 1976; August 1 5, 1 6* and 17* 1976; November 3* 1976. 2 In Russia* early specialization in English is encouraged in special schools for learners from the ages of 7 through 19. See L.A. Times* April 2 5. , 1976* Part I* p. 2. 3"Sum Lesonz in Inglish Speling" is an interesting suggestion made by David Hebert to "eliminate all the con tradictions in spelling and pronunciation that confound common sense" by changing the current orthography. See L.A. Times* December 2* 1974* Part II* p. 7. This idea has been severely and bitterly criticized. See L.A. Times* December 8* 1974* Part VI* p. 2. \ |help to achieve this: the "Unified Alphabet" and the "Dic tionary of Unified Vocabulary" developed in this disserta- i tion. I The "Unified Alphabet" might put an end to what the Iraqi teachers have referred to as "some non-English, i i I strange letters that the books employ,," referring to the i i / \ 4 ' International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA), which is used in i The New English Course for Iraq (1972), a series of books j 'designed to replace the Oxford English books that were ! ( — i developed in the early 1940rs. A comparison of the IPA j with the UA in selected words from new Iraqi texts can be found in Appendix A. There is less emphasis on traditional grammar, vocabulary, and the direct method; instead, the New English' i Course utilizes dialogues, verbal repetition, intonation, 1 pronunciation drills, and a variety of other techniques. The three handwriting manuals were designed to help stu dents to "learn through writing" as well as to teach cur- Unpublished questionnaire by a "Special Committee" to study positive and/or negative reactions to the new j "Book I" for teaching English language and to report find- ' ings to the Ministry of Education. Arguments pro and con about these new texts are j found in Al-Thwarah, February 27* 1975* p. 3; March 24, j 1975, P. 3; May 7, 1975, p. 3; May 20, 1975, P- 3; May 25, 1975, P. 3J and May 3 1, 1976, p. 6. " " ' 1 .461 'write,, because voluminous texts and resources are already ; ' | ; available. i The Intermediate English syllabus states: i i The most important new item is the introduction of an English-English dictionary* which is to be regularly used for all silent reading whether in school or at home. The amount of explanation by the teacher is, therefore, very much reduced but ! this reduction should be done gradually,, as the stu- I dents become more familiar with the use of the die- i tionary. (Ministry of Education* 1971* P« 21) j I In addition to this* the dictionary should Include Arabic j equivalents of the English words. I i No benefit will be gained from the new English cur ricula unless a specially designed dictionary is used to help overcome the problem of vocabulary. The suggested dictionary will not merely be a reference dictionary* but will be a "text word study book" that can be used by stu dents to learn new words by studying them in the dictionary i Itself. It will not be studied In the A to Z sequence. It - is wiser If students learn a basic vocabulary through the use of the suggested dictionary. If this is done* then > i reading will be a pleasure* examinations will be passed j i with higher grades* and students will not be embarrassed 1 before the class. The use of the paradigm study technique will enable students to learn groups of words* or families of words* by noting the lines that divide them. Those i words that interrupt a paradigm will be segregated by being enclosed in a box* to separate them. This system Is 147 meant to be attractive as well as efficient. An example Is the word "biology"; It will be found In a group of over 30 words; thus when a student looks up this word he may' be Intrigued by the others In the group and possibly learn many of them. By becoming familiar with related words,, when he finds them In his readings recall may be easier. The paradigm would give motivated students an opportunity to save much time and effort since the similarities between the words in one particular paradigm will enhance learning and aid retention. To teach a language well, it has been demonstrated that it is not enough to simply give the students the pre fix "anti-" together with a definition of its meaning, but it would be rewarding to direct them to read over the list of words beginning with "anti-," and then of their own initiative they may study several of them or perhaps all of them at one time, without force.(Ehrlich, 1 9 6 8). The alphabetical order need not be an impediment for clustering similar words since all that is required would be the use of a box drawn around any word or words that do not belong to the group, such as the paradigm of "anti-" which is interrupted by the word "antimony," which in turn originated from an Arabic word, "alithmid." Other examples are the paradigm of "bed" which is interrupted by the words "bedeck," "bedazzle," and "bedevil"; the "heart" paradigm is broken by the words "hearth" and "hearthstone"j and the "carriage" paradigm is interrupted by the words "carrot" and "carrion." The laws of learning emphasize the importance of confronting a problem (Dember & Jenkins,, 1970, pp. 3^7~3^8) in motivating learning, of catching the student's attentionj when he is ready. The best way to learn vocabulary is by j "felt need," i.e., to wait until the student cannot under- 1 stand the meaning of a word in a sentence. He then looks ' up the word in the proposed "Dictionary of Unified Vocabu- j lary" where he finds it grouped with associated words in an entymological paradigm which results in better understand- j ing, easier assimilation and recall, and greater retention. This opportunity is missed by so-called vocabulary-building ! books because of the boredom of studying lists of words out I of context. j I Science and Mathematics--An Expanded Role ! If today's world is divided into developed and underdeveloped nations, it is because the first benefited from and the second neglected science. It Is clear that an effort must be exerted on the part of the underdeveloped ! i nations to bridge the gap. Toffler (197^0 suggests that j the ’ i less developed countries will require, in fact, to ] have the very highest technology, not lower tech- ; 1 4 9 nology as is often assumed at present. . . . They will have the advantages of being able to introduce it without the grim consequences that marked our (highly developed countries') history, but it will need sci entific imagination of the boldest kind, combined with the very highest level of sociological and human istic insight. (p. 1 6 9) Iraqi educational leaders look upon science and mathematics as so important that the number of courses in these subjects has more than doubled. And, what is more, impressive, is the concept of science in its broader sense as a way of thinking that can include almost all aspects of life. In accordance with tradition, the prophet Mohammed directed that every male and female Moslem should seek knowledge as a religious duty, even travel as far as China to find it, and pursue science through life from cradle to the tomb. Science may be followed in its narrow meaning, merely as a collection of facts, observations, and ,rlaws, M or may be expanded to incorporate a broader view, i.e., a philosophy of life and a mental attitude which affects daily behavior. Being fair, just, open-minded, and able to suspend judgment are characteristic attitudes that can be expected to appear in students' behavior as stated by the 6th National Congress of the Arab Ba'ath Socialist Party (1 9 6 3). It is the nature of the scientific mind to be always open to reality, to take advantage of all experi ences, and to reject ready-made frameworks. An examination 150 of the following alms of the science curricula exhibits the aforementioned broad meaning of science: Training students to develop abilities in the scien tific method of thinking which is the correct way to solve problems of society In a variety of fields. The formation of scientific attitudes which may 1 enable the students to sense problems., determine them, make assumptions, then examine their validity with experimentation until valid conclusions are reached. Adjustment of student's individual and social behav ior and habits in the light of scientific facts and revelations of nature's secrets. (Ministry of Edu cation, 197^, PP. 110-111) Science teaching should lead to the formation of sci entific attitudes so that students learn to be open- minded, discard superstitious thinking, exercise care and discretion in judgments, have respect for the opinions of others, and think objectively. Understanding of natural phenomena, precision and regularity can be seen and this may increase man's appreciation of the vast universe and the greatness of the Almighty Creator. Attempts to solve problems that confront humanity. (Ministry of Education, 1975^ P- 97) Observations by students of their environment, home, school, the streets with the aim to habitualize a scientific interpretation at their own age level. Development of a love of nature, and appreciation of the greatness of the Almighty Creator. Liberation from superstition. (Ministry of Education, Curriculum of Elementary Education, 1974, p. 124) Since the July 17 Revolution, Iraqi leaders have placed great emphasis on science and technology. The shortage of scientists and technicians to implement the Five-Year Plan of 1976-1980 dictated the extensive develop ment of science studies. 151 Table 15 Science Hours Compared to Total Hours per Week First Year Second Year Third Year Fourth Fifth Year Year Sixth Year Elementary 2/30 2/30 2/30 3/32 5/32 5/32 Intermediate 3/32 6/32 6/32 Preparatory Preparatory 9/32 9/32 r o 0 r o ro 0/32 12/32 Literary Branch Scientific Branch Source: Ministry of Education, Directorate of Curricula Elementary, Intermediate, and Secondary. and Texts, Table 14 Mathematics Hours Compared to Total Hours per Week First Year Second Year Third Year Fourth Fifth Year . Year Sixth Year Elementary 6/30 6/30 6/30 6/30 5/30 5/30 Intermediate 5/32 5/32 5/32 Preparatory Preparatory 3/32 3/32 2/32 6/32 2/32 5/32 Literary Branch Scientific Branch Source: Ministry of Education,, Directorate of Curricula and Texts, Elementary, Intermediate, and Secondary. 