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KLMNO THE WORLD Maliki to announce a partial Iraqi cabinet this week
Sunni bloc signs on after parliament lifts ban on 3 politicians
BY LIZ SLY AND AARON C. DAVIS
baghdad — Iraq’s main Sunni bloc said Saturday that it will definitely participate in the next Iraqi government, after parlia- ment implemented one of its key conditions and cleared the way for Shiite Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki to announce at least a partial cabinet in the coming week.
With this coming Saturday’s
deadline for the formation of the government looming, parliament voted to lift a ban on political activity by three Sunni politi- cians, fulfilling one of the de- mands the Iraqiya bloc had set last month for joining a national unity government headed byMa- liki, who is poised to begin his second termin office. The ban, imposed ahead of
parliamentary elections inMarch under the country’spost-invasion de-Baathification rules, set the tone for a rancorous and divisive vote that evolved into an equally polarizing eight-month deadlock overwho should be named prime minister.
Among those barred from
competing in the elections be- cause of their alleged ties to former president Saddam Hus- sein’s Baath Partywas the contro- versial Sunni leader Saleh al- Mutlak, a fierceMaliki critic who is considered a possible candi- date for a post in the newcabinet. Not enough time remains,
however, tomeet another Iraqiya condition for participation: the creation of a new national coun- cil to oversee strategic policy. The factions are still arguing over the powers and mechanisms of the body, which is expected to be headed by Iraqiya leader Ayad Allawi. A question mark hangs over
whetherAllawiwill take the job if it does not give him sufficient powers. Members of Maliki’s Dawa Party insist they are deter- mined to ensure that the new council’s role does not interfere with the primeminister’s author- ities. But Iraqiya leaders said they
accepted Saturday’s vote on the de-Baathification issue as evi- dence ofMaliki’s sincerity, adding that they would join the govern- ment in the expectation that the council would be formed later. “There is a gentleman’s agree-
ment,” said Iraqiya lawmaker Nada Ibrahim. “Everybody has learned from the past that if you don’t sit around the table shaking
hands, there will be no govern- ment, and there will be a dead, dark future for the country.” With a deal on a new govern-
ment in sight,much of the bitter- ness that has clouded the nine months since the inconclusive elections has lifted. But there was evidence of the
lingering animosities between Iraq’smajority Shiites andminor- ity Sunnis when the vote to re- verse the ban on the Sunni politi- cians was taken. Most of the Shiite lawmakers retreated to the cafeteria, leaving the chamber to Sunni andKurdish deputies,who passed themeasure 109 to 61. Itmay be a while before Iraqis have a fully functioning new gov-
ernment. Many junior positions have been divvied up among the Sunni, Shiite and Kurdish blocs, but disagreements persist over key jobs such as the ministers of defense and interior. So Maliki aims to meet Satur-
day’s constitutionally mandated deadline by announcing an in- complete cabinet, perhaps as soon asMonday, leaving themost sensitive positions to be decided at an indefinite date, said law- maker Ali al-Adeeb, a close aide to the primeminister.
slyl@washpost.com davisa@washpost.com
Special correspondent Aziz Alwan contributed to this report.
