Free 10-Week Online Seminar
Hosted on Zoom – Register for Link
Every Friday, October 6 – December 15, 2023
9:00 – 10:30 AM EDT
Course Description: This 10-week seminar will provide a comprehensive analysis of the steps taken to improve quality and drive transformation in Afghanistan’s higher education sector over the last two decades and before the 2021 takeover of the Taliban. Beginning with the historical context of the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan and tracing the advancements, setbacks, and changes following the Taliban takeover and U.S. invasion, this course takes a socio-historical approach to examine the past, present, and future of higher education in Afghanistan.
Seminar Co-Leaders:
Prof. Dr. M. Osman Babury
M. Osman Babury is a German-based former professor of Pharmacognosy and Phytotherapy at Kabul University. In addition, he held various leadership roles including Dean of the Faculty of Pharmacy, Vice-Chancellor of Academic Affairs at Kabul University, Deputy Minister of Higher Education for Academic Affairs in Afghanistan, and Chancellor of Kabul University, until the downfall of the democratic regime in August 2021.
Dr. -Ing Fazlullah Akhtar
Dr.-Ing. Fazlullah Akhtar is a Senior Researcher at the Center for Development Research (ZEF) at the University of Bonn, Germany. He has worked with various national and international organizations, both within and outside Afghanistan, including the Ministry of Higher Education, the Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and Development, UNFAO, and the Office of the President of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. Dr. Akhtar holds a Ph.D. and M.Sc. in Engineering from the University of Bonn.
More Information:
Participants who attend at least 8 complete seminar sessions will receive a certificate of satisfactory completion from the Dean of The New School for Social Research. In order to obtain the certificate, participants must register and log in with the same email address each week.
Registration will remain open for the duration of the seminar. Registrants will receive a reminder email with the Zoom link each week. The seminar sessions will be recorded and available to registrants on Vimeo the following week.
Weekly Readings:
Week 1, October 6: Introduction and History of Afghanistan
- Habibi, Abdul Hai. “The Short History of Afghanistan.”, Book Publishing Institution with
Cooperation by the Historical Society of Afghanistan, 1967. - Palka, Eugene J. “Afghanistan: A Regional Geography.” (2001).
Week 2, October 13: Higher Education in Afghanistan in the Historical Context
- Yazdani H (2020) History of Formal Education and Influence of Politics in Afghanistan, In Factis Pax Volume 14 Number 2 (2020): 120-139
- Samady, Saif R. Education and scientific training for sustainable development of
Afghanistan. Kingston: PDC Copyright, 2007.
Week 3, October 20: Education During the War Periods (1978-2001)
- Handout: Education during the war periods (to be delivered)
- Sadat, Mir H. “History of education in Afghanistan.” March 16 (2004), available at
https://reliefweb.int/report/afghanistan/history-education-afghanistan
Week 4, October 27: Recovery of Higher Education After 2001
- Handout: Recovery of higher education after 2001 (to be delivered)
- Babury, M. O., and F. M. Hayward. (2014) Afghanistan Higher Education: The Struggle for Quality, Merit, and Transformation, Planning for Higher Education Journal, V42N2, January–March 2014.
Week 5, November 3: The First National Higher Education Strategic Plan (2010-2014)
- Handout: National Higher Education Strategic Plan 2010-2014 (to be delivered)
- National Higher Education Strategic Plan I (2010-2014), MoHE, Kabul. (to be delivered per
email)
Week 6, November 10: The Second National Higher Education Strategic Plan (2016-2020)
- Handout: National Higher Education Strategic Plan 2016-2020 (to be delivered)
- National Higher Education Strategic Plan 2 (2016-2020), MoHE, Kabul. (to be delivered)
Week 7, November 17: Access to Higher Education
- World Bank (2013), Higher Education in Afghanistan, An Emerging Mountainscape. South Asia Region, Washington, D.C.
- Babury, M.O. and Hayward, F.M. (2017) ‘Challenges for higher education in Afghanistan in nurturing economic development’. In Stiasny, M. and Gore, T. (eds), Going Global: Building nations, connecting cultures. London: British Council and UCL Institute of
Education Press. (to be delivered)
No Seminar Friday, November 24; Thanksgiving Holiday
Week 8, December 1: Quality in Higher Education
- Babury M O & Fred M Hayward, Afghanistan Higher Education: The Struggle for Quality,
Merit, and Transformation - World Bank (2013), Higher Education in Afghanistan: An Emerging Mountainscape.
South Asia Region, Washington, D.C. - Draft bye-laws for Quality Assurance and Accreditation (QAAA), MoHE, Afghanistan, July
2015.
Week 9, December 8: Achievements in Gender and Associated Issues in Higher Education
- Ministry of Higher Education (2016), Higher Education Gender Strategy, MoHE,
Afghanistan. - Ministry of Higher Education (2016), Nondiscrimination and Anti-Sexual Harassment
Policy for Higher Education Institutions, MoHE, Afghanistan. - Babury, Mohammed Osman, and Fred Manwarren Hayward. “A Lifetime of Trauma:
Mental Health Challenges for Higher Education in a Conflict Environment in Afghanistan.”
Education Policy Analysis Archives 21.68 (2013): n68.
Week 10, December 15: Achievements in Higher Education and Current Status under the Taliban de facto Regime
- Akhtar, F. and Ranjan, A. (2021) Afghanistan’s Education Sector: Prospects Under Taliban Rule
- Policy in Afghanistan: Obstacles, challenges, and achievements. Education Policy Analysis Archives, 3. 27(139).
- Fred M Hayward (2015) Transforming Higher Education in Afghanistan Success Amidst Ongoing Struggles, by the Society for College and University Planning (SCUP) (to be delivered)