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Teachers College

Columbia University in New York

Education in Emergencies: Theory and PracticeSPRING 2008

Professor: Rebecca Winthrop

E-mail: [email protected]

Office Hours: By appointment

Mondays, 7-9pm: March 24th

– May 5th

, 2008Fridays 9am-6pm: April 4th and May 9th, 2008

Overview:

The focus of this class is to give students a background in both the theory and practice of

the newly developing field of “education in emergencies.” The course assumes students

have a variety of experiences and backgrounds and is designed as an introduction to the

education in emergencies field for students who may not have international humanitarian

aid experience. The goal of the course is to prepare students to either go on to bereflective-practitioners in the education in emergencies field or to pursue further

academic study and to expand the currently limited theoretical base of the education inemergencies field.

Class Requirements:

All readings for class are available on-line (via ClassWeb or referenced websites) or will

be handed out in class. Students will be expected to come to class prepared to discussreadings and topic at hand. As the course is intensive and spans a 7 week period,students are asked to do all the reading on the syllabus prior to the first day of class.

This will enable students to actively engage in in-depth discussions during the class

sessions. Students must write a discussion paper (3 pages) on the readings for 2 classes

of their own choosing. Discussion papers must be turned in at the start of class. Studentswill work in groups on a Proposal Simulation project that asks them to use class

resources and outside research to develop a program response to a current situation in the

education in emergencies field. Proposal Simulation presentations will be given on the

last day of class in front of a panel of outside experts.

The course is designed as an intensive introduction to education issues in contexts of

international humanitarian intervention, “post”-conflict development, and “fragile states.”

Each class will use lectures and discussions to cover a wide range of key concepts and

their relevance to and impact on education in situations of crisis and post-crisis transition.

Class will focus heavily on populations affected by conflict although situations of disaster



will also be discussed. Students are expected to rely on the reading for in-depth

understanding of topics covered in class.

• 20% class participation.

• 25% discussion papers.

• 55% Final Project (10 points presentation/45 points written proposal).

Note on Proposal Simulation project

One essential skill for education in emergencies practitioners is proposal development.

This project will simulate the proposal development process by grouping students into

teams – each of whom will be a non-governmental organization responding to a call for

proposals from a major bi-lateral donor (e.g. USAID). Over the course of the class, we

will walk through step-by-step the proposal development process. The proposal will ask you to develop a program responding to an education problem in a crisis or post-crisis

setting (e.g. girls education in Afghanistan). At the end of the class teams must hand in

their written proposal and do an oral presentation presenting and defending their program

to a panel of experts working in this field. Note: real calls for proposals that have

recently been distributed by bi-lateral donors will be used. This project will enable

students to get a deep understanding of an education in emergency issue in a particular

country, employ research skills, learn proposal development skills (includingterminology, monitoring and evaluation conventions, etc.), and use the learning they do

in class about education in emergencies issues in designing a program.

Course outline:

I. Theoretical Foundations of the Education in Emergencies Field

Week 1 (3/24): Key concepts in international humanitarian affairs.

This class will broadly and rapidly review the international humanitarian affairs field.Class will focus on the development of key concepts grounding current thinking and

practice in international humanitarian assistance, with a special emphasis on thoseconcepts that are especially relevant to education in emergencies. Questions addressed

include: What is the humanitarian “impulse” versus the humanitarian “imperative”?

What are the origins of the modern international humanitarian system? How has the

nature of conflict changed since the end of the cold war? How have the theories guiding

humanitarian assistance developed over time (e.g. parallel economy, do no harm,

continuum, contiguum, fragile states, rights-based programming, protection)? What is the

relief to development gap? What are the traditional sectors within humanitarian response

and how does this relate to a “medical model” of humanitarian assistance? Where doeseducation fit?

1. Code of Conduct for the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement

and Non-Governmental Organizations in Disaster Relief (1994).

2. The Humanitarian Charter (Sphere, 2004).



3. Weiss, T. G. (1999). "Principles, Politics, and Humanitarian Action." Ethics and

International Affairs 13.4. Slim, H. and Eguren, L.E. Humanitarian Protection. ALNAP.

5. Commins, Steve (2006). Synthesis Paper on Good Practice: The Challenge forDonors. OECD: Fragile States Group, Workstream on Service Delivery.

6. Burde, D. (2005). Education in crisis situations: Mapping the field. USAID, 74.

Available on line: http://www.columbia.edu/~dsb33/Assests/BurdeEdCrisis11-11-

05%5B2%5D.pdf .

Review Proposal Simulation project.

Week 2 (3/31): Key concepts in child protection and children’s psychosocial wellbeing inthe international humanitarian affairs field.

