Stories about Education from April, 2008
Cuba: New Freedoms
Blogging from Havana, Circles Robinson Online writes about Cuba's “new freedoms”.
UAE: Broadcasters of Tomorrow New Milestone
Sharjah-based Broadcasters of Tomorrow celebrate their 250,000th visitor to the site.
Jamaica: Teenaged Sex
Blogging at Yardflex.com, Rootzgirl says: “Teenage sex is rampant, as is the increasing number of teenaged pregnancies…something needs to be done…before there is no hope for this generation.”
Hungary: Separation of Church and State
Hungarian Spectrum writes about separation of church and state in Hungary: “[…] Most people are uncomfortable with the theocratic states of the Muslim world. Why should we try to imitate them in a very secular Europe?”
Afghanistan: Blogging Workshop
Nasim Fekrat posts pictures of the first blogging seminar in Kabul, organized by the Afghan Association of Blog Writers and hel by the author.
Jamaica, U.S.A.: Woman of the Year
“In spite of the negativity surrounding Jamaica…there is one more reason to be proud”: YardFlex.com reports that a Jamaican has been chosen by the American Biographical Institute as their Woman of the Year in Education.
Afghanistan: First blogging workshop in Kabul
The Afghan Association of Blog Writers (Afghan Penlog) overcame financial difficulty and obstacles like electricity shortages to organize the first blogging workshop in their history. The workshop was held in Kabul on April 3-4, in association with Nasim Fekrat and Masoumeh Ebrahimi, two active Afghan bloggers.
Iran:Politics and Culture in the Persian Blogosphere
An excellent study about Iranian blogosphere by Harvard Berkman Center for Internet and Society:Mapping Iran’s Online Public: Politics and Culture in the Persian Blogosphere.
Bahrain: Should young girls wear hijab?
Bahrain's bloggers have recently looked at topics including the difficulties of being a pedestrian in Bahrain, negative thinking amongst Bahraini youth, the pressure placed on young girls to wear the headscarf – and the need to communicate more with Americans, writes Ayesha Saldanha, who brings us the latest buzz from Bahrain.
Southeast Europe, Russia: War, Peace, and Shared History
Veronica Khokhlova translates some Russophone bloggers' views on shared history and conflict in Southeastern Europe and the Caucasus.
Argentina: high school students use online video to report their issues.
By uploading a video on YouTube, argentinean high school students managed to get mass media's attention to their plight: the need for a building where they can receive classes. Currently the Ipem 112 “César Iñíguez Montenegro”, in Sebastián Elcano, a village to the north of the Cordoba capital in Argentina are receiving lessons at an elementary school. However, because the elementary school has double shifts, the high school students are forced to receive evening classes, as if it were a night school.
Jordan: The Queen's Video, New Media Battles & Spring
As spring begins to take its course throughout the Kingdom, Jordanian bloggers have had a lot to talk about these past two weeks. Naseem Tarwanah takes us on the tour of the Jordanian blogosphere, with stops at the Queen Rania YouTube message to the world; online free speech; spring and local politics.
Lebanon: Teachers’ Strike
Lebanese teachers went on strike (April 3) to protest low wages, high cost of living and inflation, as reported by Sursock.
Jordan: What Do Our Children Read?
"What do our children read?" is the question posed by Jordanian Batir Wardam (Ar), who finds himself pleading on behalf of a girl at a bookshop who wanted to buy a children's magazine against her nonchalant mother's wishes.
Korea: Conflicts between Koreans in their 20s and in their 30-40s
Recently, there has been a series of demonstrations that Korean college students have led against the increase in tuition fees. Presidents of college students’ associations got together and tried to hand the letter to President, Lee Myung Bak, directly. Some students have had their heads shaved. The rapid increase, 6.5-9%...
Saudi Arabia: Electronic Games – The Good, the Bad, and the Overlooked
The newly-founded Saudi Information Technology Club, a non-profit organization established by young, Saudi IT enthusiasts and situated in the Eastern Province of the Kingdom between the cities of Dammam and Khobar, held a unique initiative which targeted the largely-overlooked subject of the effects of electronic gaming on youth. Fahad Albutairi reports from the session and brings up to date with the gaming scene in Saudi Arabia, where the average Saudi gamer spends an average of $400 annually on new video games.
Jamaica: Racial Stereotypes
Ragashanti, a popular talk show host, invited listeners to weigh in on the topic of Indians in Jamaica – and the barrage of racist slurs by callers has caused an outcry. Blogger Annie Paul‘s take on all this is “that in the haste to censor if not prosecute Raga…the important...
Japan: the Japanese School Uniform
PingMag has a feature article on the Japanese School Uniform fashion.
Indonesia: Lack of good political books?
Indonesian blogger Tephy is frustrated over the “lack of good, even decent Indonesian political book.” She said “There’s a pretty good stack of good Indonesian political books, but just by reading the title I feel like I’m being dragged to a land of Snoozeville. I’m looking for a book that...
Panama: Using the OLPC as Vote-Seeking Machine
At OLPC News, A. Barrera writes about his experiences with trying to get the Panamanian government interested in participating in the One Laptop Per Child project and that “the XO, based on the acquisition and implementation scheme he has proposed (essentially a government top-down strategy), could become a political vote-seeking...