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Higher education must not leave working families behind

By: Andy Van Kleunen.

Why short-term training programs make sense for both careers and budgets

 

The promise of education in America is a promise of opportunity. A promise that education — especially higher education — can offer a pathway to the middle class and an opportunity to build a successful life for yourself, your children and your grandchildren.

The unfortunate reality, though, is that our higher education system isn’t delivering on that promise of opportunity for far too many families, particularly those who choose to pursue career-focused learning in fields that require less than a four-year degree. A major barrier is the bias against working students in our current federal financial aid system.

The conventional view of a college student is someone who just graduated from high school, who is on the verge of turning 18 and moving to a college campus to pursue a full-time, four-year degree. Today’s students, however, tend to be older — nearly 7.6 millioncollege students in 2018 were 25 years or older. And of the 12.1 million students enrolled in community colleges in 2015-16, about 900,000 were 40 or older.

Many are parents — more than one in five, with nearly 4 million raising children while in college. The majority are already in the labor market. Sixty-two percent of all community college students attend on a part-time basis, and nearly three-quarters of them are working either full- or part-time.

All of this means that these students are pursuing higher education while balancing work and family obligations for the explicit purpose of climbing the ladder to prosperity in the job market.

Federal education funding, such as Pell Grants, primarily supports traditional, full-time students pursuing degree programs, leaving out working families who enroll in short-term job training programs — that is, courses that are connected to a local industry, a job and higher wages, but that may not meet the Pell-eligible standard of 600 clock hours set 40 years ago.

The labor market challenges that today’s working families face are dramatically different from what they were four decades ago. Back in 1973, only 28 percent of jobs required postsecondary education or training, which meant that entering the higher education system to acquire additional skills to grow in a career wasn’t a necessity for most workers.

Today, a majority of U.S. jobs require some form of postsecondary education or training. Not to mention the nearly two-thirds of jobs in the United States that are expected to change significantly in the coming years because of new technologies.

That’s why short-term training programs, particularly at community and technical colleges, are expanding today. Millions of workers are seeking non-degree credentials that teach skills they need to keep pace with a rapidly changing economy. It’s why a clear majority of Americans — 82 percent — wish to see more classes that teach job and career skills.

If we truly want to fulfill the promise of opportunity in our higher education system, it’s only fair that we extend federal financial aid to working students who choose to pursue skills training, just as we do to “traditional” students seeking four-year college degrees. This idea is supported by 86 percent of Americans.

The good news is that two lawmakers in Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senators Tim Kaine (D-VA) and Rob Portman (R-OH), co-chairs of the Senate Career and Technical Education Caucus — have introduced legislation to address this issue: the JOBS Act, which would extend Pell Grants to high-quality short-term programs of at least 150 clock hours of instructional time over a period of eight weeks.

To be clear, federal financial aid for working students isn’t a silver bullet. It’s a necessary — but not sufficient — step toward meeting the needs of working families. It’s not enough simply to provide access to affordable skills training programs. We must also ensure that students get the support they need to succeed in and complete those programs. That means providing more dedicated federal funding for support services — like child care, transportation and comprehensive career counseling — which tend to be obstacles for working students.

More federal support is also needed to sustain existing partnerships between local businesses and community and technical colleges. Investing in these partnerships would help ensure that local training prepares workers for well-compensated local jobs.

Finally, students deserve access to secure, transparent and easily accessible data that lets them know exactly what educational institutions and training programs will give them the best return on their investment. College is the biggest financial investment that most students make aside from buying a home. They have a right to more information about student outcomes, including data on enrollment, completion and post-college success across colleges and programs.

These are a few of the meaningful solutions that we can pursue to modernize our higher education system and help America fulfill its promise of opportunity for all students, not just those pursuing four-year degrees.

Source of the article: https://hechingerreport.org/opinion-higher-education-families/

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Ending child marriage and teenage pregnancy in Kenya

Africa/ Kenya/ Fuente: www.kbc.co.ke.