152 What is needed in particular is special stress on science and technology in education in order to pro vide the country with personnel required in the various fields of development. (Arab Ba'ath Social ist Party,, The Political Report Adopted by the Eighth Regional Congress, , 1974, p5 257) The current problem in science instruction is that it involves the memorization of facts rather than their practical application. Science, defined as a combination of applied inquiry skills and a predisposition to view available things from unusual perspectives, is more of a . . . [description of] behaviors, understandings, and atti tudes than a group of academic disciplines with "sci entific" names ending in -ology or -ics. (Anderson & Kou tnik, 1972) The never-ending evolution in science makes tradi tional methods of teaching it less and less accept able. We cannot hope to absorb the knowledge explo sion by cramming brains with more scientific facts and by removing outdated subjects from the curricu lum. (Faure et al.„ 1 9 7 2„ p. 148) The scientific programs on television are popular and come under the supervision of the General Directorate of Scientific Observation. Students follow with interest and curiosity the news of space exploration. Arabic and Arabization of Higher Education The teaching of Arabic in Iraq has much in common with the teaching of English in the United States. The deteriorating status of writing ability as well as the lack of adequate vocabulary are characteristic of Arabs as well as of Americans (Los Angeles Times, August 15* 16, 17^ '1976; He raid-Examiner, July 20, 1976; Herald-Examiner, July r 1 ; 2 3, 1976, Part II, p. 2). i The Iraqi curriculum emphasizes the learning of Arabic for students in the elementary, secondary, and some higher institutes. One-third of the instruction is devoted I j to Arabic in the first 4 years, diminished to one-fourth in the following 2 years, one-fifth through the intermediate : 1 years, one-sixth in the first preparatory year, and one- j .fourth or one-eighth in the following 2 years depending on the student's major (Ministry of Education, Curricula of 1 Elementary, Intermediate, and Preparatory Schools, 1974). j Table 15 Weekly Hours of Arabic: Elementary, Intermediate, and Preparatory Year 4th 6th 2nd Grades 3rd 5 th 1st 11 11 11 11 Elementary Intermediate Literary Branch Scientific Branch Preparatory Preparatory In spite of this, students find it difficult to write a i simple petition, a letter, or a minor literary composition. When editors obtain a petition which had been sent to the government, for instance, they publish it anony mously to display the discrepancy between the writer's ability and his education. See Al-Thwarah, March 5^ 1976, P. 3- 15^1 I I I I Although Arab students often make mistakes In composition, J | ! 'they can read well because there is practically no dis- i I f 7 icrepancy between spelling and pronunciation. They do not have to look for words in a dictionary to learn the pro nunciation as Americans do; even the vocabulary does not present problems. The problem of Arabic may be divided into two areas: first, the lack of writing ability, which may be traced to a lack of general reading. Students are accus- | tomed to reading and studying for examinations only and 1 * i J consider extra reading unnecessary. This may be a \ by-product of the highly competitive baccalaureate examina-| i tions. Second, it is difficult to learn good grammar in Arabic. One Medieval grammarian gave the grammatical rules i in a total of 1,000 verses of poetry called Alfiyat Bin 1 f .Malik to aid in learning them. j j The teaching of Arabic could adopt individualiza- ■ tion of instruction since students can read without diffi- ■ .culty when printed material is vowelized. Dialogues should be emphasized to reinforce correct speech until accurate : pronunciation becomes habitual. ; 7 1 In a report issued by the Education Committee of the 1973/197^ Los Angeles County Grand Jury it was stated that more than half of the 1973 graduating classes of four inner-city high schools were , r practically non-readers.” < See article in the Herald-Examiner, July 9> 197^ p. A-3. I 155 University Instruction The First Conference of the Deans and Department Chairmen of the Iraqi Universities was convened in Baghdad on the 26th and 2 7th of February 1976. It was decided to use the Arabic language at the university level rather than English. Later, on June 2 3, 1976, the Council of Higher Education and Scientific Research recommended the use of Arabic in the first years in Iraqi universities^ provided that one subject In all grades would continue to be taught in a foreign language. (Foreign instructors,, however, were excluded.) A Higher National Committee for Arabization has been formed to supervise the translation of foreign material into Arabic. The decision will affect colleges of science, medicine,, dentistry, veterinary science, pharmacy, engi neering, technology, and agriculture where English is used extensively. (The humanities and literary studies are already taught In Arabic.) Although the decision is mainly political, it has an objective basis. In the past, many students have failed because of deficiency In the English language. Higher edu cation is no longer reserved for the elite, and the country has an urgent need for thousands of specialists In a vari ety of scientific and technological fields. An identical situation existed In the United States before English took over. Dissertations at Harvard were first required to be written in Latin (Brubacher & Rudy, 1 9 6 8, p. 21) and later I 156"! i f ■ . ! I two additional languages (usually French and German; were j f I i i ;required of candidates in the doctoral program. I i There is no doubt that students can learn better in their native language. Since there is no relationship whatsoever between Arabic and English* the decision to teach in Arabic will be welcomed by students. Students will be able to express themselves and understand better when they use their native language. The Higher National Committee for Arabization was created mainly to investigate the problem of establishing ■ i an Arabic equivalent for foreign words. The extent of Arabization depends on the degree of seriousness with which the authorities have regarded it* both on the governmental level and as regards the cooperation of professors. I The suggested Unified Alphabet and Dictionary would be instrumental in bringing balance between English and Arabic. It should be clear that Arabization of university instruction does not mean that foreign languages are rele gated to an inferior position. Students who have a good j | command of foreign languages can more easily update their j knowledge and become aware of new developments in the vari-’ ous fields of science and the humanities. It Is wise to keep scientific and mathematical equations in the original language. The Latin names of j different parts of the human body in medicine* of differentj 157 species and phylums in Zoology and Botany such as herbs., and pharmaceutical drugs to name the main categories, should be retained. The use of the Unified Alphabet to indicate the pronunciation of a scientific terminology would be valuable because it coordinates translation throughout the Arab world. Although the decision for Arabization has excluded foreign instructors for most courses, it is reasonable to invite those who are contracted to teach for more than 1 year, to learn Arabic. The individualization of instruc tion would make this course of action possible. CHAPTER V SUMMARY, FINDINGS, CONCLUSIONS, ; AND RECOMMENDATIONS Summary ! i i The primary emphasis of this study was to examine j the role of education as an agent for change and a catalyst i in the advancement of Iraq. Based'upon statistical data I issued in a series of annual reports by the Ministry of Education, the post-July 17* 19^8 regime inherited a cha otic educational system infested with heavy percentages of | student failures, deficiency, chronic unemployment, and enormous waste. Prior to 1 9 6 8, the successive regimes were: 1 baffled in attempting to find quick solutions to the urgent,' distressing problems. There were improvisatory--more polit ical than educational--measures taken to pacify outraged j students and to find scholastic seats for an ever-increas- ■ ing flow of students while the classes were already jammed j 1 with failed students who were repeating a year or more ! until they either passed or gave up. Among such measures were the ’ ’trial system" which did not allow students to ; i attend classes, double or sometimes triple sessions in one j school building, unplanned admission of students to literaryj i 158 'colleges and elementary teacher institutes in order to defer ! 