This class will review the developments within the humanitarian affairs field relatedconcern for child wellbeing and protection. Class will explore such questions as: How

was child wellbeing placed on the international humanitarian agenda and why? How hasthe approach to humanitarian affairs (e.g. what is considered a priority response) changed

with the growing concern over children’s special needs in conflict? What does

“psychosocial wellbeing” mean anyway? What are the main debates in the field around

psychosocial wellbeing and mental health interventions in conflict contexts? What is“child protection” and how does it relate to education?

1. Boothby, N. (1992). "Displaced Children: Psychological Theory and Practice

from the Field." Journal of Refugee Studies 5(No. 2).

2. Machel, G. (1996). Impact of Armed Conflict on Children, United Nations.3. Loughry, M. and C. Eyber (2003). Psychosocial Concepts in Humanitarian Work

with Children: A Review of the Concepts and Related Literature. Washington,

DC, National Research Council. (handed out in class)4. PWG (2003). Psychosocial Intervention in Complex Emergencies: A Conceptual

Framework. Working Paper. Q. M. U. College. Edinburgh, The Psychosocial

Working Group.5. Nicolai, S. and C. Triplehorn (2003). The role of education in protecting children

in conflict. H. P. Network. London, Overseas Development Institute.

6. Hart, Jason. “Saving Children: What Role for Anthropology?” Anthropology

Today, Vol 22, No 1, February 2006.

Week 2 (4/4) (FRIDAY 9-6pm) What are the INEE Minimum Standards for Education

in Emergencies, Chronic Crisis, and Early Reconstruction?

In this class, students will participate in a full one-day training by expert INEE trainers

on the Minimum Standards for Education in Emergencies, Chronic Crisis, and Early

Reconstruction. Trainers are from the INEE Secretariat and conduct this training with

education practitioners around the world. Class will provide a comprehensive

introduction to the purpose, development, content, and ways to use the INEE MinimumStandards for Education in Emergencies, Chronic Crisis, and Early Reconstruction. Why



were these standards developed? What were the reasons for and against developing the

INEE Minimum Standards? How were they developed? How do they follow SPHEREand how do they diverge from SPHERE? Who were the main actors in developing the

INEE Minimum Standards? What were the debates in the field during the developmentof the standards? What do the standards look like? Who will use them? How do you use

them in running education programs?

1. Handbook on Minimum Standards for Education in Emergencies, Chronic Crisis,

and Early Reconstruction Contexts. INEE. Available at www.ineesite.org

2. Anderson and Brooks. Humanitarian Practice Network.

Week 3 (4/7): The relationship between education, education systems, and armed

conflict: a review of key concepts and theories.

This class will review the development of thinking around the dialectical relationship

between education and armed conflict that has influenced the education in emergenciesfield. Focus will be on the recent international education development practice and

thinking on working in situations of disaster and conflict. Class will explore such

questions as: How is education in emergencies addressed in the current dominant

international educational development perspective of EFA? How has the thinking aroundeducation in emergencies evolved within the international education field? What is the

dialectical relationship between education and armed conflict? What are the theoretical

underpinnings of this relationship?

1. Bush, K. D. and D. Saltarelli (2000). The Two Faces of Education in EthnicConflict: Towards a Peacebuilding Education for Children. Florence, UNICEF

Innocenti Research Centre.

2. Smith, A. and T. Vaux (2003). Education, Conflict and InternationalDevelopment. London, Department for International Development.

3. Buckland, P. (2005). Reshaping the Future: Education and Postconflict

Reconstruction. Washington DC, The World Bank. Available online atwww.ineesite.org/core_references

4. Kagawa, F. (2005). "Emergency education: a critical review of the field."

Comparative Education 41(No. 4). Available online through TC library.

5. Rose, P., & Greeley, M. (2006). Education in fragile states: Capturing lessons and

identifying good practice [Electronic Version], 41. Available online atwww.ineesite.org/core_references/Education_in_Fragile_States.pdf

6. Education and Conflict: Research, Policy and Practice. Forced Migration Review

Supplement, July 2006.



II. Practice, Policy, and Programming in Education in Emergencies

Week 4 (4/14): What is Education in Emergencies? Reviewing the practice of education

in emergencies with a focus on International Frameworks, Institutions and Policy

This class will review the practice of the education in emergencies field with a specialfocus on key international legal frameworks, institutions and policies. Class will explore

such questions as: What is education in emergencies? In what contexts do interventions

occur? What types of interventions are included as “education in emergencies” (EiE)

interventions? What is the history of EiE interventions? What are the internationalframeworks upon which the practice is built? Who are the key actors in the field? Which

are the important institutions? How does coordination work?

1. Sinclair, M. (2001). Education in Emergencies. Learning for a Future: Refugee

education in Developing Countries. C. Talbot. Geneva, UNHCR.2. Sommers, M. 2004. Co-oordinating education during emergencies and

reconstruction: challenges and responsibilities. Paris: IIEP, UNESCO. Pg. 59-

95.