 

Early pregnancy and early marriage worsens poverty conditions of families and girls, instead of reducing it, Machakos County Director for Education, Mrs. Shamsa Adan Mohammed has said.

She said access to education was the surest way to breaking the vicious cycle of poverty that teenage pregnancy and early marriages sustained in families.

She girls should take advantage of the Free Primary and Day Secondary Education programme the government provided to break the chains of poverty by completing primary and secondary education.

She made the remarks at Makivenzi ABC Girls Secondary schools during a Joint Mission to assess the preparedness of the Counties in implementing Secondary Education Quality Improvement Project (SEQIP) in 110 sub counties are the most disadvantaged sub counties in 30 counties.

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The team was led by the National Coordinator of the Project, Ms Jane Mbugua, and World Bank Task Team Leader, Ms Huma Ali Waheed. The team visited eight schools in Murang’a and Machakos Counties, which is among 30 Counties to benefit from the project.

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The Project worthy Shs.20 billion, and funded by the World Bank, aims at improving student learning and transition from Primary to Secondary education in 110 sub counties that the most disadvantaged areas in 30 counties.

The Project targets 7,852 Primary Schools and 2,147 secondary schools in 110 Sub counties in the 30 Counties.

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Under the project, Class 7 and 8 and forms 1-4 in targeted schools have already received textbooks in Mathematics, English and Science subjects, thereby achieving a student-textbook ratio of 1:1.

Under the project, Kenya Institute for Curriculum Development (KICD) has received technical support in developing Competence based curriculum grade 4, 5and 6.

Schools in the target regions have been selected schools and are set to benefit from infrastructure support which includes classrooms, science laboratories, library, toilets, water facilities and electricity.

Embedded in the project, is a scholarship programme to enable vulnerable students to complete secondary schools.

The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) has recruited 600 teachers to serve the targeted region in the last financial year, to address teacher shortage in the area. Kenya National Examinations Council has been able, under the auspices of the Project, to strengthen national examinations and assessments systems.

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The strengthening of the national examinations and assessments systems follows adoption of the Competence based curriculum. KNEC will now examine and assess the effectiveness of the teaching and learning of the repertoire of skills that learners are expected to learn and internalise.

The project aims at, among others, addressing barriers to access to inclusive quality education in the region, as part of the strategy to meeting the Sustainable Development Goals.

Source of the notice: https://www.kbc.co.ke/ending-child-marriage-and-teenage-pregnancy-in-kenya/

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Violence against women on the rise in Pakistan

Asia/ Pakistan/ Fuente: www.dw.com.

Pakistan ranks as the sixth most dangerous country in the world for women, with cases of sexual crimes and domestic violence recording a rapid rise. Activists blame society’s patriarchal attitudes for the problem.

40-year-old Shazia S. was busy talking to her daughter at her parents-in-law’s house in Lahore. The mother of six barely had any idea what awaited her. Her husband Sajjad R., a mason by profession, suddenly turned up and asked her to accompany him. She was surprised, but went with him nonetheless.

«He grabbed me firmly, shoving me against the wall and unleashing a barrage of kicks and slaps,» Shazia told DW. «Then he picked up a metal pipe and started hitting me mercilessly,» she added. Shazia’s husband suspected that his wife was having an extramarital relationship. He kept asking about it while hitting me and wouldn’t listen to me even though I stressed that I wasn’t having any extramarital affair, she said.

Sajjad even threatened to kill her and used his knife to cut off her nose, Shazia said. «No one could hear my cries because he had tightly locked the door. He also inflicted wounds on other parts of my body, including my neck, and then fled. He left me bleeding and crying for help,» she recollected.

After the ordeal, Shazia’s neighbors took her to a hospital, where she was treated. The doctors said they couldn’t fix her nose with plastic surgery, but that she could try and get some treatment abroad.

