As many probably know or have read by now, many of the Tawjihi results that were released yesterday were indeed false, due to, what is being reported by the Ministry of Education, as a technical error. The issue was naturally brushed aside as just a normal error that is simply no big deal. It probably couldn’t have come at a better time to highlight what I was talking about last week regarding our educational system. It is interesting to note that despite the fact that it probably was a technical error (which affected 41,000 students in the country) it is yet another strike against the credibility of the tawjihi system, which in the past decade has faced various similar fiascos, including students getting their hands on the exams beforehand, the supposed publication of various unsolvable mathematical questions, and now this, a technical error producing the false results of tens of thousands of students. Can you imagine the faces on all those kids who were driving around all of yesterday honking their horns and hanging outside their car windows waving flags. Now who’s going to tell them that they probably failed? How can the next generation of tawjihi students ever trust their government enough to spend the day honking their horns in celebration ever again? That’s unfortunate.

But on a serious note…

Naturally, there have been calls for the resignation of the minister, which anyone with half a mind would tell you isn’t the solution to the greater problem. Heck, it’s not even much of a solution to this particular problem. The prime minister has requested an investigation, which is code for some low-level employee who burned the CDs with the grades and distributed them to the publishing websites being fired shortly.

And we won’t have to hear about anything related to tawjihi for a couple of more months.

UPDATE: Feb 8th. It seems tawjihi students have launched a protest this morning outside the Petra News Agency demanding a retake of the exams and citing their lack of trust in the results. Lack of trust and an erosion of credibility is a predictable result of this fiasco. Moreover, the government seems to be standing by the Minister of Education, claiming that a resignation is not on the table.

For a while now, I’ve been wanting to write something about the Jordan Times, specifically it’s reporting and even more specifically its editorials, which have increasingly started to read like press releases issued by the Ministry of Interior. They sound as Orwellian as it gets. But for some reason, that took a back seat when they started adding various social media components in a bid to sell advertising space. The home page and the inner pages of their website are loaded with self-promoting banners boasting site statistics, which is something I thought people stopped doing after the geocities era of the Internet. I guess not. The site was incredibly bad to look at before, and now it’s just atrocious. One would think that with what capital Jordan Times has they could afford a better web design - one that actually integrates social media and allows users to speak back and have a conversation (which is what social media is really about) as opposed to putting up a few ugly banners and a disastrous looking buttons to get people to spread their site’s content. But traditional media in Jordan is uninterested in hosting conversations (remember what happened with Ahmad?) - they’re more interested in selling you news and then getting you to sell it for them.

And while these words, and many more, have been brewing in my head as of late, for some reason I was struck dumb when I saw today’s advertisement on their site, promoting a company that offers Internet for US soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan. It is the self-described: “Premier Satellite Military Telecom in Afghanistan and Iraq. Internet in Afghanistan and Iraq especially for U.S. Military Personnel, Contracting Officers and DoD Contractors we deliver VSAT equipment to most of all military addresses in Afghanistan, Iraq and the Middle East, within 5-7 days.”

I know even Jordan’s role in these words is sketchy, but I mean, come on - as a newspaper, can we at least be subtle? Are there really no other advertisers for the Jordan Times? Should we start a fundraiser?

Just a fleeting thought…

Click to enlarge.

AP PHOTO - A veiled Jordanian woman walks next to billboard with a model picture promoting a hairstyling show in Zara Expo in Amman, Jordan Tuesday Feb. 2, 2010

Yesterday, I received that annual message from Orange Telecom, which I’m sure most of you have gotten by now. The love letter reads:

“Dear Customer, wither reference to the law of the additional Annual University fees, kindly note that 1JD will be deducted from your balance. Thank you for your cooperation.”

What is interesting about this message is that someone at Orange thought it was probably a good idea to be a bit transparent with the customers who have just found themselves inexplicably 1 dinar short this month. I wish this was the same kind of transparency we, as citizens, could expect from our government. No one is told why this money is deducted (1JD for most Jordanians is a lot), and more importantly, where it goes? How much is raised (judging by the incredibly high market penetration I assume it’s a lot)? Who is benefiting?

But I’ll get back to this in a while. Allow me just to back track a bit, because this week there was also another interesting message that we all may have heard, and this time it came from outside the country. From Davos in fact. Where upon Her Majesty Queen Rania, on a panel discussing global education, she said these words:

“There is no better equaliser in this world than education; it’s the greatest justice you can give people.” [source]

The great justice indeed. Without a doubt, Queen Rania has been relatively good on this issue. There are few people on the world stage today that are wielding their celebrity to tackle this issue, and that is something Queen Rania has definitely done. However, as a Jordanian, my focus tends to be homeward bound, and it forces me to wonder what’s been done locally.

