Violent Extremism and the Politics of Education in Pakistan

Pakistan is depicted as a victim as well as a sponsor of terrorism. The reason behind this characterisation is that Pakistan, since its inception in 1947, has experienced multifaceted violence, ranging from ethnic insurgencies to sectarian violence. At the same time, it has been blamed for fomenting violence in its neighbours. On the one hand, there have been anti-terrorism laws in place since the late 1990s; on the other, there is an Islamised public sphere that provides fecund soil for violent extremists to thrive. The questions to be addressed here are: What kinds of anti-terrorism laws exist in Pakistan and how effective are they against terrorism? What is the role of the state-managed curriculum in providing a conducive environment for the growth of violent extremism? This research appeals to the “garrison state” theory, which explains how “the specialists on violence” control every aspect of the state, complemented by the concept of “fragmented hegemony,” which explains how the seemingly corrupt multiple sites of power help the state maintain its hegemony over society.

An ‘Organ of Student Opinion’? Alternative Print, Protest, and the Politics of Education in Salient, 1973-1989

<p>This thesis explores Victoria University of Wellington’s student newspaper, Salient, in the 1970s and 1980s. Salient covered a wide array of issues, performing its role as a campus newspaper while closely engaging with and informing students of wider political issues during a period of significant student protest. As a publication, it consistently and deliberately set itself apart from the mainstream media, a position which placed it alongside other alternative or radical publications. Furthermore, the thesis demonstrates that the connections between Salient and the Wellington Marxist-Leninist Organisation (MILO) were profound and enduring in the 1970s, with significant implications for the kinds of analysis and issues that Salient presented to its readers. While individual editors did have unique editorial policies, the nature of Salient’s journalism in the 1970s was notably socialist and activist in its outlook. In the 1980s, while Salient maintained a progressive political outlook, the direct association with MILO (by then the Workers’ Communist League) loosened. The paper’s political content still covered a range of contemporary social issues, and its editors took political stances, but its content was more akin to political commentary than an extension of political activism. The exception was Salient’s opposition to user pays tertiary education, which was seriously considered by David Lange’s Labour Government as part of its neoliberal reforms. As the possibility of a user-pays tertiary education system became more likely, Salient dedicated more space to covering, opposing, and organising action against this disruptive policy which had major implications for its student readership. Salient often did not speak for all students, but provided a platform for alternative analysis of social and political issues, pushing the boundaries of the purpose of student media and its place within the print landscape of New Zealand.</p>

An ‘Organ of Student Opinion’? Alternative Print, Protest, and the Politics of Education in Salient, 1973-1989

<p>This thesis explores Victoria University of Wellington’s student newspaper, Salient, in the 1970s and 1980s. Salient covered a wide array of issues, performing its role as a campus newspaper while closely engaging with and informing students of wider political issues during a period of significant student protest. As a publication, it consistently and deliberately set itself apart from the mainstream media, a position which placed it alongside other alternative or radical publications. Furthermore, the thesis demonstrates that the connections between Salient and the Wellington Marxist-Leninist Organisation (MILO) were profound and enduring in the 1970s, with significant implications for the kinds of analysis and issues that Salient presented to its readers. While individual editors did have unique editorial policies, the nature of Salient’s journalism in the 1970s was notably socialist and activist in its outlook. In the 1980s, while Salient maintained a progressive political outlook, the direct association with MILO (by then the Workers’ Communist League) loosened. The paper’s political content still covered a range of contemporary social issues, and its editors took political stances, but its content was more akin to political commentary than an extension of political activism. The exception was Salient’s opposition to user pays tertiary education, which was seriously considered by David Lange’s Labour Government as part of its neoliberal reforms. As the possibility of a user-pays tertiary education system became more likely, Salient dedicated more space to covering, opposing, and organising action against this disruptive policy which had major implications for its student readership. Salient often did not speak for all students, but provided a platform for alternative analysis of social and political issues, pushing the boundaries of the purpose of student media and its place within the print landscape of New Zealand.</p>

The Politics of Student Voice: The Power and Potential of Students as Policy Actors

Historically and contemporarily students have been critical to bringing issues of justice in education policy to the fore. Yet, there have been limited formal spaces that elevate student voice scholarship in educational policy. In response, this Politics of Education Association (PEA) Yearbook Issue of Educational Policy aims to serve as a platform for opening up new areas for investigation, especially connections between theory to practice specific to student voice in educational policy and the politics of education. This collection of feature articles and research briefs offer diverse examples of how students are influencing change in education policy and practice, while also presenting the political realities and tensions that emerge when students participate in policy leadership activities.