'the solution of the problems without consideration of the ! real needs of the country, nor the capacity of the employ- j ment market, and limitation of employment to men only so j that graduates were obliged to seek employment outside the country. This situation has been changed drastically since i the bloodless (white) revolution of July 17j> 1968. Under i the leadership of the Ba'ath Party, the country settled j , down and burgeoned. Through painstaking work and persever- | i ance by the adoption of educational and developmental plan- j ■ning techniques, the country was able to achieve not only full employment of graduates but developed to the point j where it experienced an acute shortage of experts in vari- ,ous fields. i The government was compelled to employ many for- I eigners and specialists from Arab sister states, especially after the issuance of the "law of Return of Efficiencies" where many Iraqis— as well as some Arabs— who previously abandoned the country returned. An open invitation to technicians, scientists, professors, etc., from all over j the world, is still extended to fill vacancies in various fields. , l The employment of women was greatly encouraged and j reached a point which can be termed as a "raid" on many | i fields, both traditional and unprecedented. The high per centage of student failures declined and efforts were now 160 ! focused on enhancement of quality in addition to explosive | i 'quantitative growth. \ \ i The problem,, purpose, importance, scope, limita- j tions, and delimitations of the study were presented in * Chapter I. Chapter II dealt with factors that may accel erate or decelerate development. For the purposes of this ; .study the factors were classified into historical* geo graphical., economic, political., social, and educational. ; i IA brief description of each with notes as to how each might \ I affect development was presented, citing examples of situ ations in other countries, as well as the application of each factor to the Iraqi situation. Chapter III dealt specifically with educational i i factors as related to development in Iraq. Various facets i of the Iraqi educational system were objectively examined | ! and heavily documented with current statistical information j gathered from first-hand* official sources. Material cov- i ered included: Administration* Organization* Framework* | Scholastic Year* Scholastic Day* Finance* the Ladder* j Admission Policy to Higher Education* Kurdish Autonomous Region* Preschool Years* the Elementary School* the Inter- ! i i mediate School* the Preparatory School* the Ministerial j Examinations ("baccalaureates1 ')* Vocational Education* Foundation of Technical Institutes* the University of Tech- ; nology* Higher Education* Graduate Study* Adult Education* 'and Women's Education. "T6n j Chapter IV discoursed on developmental planning and | i |educational planning in principle and as applied currently :to Iraq with the use of a philosophy of balance among vari- ! ous related dichotomies. Higher quality education and the eschewing of waste by the use of flexible,, comprehensive i education as an alternative to the rigid,, one-track system , j were discussed within the new experiment undertaken by the I Ministry of Education in this regard. A suggestion for :extending the experiment to introduce some type of compre- 1 hensive community college was introduced in the light of the dire need of the country for semi-skilled cadres in , various fields of apprenticeship. The now widespread move-j 'ment of individualization of instruction is very promising for the promotion of excellence and would also make the system more humanistic,, democratic, efficient., and effec tive. i Applications from the areas of English., Arabic, and ' Science were approached. In consideration of the wide dis-i parity between spelling and pronunciation of the English j language as an invincible hindrance in Individualized instruction, a suggested "Unified Alphabet" is proposed in , t Appendix A. Appendix B gives a description of the features j of a suggested dictionary that copes with the problem of vocabulary. i 162 1 ! Findings j 1. In the decade from 1963/ 196^- to 1972/1973* °f J the 2 8 2 *4 7 6 students who took the preparatory baccalaureatej 1 examination* 1 3 8 *5 0 9 failed* which averaged 49 percent j yearly* even though the students who participated were j "screened" out by scholastic examinations. i 2. The percentage of failures averaged 58 percent in the first 6 years and declined to 33 percent in the remaining 4 years of the decade studied. j 3. More students were enrolled in the literary I branch (159*730) than in the scientific (122*746)* while the needs of the nation were much more pressing for the latter graduates. I 4. The 6-3 -3 plan in Iraq, which is the same as the I dominant structure in the United States* could become more j 1 flexible* to accommodate students who were steered into the 1 wrong vocation* or who changed their minds when they learned their academic strengths and/or weaknesses. 5. Problems of imbalance between academic and voca- I I tional education arise from the use of an over 5 0-year-old I one-track system. Flexibility in terms of extending elec- j tives and the use of the unit system is' instrumental and more practical. 6 . A shortage of school buildings resulted from the compulsory education program and the campaign to elimi- 1631 nate illiteracy. Generous expenditures are now being made ; to alleviate this problem. ! I 7. It has been found that the social tradition i I which holds contempt for manual work is behind the falter ing of industrial and agricultural education. 8. Prior to 1968, higher education was expanded s primarily because of the pressure of students who graduated I from high school, while after that year, the influx of stu- I I dents was controlled to fill the needs of the employment market. ! 9. Girls’ education has been retarded for many years by social traditions and taboos. Efforts are being i I ‘exerted to compensate for this. 10. Counseling as known in the United States does I not exist. This fact is encouraged by the very nature of I : i the educational system where all courses taken are required.| I 11. In spite of all the inherited ills,, the Iraqi > educational authorities were able to achieve successes by adopting techniques of educational and developmental plan ning. Consequently, unemployment was virtually eradicated. ; l Conclu sions Upon examination of the previously noted findings, i the following conclusions are made: 1. Planning for projected changes is the best preparation for tomorrow's needs. It is best | to introduce change within the beliefs of the populace as today's leadership in Iraq believes,, so as not to allow the past to hold back prog ress any longer. Plans must seek.:.to strike proper balance in many educational issues. The time is overdue to seriously consider vari ous aspects of quality and intensive programs such as in-service training and life-long or continuing education,, to accelerate the pace of development. Women have capabilities and can contribute to the modernization of a country as much as men do. This belief is currently much encouraged and is only limited by the relics of the past. Recommendations The following recommendations are made: A directorate may be established within the Directorate General of Curricula and Instruc tional Media to extend aid and be responsible for the application of individualization of instruction techniques. Simplified vocational and agricultural educa tional programs may be incorporated in the elementary schools' curricula as electives. 165 1 3. The current curriculum should be evaluated in j ( terms of semester units as preliminary to apply- ! ing flexibility for better quality education. j 4. Science and Technology programs should be j approached in more practical ways and made j 1 closely related to the daily lives* of the , i students. j 5. The "unified alphabet" described here should j be experimented with and can be utilized to overcome the problems of English' pronunciation. 6. The "suggested dictionary" described here should be materialized to overcome the burden of learning the vocabulary of the English lan guage. 7. An experiment should be conducted to combine j several adjacent school buildings to be used 1 as one comprehensive school., which would serve as a model for a new consolidation movement. 8. An identical experiment to the one described in number 7 above, on the Institute levels should be Implemented to serve as a model for a suggested community college. 9. A philosophy of balance as described In Chapter ! i IV of this dissertation should be encouraged in : order to bring about proper balance all along | i the educational continuum. 166 10. Students’ desires should be given priority within the needs of the national plans for the develop ment of the country. 11. Discontinuance of the elementary ministerial examination (baccalaureate) is a welcome step on an experimental basis providing that alterna tives are sought and students who formerly took the examinations as "irregulars'1 (outsiders) be given an opportunity to gain the equivalent of a diploma. 12. Arabization of higher education should be accom panied by emphasis on the English language so that students will be able to read current lit erature in their fields of study. 13. The efforts now being exerted to expand educa tional opportunities for girls should be con tinued. Systematized plans should be made to utilize women in various fields of growth and development of the country. 14. The new experiment with comprehensive education currently being undertaken by the Ministry should be accelerated. When planning new school build ings,, the possibility of expansion should be taken into consideration in order to prevent problems in the future. l'67~l 15. Women are found to have the capability of making ; 1 1 contributions to development in many fields other j than those that are now available to them. 1 6. Kindergartenfeducation was found to be indispen sable in liberating women to join the work force. 1 i REFERENCES 168 REFERENCES / Adams, D. , & Bjork, R. M. Education in developing areas. New York: David McKay,, 1972. 'Adiseshiah, M. S. It is time to begin. UNESCO,, 1972. Aflaq, M. The battle of one destiny. 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APPENDICES 179 APPENDIX A A SUGGESTED DICTIONARY APPENDIX A A SUGGESTED DICTIONARY OF UNIFIED VOCABULARY The suggested dictionary will have the following features* * 1* It will be compiled mainly with the purpose of enrich- f ing the vocabulary of learners* To achieve such a goal, the dictionary will incorporate the common techniques used by books of vocabulary 'study but will be organised in alphabetical order* It might be i balled "Unified Words* Dictionary," "A Self-Teaching Dictionary!* * I I 9 'or "AX-Qaraous Al-Moulim," in Arabic which indicates the purpose* j | 2* The dictionary, therefore, must be part of the currieu- i jlumi it should not be considered as a reference book, but as a text- . book to be used for several years* There will be a dissimilarity from , i I other texts in that it will not be compulsory to road it from cover to cover* The suggested dictionary must be purposely designed to attract I the interest of students to related words so that every time they look i pp a certain word they notice others that belong to one group and by i studying several at one time, reinforcement and retention are deepened* I This is an important difference between this workbook and others that engender boredom because with this new book, students can take advan- t w w i tags of opportunities for self-motivation: when studying one word, it is generally not shown by itself, but in a paradigm family of words, thus distributing the burden of learning a vocabulary* S 3® ‘ Th© suggested dictionary must be compiled within the spirit of individualisation of instruction* It is to be used, by the I 1 8 1 182 learner with the least possible help of a teacher. There should be ample examples and directions for students regarding usage. It is proposed to have records and tapes available to explain the key to pronunciation and to display some of the hard-to-pr on ounce words. Study of the dictionary will not be required, but extra credit will be granted to students who make use of it to enrich their vocabulary. 