Some wonderful initiatives have been set up and our lead by the Queen herself - be it the Madrasati initiative that attempted to bring private, public and civil society sectors together to improve the infrastructure of schools, or even the Teacher’s award that looks to honor the best educators in Jordan, which in itself is setting an experimental incentive for teachers in the country. The Queen has also built an elite private school in the center of the affluent west Amman, as has King Abdullah who also saw fit to allow registered Iraqi children to study in Jordanian public schools a few years back.

There is also quite a bit of royal involvement with Injaz - a USAID-funded project that has done a number of interesting things inside the classrooms of Jordanian public schools. The list goes on and on. The impact of all this is still out as it education is one sector that takes a significant amount of time to demonstrate actual change.

However, what we do know is that little has changed in the educational curricula, i.e. what students are actually studying. We know that the Tawjihi system is a mess. We know that university students who have just graduated can easily find a job teaching 7th graders in public schools even though they have no training in teaching methods and are actually graduates with with low aptitudes when it comes to their field of study. We know that some of the university programs that applicants with low Tawjihi scores can apply to, include Islamic studies as well as journalism and languages. We know that while officials boast about the number of higher educational institutions in the country and the rise in educational tourism, but that few have noted the dwindling numbers of Arab student enrollment or the fact that no Jordanian university has made it recently (if ever) to the globally-compiled list of the best 500 schools in the world. We know that public university classrooms are indeed overcrowded - as are public schools - and that the eligibility criteria is massively flawed. We know that upon graduation from Tawjihi there are students who receive royal grants that vary from the increasing of their GPA to financial scholarship to the reserving of a seat in a university program - and we know that these students can range from those whose parents are teachers, refugees or from the army as well as citizens applying through the royal court.

We know our national curricula lacks any room for critical thinking or even creativity, with the standard ministry textbook being widely accepted as gospel and pretty much the only source of information for Jordanian students expected to eventually compete in the information age as part of a knowledge-driven economy. We also know that while officials boast about Jordan’s high literacy rate that, in reality, measuring literacy in Jordan has never been an exact science (i.e. one that would produce realistic numbers) and, in fact, many, many students cannot read or write at a comprehensible level, while even more drop out in order to work medial jobs - typically in car maintenance.

But above all, we know that there is no money. Teachers are underpaid, schools are underfunded, programs are cut, and any chance of reforming the actual educational curricula, which as at the crux of the issue, is deemed almost hopeless due to the hefty price tag that comes with such a pursuit. In fact, according the minister Walid Maani, a five-year plan to overhaul the entire system will cost JD395 million, which we obviously do not have, and what little comes our way is typically donor-driven and thus unsustainable by mere definition.

“Let’s admit it. It is a matter of money in the first place. We cannot make a single move without the necessary funds.” - Walid Maani

The problem is not just a lack of funding but that we are yet to truly come to terms with our status quo. Our national numbers do not seem to reflect the realities on the ground, which many of us are privy to observing or even experiencing first hand. The system is as strained as it can get, not only due to a population of which the overwhelming majority are students, but add to that the many non-Jordanian students, such as Iraqi refugees who now have access to public schools.

And while initiatives that look to upgrade the physical structures of the classroom are indeed important, I would argue that what’s being taught inside the classroom (and how it’s being taught) is just as important. We honor our teachers with competitive awards, but the reality of the situation seems to suggest that instead of awards, the government needs to stop hiring university graduates as teachers and, instead, send them to teaching school, as is the international experience.The lack of proper teaching methods as well as the proper experience is one of the main reasons there is no room for public discourse, critical thinking or creativity inside our classrooms and this due to the fact that teachers were never taught how to teach.

Moreover, what money we do have or have managed to garner, seems to be spent almost haphazardly. These 5-year plans seem to be geared towards upgrading our systems from their current conditions, when in truth, they should be geared towards making us globally competitive within 5 years. Naturally, this is no easy task, but it depends largely on where the money goes and how it is spent. With this in mind, it is perhaps time for the government to bring the public along for the ride. Education is pretty much the number one issue that communities worldwide are heavily involved in but unfortunately, in Jordan, like many other issues, it is one that the public has little involvement in. Even parent-teacher associations seem to be missing, and thus, for the most part, parents are completely uninvolved with their children’s learning and development - a major step that would render them the best advocates for what they are learning to begin with. For this to happen the willingness to be transparent needs to happen and that is something I, and perhaps most, are convinced the government is somewhat incapable of doing - even on the level of informing people where that 1JD goes.

The will seems to be there. The fact that education is highlighted in what I would argue is an unprecedented manner is an important first step. The fact that there is recognition from the very upper echelons of power is something. But it is not enough. The personal involvement of either a queen or a king is not enough to move this particular mountain. Celebrity isn’t going to do it this time; it is a task for communities and their open and consistent discourse with the authorities.