Education in a new India: Fewer gurus, more guides To nurture the critical thinking needed in a booming tech industry, companies try to redefine the country’s traditional teacher-student relationship BY EMILYWAX IN NEEMRANA, INDIA F
or generations, the pro- fessor was the unques- tioned god and guru of the Indian classroom, able to hold forth for
hourswith no one daring to ask a question or confess they hadn’t understood a concept. Students would kneel and touch the teach- er’s feet whenever they met as a sign of unfaltering respect. Such a level of hero worship
didn’t always create the best atmosphere for learning, and even senior professors admit that students often fell asleep during lectures. When the students went off to
work in India’s fast-growing high-tech industry, they were often too intimidated to offer ideas. Thiswas especially true for graduates of thousands of new rural colleges,wherememorizing facts was stressed more than developing critical thinking skills. But some of India’s top tech-
nology companies are trying to revolutionize teaching at these newer colleges, which opened during the IT boom of the past decade, and to better prepare one of the world’s largest workforces. The companies want professors to step out of the role of grand- standing gurus and becomemen- tors who encourage students to be more creative and self-as- sured. The programsmark an impor-
tant shift for this nation of 1.2 billion, where the higher-edu- cation system has started to change as India aspires to be- come a global superpower and an economic rival to China. The shift is also a sign of a
more egalitarian India, where low-caste students from modest economic backgrounds not only
are able to rise into the middle classes but also canactwithmore confidence in the classroom and workplace in this traditionally hierarchal society. At the same time, the Internet
provides a sea of information to anyone with computer access, allowing young Indians to learn without the help of the all-know- ing neighborhood guru. “It’s the end of the guru. It had
to happen for a new,more global India,” said Nargarjuna S, gener- al manager of Mission 10X, a teacher training programrecent- ly launched by Wipro, India’s third-largest information tech- nology company. “There’s so much aspiration in our lower and middle classes. We want to har- ness that talent. These teachers, if they are trained well, could be teaching our future CEOs.”
Clash of cultures Here in Neemrana, amid mus-
tard fields, dusty cattle farms and ancient forts, young professors at
St.Margaret Engineering College are learning how to be more dynamic. They are participating in a free workshop offered by Wipro,which has reached 10,000 computer science and engineer- ing professors at campuses across the country and hopes to train 25,000 more in the next three years. Training teachers to be less
guru and more guide illustrates the clash of cultures underway in a new India, education experts and economists say. The corpo- rateworldwants tomaximize the country’s vast potential, but old methods of learning and cultural traditions make those changes difficult. Fewareas have been as slowto
change as education,with its rote learning methods and outdated curriculum that is often years behind India’s IT industry. Many IT companies, such as
students to be more curious and questioning. Vinita Dhondiyal, an associate
professor of communications at an engineering school in Bhopal, said she realized the depths of the “guru syndrome” after she held a month-long English-lan- guage course for middle-age union leaders. “When they didn’t do their
homework, they would plead withme to beat them. Beat them! Imagine!” said Dhondiyal, an ex- pert on Indian teaching styles who completed the Wipro train- ing. “In India, all our lives, teach- ers tell the students to shut up. But then to get a job in corporate India, they need to be outgoing, confident. It’s changing. But total democratizing of the Indian classroomtakes time.” Many of St. Margaret’s young
teachers have degrees in comput- ers and engineering but no coursework in education. The Wipro training is the first time they are actually learning how to teach. PoonamYadav, 29, an assistant
EMILY WAX/THE WASHINGTON POST
Aditya Sharma, a teacher trainer with Wipro, conducts a workshop at a college inNeemrana. “India’s IT industry is based on innovation,” he said. “That style of thinking is what we want to build for India.”
Infosys and Tata Consultancy Services, have set up their own schools on corporate campuses to retrain graduates. ButWipro’s programand others like it target college professors. “Indian teaching is very ortho-
dox and outdated,” said Vivek Anand,who heads
St.Margaret, a rural school three hours north of New Delhi nestled beneath the rugged hills of Rajasthan. The school opened 10 years
ago, attracting the sons and daughters of farmers and labor- erswho aspired towork inmulti- national call centers and IT cen-
ters. “The way we teach now is
stuck in the past,” Anand said. “It doesn’t feel connected with what’s happening in the outside world.” The global economic recession
motivated himto callWipro. “Before the recession, 100 per-