4. The entries will be restricted to a total of about 40,000 words (on about 1,000 pages) in enlarged print. Ample space will be provided between the lines and words, to avoid crowding. It will not be a pocket dictionary but rather a heavy-duty, durable ! desk dictionary. 5. Every effort will be exerted to demonstrate relation ships between words. Most related words tend to cluster close to each! I other because of the alphabetical order or because they share a common prefix. Therefore, the first thing to do is to insert lines to serve i V ias division notations between one family and another: for example, ; words beginning with "bio," "geo," "psycho," "anti-," "equi-," I quadra-," etc. Each group of related words is called a paradigm, i | | 6. Sometimes one finds a word or words that interrupt the |continuity of a paradigm. In these cases, the word or words will be I i jinscribed inside a box or boxes to indicate that these items do not i |belong, to that paradigm, and therefore should be sicipped. For example, |the paradigm that begins with "anti-," may be interrupted by the word, i ."antimony," and the "carriage" paradigm may be interrupted by "carrot" and "carrion." Therefore, these paradigms are termed "interrupted paradigms • "__________________ -—-------— --------------- -------- 183 7. The word, "see" will be used to refer students to related words when they are scattered throughout the dictionary* 8. A dotted box or a dotted line may be used to indicate ..... i - partial relationships such as the one on sample page. They indicate the paradigms that have subparadigms within them; these groups of words I have a closer relationship to one another than to the entire clan* I i | 9» Words with common roots and suffixes may form a "scat- I j tered paradigm” and words will be referred to others in the same jparadigm by using the word "see.” There will be no exaggeration in this regard, because the meanings of some words have been diverted so far from the original stem that to insist on including them in the "root” paradigm would be detrimental, therefore they will be omitted. In these cases a dotted or broken line will be used to separate the t words from the basic paradigm. One example is the word "gratuitous" } which means "not called or asked for” and should be excluded from the I I I "grab-" meaning "pleasing" paradigm because of the remoteness of its 1 I meaning from that of "grat-." Another is "cattle" which is the collec- i | tive plural of an animal, and thus should be excluded from the group i 'whose root is "capit" which means "head, chief, or leader." A good i jexample of a suffix paradigm is "version": "aversion," "conversion," "perversion," and "subversion." 10. Synonyms and antonyms may be referred to as "see synonym " giving the word, also "see antonym_____ ," or simply, "compare | ," giving the words that are thought to be useful to study along jwith a particular word. 184 11* Students may choose or originate their own methods on how to study the words for memorization* Some may prefer to write inewly learned words on cards; others may want to make lists of words or use a small notebook. The method used by this author was to simply i place a small paper clip or marker on the page (with the word or words under study) to be used as a guide to review and/or study the paradigm in the dictionary itself* 12. There will be examples given, since this will double the ; effectiveness of study, increase retention, and insure proper usage* In many cases a phrase will be sufficient; an example is certain adjectives which are‘used only to describe one type of person, place, or thing* l 13* The definitions of entries should sometimes be given in i 'Arabic, sometimes in English, and sometimes in both languages, accord- i iing to their difficulty and to make it easy for the learner to under- i jstand without the trouble of looking up other words that he might not i Icnow which are included in the given meaning* I \ 14. The pronunciation should be marked in Unified Alphabet I j(UA) symbols. Detailed explanations of the DA diacritics will be provided. Samples of Pages of upward upwards uranic uranium Uranus urban urbane urbanism urbanize urceolate (See urn) urchin Urdu tiro- urea urease ureter urethr- urethra urethritis r—— 1 -... .... urge urgency | urgent Students may choose to onto their notebooks, may prefer to learn th by using paper clips-o the Suggested Dictionary 185 p------ —------- ---- -— ——1 -urgy -urea uric urinal urinalysis urinate urination urine urinous urn (See urceolate) urogenital urologist urology -uranic Ursa Major Ursa Minor urslform ursine us usable usage use copy words they are studying ■r on cards, or on a list, or i whole paradigm in the dictionary coSrsl" clutch n V 3 cxutter co- £0^ch coach box coachman eoacfcy coact eolation ~ i - c©active —-3j5 . *0(3 coadjutor coagulant cpa|ulat^e — z °-/ coal coal bud coal dust j^oiles^! (See coalition) coal field coal gas jco^iatr U- (Sae coalesce) coal mine coast coastal coister cba^t wis# coat colted coati coating coat of arms coat of mail c^-|dthBr — v • coax c^aMal i&b cobalt co^Kle cobblestone : * 5 b r Z " i 3 coca . / / * cocaine The duality beteeen pronunciation and spelling in the Unified Word Dictionary is eliminated by the use of the suggested Unified Alphabet. 187 act aetin- actinic actinic rays actinium actinomoter actinon actinCzoan action activate I { active activism I |activity actor actress actual actuality actualize actually actuate actuator i acuity acumen acupuncture acute Mam adamant adamantine Mam® s apple adapt adaptable adaptation adapter adaptive add addax addend addendum addict addicted addiction Broken lines or broken-line boxes indicate a partial relationship, which marks subparadigms or mini- groups within the large clan. This is very useful in the case of words that have the same origin but later developed rather different meanings. When "four is less than one," in the "acuity" paradigm above, for instance, the four words reinforce each other in an unfor gettable block, whereas studying one word, alone takes much more time and is less easily.ranembered, ion -ion ionic ionization ionize ionosphere iota I.Q. ir - Iraq or Irak Iran Iranian Iraqi irascible irate ire irid- or irido- iridescence iridescent iridium _ , I i ■ iris Iris Irish irk irksome iroxi Iron: Age ironclad iron curtain iron horse ironic (See irony) ironist iron lung ironmonger iron pyrites ironsmith ironstone ironware iron wood iron work irradiance irradiate irradiation irrational irrationalism shows lines indicating a new one; the the box. This page of the suggested dictionary the end of one paradigm and the beginning of boxes indicate that the paradigm is continued after 188 1 killjoy kilo kilo- kilogram kilometer Idiot on Idlovolt kilowatt kilt IdLmono kin (See kindred, kin: kinsfolk) kind kindergarten id.ndhea.rted jldndle (*See”kindling) landless Idndlinoss |kindling (See kindle) kindly kindness kindred (See kin) Idneraa IdLnematie kinesthesia kinetic Idnetic energy IdLnetics kinetograph lcinfolk (See kin) ■ 189 king kingdom kingfish Icinglet kingly Idngraaker kingpin Icing post kingship Icing-size Icing snake kink kinliy It is possible, as shown above, to maintain the alphabetical order without killing the organic relationship between entries. The paradigm that begins with "Icind is interrupted by three, words t "Kindergarten,” "kindleand "kindling,” the first of them is a word by itself, and the other two constitute one paradigm con nected by referring each to the other using the phrase, ,ee Words that are related to one another by a common root, prefix, or suffix but are separated because of adherence to strict j i alphabetical order can be connected by a reference to a related word, j which will be given? this will enhance the reader's learning by associating one word to another, since perhaps he may already knnw the referenced word# In dictionaries like Webster's or the American Heri-; tage, the word is analyzed, its origin given, then a lengthy schedule j at the end of the dictionary is provided to check the meaning of the i affix. This procedure can add to the burden of studying words, but a quicker and easier method would be for the student to be referred to a "sister" word or a "cousin" word— not only the affix— and also an antonym. Thera is a widely held assumption that when a person is taught a grammatical rule or a rule of spelling, he will automatically be able to apply it and will do so correctly. The error(s) in this assumption lie in the fact that there are many exceptions in the Englida l language and also students could easily make erroneous applications through misunderstanding, lack of use, and insufficient reading result ing in unfamiliarity with many terms. It would be much more feasible ; to give the student the applications first, then he can easily learn i the rule later on, which in a specific case referred to above is the use of affixes» j 7 . 1 0 u p y o u n g b u t o n e C o m S / A P / / J a 3 / /b A t/ / w a h / (k\mf c o l o u r s o m S m u c h m o n th % jk\h! /s A m / /m A t J / / n u n 0 / 7 . 1 1 b u t b a t m u c h m a tc h it * s o m e /b At / / b a t / /m A t J / / m a t / / /S A m / 7 . 1 2 f a t h e r 3 £ . 1 S 0 * 3 m o t h e r w o m a n sister / f a : . t > sj jm\ % a / / w u m g n / / s i s t s / n 191 v ft f 3 n u m b e r /rtAinba/ S a m / s a m / 5 . 3 0 t h a n k t h a t a n d h a n d b a d / G a O k / / 8 a t / / a n d / / h a n d / / b a d / b a g b l a S k c l i p m a p , & t / b a g / / b l a k / / k l a p / / m a p / / a t / J a 6 k f a t s a d a m f S n / d 3 a k / / f a t / / s a d / / a m / / f a n / 5 . 