3. Forced Migration Review (2005), Volume 22: Education in Emergencies.

4. Visit INEE website: www.ineesite.org

Week 5 (4/21) How do you implement education interventions in emergency settings?Assessment, Nonformal Education, Child Protection, and Psychosocial Adjustment.

Class will provide an overview of best practices for implementing education programs at

the early on-set of an emergency. How do you conduct assessments for education

programs in the early stages of an emergency? What are techniques for assessing

children’s wellbeing, especially in sensitive contexts where family or community

members may be exploiting or abusing children? What are the first steps in setting up an

education intervention? What is the purpose of “safe and child-friendly spaces”? Howcan you support children’s psychosocial wellbeing through early education interventions?

What types of non-formal education activities are most appropriate to early education

interventions? Who are the key players for setting up an education program in the outset

of an emergency in refugee, IDP, and other settings?

1. Pigozzi, M. J. (1996). Education in Emergencies and for Reconstruction:Guidelines with a Developmental Approach. New York, UNICEF.

2. Betancourt, T. S., R. Winthrop, et al. (2002). "The IRC's emergency educationprogramme for Chechen children and adolescents." Forced Migration Review 15.Available online at www.fmreview.org

3. Triplehorn, C. 2001. INEE Good practice guides on www.ineesite.org . Please

review:

o Initial Assessment of an Emergency

o Schools: Child Friendly Spaces

o Assessment of out of school youth and youth leaders



o Assessing and analyzing community non-formal educational needs.

o Training: to Meet Psychosocial Need4. Handbook on Minimum Standards for Education in Emergencies. INEE. See

Access and Learning Environment category.

Week 6 (4/28): How do you implement education interventions in protracted refugee and

chronic crisis settings? Formal Education, Teacher Training, Community Education

Committees, Curriculum Selection and Development.

Class will provide an overview of best practices for implementing education programs in

protracted refugee and chronic crisis settings. How do you move from non-formal

education in an early emergency to formal education? When should this move happenand why should it happen? Who typically are teachers in a crisis setting? Do teachers

need to be prepared differently to work with students in crisis settings from how they are

normally trained to work with students in stable, “peaceful” settings? How does thecommunity need to be mobilized to support education in crisis contexts? What is a

community education committee and what would they typically be asked to do? Whatcurriculum should be selected for formal education programs? When should a

curriculum be adapted and changed? In refugee settings, what language should be

selected as the language of instruction? Who are the main actors in implementing formal

education programs in refugee, IDP, and other contexts? What are the gaps in refugeeeducation? Without access to secondary school, what options do refugee youth have?

1. Bird, L. (2003). Surviving School: Education for refugee children from Rwanda

1994-1996. Paris, UNESCO International Institute for Education Planning.

Available online at UNESCO website.2. Handbook on Minimum Standards in Education in Emergencies. INEE. See

Community Mobilization and Teachers and Other Education Personnel sections.

3. INEE. 2001. INEE Good practice guide: training and capacity building. INEEwebsite, www.ineesite.org. Please review:

a. Assessment -

b. Pre-service, in-services and in the schoolc. Teacher observation and lesson planning

d. On-site Teacher Training and Support

Week Seven (5/5): How do you implement education interventions in post-conflict/early

reconstruction settings? Rebuilding Education Systems, Teacher and StudentCertification, Educational Concerns of Youth, including Vocational Education and

Accelerated Learning, Reintegrating Children Formerly Associated with the Fighting

Forces, and Peace Education.

Class will provide an overview of best practices for implementing education programs in

protracted post-conflict/early reconstruction settings. How does education affect return

and reintegration of displaced populations? What are key steps to take prior to return of

displaced populations to their home communities to ensure that teacher training andstudent learning in exile is recognized by the home country government? How should



relevant Ministries be supported in this setting? How should out of school youth,

including recently demobilized child soldiers, be supported in pursuing education? Whenand how should vocational education and accelerated learning programs be implemented?

How should the education system of the home country be supported and revitalized?What are the best approaches to integrating peace education in schooling?

Readings:

1. Lowicki, J. (1999) Untapped Potential: Adolescents affected by armed conflict: a

review of programs and policies. New York, New York: Women’s Commission

for Women and Children.

2. Leveraging Learning: Revitalizing Education in Post-Conflict Liberia. IRC:2006.

3. INEE. 2001. INEE Good practice guide: Please review:

a. Training and capacity building 4. Handbook on Minimum Standards for Education in Emergencies. See Teachers

and Other Education Personnel and Learning Content and Methodology.

Week 7 (5/9) (FRIDAY 9-6pm) Project Simulation Presentations