Herald Report Some 300 children from four villages in the Vahdat district of Tajikistan must make a treacherous journey to school, walking between three and four kilometers every day, each way. Some wade through a river, but when the waters rise, they must cross a high, rickety suspension bridge, says a Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) report. Vahdat …

Little is known of the lives of Sogdians in China, even though the Chinese connections of Sogdian elites played an important political, economic, and cultural role in the lives of people in the region at the time, writes Jin Xu. by Jin Xu Before the Arab invasion, Sogdians were known traders who benefitted from bringing Chinese luxury goods to Iran, …

While the only existing studies consider trilingualism in Kazakhstan in general, this research aims to identify possible risks and prospects for the implementation of the program of trilingualism at regional level, specifically in the East Kazakhstan Region. by Zhuldyz Moldagazinova The survey was funded by the Oumirserik Kassenov grant, established by the Institutional Foundation “International Charitable Foundation—Altyn Kyran” and the Kazakhstan …

By Anwar Iqbal WASHINGTON: Many children in Pakistan cannot read a sentence even after years in school, says a new study of the country’s education system, arguing that the focus should now shift from quantity to quality. The study — “Pakistan’s Education Crisis: The Real Story,” by a Wilson Centre global fellow Nadia Naviwala — seeks to explain how Pakistan’s …

While we’re losing biological diversity, we’re also losing linguistic and cultural diversity at the same time. This is no coincidence. By Chi Luu The world is getting uncomfortably warm. At present, much of Europe is suffering under a heatwave of record-breaking temperatures. It’s so hot that piles of manure are spontaneously combusting and setting off wildfires in Spain. Across the pond, mussels looking …

Language emerges as a powerful manifestation of a culture that acts as an identity-marker at the individual and societal levels, writer Professor Dr Shahid Siddiqui. Dr Shahid Siddiqui Language and society constantly influence each other. Social factors, such as age, gender, class and religion, influence language; conversely, language impacts society in a relatively subtle way. Path-breaking research conducted by American …

Professional bodies of teachers, students, workers, doctors and political activists reject IMF’s bailout  prescriptions, cut in PSDP Herald Report Academics, students, workers, young doctors and progressive activists have rejected the proposed plan of privatisation of key sectors of education, health and cut in education budget.  The recent decisions of privatizing health sectors and cut in budget for Higher Education Commission …

Mushahid Hussain showers praise on Chinese people, students for transformation Herald Report Islamabad: China and Pakistan have shared dreams of prosperity, peace, co-existence and development in the region and for the world. These views were shared by Chinese ambassador Yao Jing and Pakistani Senator Mushahid Hussain at a degree awarding ceremony held at the Pakistan National Council of the Arts …

  By Noor Akbar Federal Minister for Education and Professional Training, Shafqat Mahmood after taking the oath of office and on a number of occasions had vowed to introduce a uniform syllabus under a new education policy during the tenure of the incumbent government. This was published by mainstream media including Dawn. PTI had been making such statements long before …

Herald Report A number of academics from public and private educational institutes of the city have set up a forum for protection of academic freedom and articulate progressive interventions based on scholarly research. This was announced during a discussion on the crises of Pakistani universities and mapping a progressive future at the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) office in …