3 1 a r e g a r d e n c l e r k h a l f l a s t : / / g a : d n / / M a r k / / h a : f / / l a : s t / Y _ //a c a r g a r d e n e r p a s t a r e n ’ t / k a : / / g a : d n s / / p a : s t / / a : n t / 5 . 3 2 a t a r t a n t a r e n ’ t / a t / / a : t / / a n t / / a : n t / On this pag0 and the following one, excerpts are given from "The New Qaglish Course for Iraq," B o o k 1 (pages 7^, 38, 102, and 138 in this order)# The Unified Alphabet (UA) has been superscribed on the first line of each row of words to compare it with the second line which uses the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA)a 4.16 4.17 192~l pen desk pencil yes red dress | /pen/ /desk/ /pensl/ /jes/ /red/ /dres/ A X ^ * j were girl third first j /w a:/ /ga:l/ /Sard/' /fa:st/ shirt skirt / J a :t/ /ska :t/ 1 0 . 1 7 t a b l e n a m e t h e y p l a c l e i g f i t / t e i b l / / n e i m / / e i / / p l e i s / / e i t / E i g h t h d a t e g r e y J a n e c a k l / e i t @ / / d e i t / / g r e i / / d S e i n / / k e i k / d a y l a d y / d e i / / l e i d i / 1 5 . 9 b i g b l a S k t a b ’l l b a g / b i g / / b l a k / / t e i b l / / b a g / b i c y c l l b a d b l u l / b a i s i k l / / b a d / / b l u : / 1 5 . 1 0 p e n m a p - ! > 3 .3 c a r p e n t e r p o ' o r / p e n / / m a p / / k a r p i n t a / / p u s / p e d c i l h i p p y c o p y b o b k ' p u t / p e n s l / / h a p i / / k o p i b u k / / p u t / c l a p p a s t s t d p p u p i l / k l a p / / p a : s t / / s t o p / / p j u : p l / /eiti/ | eighteen': /eiti:n/ : but place /pleis / pildt /paitat/ Spin /oupn/ The ec on city of space of the UA is obvious? it could be advantageous ly applied in textbooks and study notebooks without interfering with common spelling. The UA is used for all the words except the word "one” /wun/t which had to be rewritten phonetically. 193 The compiling of the suggested "Alqamous Almoulim" or the “Self-Teaching Dictionary" combined with the application of the Unified Alphabet will— in addition to the excellent Ehglish texts j that have been recently introduced in Iraq-complete a set of books | to be used in the curriculum for Ehglish language studies. This dic tionary will distribute the burden of vocabulary over the years, i attracting the attention of students to more words every time they ( i open them for a particular word. The Unified Alphabet will put an j end to what the Iraqi teachers called "some Ehglish, strange letters I that the books employ?" they were referring to the IPA. The new ; Ehglish course for Iraq is a series of books designed to replace the 1 I old Oxford English books that were developed in the early 19^0* s. 1 There is less emphasis on traditional grammar rules, vocabulary, and direct method? instead, the New Ehglish course widely utilizes dia logues, verbal repetition, intonation, and a variety of approaches and methods. The three hand-writing manuals were designed to help students to "learn through writing" as well as to serve the apparent purpose of teaching cursive penmanship. The urgent need for tapes and recordings will be less urgent when the course shifts to the Unified Alphabet rather than the IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) since the students can indicate the diacritics whenever they feel the need to learn both spelling and pronunciation at the same time. Diacritics are not strange to them, since Arabic itself relies heavily on their use. APPENDIX B THE UNIFIED ALPHABET 194 B. THE UNIFIED ALPHABET ; Th© Unified Alphabet (UA) has been designed to enable new leam-' ers of English to elicit pronunciation from the traditional spelling i of words without changing their spelling or pronunciation. Comparing Ehglish to other languages which are highly phonetic, such as Italian and Spanish, it has been estimated that this duality in English im pedes learners at least one year— often longer— over their peer i learners of other languages. This idea has been expressed by Bent i i and Kronenberg as followsi Actually the European languages are easier to learn than English, which accounts for the differences in favor of students in Europe.' The Russian, German, Scandinavian, and Romance languages are high-j ly phonetic. They are pronounced as spelled and spelled as pro nounced. In Ehglish there are many ways to spell the same sound, i as for example wi"j i, by, buy, bye, ay, aye, lie— at least twenty ways. In other languages, there are only one or two. Students of other countries can therefore, acquire a superior use of their languages in less time and can use the time saved in learning other subjects. (1970, pp. 128-129) If this is the situation with speakers whose mother tongue is English, one can easily imagine the calamity that is faced by students of Ehg lish in their homeland where everything around them is in their own national language. What aggravates the ordeal of foreign students is that the Ehglish curriculum in most foreign countries evades or ig nores, to a certain extent, the learning of an adequate number of new English words# Instead of this, grammar is over emphasized in the l first stages and the burden of vocabulary building is postponed until j f later. No wonder Ehglish as a Second Language (ESL) students must wait long before they can enjqy the pleasure of reading well in 196 1 The emphasis should he the reverse. The UA helps students to "see" the pronunciation which is ; i i indicated with diacritics on the word itself rather than by the use of symbols to represent sounds and often by distorted spelling* In the UA both spelling and pronunciation are unified in one orthog- t l raphy; therefore, there is no change, no duality. When a student learns the wrong pronunciation of a word, he must exert twice the ; i effort since the errors must be Mplucked out” of his memory and the • correct forms must be implanted* It is known that visual images j assist memory and aid in increasing retention time; thus this visual | “correct spelling" image will be imprinted in students’ minds and at the same time the confidence they have developed will add to rapid learning and longer retention of lessons. A closer look at the UA will be helpful in understanding this system. The UA is composed of 47 sounds. Some letters such as "b” and "1" have only one orthography (big, lang), while others such as "j" and "k" have several spellings. The "d” in ''soldier” and the "G" in "age” are both pronounced as "j” ("jar”); the "c" in "cat" and the "q" in "unique" are both pronounced as "k". There are 27 groups of these same-sound letters; the rest don’t fall into categories. The memori- ; zation of the UA may take place directly through the study of the Unified Alphabet or indirectly through the reading of already known words marked with UA diacritics. Special effort has been exerted to make it as easy as possible to memorize the diacritical markings. They are compatible with almost; i all the well-known dictionaries such as American Heritage, Oxford, and Webster’s. There are no marks used by the -Unified Alphabet -that---- contradict or confuse the key to pronunciation of these dictionaries* Students who are familiar with marks like (schwa (.3 )f breve (V ), macron ( ~ ), and circumflex ( A ), can easily extend such knowledge to include the added characters* There are examples and explanatory notes for each group* A final list of examples covering all b? sounds is furnished. A strictly alphabetical key to pronunciation (regardless of grouping) is supplied at the end of the report for quick reference to any particular letter* Teachers of English who instruct according to the new method ology and curriculum of the young Individualization of Instruction movement will find the UA particularly useful and in complete harmony with the principles of this movement* After instruction, the learners will be able to depend on themselves in pronouncing new words confi dently, and proceed at their own pace* The teachers will find it of great help since they can shift the burden of widening the scope of vocabulary to the students themselves, thus freeing time for "special* projects which will motivate students and make the process of learning more enjoyable* The UA, however, cannot incorporate all unusually spelled or unusual-sounding words since many have been adopted from foreign languages5 therefore, a list of oddities and foreign adopted words will be included for study. Words like "colonel," "choir," "hallellujah," and "sergeant" should be rewritten phonetically for the purpose of pronunciation and are not covered by special diacritics merely because there are too few of them alike to make it worthwhile designing a special group of diacritics for them* Aseparate list of 198 ! such exceptional words with the Irind of difficulty they pose is sup- i plied. i The Unified Alphabet has been developed gradually and on the basic idea that, "Necessity is the mother of invention.” This j researcher used the practice of writing new vocabulary items on cards ! to memorize them during leisure time, copying the phonetic spelling ini the lower right hand corner of each card. The hindrance to accurate 1 , spelling was felt because the phonetic spelling used to imprint its image on ry visual memory, so I relied heavily on a cassette tape recorder to avoid the duality. At the same time, I continued using | i cards and vocabulary notebooks— then the task was simplified by inser-j tion of the same diacritical marks of the phonetic spelling on the traditional spellings I decided to put the schwa (® ) mark above the letter rather than in place of it, thus retaining both the schwa ( 0 ) and the letter. Then I noticed that there are some redundant letters that, if crossed out, would allow traditional spelling and phonetic X spelling to coincide. This led to development of the ” " or "omission" mark which later proved to be instrumental in solving the greatest j problem. Then an opportunity presented itself in one of my "Ehglish As a Second Language” classes to submit a report entitled "Ehglish Through Diacritics, A First Step Towards Individualization of Instrue- ' i tion." Later in an advanced class of ESL I had the opportunity to | i revise and expand