Transforming public schools: Impact of the CRI program on child learning in Pakistan

This paper evaluates the impact of teaching innovations, introduced in public primary schools under the Children Resources International (CRI) Program, on student outcomes. We estimate students’ learning based on their scores on standardized tests. We match schools and children within the treatment and comparison group and find that the CRI Program has been effective in raising learning achievement. Moreover, the results are robust to unobserved selection bias. The average gain for a CRI student represents an improvement of 0.40 standard deviations. The results stay unchanged when we use alternative estimators for the treatment effect including the bias-corrected estimator proposed by Abadie and Imbens (2006).     

Approaches to studying and perceptions of the academic environment among university students in Pakistan

There has been a paucity of research on the experiences of students at Pakistani universities. A survey of over 900 students at two universities examined their approaches to studying and perceptions of their courses. Evidence was obtained for a deep approach, a surface approach and two aspects of a strategic approach. Their perceptions were based upon the instructional practices, the acquisition of generic skills, the appropriateness of the assessment and of their workload, and the available learning resources. A higher‐order analysis revealed two broad dimensions of the student experience in Pakistan. Students who had positive perceptions tended to adopt a deep approach, to prefer courses, teaching and assessment that supported their understanding and to be engaged and reliable in their studies. However, students who had negative perceptions tended to adopt a surface approach and to prefer courses, teaching and assessment that reinforced this approach through the bare transmission of information.     

Disability and Popular Common Sense in India: Noun versus Adjective

Reflecting through the Indian experiences, a brief attempt is made to explore how disability as a noun takes shape in popular common sense “call names” (adjectives) and how does the popular common sense legitimise and normalise the oppressive language and the oppressed reality of the persons with disabilities? In the Indian context, the contempt for persons with disabilities is writ large in the language used to address them. However, to be conscious of this contempt, one needs to be conscious of the hegemonic nature of the popular common sense which normalises an oppressive reality as a natural social reality. The discussion on disability and popular common sense in India through the framework of “noun vs. adjective” might be helpful in gauging the challenges to the disability rights movement and the socio-cultural specificities to be reckon with for any meaningful intervention in the field of disability.     

Usage of E-journals by researchers in Aligarh Muslim University

Abstract

This article presents a study that seeks to examine the usage of e-journals by the researchers at Aligarh Muslim University. The survey reveals that all the researchers are aware of e-journals in AMU. From this survey, the investigator has been able to find out that many research scholars are consulting e-journals from their departmental labs and computer centers, not only for research purposes but also to update their own knowledge. However, the study also revealed several problems, including lack of training and slow downloading. The researchers’ feelings about the need for print journals as well as electronic journals are also discussed.     

Use of IT in university libraries of Punjab, Chandigarh and Himachal Pradesh: A comparative study

This paper is designed to measure the use of Information Technology (IT) in the university libraries of Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and Chandigarh with an ulterior objective to establish some co-relation between quality in libraries and use of IT. The paper highlights the use of hardware and software facilities in university libraries. It also highlights the access of networks, information services and barriers in IT applications. A survey conducted on four university libraries, namely Panjab University library, Chandigarh; Himachal Pradesh University, Shimla; Punjabi university Library, Patiala; and Guru Nanak Dev University Library, Amritsar found that only Panjab University Library, Chandigarh and GND university library, Amritsar have provided computerised access to in-house databases. The findings presented are based on a survey conducted with the help of questionnaires, interview and observation methods. Library literature reveals that quality depends on merging print culture with digital culture but the result of this survey confirm that print culture is still dominating in university libraries of this region.     

Kaleidoscoping public understanding of science on hygiene, health and plague: a survey in the aftermath of a plague epidemic in India

In September 1994 a plague epidemic hit a number of cities in India. Though the spread of the disease was controlled within a short period of about one month, its influences on various channels of information, on the functioning of government departments (especially health and sanitation), on the scientific community and on people's scientific information level were remarkable. This paper analyzes the responses of 1127 individuals interviewed in December 1994. The data indicates high levels of informedness about health, hygiene and plague, with little reference to extra-scientific explanations of the causes of the epidemic. Respondents expressed a high degree of confidence in the modern system of medicine. From this analysis we also infer that the public could not be described as 'superstitious', 'unscientific' or 'unhygienic': only when denied access to information and civic amenities did they show extra-scientific thinking or 'unhygienic' behaviour.     

New evidence on outcomes from South Asian distance education tertiary institutions: some implications for future policy

To policy planners in developing countries open and distance learning (ODL), because of its cost and delivery characteristics, is and has been a very attractive option for delivering tertiary education. Yet we have very little evidence on outcomes and the system's effectiveness. Providing some of this evidence is the main contribution of this article. South Asian institutions are some of the oldest of this type and enrol a large number of students. New data from a number of ODL tertiary institutions in South Asia, gathered though a UK DFID funded project, are presented here. This data is some of the most comprehensive material gathered on the ODL experience and offers new comparative data with conventional tertiary programmes and, data on completion rates and pass rates. All this provides the basis to reach new conclusions and reaffirm old ones on where ODL tertiary institutions are most effectively able to deliver.     

The Role of Campus Support,Undocumented Identity,and Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals on Civic Engagement for Latinx Undocumented Undergraduates

This study examined civic engagement in a sample of 790 undocumented Latinx undergraduates (aged 18–30). The relations between social supports (campus safe spaces and peer support) and civic engagement and whether a strong sense of undocumented identity mediated this relation were examined. Competing statistical models examined the role of participants' status (whether or not they received temporary protection from deportation with Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals [DACA]) in this mediational process. Results revealed that having a strong identification with being undocumented mediated the role of social supports on civic engagement in the overall sample, and that this process was specifically important for those with DACA status. The intersection of policies such as DACA and the lived experiences of Latinx undocumented college students are discussed.     

Use of IT in university libraries of Punjab,Chandigarh and Himachal Pradesh: A comparative study

This paper is designed to measure the use of Information Technology (IT) in the university libraries of Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and Chandigarh with an ulterior objective to establish some co-relation between quality in libraries and use of IT. The paper highlights the use of hardware and software facilities in university libraries. It also highlights the access of networks, information services and barriers in IT applications. A survey conducted on four university libraries, namely Panjab University library, Chandigarh; Himachal Pradesh University, Shimla; Punjabi university Library, Patiala; and Guru Nanak Dev University Library, Amritsar found that only Panjab University Library, Chandigarh and GND university library, Amritsar have provided computerised access to in-house databases. The findings presented are based on a survey conducted with the help of questionnaires, interview and observation methods. Library literature reveals that quality depends on merging print culture with digital culture but the result of this survey confirm that print culture is still dominating in university libraries of this region.     

Variations in perceptions of the learning environment and approaches to studying among university students in Pakistan

In Western countries, university students adopt various approaches to studying depending on how they perceive their learning environment. Their perceptions and approaches are related to demographic and contextual factors such as age, subject of study, gender, and year of study. This study looked for similar relationships in Pakistani students. A survey, administered to 494 male and 418 female undergraduates in four subject areas across four years of study at two universities in Pakistan, addressed their perceptions of the learning environment, learning preferences, motivation, and approaches to studying. Consistent with Western research, students in the arts and social sciences perceived their programmes more positively and were more likely to adopt a deep approach to studying, compared to students in science and technology or business and management. Contrary to Western research, students’ perceptions of their learning environment varied with age and year of study, but their approaches to studying did not. Gender differences were found in their perceptions and motivation. These variations appear to be specific to the context of Pakistan.