Amjad Ali, an investigating officer in the case, told DW that the police raided various locations to nab the accused, but could not find him. Shazia’s husband has now received bail and the court hearings of the case are set to take place in the coming weeks.

«The police failed to arrest my husband, who managed to get bail even before his arrest,» Shazia said. «He came back to our area just the other day and told one of the residents that he chopped off my nose to teach me a lesson and save his honor, because he suspected me of meeting another man.»

Shazia, who is now living with her mother in Lahore, fears for her life. Her husband wants her to withdraw the case against him. But she says she cannot imagine living together with a person who has ruined her life. She is also afraid that her father-in-law, a retired police official, might influence the authorities and seek to compromise the legal case against his son. Shazia stressed that she would not let her husband go scot-free.

Source of the notice: https://www.dw.com/en/violence-against-women-on-the-rise-in-pakistan/a-50550672

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India is reforming education for the first time since 1986 – here’s why Australia should care

Asia/ India/ Fuente: theconversation.com.

India released a Draft National Education Policy (DNEP) in June 2019. It’s the first comprehensive policy proposal on education in the country since 1986 and a major, game changing statement.

Australia has a moral duty to engage with the global challenge of providing quality education to hundreds of millions of Indian youth. And by engaging with India as it rolls out this policy, Australian universities stand to gain knowledge and research capacity, among many other things.

What’s the new policy trying to achieve?

India’s National Policy on Education was framed in 1986 and modified in 1992. Clearly a lot has change in the country since then.

The proposed new policy is remarkable for two main reasons.

First, it takes a cold-eyed look at the existing educational structures and processes in India. The document reflects honestly and in depth on state-level universities and colleges where the majority of students study. In these institutions, the facilities, teaching, and governance are usually poor.

 


A second remarkable element to the draft is the scale and boldness of the vision. The policy aims to make changes across all levels of education – from early childhood to university.

The draft policy, which is currently in the consultation phase, recommends doubling funding for public education from the present figure of roughly 3% of GDP to 6%.

It aims to change the structure of school education so children begin their schooling at three years old, with three preschool years incorporated into the formal structure.

The draft policy also calls for an overhaul of teacher training which will now occur in universities rather than specialist colleges, which are often of low quality.

In tertiary education (though the draft is weak on the issue of vocational education), the policy sets a target of 50% of youth being enrolled in universities by 2035 (in 2016, the figure was 24.5%).

 


The DNEP recommends dismantling the current system of universities and private and public colleges to develop between 10,000-15,000 multi-disciplinary universities, which would be funded in part through the increased government investment in higher education.

The document notes the current system is made up of more than 850 universities and about 40,000 colleges, with 20% of those colleges offering just a single program of study, and 20% having under 100 students.

The DNEP states:

The main thrust of this policy regarding higher education is the ending of the fragmentation of higher education by moving higher education into large multidisciplinary universities and colleges, each of which will aim to have upwards of 5,000 or more students.

The new institutions are envisioned to promote education in the arts and social sciences. The focus on “liberal arts” will encourage critical thinking and appreciation of the value of education beyond just preparing the population for employment.

The DNEP emphasises the importance of developing a research culture across most universities in India and stresses the value of internationalisation by “preparing our students to participate in world affairs through providing them with learning experiences that cut across countries and cultures”.

It also aims to to “attract students from other countries to participate in our higher education programmes”.

Why Australia should care

The poor quality of school and university described in the DNEP is a critical global challenge. As it stands, large parts of India, especially northern India, are unlikely to meet the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goal 4, which calls for accessible, quality education for everyone.

Australia should partner with India to address the needs of the hundreds of millions of young people demanding a better education.

Australia has a lot to gain from engaging with India on its new education policy. MICK TSIKAS/AAP

By interacting with top Indian researchers and students, Australia can also improve its own research and knowledge capacity. Australia can make commercial gains from working with India in the redevelopment of its education system.