this and do further research on keys to pronuncia tion in almost all available dictionaries. In the aforementioned and this report, the author has characterized the Unified Alphabet (UA) j by the introduction of the idea of paradigms. The paradigm in die- j 199| i tionaries is & column or set of alphabetically arranged words that arej i related to ons another " f c j y a lexical relationship. .Any word unrelated i to any group would be boxed and colored differently. The linkage between the different letters of each group (shown in parentheses below) is not difficult to recognizes , X X (a, b X t • . A. a ® ^ 3 • z), (a, 6» i, o, u * b* n* (a), (a* i)* (a) (a), (b), (ch, £\ (d), (e), (e, i, f) * (f. Ph, gh), (g)i GO• v t (i» a t * e, it y>* (J* y)* (n is)* (j. d* g]» (k» £» q)* (D* (* 0 , (n), (ngt n), (o, a), (o), (o, a) . / V 9 , (oo, u, £), (oo, #9 . o, u oft » q* w), (oif cy)» (ou, ow), (p), (r), (s, c), (sh, c, s» t)t (t, d), (th), (th), (u, o). , A - K * T (u, e, i, o), (v), (w, u), (wh), (x), (x)f (y* a a p in (z* s)* (z, g* s). The Unified Alphabet is shown on the following page, Figure B-l. Figure B-l. THE Traditions! Added 1 , -x. no v )sound 2 _.iL.alona_. ^ circular tab^le & ,3 e system i i easily o gallop a . d ! u circus 3 a at 4 a date e eight . / * A a care 6 ! • • • # : a car ? b big 8 ch child % picture 9 d do 10 V V e egg 11 e me i visa y duty 12 f fun ph phone gh laugh 13 g go 14 h hill 15 V ^ 1 it a village u busy e college, y iryth(y) 16 i bite y by 1? A A i pier A A e near 18 5 jar * • { d soldier g age 19 k Irimd c cat I q unique 20 1 last 21 m must 22 n no 23 ng king n ink 2k v , V . o lot a mnt i UNIFIED'ALPHABET Tra&tLcnaL Added 25 o bone 26 A A o for I f t all 2 7 oo good u put i f^ry 28 oo boot ! OO aO ; o move OO « > _ u rule 0 9 0 9 . u cute OO . OO w view 29 oi oil j oy boy 30 ou out ow cow 31 p pan 32 r try 33 s seed c ice 3k sh shall i c ocean s sure | t partial 35 t top 1 d reacted 36 th thin 37 th this 38 u under V V o love 39 A A u urga±. T C , : e term 7? n i bird o work 1 £ I - p - j | H | O | v very w wa s u langu^e 42 43 wh when x fox kk x exam 45 y yes _ 0 0 e few i union u fury • a - . u circular 1 OC 3© u cute 46 z zero s rose 4? sh --- p • g beige s vision z azure 201 ! Returning to specifics about the UA, the 2k letters of the Ehglish alphabet, "a," "b,M "c,"* . • "z," excluding "q" which is pro nounced the same as "k,"and Hc,” which is either "s" or Mk, * * has k? i sounds according to UA; that is an average of two sounds for each j i letter, though the actual average is four orthographical symbols for ! each letter as shown in the Key to Pronunciation, Figure B-^* This shows the paucity of the sound symbols and orthographic symbols of the English language as represented by the original 2k letters* Some let-’ ters of the alphabet have multiple pronunciations: (a, a, a, a), (e, e), (i, i, i), o, o, o, oi, oo, oo, ou), (u, u) and they belong toj different phonetieal groups regardless of the fact that they are men- | I tioned in the alphabet as one letter (a, e, i, o, or u). This is what ; makes the UA an integral part of the alphabet itself* Students will have a better command of English pronunciation if they familiarize themselves with the k? UA sounds* The next step after becoming acquainted with th© English lan guage, loo*, reading and writing, is to become familiar with and to learn to pronounce and discern each of the k? UA sounds. The American Heritage Dictionary uses k$ sounds; the Webster’s New World Interna tional Dictionary uses k j sounds; the Scribner Bantam Dictionary, k2 sounds; the Initial Teaching Alphabet (ITA) uses kk§ the International Phonetic Alphabet (.IPA)* k'3 sounds— yet, none of these solve the dichotomy* The UA is a sort of taxonomy that includes all English sounds j i in groups* It uses the alphabet letters as take-off points to incor- j porate all similar sounds regardless of their traditional way of writ- , ing or spelling* J Explanatory Motes in the Unified Alphabet The Unified Alphabet is based upon the diacritics of well- laiown American dictionaries such as the various editions of Webster j i and the American Heritage Dictionary. The Unified Alphabet sounds j shot®in Figure B-l contain two columns: the first displays the origi nal letters as shorn in American dictionaries; the second shows the author*s additions which allow changes in orthography and enable in- | sertion of diacritics without the need of rewriting the word in ^ phonetic spelling. The fact that the Unified Alphabet (UA) is based upon presently used diacritics will make it easy for millions to * stretch” and associate the "old” or known to the newly added dia- [ critics; besides, words in the UA preclude writing a word twice, one ! i for traditional spelling, and the other for phonetic spelling. 1. The omission mark ( ) is a very useful "tool." It is used to exclude a letter from being pronounced, while keeping it as an integral part of the word to avoid distortion of the x x orthography, such as the silent letters in "listen," "isle,” » or "honor." In UA this role is expanded to eliminate from pronunciation all letters that do not affect pronunciation, j such as: "size," "snow," "isle," "hope," ya&ht," "dough," "assign," "folk," or "kiss," 2. The schwa {£ ) is used similarly as in Webster*s except it is j written smaller (as a diacritic) directly above the vowel it is identifying. This mark is valuable in retaining tradi- ; ticnal spelling and in. spite of the fact that there are many j schwa’s for a number of vowels, they are strikingly identical. 203 ' Mien there is no letter to serve as a "seat" for the schwa, a comma is used as in tab#le, sim*le, and i*ron. The under- ! i lined u in circular is written "y e " in phonetic spelling. I — ^ See (y) sound (Number 45) for other underlined vowels that share the "y” character. j 3. The breve "a" as in "atP No addition. 4. The macron "a" as in "date”s The double macron "e" is added as in "eight,” "obey," "fiance," "heinous," "erepe," "vein," "survey," "decollete," "beige," and "emigree," etc. 5» The circumflex "a" as in "care"* No addition. 6. The diarecis "a" as in "car"* No addition. ?• Letter "b" as in "big"* No addition. 8. The "ch" as in "child"* The crowned "t" is added, as in "picture," "century," "literature," "ligature," "stature," "accentuate," "bastion," "question," and "creature," etc. 9. Letter "d" as in "do"* No addition. 10# The breve "e" as in "egg"* No addition. — . • 11. The macron "e" as in "me"* The double-dotted "i" and "y" are added, as in "visa," "duty," "naive," "motif," "debris," "company," "machine," "unique," "vaccine," "country," "precis," "democracy," "theory," "elite," etc. The double dotted "i" is , I already used and printed on some words of French origin, as | • « "visa," The rule is simply extended to the letter "y" which is treated the same as "i" in its other sounds, such as the sounds: | l numbered 15, 16, 29, and 46. (see UA, Figure B-l) This pronun- ’ 20^ft I I ciation is according to The American Heritage Dictionaryj how- 1 ever, according to Webster’s the "y" sound at the end of words liks "democracy,” "company," "pigmy," and others is written I V ' in phonetic spelling as breve "i" as in "it," (ses sound number | V 15). If this pronunciation is preferred, the "y" sound is written with breve "y"i "democracy," "company," "pigny," etc. 12. The "f" as in "fun": The "ph" and "gh" diphthongs are added and are to be pronounced "f" but while every ph is pronounced "f," not all words containing "gh" have it pronounced as "f," j some of them omit the "gh" sound altogether as in "weigh," ! "eight," "piouch," etc. Examples: "phone," "laugh," "philo- x sophy," "elephant," "cough," etc. . (The omission mark " " can be seen as a boon in the words containing the silent diphthong "gh," such as in "weigh," "eight," "freight," "weight," and others (see paragraph 1 above). 13. The letter "g" as in "go”: No addition. 1^. The letter "h" as in "hill": No addition. 15* The breve "i" as in "it": Those letters pronounced with the sound of breve "i" have a vertical dash directly above each letter (a, 4, u, and y) and are added. Examples are as follows* "village," "college," "busy," "myth," "coverage," "regime," "pretty," "review," "portage," "adage," "receive,” "mechanic," j "message," "decay," "cottage," "dyspeptic," and "rhythm." The ■ s f letter " 7" may be written with a breve as well, as in "myth," dyspeptic," "rhythm," which comes from the similar treatment of "i" and "y" and is shown in sound number 11. The vertical j dash because of its resemblance to the "main body” of the letter "i” may help learners who wish to associate them together for | easier memory and recall. i The macron "i” as in "bite": The macron ”y” is added and applies to words as "by,” "fly," "nylon," or "shy," etc. ! Again, the "y" and "i" have the same sound, (see sound number J 11), and therefore are marked with the same diacritic, the macron over the letter. j The circumflex "i" as in "pier" 5 A circumflex "e" is added j as in the words "near," "leer," "deer," "steer," "hear," sphere," "beer," "career," "mere," "sear," etc. The letter "j" as in "jar"t The dotted "d" and "g" are added as inr feoldier," "age," "plunger," "giant," "page," "cottage," • • 1 "credulous," "residual," "schedule," "heritage," "sewage," "modulate," "gradual," "tangent," "change," "education," "deluge," "damage," and many more. There is a high incidence of this. (In a few cases regarding other letters and sounds in the alphabet, if insufficient words were the case, no addi tion to the sound list was deemed to be warranted.) The dot over "d" and "g" reminds one of the dot of the letter "j." Th© letter "k" as in "kind"* The underlined "c" and "q" j are added as in "cat," "unique," "queen," "vehicle," "circle," 1 "occur," "plaque," "succeed," "eccentric," "bicycle," "quiz," "quiet," "quite," "come," and others. VBiile "q" is pro- 206 : I I I n cronced "k" in all casesf this is not so for "cf" Sine© " " I has other sounds, the underlined "c” is designated to have j the "k" sound. The "c" that sounds like ”sM belongs to sound i number 33 and is designated by underlining it with a dot. ! I 20. The letter "1" as in "last": No addition. 21* The letter "m" as in “must" s No addition. 