Education

Dispatches

March 01, 2002 2 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

MALAYSIA

Race Ruckus: An independent committee set up by the education ministry is investigating allegations that hundreds of Malaysian schools segregate students along racial lines, according to the New Straits Times. (Fifty-eight percent of the people in the Southeast Asian nation are Malay, 27 percent are Chinese, and 15 percent are Indian and other ethnicities.) Among the complaints, parents say many schools ban non-Muslims from Arabic classes. Principals deny any wrongdoing. “After considering [academic performance and gender], we also ensure there is a balance in the racial mix,” says Alimuddin Md Dom, president of the Conference of Secondary School Principals.


ISRAEL

Paper Chase: The Israeli police want teachers to know cheating doesn’t pay. Investigators are cracking down on 12,000 government employees they claim have used fake credentials to get salary increases since 1985. This group includes teachers who allegedly paid $5,000 each for phony diplomas from Israeli campuses of both the University of Latvia and Vermont’s Burlington College, the Jerusalem Post reports. Police also allege that the head of the Histadrut Teachers’ Union, Avraham Ben-Shabbat, received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the two institutions in return for helping them recruit students. Ben-Shabbat told reporters, “I am innocent,” but announced he was resigning his position to concentrate on clearing his name.


NORTHERN IRELAND

Under Siege: Catholic schools in north Belfast briefly became fortresses for their teachers in January after a Protestant paramilitary group issued a death threat against them. When a member of the Red Hand Defenders threatened to shoot anyone working in the schools for “antagonizing the loyalist community,” Belfast’s assistant chief constable ordered hundreds of police to escort students and teachers to schools and guard the facilities, reports the Belfast News Letter. Teachers released a statement saying, “We reject all attempts to split us into separate camps, and we reiterate our absolute determination to work together for the good of education . . . in an atmosphere free from terror.” The threat was retracted five days later after a public outcry and condemnation from other loyalists.


UGANDA

Class President: After nearly 14 years in exile in the United States, a former Ugandan president has returned to his home country to become a volunteer teacher, reports the Agence France-Presse. Godfrey Binaisa, who went back to Uganda last summer, recently announced that he would teach English to 5th and 6th grade students at the Kisigula Blessed Primary School when classes resumed in February. The 84-year-old was president for a year in 1979 until a palace coup ousted him. Although he has no teaching experience, Binaisa is motivated to instruct by example. “I wish all educated Africans could take up voluntary roles in their countries so that we can stop the dependence on Western countries,” he says.

—Katharine Dunn

Events

Ed-Tech Policy Webinar Artificial Intelligence in Practice: Building a Roadmap for AI Use in Schools
AI in education: game-changer or classroom chaos? Join our webinar & learn how to navigate this evolving tech responsibly.
Education Webinar Developing and Executing Impactful Research Campaigns to Fuel Your Ed Marketing Strategy 
Develop impactful research campaigns to fuel your marketing. Join the EdWeek Research Center for a webinar with actionable take-aways for companies who sell to K-12 districts.
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Privacy & Security Webinar
Navigating Cybersecurity: Securing District Documents and Data
Learn how K-12 districts are addressing the challenges of maintaining a secure tech environment, managing documents and data, automating critical processes, and doing it all with limited resources.
Content provided by Softdocs

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

Education Briefly Stated: March 13, 2024
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
9 min read
Education Briefly Stated: February 21, 2024
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
8 min read
Education Briefly Stated: February 7, 2024
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
8 min read
Education Briefly Stated: January 31, 2024
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
9 min read