Australian universities can act in five areas in particular:

1. Build research capacity in India and across the Australia-India boundary

Australia already has a research partnership with India, the Australia India Strategic Research Fund (AISRF). This should be extended, through a joint new research fund with India’s already established new National Research Foundation.

India faces a major challenge in creating a body of excellent researchers capable of occupying positions in its proposed new universities. It is therefore crucial that research partnership also involves building this capacity, especially by creating new PhD training and post-doctoral positions.

2. Partner with India in open and distance learning (ODL)

The DNEP’s goal of increasing the number of students in university in India to 50% can’t occur through bricks and mortar expansion. India has a lot of experience on ODLs but Australia and India could usefully partner in the development of better quality technology platforms.

3. Help train Indian school teachers

Australia has major strength in teacher education. India is looking to other countries to assist in training the staff in universities who will be responsible for training teachers in the new system. Australian action in this area would greatly help Indian education into its next phase.

4. Provide expertise on internationalisation

Australia has been very successful since the 1990s in internationalising its education. Education is now one of Australia’s largest exports. Australian universities and peak bodies such as the Group of Eight Universities could be partners in India’s efforts to internationalise.

5. Building campuses in each other’s countries

The DNEP recommends overturning regulation that prevents foreign universities from establishing campuses in India. It invites the world’s top 200 universities to develop a physical presence in the subcontinent. It also encourages Indian institutions to consider opening campuses abroad.

Australian universities could approach Indian institutions to discuss the development of a physical presence in each other’s countries, such as laboratory spaces, research centres or campuses.

The DNEP is remarkable on many levels: a bold effort to rethink education from first principles in a country containing one fifth of the world’s youth. Australia should make it a priority to engage.

Source of the notice: https://theconversation.com/india-is-reforming-education-for-the-first-time-since-1986-heres-why-australia-should-care-121812

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Child undernutrition costing Kenya’s economy Ksh 373b: Study

Africa/Kenya/24-11-2019/Author(a): Ministry Of Health/Source: www.kbc.co.ke

Por: Ministry Of Health

The cost of child undernutrition to the Kenya’s economy is 373.9 billion shillings, which represents a loss of 6.9 percent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) as at 2014, this is according to a study. 

The study dubbed “ Cost of Hunger in Africa (COHA) – Kenya  chapter  touches directly on three sectors of the economy namely Health, Education and Labor productivity and using 2014 as a reference period shows that Hunger is one of the root causes of malnutrition in Kenya as well as Africa with the negative impact on children under five years.

The report says that despite Kenya having made progress in reducing stunting in children from a high of 33 percent in 1994 to 26 percent in 2014, stunting rates are still high since it affects 1 in every four children under 5 years.

In a speech read by the Cabinet Secretary for Health Sicily Kariuki, on behalf of  President Uhuru Kenyatta, during the release of the Cost of Hunger in Africa (COHA) Kenya Study report on Thursday, the President said scale up and diverse financing for good nutrition for a healthy and productive nation should be a priority  to address the challenges associated with malnutrition.

He therefore said there is need to work together and put in place a comprehensive mechanism to address challenges of child undernutrition.

He also called for strengthening of existing public private partnership in the implementation of the policy recommendations from the study

The President noted that the challenges associated with malnutrition have led to the need for focus and emphasis on nutrition as part of the development effort in the World.

“Recognizing that Children are the greatest asset of our Nation, My Government is committed to ending child undernutrition,” he said.

Child undernutrition and in particular stunting in children has a negative impact on productivity at a much later stage in life.  Kenya has reduced stunting in children from a high of 33% in 1994 to 26% in 2014.

“As a Government, we are committed to reducing the stunting rates to 14.5% by 2030,” the President said and thanked all the development partners, who have walked with the government on the journey of ensuring that children have a brighter tomorrow.

Speaking during the release of the report, Treasury Cabinet Secretary Amb.  Ukur Yatani who was represented by Albert Mwenda, Director General, Budget, Fiscal and Economic Affairs said hunger is unacceptable and must be eradicated especially in Africa.