22. The letter "n" as in "no" : No addition. 23, The "ng" as in "king"x The underlined V is added, and ' used for words such as "think," "mink," "anger," "Ehglish," "fungus," "puncture," "function," "single," etc. All these "nts" are written phonetically as "ng" in present dictionaries, \ which can cause confusion for the students studying the image of the word. 2*f. The breve "o" as in "lot" : A single "uralouted" "a" is added as in "want," "wander," "what," "watch," "Washington," "wasp," "wad," etc. Compare this sound to sound number 26. 25. The macron "o" as in "bone"? No addition. 26. The circumflex "o” as in "for": Umlauted "a" is added. Exam ples ares "all," "fall," "staunch," "chalk," "war," "August,” "fraud," "caught," etc. This diacritic marks the u laut sound in German. Compare it to the single dotted "a" in sound num- I ber 2^f* j i 2 7. The breved double-ligatured "<&” as in "gobd" 5 The single o o 0 circle "u," and "u" are added for use in words such as "put," 207 "fury," "should," "insurance,” " modulate," "gradual,” "sure," "sugar," "gourmet," etc. The underlined "u" has the "y" sound, as will be explained in sound number ^5» A word like "indurate," which may be pronounced as /indoo rat / or I /indyoo rat / may be written in UA as "indurate" or "indurate." ( The single circle is used to indicate short "oo" which can be ; contrasted to long "do" in the next sound. ' 28. The macroned double-ligatured "o,s," "do" as in "boobwt O® OO CO CD The double circle marked letters* "o," "u," "u," "w" are j added. Examples ares "move," "rule," "cute," "view," "future," ) "hew," "ewe," "truly," "nephew," "lunar," "usual," etc. Compare this sound to the previous sound number 27 where a single circle is used. Doesn't the small circle carry the resemblance to the letter "o"? If one thinks of the "o" it may not be difficult to remember that the single circle indicates shortness of sound while a double circle indicates a long sound. The line under u in both sounds, this and the previous one, belongs to sound number ^5® The "w" may be alone or combined with underlined "e" to indicate the "y" sound. A word like "new" may be pronounced as "noo" or as "nydb" according to choice of accent, either American or British, though the UA covers both easily. 2 9. Hi© dipthong "oiw as in "oil"* The "oy” is added j examples are* "boy," "bucy," "convoy," "annoy," "joy," "loyal," etc. 208 It seems unnecessary in the beginning to change ny w into "i" when a simple rule of similar treatment could incorporate so 1 i many sounds. 30. The diphthong "ou" as in "out”: "ow” is added to the list. j I Examples ares "cow," "vowel," "town," "towel," "crowd,” etc. I Every "ou" is pronounced as in "out" but not all "ow* s" are of the same sound. Therefore, in words like "snow," the omission mark is a great boon. , 31. The letter "p” as in "pan": No addition. j I 32. The letter "r" as in "try": No addition. 33. The letter "s" as in "seed": An under-dotted ”c" is added as in "ice," "a9id,” "century," "justice," "apprentice," j "society," "rice," "domicile," "cell," "facade," "circle," "bicycle," "occipital," eccentric," etc• Compare this under-dotted "c" to the underlined "c" in sound number 19. In French, a special mark called a cedilla is used under "of to indicate the sound of "s," which probably was de vised from the fact that a cedilla ( ) invokes the resemblance to the letter "s" in this case. A dot instead of a cedilla may be easier to draw or print, and may better fit in the lim ited space. 3^. "Sh" as in "shall": A tri-dotted set of letters, "c," "s," j and "t," are added; examples ares "ocean," "sure," "partial," ] 1 "patience," "passion," "pressure," "partition," "delicious," "credential," "pretentious," "radial," "faleism," etc. 209 I Iraqi students will find this mark easy to remember because three dots are used over the letter "s" to give it the "shH sound ( cr , cr ). 35• The letter "t" as in "top"s A dashed "d" is added to denote ■ the sound of the "d" in words such as "touchedfM "inflexed _ _ _ _ _ i "taxedf" "Idssed," "noticed," "apartheid," "hooked," etc. ! i Morphophonetic rules (Prator and Robinett, p. 80) explain when to pronounce a "d" at the end of a word either as "d" or "t," but students more often than not forget such males | and the best way for them to learn is to see it and become familiar with the correct sound by use of this diacritic. j The UA is useful in building good "habits" of pronunciation, especially in a foreign country like Iraq where native English is rarely heard. The dash over the "d" reminds one of the dash that crosses the letter "t." 36. "Th" as in "thin" t No addition. 3?o "Th" as in "this"g No addition, except the change from italics to an underlining of "th" when it occurs in words such as "this." This change was made since italics cannot be emulated in cursive penmanship, but underlining would be easy for students to use in notebooks* i V v I 38. ‘ The ”u" as in "under" s An "o" marked with an underlined breve I is added for use in words such as "lljve," "some," "mother," "governor," "sponge," "coverage," "color,” "comfort," etc. i I 210 The underlined breve " " has the same breve as the letter "u" of "under." To make it applicable to the letter "o" without causing confusion, it had to be marked in such a way that it could carry both the differences and the similarities. Compare this underlined breve to the overlined circumflex in the next sound. A A 39. Letter KuM as in "urgent"* An overlined circumflex on the 7I T T * letters "e," "i," and "o," is added* examples are* "term," "bird," "work," "permit," "fertile," "verse," "circus," "fern," "circle," "thirsty," "persecute," "shirt," "flirt," etc. A The over lined circumflex has the same circumflex in letter "u" A of "urgent," but is marked with an overline to avoid confusion by having the same diacritic for different letters (namely, "e," "i," and "o"). Compare this to its sister sound in the previous article. ^0. Letter "v" as in "very": No addition* *fl. Letter "w" as in "was": A miniature "w" is used as a mark above the letter "u" when it sounds like "w" as in the words: "language," "suave," "queen," "cuisine," "question," "frequent," "sanguine," "guava," "assuage," "languish," "guano," "equal," "Guatemala," etc•, H-2* "Wh" as in "when": The "wh" is always "hw" in pronunciation as in "when," "what," "whale," "wheel," "whether," "wheel," "whether," "whim," "white," etc. ■■"2111 i I 43* The "x" as in "fox” s The "x" that sounds like "ks" is marked ; with one dot over it; examples* "fox," "six,” "axe,” wox,” "explain," "except," "extra," etc* j 4^* The V as in "exam": The "x" that sounds like "gz" is marked | I with two dots as follows: "exam," "exact," "Alexander," "example," "anxiety," "exotic," "ekhaust*" If the stress | n ! is on the "g," then the two-dot diacritic can be marked left i Mi Pf of the stress marks C^)* If the stress is on the " z," then the diacritic will be placed to the right of the diacritic (>•)• If the "g" and "z" are separated for syllabification, ! i then mark ( / ) will be placed between the two legs of the "£•" 45* The "yM as in "yes": Underlined letters are added: "e," ^ 00 AA a "£»" wu*W Examples are: "f^w," "union," "fury," "circular," "cute," "unit," "future," "hew," "ewe," "fusion," "ululate," "furious," "million,M "brilliant," "review," "duty," i The three kinds of "u" were mentioned in sounds numbered 2, 27, : and 28, respectively* 46* Letter "s" as in "zero": The dotted "s" is added as in "rose," . i "hose," "these," "scissors," "desert," "bruise," "busty," "cuisine," "James," "surprise," "usufruct," etc * 4?* The "zh" sound: The "zh" sound is marked with two dots on . letters "g," "s," and "z" as in "beige," "vision," "akure," "usual," "treasure," "pleasure," "badinage," "decision," 1 ! "montage,” "closure," "garage," "regime," "Persia,” "fusion,” ! "conclusion,” etc* Compare this to sound number 34* However, it is not always possible to avoid phonetic respell ing such as the followings "colonel," "/kurnal/"; "cello," "/chelo/"f "said," "/sed"; "pizza," "/petss/"; "sergeant," "/sarjant/"; "reservoir," "/rez9 rvwar/ Figure B-lshows UA compared to both the ITA and IPA* The main difference is that there is no change in spelling in the UA* The criticism of both the ITA and IPA is centered around the damage they inflict on the correct image of spelling. (Warburton and Southgate, 19&9) In fact, the IPA has been rejected as a method in most American dictionaries. Sledd and Ebbitt state that the Inter national Phonetic Alphabet was devised for transcribing the numerous sounds that the human vocal apparatus is capable of producing* "IPA in.its entirety is difficult to learn and complicated to apply efficiently© ... Without considerable modification it has seldom been considered suitable for a general monolingual dictionary." "For a number of practical reasons" it was not adopted in place of the' Merriam-Webster diacritic key in the 193^ New International, and the dictionaries based on it. OVERALL EXAMPLES Unified Alphabet Phonetic Spelling Unified Phonetic Alphabet Spe] dough vefiicle freight few Y ^ • pigmy giant beySnd earth mother dove sword m / / s very v / / x v million steel steal write x flaw flow j do ,x.co dew / do / / veik^l / / frat / / fyoo / / pi|me / / jio nt/ / be -oncf / / urth / / muthar / / duv / / sord / / vere / , vf . / milyan / / stel / / stel / / rit / / rit / / flo / / flo/ / dbo/ / dob / leplie nephew v « * . x ? a passion circle delicious crowd __, X oo view oox ; x rouge ^ 2 51 . * V * y subtle so x saw too • K« two JL~* 3 racial debut brown factual c oast cost 7^ tf c ( person i x® * tssume nefyoo / paslie n/ surks 1/ V V ^ di-lishas/ kroud/ vyoo/ robzh / kolij./ w ^ » sutl / so / A / so / too / too / i , rashsi / di-byboV ♦The Phonetic Spelling Heritage Dictionary. broun / v / / _ . fak-choo-'3l / / kost / / kost I ! i j / porsan / / 3—soonT / is according to The American Unified Phonetic Unified Alphabet Spelling Alphabet genuine / jei?y6b-in / *v»*. 