Synthetic Governance: On the Impossibility of Taming Artificial Intelligence in Education

This paper claims it is impossible to tame Artificial Intelligence in education. The paper is not advocating that AI should be used in an unfettered way in education. Rather, the paper suggests that despite ongoing policy attempts to regulate AI, these policy moves are unlikely to succeed due to a synthesis of machines and humans in education governance. The paper briefly outlines attempts to tame AI, and proposes that rather than considering taming AI, a new politics of education may be necessary.

Graduated Sovereignty vis-à-vis Aspirations: Education for the Adivasi and Cultural Politics in the Barind Region of Bangladesh

This article is concerned with the meaning of education for Santal and Munda communities, living in the Barind region. The aim of this paper is to document the narratives of Adivasis’ on education. What do they mean by education? What kind of situation did they experience in formal education? How they respond to the existing form of education. The article is written based on ethnographic material drawn from 8/9 months of frequent visit in the field of study. Data was collected by using semi-structured questionnaire, observation and participation. To Adivasis of Santal and Munda communities, education means to fight the mainstream society back, to act confidently, erase the stereotypical images they are labelled by the dominant group, and to get freedom from poverty; aspirations to overcome the conditions of graduated sovereignty and cultural politics. To consider the qualitative matter of social mobility, namely the aspiration in both the individual and community levels, the article proposes to look beyond the existing dominant analytical frame of educational access and exclusion. The analytical tools were developed following Appadurai’s concept of aspiration and Ong’s idea of graduated sovereignty. This article is a critical assessment of the marginal communities’ formal education and development and will contribute to ethnographic intervention in social anthropology and development studies, and contemporary debate on politics of education. Social Science Review, Vol. 37(2), Dec 2020 Page 1-26

The Politics of Education: a Study of Attitudes Pressures and Relations in the New Zealand Education System

<p>Political science is a discipline which purports to study power as a process, a distinct but inseparable part of the social process. It is the general aim of this study to shed light on the inner workings and operating norms of a democratic system. More specifically, the study hopes to offer an empirical examination of the pressures, attitudes, and relationships which constitute one sector of democratic government in New Zealand, the administration of public education. The philosophic starting point for the study is in part pluralistic, in that education 'politics' is seen to be a 'system' of components which can be described and examined and which is itself a component of a more embracing 'system' called New Zealand politics. Briefly stated, it is believed that by studying one sector of governmental activity - that is, one 'system' - in some detail, one may arrive at conclusions which could be applied to wider settings. An alternative method of approach would have been to look at a particular facet of the governmental process - pressure group activity for example - over a wider area. Both methods have drawbacks, but for a complete picture to emerge eventually, both types of study will be needed.</p>

The Politics of Education: a Study of Attitudes Pressures and Relations in the New Zealand Education System

<p>Political science is a discipline which purports to study power as a process, a distinct but inseparable part of the social process. It is the general aim of this study to shed light on the inner workings and operating norms of a democratic system. More specifically, the study hopes to offer an empirical examination of the pressures, attitudes, and relationships which constitute one sector of democratic government in New Zealand, the administration of public education. The philosophic starting point for the study is in part pluralistic, in that education 'politics' is seen to be a 'system' of components which can be described and examined and which is itself a component of a more embracing 'system' called New Zealand politics. Briefly stated, it is believed that by studying one sector of governmental activity - that is, one 'system' - in some detail, one may arrive at conclusions which could be applied to wider settings. An alternative method of approach would have been to look at a particular facet of the governmental process - pressure group activity for example - over a wider area. Both methods have drawbacks, but for a complete picture to emerge eventually, both types of study will be needed.</p>