Researching education and society in Central Asia
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Date
2006-02
Authors
Niyozov Sarfaroz, Shamatov, Duishon
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Aga Khan University, Institute for Educational Development, Karachi
Abstract
Although researching of and publishing on different aspects of the society in
Central Asia and the post-Soviet world has become a popular activity in the
international context, little attention is paid to the concept, processes, and
conditions of researching in Central Asia itself. Yet, the quality of the research
outcomes, which depend on the above factors, and which constitutes a
foundation for policy and practice decisions, including in education is of
paramount importance. This paper is about themes, concepts, issues and
challenges involved in the process of understanding and carrying out research in
Central Asia. It draws upon the outcomes of a number of experiences, namely:
(a) the presenter’s personal experiences of conducting research in Central Asia,
(b) interviews and informal conversations with a number of scholars involved in
studying education and society in Central Asia, and (c) review of literature on
research. The concepts and processes of researching are connected with
literature on Soviet and post-Soviet research conditions. The paper highlights
implications for the quality of research products, researching capacity, conditions
of researching, and for training local and external researchers to undertake
qualitative inquiry in Central Asia. Writing a paper on the challenges of
educational research in Central Asia is a challenging task for a number of
reasons, the most important of which is the dearth of reliable and valid data due
to the underdeveloped research tradition in Central Asia, the lack of research
facilities, critical scholarship and a lack of confidence in sharing the research
data for identifying solutions to the problems.
Description
Keywords
researching education, society in Central Asia, post-Soviet