3 extra moztey / v *— / / mune / -V #. fox _ V x — noticed • / notist / democratic smoked / sraokt . / nyfbn vi vs salmon / salraen / Ice —X X peace / pas / 4. V * 1 4. trumpet * — X piece / pas / prank v $ finger / fxnggar/ do X move v t f - z singer / sxnf s > r / W—X queen V If 3 color / kul£> r / a X full v st "K concert * - » ■ * ♦ / konsurt/ truly oration / o-rash3 n / V. X . V- excel / V*3 . s orator / / ora ta r / 7 ^ * thirty i rwx repugn / V — ^ / / rx-pyoon / bathe glazxer n / glazha r / brilliant read / rid / swallow V X , read / rad / <»x canoe v *a desert f / dez3rt/(n) Crown , i *x J assert / / dx-zurt/^(v) firm beret / / b9-ra / e , ^ *v perplex J ! V , exam / xgzam x, eo who ©< / bizlt ff statute bracelet / brasl^t / 9 "K 4? convert — / 214 Phonetic Spelling bfcstra / foks y / y /'y . dema-kratxk / rill&i / Is / | i trumpit ; i prangk / mdSv / j i kwen / ^ fool / treble / &k -sel^Cv)/ thurte / bath / brilya nt / .. , swalo / ka-nbo / kroun / furm / p a rpleks^ / i hoo / ! i 0 _ » stachoot / ksn-xnirt^ / j SdSmcM gilgE BMg SccillSi? D u r in g t h e r e ig n o f C a lip h H a r o u n -a l-R a s c h id there lived in BagdSdz pdhr pbfttr whose naml was Hindbad. One day, when it was ve/y hot, he was £a/fymg a he5vy lokd from one end of town to the btfelr. H i had gonl ^,bout halfwa^ when he caml to a shady street where the pavement had been sprirfkllld with rosl watlr. He was qftitl kxfiaftstlfd^and pfit down his load to rest. From a house nearby came mllodi^Ss strains of mSsic and the rich Itroma of a fe3st. Hindbad wondered wh3 livid there and w<£nt to the gad to inquirl. He was told the house b'eldngld to Sindbad the Sailor, a very wllf-£n5wn and welfthy travlllr. The porter had helrd of Sindbad's gr'kat w eilth and felt en v ies of this m ln whose lifl selmld so fdr^nnktl in cBmpafisbn to his o&n depl&fEtjll pb^lrty. In a loud voicl he utflrSd somk bitflr / ^ S f y ^ / y » » y * ^ thbfigfits on the injustices of life. Whil# still muring s^dly about his lot a sefvlnt tlp£rbtch£d him and, p&ffing him by the slllv£, said: "‘Fbflovt’ me. My m^stlr, Lftrd Sindbad, wants to talk to y$&." He led him into a v^st hall where slvtfrll pIFrsSns were Enjoying a barfqXkt. In the centlr cf the grtf&p sK c a sefi; 83s locking genthlmln wida a long be3rd. This was Sindbad. He bUk'&nld to the porter, invited him to sit down beside him, gave him something to dnnk and said: “I j&st heSrd you complaining against fatl. No douSt you ^m^gine that this wealth which I now enjoy was l£quir£d without' hardship or w5rk. In &fdfr to c5rt?ct this imprefeiSn, I want to tell you about the voykgl which brofi|fat me this for?uni. “I had inhlfitid c?>nsidlrlble mean's from my family but having foolishly sq'feaddfrld m^st of it in my yS&th, I decided to set sail with a company of merchants in order to trad! in f5rli§;n lilnds. “We had been sailing for several welks when we sa\(r a little illand barely rising abovl the w atlr; it lookld likl a gr'lln m£ado&. I was ^mong thosl who* STUDENTS CAN LEARN THE DIACRITICS CASUALLY AS THEY READ THE PASSAGES OF LESSONS Figure B-2 Unified Alphabet ita‘ IPA • :Scample Unified Alphabet ITA VA Bcample 1 CX) - - « * - 25 o <£ OU bone 2 3 a 3 9 9 i 3 0 3 u 3 u — a alone 26 to a au 3 j for 3 V a a 32. at 27 00 o u CP u. good 4 "a e & ei date 28 oo °5 t? U r» C2> boot 5 A a au A care 29 oi oi Di oil 6 a a a* car ■30 ou ow CD au out 7 b b b big 31 p p P pan 8 ch t d *f child 52 r r JL try 9 d d d do 33 s c s s seed 10 V e ' • o egg . 34 sh ,% c s z V Jk r shall 11 e *1 'i* ms 35 * d t t top 12 fph gh f f fun 36! th ..i , ih 9 thin 13 3 g s go 37 th ■ t f * 5 this 14 h h h hill 3S V U -* 0 Lte A under 15 i > a 4 * i i * it 39 A u x e X i X 0 — 3: urgent 16 I 7 ie al bite 40 T V V very 17 A i A 0 — — pier 41 M w w was .18 j d k j d3 jar 42 vh Wli M when 19 k c I f k. ' kind 43 X - - fCK 20 1 1 1 last 44 *1 1 — — * exam 21 m m • must 45 7 e _ i a u 4 ,U. 00 u 7 j yes 22 n n n no 46 2 s 2 2 zer 23 ng n 3 n king 47 zh k z 3 3 azure 24 y j O a o V lot The Unified Alphabet (UA) as it compares to the Initial Teaching Alphabet (ITA) and the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA). The UA is the only one that does not give a false and monstrous visual imag9 of orthography, yet it fur nishes as precise a pronunciation guide as the other two. 217 FlgureB-3_____________________________________ THE UNIFIED ALPHABET LETTERS . Arranged in Alphabetical Order Arranged According to the 47 Sounds cx: 1 ft 25 0 s a V a a A a a a a 1 a 2 3 a 3 e ■ 3 i s o 5 u 3 u 26 A O a b 3 V ' a 27 0*0 a U c c c ch 4 "a « * 28 oo °o oo U a s U oo w d d d 5 A a 29 oi oy 9 e V e e A e l e X e e a 6 a 30 ou ow f 7 b 31 p S k e r o gh 8 ch $ 32 r h 9 d 33 s c a i V i I A i i i X i 10 V e 34 sh S t 3 11 e i ir 35 t d k 12 t ph gh 36 th 1 13 S 37 th a 14 h 38 V u X. o n n ng 15 V i i a » e \ u V 7 39 A u X e X i X o 3 o V 0 o A O 0 • O 1L 0 X o V CO OO oi ca ow 16 I 7 ho 7 p ph 17 A i A e hi W V u q 18 3 d k 42 wh r 19 k c a 43 X s e s s S sh 20 1 44 X t S ’ i th th 21 ra 45 7 e_ i 3 u u so U a u V u a ■ u o U M u a u oo U A U * u l u 22 n 46 z s V 23 ng n 47 zh k 1 A t S * w •• V wh 24 V O a * X X ) = p ( ) interposed, tal/le 7 V 7 7 7 0 (" ) = syllabificati heavy stress, on mark, understand ____' . racy z z zh (') = light stress, democratic Figure B-4 SET TO PRONUNCIATION u (< ® - u ® u < B * 4 © » 4 © Number II | s Exairole o to 3 m 5 Example o CO z ■P -P £ Example o to Example 0 CO 1 CX) no sound . — 25 a eight a 49 A O for A O 73 3 u circus 3 a > ^lone e 26 f fun f 50 0 * O ** move ob 74 V U under v u 3 a at V a 27 g go 8 51 u . o love V u 75 3 U circular y* a data S . 23 g age j 52 X o work A u 76 0 u fury ydo 5 \ a care a 29 1 beige sh 53 do good 0 * 0 77 2 elite yob 6 a car a 30 gh laugh f 54 oo bdbt o“b 78 0 u put oV 7 a all A o 31 h hill h 55 oi oil oi 79 99 u rule 0 * 0 8 a want S 32 3 i easily' '3 56 oy boy oi 80 A u urgent a 9 t a village y i 33 i v it V i 57 ou out ou 81 u language V 10 b big b 3i t i bite I 58 ow cow ou 82 \ u busy V i 11 e ige s 35 A i A pier A i 59 p pan P 83 V very V 12 c cat k 36 i visa ' q 60 ph phone f 84 w was w 13 c ocean sh 37 i union 7 61 q unique k 85 0 0 w • 90 View do lit ch child oh 38 T i 7T bird A u 62 r try r 86vh when hw 15 d do d 39 j jar i 63 s seed s 87 X fax ks 16 d soldier 6 40 k kind k 64 s rose 2 88 X exam g2 17 5 touched t 41 1 last 1 65 s vision zh 89 y yes y 18 1 system . e 42 m must m 66 s sure sh 90 V 7 syth V i 19 V a Sgs 4-3 n no n 67 sh shall sh 91 7 by i 20 a* ma e” 44 n ink ng 63 t top t 92 y duty Q 2} o A near s 45 "S king ng 69 X picture ch 93 * aero z 22 ' ■ s . collage V i 46 9 0 gallop 3 79 t partial sh 9* z azure zh 23 Xv- © term A U ^7 V o lot V O n th .thin • -fck 95 :zh ] zh 24 e few y ^48 o’ bone o ' 72 th this th (^) = (*) Interposed: talkie (^) heavy stress, democracy (^) syllabification mark, understand (/) light stress, democratic REFERENCES TO APPENDICES REFERENCES TO APPENDICES Bent, R. K., Kronenberg, H. H., & Boardman, C. C. Principles of sec ondary education (6th ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill, 1970- Deighton, L. C. Vocabulary development. New York: Macmillan, 1964. Diederich, P. B., & Carlton, S. T. Vocabulary for college (2 vols.). New York: Harcourt, Brace & World, 1965• Dobson, M. J., & Hughes, P. J. In other words. Toronto: Holt, Rinehart & Winston of Canada, 1967* Ehrlich, I. L. Instant vocabulary (6th printing). New York: Pocket Books, 197^* Gayford, 0. M. i.t.a. in primary education. London: Initial Teaching Publishing, 1970. Halsey, W. D., & Morris, C. G. (Eds.). Macmillan dictionary for children. New York: Macmillan Publishing, 1975* Harrison, M. The story of the initial alphabet. London: Pitman, 1965* Orgel, J. R. New building word power. New York: Oxford Books, 1970- Pitman, Sir J., & St. John, J. Alphabets and reading. London: Pitman, 1969. Prator, C. H. Jr., & Robinett, B. W. Manual of American English pro nunciation. New York: Holt, Rinehart & Winston, 1972- P. 80. Price, A. R. Developing your vocabulary. Dubuque, Iowa: William C. Brown, 1973- Sceats, J. i.t.a. and the teaching of literacy. London: Bodley Head, 1967. Sledd, J., & Ebbitt, W. R. Dictionaries and that dictionary. Chicago: Scott, Foresman, 1962. P. 70* Warburton, F. W., & Southgate, V. i.t.a., an independent evaluation. London: J. Murray, 1969• 220 1 4 5 ! sive penmanship. The need for tapes and recordings will be J 'less urgent when the course shifts to the Unified Alphabet j [ rather than IPA„ since the students can indicate the dia critics wherever they want them and learn both spelling and pronunciation at the same time. Diacritics are not strange i to them,, since Arabic relies heavily on their use. j The suggested "Dictionary of a Unified Vocabulary" ■combined with the Unified Alphabet will,, together with the ;English texts that have recently been introduced in Iraq,, :complete'a set of books used for English language studies. 1 ,This dictionary will distribute vocabulary learning over the years, attracting the attention of students to more 'words every time it is used. At the present time the num ber of words in the sixth grade is limited to 500 (Ministry ! of Education,, 197^-* p. 2 5 6) , and to a total of about 2^000 I at the end of junior high. There is no limitation in size | 1 of vocabulary introduced in the preparatory stage,, and a ! I separate text in traditional grammar has been provided for : each of the 3 years (Ministry of Education., 197^-* PP. 235- ! 1 2 4 3). The student graduates at the end of high school with less than 3*500 words, while he needs at least three . times as many to read English well. Writing ability results from extensive reading. The urgent national need of devel- j opment is to enable students to read„ not necessarily to

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Creator Al-kufaishi, Hassan Abdulrazzak (author)

Core Title Education as a vehicle for national development in Iraq

Degree Doctor of Philosophy

Degree Program Education

Publisher University of Southern California (original), University of Southern California. Libraries (digital)

Tag education, sociology of,Middle Eastern Studies,OAI-PMH Harvest

Language English

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Permanent Link (DOI) https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-c26-451724

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Rights Al-kufaishi, Hassan Abdulrazzak

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