“In 2018, the number of people who were hungry globally stood at 821.6 Million, which implies that one person in nine people, suffers from hunger. Approximately 31 percent of the World hungry people come from Africa, “he noted..

The economic impact of child undernutrition on the health sector therefore is at  KSh. 18.6 Billion, representing  0.3 percent of our GDP as at 2014 he noted.

Based on the findings, the CS said that COHA Kenya National Implementation Team  will strengthen the implementation of the nutrition component within the community health strategy,  disseminate and implement comprehensive school health and nutrition programme and also integrate nutrition as targeting component in social protection programmes for the highly vulnerable populations.

The Council of  Governors (CoG) representative, Transzoia CEC Mary Nzomo said, the report will be useful for the national and county planning and budgeting process as well as offer important source of  data in the mid -term review of the county integrated development plans and their implementation and the big four agenda  of 100 percent food and nutrition security.

The COHA study estimates the social and economic impact of child undernutrition and provides evidence based analysis on cost of hunger geared towards  implementing strategies that eradicate child undernutrition in the country.

Source and Image: https://www.kbc.co.ke/child-undernutrition-costing-kenyas-economy-ksh-373b-study/

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China Sees Surge of Edtech Investments With Focus on Artificial Intelligence

Asia/ China/ 19.11.2019/ Source: karmaimpact.com.

China’s push to become a world tech power, which has paid off with advances in telecommunications, batteries and robots, is yielding further results — it’s taken a leadership position in A.I. powered education investments.

The country is among the most-active regions for artificial intelligence-powered edtech investments, with K-12 classes, foreign language study and high-quality education getting the most attention, according to a Deloitte report released this week. Almost 20% of all education deals in the country last year involved AI compared with 4% in 2016, Deloitte said.

“Although China is a late-comer in AI-based education, its unique advantages in application and implementation make it one of the most popular regions for investment in AI-based education globally,” the report said.

The report singled out what it sees as the next big opportunity in edtech: so-called soft skill-focused “quality education,” similar to the west’s STEAM model, which adds art to the original emphasis on science, technology, engineering and math. The segment has developed with state support, the report said.

“AI-based quality education is becoming the blue ocean for investment,” the report said.

Globally, the U.S. and China are the two hotspots of edtech investments. More than 95% of AI edtech investments from 2016 through the first quarter of this year were in the two countries, according to the report. Chinese companies scored $63.2 billion in 170 deals, compared with $154.2 billion in 54 U.S. investments.

  • Machine learning with emotion and facial recognition abilities is rapidly advancing “quality education.” Most of the investments in the “quality education” area have been in the round A stage, Deloitte said.
  • Companies focused on K-12 are the most mature and attract the most investments. They scored 50 deals in 2018, according to the report.
  • With support from China’s government, such as 2018’s Education Informationization 2.0 Action Plan, the area of “academic affairs administration” is also gaining investments. Academic affairs administration focuses on such topics as smart class-scheduling and homework platforms.
  • Potential investors in the AI-based edtech sector will see a divergence occurring in China, with industry leaders like Tencent preferring to back companies that are in their growth stages while VC/PE investors such as ZhenFund and Sequoia Capital focus more on cutting-edge technologies. Established education companies including New Oriental and TAL Education are focusing more on mergers and acquisitions, Deloitte said.

Source of the notice: https://karmaimpact.com/china-sees-surge-of-edtech-investments-with-focus-on-artificial-intelligence/

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Australia: More than 100 SA schools to close in catastrophic fire conditions

Oceania/ Australia/ 19.11.2019/ Fuente: www.abc.net.au.

South Australia’s Department for Education has announced 111 schools and kindergartens will be closed tomorrow as a safety measure during catastrophic fire danger conditions.

