This is a critique of the sorts of naive tabulation of education data which we found to be prevalent in Afghanistan from 2003-2006. It argues that data is indeed crucial for effective planning to improve systems but that it is necessary to first articulate practical, actionable research questions and, then, explore them in a systematic fashion rather than "throwing everything into the soup pot". The presentation includes recommendations regarding international donors' roles vis-a-vis the host country role and specific suggestions for two high-priority Ministry of Education initiatives to improve education access and quality.

Between 2003 and 2005, USAID's program for development of Primary Education, funded an accelerated learning program for 170,000 children and youth in more than 3,000 villages in Afghanistan who had not had an opportunity to attend or complete primary school. This paper reports the results of the impact study of accelerated learning as a tool for creating access to quality education.

Between 2003 and 2005, USAID's program for development of Primary Education, funded an accelerated learning program for 170,000 over-age youth in more than 3,000 villages in Afghanistan. This presentation describes the pros and cons of accelerated learning as a tool for creating access to quality education.

Between 2003 and 2005, USAID's program for development of Primary Education, funded an accelerated learning program for 170,000 over-age youth in more than 3,000 villages in Afghanistan. This paper describes the program strategies and the results achieved for female youth. (30 pages)

This paper analyzes issues and options for helping Afghanistan's Ministry of Education transition from a teacher certification system based on years of education completed to one oriented toward remediating teachers' skill gaps and designed tofoster ongoing improvement. Two main concerns were, first, not 'throwing away' talent of effective teachers who did not have the officially required educational attainment; and, second, not accepting automatically 12th grade attainment as indicating adequate teaching preparation. The proposal envisions leveraging human capital as a resource for economically impoverished rural schools by creating systems relying on peer-based learning for improvement of teacher skills.

This paper summarizes an analytic framework required for effective teaching, instructional leadership and management, based on review of the Ministry of Education's strategic framework of priority goals, discussion with educational leaders and review of related literature for other countries in the region.

This paper summarizes an analytic framework required for effective school management and instructional leadership, based on review of education system challenges, discussion with educational leaders and review of related literature for other countries in the region. The paper articulates a competency framework with four domains, and explains the rationale for each of the defined competencies, along with an analysis of expected implementation challenges. The four domains are Facilitating Learning and Personal Growth (3 sub-domains); Cultivating Partnerships to Support Learning (3 sub-domains); Engaging in Ongoing Learning and Professional Development (3 sub-domains); and Managing Schools Professionally (5 sub-domains). The paper concludes by mapping out what might be the next steps for the Ministry of Education in reviewing and adapting or rejecting the framework.

This paper is based on 5 years of experience in working in Afghanistan on system management and data issues. The central thesis of the paper is that a strategy oriented toward decentralization - shifting significant portions of decision-making and funding from the Ministry to the local school level - can be a feasible and positive strategic direction, with possible positive impact on school functioning, accountability, cost-effectiveness, and sustainable outcomes.

Taking Afghanistan as a case in point, this presentation discusses the ways in which standard data could actually be used to identify "pressure points" for improving overall educational system performance in less-developed countries. It includes examples of concrete, affordable analyses that Afghanistan's Ministry of Education should have undertaken (but did not) as a means to strategically improve education quality and access.

This paper presents the findings from a large 2008 survey of private sector healthcare providers and rural families in 5 provinces of Afghanistan (Badghis, Laghman, Loghar, Baghlan, and Nimroz). It describes current healthcare utilization, profiles providers, and discusses strategic implications for national efforts to expand rural healthcare delivery. An important theoretical conclusion is that social capital was being used successfully as a resource for recruiting and remunerating providers willing to work in remote rural communities, an important cultural consideration completely overlooked in virtually all strategic and operational planning by international development agencies.