cent of our students were getting jobs. After that, it was only 30 percent,” Anand said. “We thought there must be a way to improve our students instead of just waiting for the market to improve.” The programs also give corpo-
DIGEST KOREANPENINSULA
Badweather delays South’smilitary drills Militarymaneuversplannedby
South Korean troops did not take place Saturday because of bad weatheronaborder islandshelled by North Korea last month, as Russia and China reiterated con- cerns over rising tensions on the dividedpeninsula. The North said Friday that it
would strike harder than before if the South went ahead with planned one-day firing drills it said it would conduct sometime between Saturday and Tuesday. Fourpeoplediedlastmonthinthe North’s attack on the island of Yeonpyeong. The United States supports
South Korea, saying the country has a right to conduct such amili- tary exercise. Russia’s Foreign Ministry has expressed its “ex- treme concern” over the drills and on Saturday requested an emer- gencymeetingof
theU.N.Security Council,U.N.diplomats said. —AssociatedPress
IRAN
President announces start of subsidy cuts Iran’spresidentonSaturdayan-
nouncedthestartofaplantoslash energy and food subsidies as part of government efforts to boost the nation’s ailing economy. In an interview with state tele-
vision, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said the deep cuts to the subsidies “will start beginning Sunday” and vowed to fully cut all subsidies by
the endofhis termin2013. Economists say the unpopular
plan could stoke inflation unoffi- cially estimated to top 20 percent. The cuts also are widely seen as placing added burdens on Irani- ans, whose country is weighed down by international sanctions imposedonTehranover its nucle- arprogram. Analysts say Iran pays about
$30billioninsubsidies annually. Meanwhile, in Manama, Bah-
rain, the top U.S. military officer sought to reassure Persian Gulf countriesworried that Iranmight try to start a war. “The United States takes very seriously our se- curity commitments in the gulf region,” said Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. “We’re very ready.” —AssociatedPress
AFGHANISTAN
20 insurgents killed in east,NATOsays NATO said its troops killed
more than20insurgents Saturday in fighting that broke out after a patrol came under fire in eastern Afghanistan. The gun battle between NATO
forces and insurgents took place in Kapisa province, where coali- tion forces called in air support after coming under fire, NATO said. It claimed Taliban com- manderswere among thedead. AlsoSaturday,asuicidebomber
targetingadistrict chiefkilledtwo passers-by, including a child, and wounded at least nine people in Kandahar city, authorities said. —AssociatedPress
SYAMSUL BAHRI MUHAMMAD/GETTY IMAGES Christmas lights drawadmirers atMalaysia’s i-City cybercenter in Shah Alam. About 9 percent of the country’s population is Christian.
U.S. student wins legal victory in Italian murder case: American student Amanda Knox won a key victory in a trial to appeal her murder conviction in Italywhen a court ruled that it will allow an independent review of DNA evi- dence following defense claims that samples were inconclusive and possibly contaminated. The
lower court trial, in which Knox was sentenced a year ago to 26 years in an Italian prison, had rejected a similar request. Knox and her ex-boyfriend were con- victed of sexually assaulting and murdering Knox’s British room- mate Meredith Kercher in the rented house they shared in the universitytownofPerugiain2007.
OAS seeks to delay Haiti election results: The Organization of American States has asked Hai- tian President Rene Preval to de- lay announcing election results until an international panel of ex- perts can review the vote. Final results from the Nov. 28 first roundhadbeenexpectedMonday.
Snow across Europe disrupts travel, turns deadly:Hundreds of flights out of London were can- celed Saturday as fresh snow blocked runways, adding to a con- tinentwide disruption caused by heavy snowfalls. In Italy, at least three people died in snow-related incidents,news reports said. —Fromnews services
MALAYSIA
rate India a way to leapfrog the government, which has been slow to change proven but out- dated teachingmethods. “We are not just creating sol-
diers who are happy to take orders,” said Aditya Sharma, a Wipro teacher trainer. “India’s IT industry is based on innovation. That style of thinking is what we want to build for India to be competitive across the world.”
New world for students Teaching teachers to change
may be difficult. But it has been even harder to persuade Indian
professor who recently complet- ed the training, said she now explains complex computer pro- grams, such as how a cellphone records amissed call, by using an actual cellphone and computer to demonstrate. “It makes the student’s brain
perk up,” she said. “Earlier, I was not feeling right when the stu- dents fell asleep after listening to me for over an hour.” But some of India’s most re-
spectful traditions may never change. On the last day of their training workshop, the teachers presented Sharma with flowers and a plaque. “At least we didn’t touch his
feet,” Yadav said, laughing. “But we are still Indian. We wanted him to know that he had our respect.”
waxe@washpost.com
SUNDAY, DECEMBER 19, 2010
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