Key points:

  • Catastrophic fire conditions are expected in seven SA regions on Wednesday
  • More than 100 schools will be closed
  • Adelaide Hills residents are preparing for possible bushfires

The closures include 65 sites in the Mount Lofty Ranges.

Seven regions in South Australia have been given catastrophic fire danger ratings for Wednesday by the Bureau of Meteorology, including Kangaroo Island.

No part of the state has been rated lower than «severe».

A total fire ban applies across the whole state for the rest of today and Wednesday.

The Country Fire Service (CFS) has compared tomorrow’s bushfire risk conditions to those that were present during the Pinery and Bangor fires.

Record-breaking temperatures of over 40 degrees Celsius are forecast for some parts of the state, along with winds of up to 60 kilometres per hour.

Catastrophic conditions have been forecast for the eastern and lower Eyre Peninsula, the Yorke Peninsula, the west coast, the Mid North, the Mount Lofty Ranges, along with Kangaroo Island.

Department for Education infrastructure executive director Ross Treadwell said «high-risk schools» would not open tomorrow and bus services would be cancelled.

«It enables parents and the people in those districts to enact their bushfire plans,» he said.

A large air tanker from New South Wales is on standby to fly to South Australia if a fire does break out.

CFS assistant chief officer Brenton Eden said if winds were too strong tomorrow there was a chance no aircraft would be able to be deployed.

«The community has a general expectation that aircraft and everything in the air are able to respond rapidly and save them from these fire events [but] on days like this those aircraft may not get off the ground,» Mr Eden said.

Residents prepare for dangerous conditions

Many Adelaide Hills residents spent Tuesday preparing their properties, clearing long grass and putting their survival plan in place.

Crafers resident John Angel said the community needed to be «overcautious».

«The [Adelaide Hills] Council came along and quickly mowed this with [a] tractor leaving lots of spare spots, but sometimes those bare spots if an ember comes on it is enough to start this up,» he said.

«I’ve got a free morning so I just thought I’d come and do what I can.

«I think if everyone is out doing their bit, I know the council are and the CFS are — all you can do is just be as prepared as you can.»

More than 500 Adelaide Hills properties were last week warned to clean up their properties ahead of the bushfire danger season, which started last Friday in the area east of Adelaide.

No fines have yet been issued.

«We’re always concerned when residents don’t clean up their properties appropriately, however, we also recognise that people have busy lives and reminders and notices that we provide them just helps them re-prioritise bushfire safety,» Adelaide Hills Council chief executive officer Andrew Aitken said.

«I think the majority of our residents and businesses are well prepared.

«Obviously, it’s an ongoing exercise to remain vigilant.»

Mr Aitken said some council services and businesses would be closed on Wednesday.

He said the council would not make its employees work if they needed to defend their property in the event of a fire or if it was too risky to come to work, and he encouraged other local businesses to do the same.

«We already know what staff are planning to do leading up to a catastrophic fire day,» he said.

«We certainly encourage, as does the CFS, all property owners whether they be residents or businesses to have their bushfire survival plan in place and it’s never too late to do that.

«If your bushfire plan says to leave, leave early.»

Record temperatures set to be broken

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Bureau of Meteorology acting SA supervising meteorologist Paul Lainio said November temperature records could be broken.

«The whole day effectively for the state will be hot, dry and fairly windy at times,» he said.

The record November temperature for Adelaide’s West Terrace weather station is 42.7C, set in 1962.

Innamincka and Oodnadatta in the state’s far north are set to reach 43C, while Tarcoola will reach 45C.

Innamincka resident Ali Matthews said her family was preparing for the heat.

«We’ve got two little kids, so it’s hard to keep them inside all day, every day,» she said.

«Obviously, when it’s 40-plus or 50-plus it’s not very pleasant, so lots of waterplay for the kids and we’re in the air-conditioning as much as possible.

«There’s not a lot of work you can get done in those sorts of temperatures.»

Source of the notice: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-11-19/sa-schools-to-close-amid-catastrophic-fire-conditions/11718984

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