The saying in Jordan since I can remember is that people are the country’s only asset. I would argue that in the 21st century, a competitively educated people are the country’s only asset. For Jordan, education remains the country’s only silver bullet.

For those who read Roald Dahl’s Fantastic Mr. Fox during their childhood, or thereafter, Wes Anderson’s adaptation is definitely a fantastic take. Written by Anderson and Noah Baumbach, Fantastic Mr. Fox isn’t exactly a childhood classic as much as it is an adaptation for the more mature audience. Filled with the platitudes, aesthetics and deadpan humor that make an Anderson film so engaging and real, Fantastic Mr. Fox brings adult characters to life in a stop-motion animation that is perhaps more likable to younger audiences. But the script and directing has all the tell tale signs that one is watching an Anderson film, and like most of his movies - from Bottle Rocket and Rushmore, to The Royal Tennenbaums and The Life Aquatic - audience will either fall absolutely in love with it, or hate it. As a fan of Anderson’s work, I am admittedly part of the former group.

While the plot of a fox who has a knack for stealing chickens but is forced to retire from a life of crime in order to enter fatherhood is simple enough, the story is really about how a character like Mr. Fox (voiced by George Clooney) grows tired of fighting his natural instincts. He attempts to get back to his old career of thievery unbeknown to his wife, Mrs. Fox (voiced by Meryl Streep) only to face off with three farmers who spend the rest of the film trying to kill him. Similar to most of Anderson’s movie, the protagonist is a flawed character in search of that blaze of glory - always scheming, always falling apart, always coming back at the last minute for a moment of redemption after coming to terms with their true nature. “I’m a wild animal,” Mr. Fox admits in a scene of honesty with his wife. But beneath the dominating layer of that single character are others who are struggling to come to the forefront, such as Mr. Fox’s son, Ash (voiced by Jason Shwartzman) who tries everything to live up to the high bar his father has set just by being his naturally talented self. Ash is of course ignored and passed off as being “different”, but nevertheless sets off to prove himself and find his proper place in things before the story ends. The film is steeped with the undertones of a dysfunctional family trying to stick together during a crisis meant to tear them apart.

The animation is incredibly simple and enjoyable. Like most of Anderson’s movies, the characters seem to always be dressed in 1970’s style corduroys, and keep to a certain aesthetic. It is probably not a film intended for children, but rather one that plays straight to the heart’s content of much older audiences, particularly those familiar with Anderson’s work and perhaps waiting to see if he is able to break away from his traditional formulaic film making and create something new. Surprisingly, he manages to accomplish the latter while keeping true to the former.

By my book, it is arguably one of the best films of 2009 and does for stop motion animation what no other film has ever dared to do.

Also Watch: The World of Roald Dahl and the Official Featurette

It’s fairly interesting to note the number of corruption cases that seem to have made headlines in recent months. This past year in fact has arguably been one of the most corruption-laden years in recent Jordanian history. From Basem Awadallah being accused of human trafficking and his subsequent resignation, to Sahel Majali being involved in dubious behavior regarding the Decent Housing Decent Living - an initiative to offer affordable housing to less fortunate in the country. And if these weren’t high profile enough, they were followed by a stream of embezzlement cases. From missing money at the Ministry of Industry and Trade, to missing money at the Ministry of Agriculture, and more recently, the Greater Amman Municipality (GAM).

Naturally, it is difficult, if not downright impossible to prove most of these case. The ones you can are the ones that likely done by lower level employees who can be used as scapegoats, and tend to be involved in cases of outright stealing, which is relatively easier to prove. The high profile cases are not only impossible to prove - no one even bothers with them. In the case of Awadallah and Majali, for instance, corruption tends to manifest itself in the most intricate of manners that is often difficult to catch it unless you have some understanding of financial structures. Nevertheless, the result is usually a resignation or political marginalization, and then you never hear from them for a long time. At least until things have settled down, and they’re brought in again. How did they get caught in the first place? No, it’s not due to investigative journalism (although the media does play a role) - in my opinion it is usually due to one of two things: the country is just too small to keep secrets that big, and often you’ll find that in these high-profile dealings, someone gets rubbed the wrong way, someone is cut out of a deal, someone holds a grudge, and thus, someone leaks the story.

This is of course just my opinion, and while that usually counts for little, it is however somewhat reflective of public perceptions regarding government corruption. And politics is, after all, all about perceptions.

Enter the Rifai government.

From a so-called Code of Conduct, which is slowly becoming a trend, to various anti-corruption “measures” being taken, we are lead to believe that the government is taking corruption seriously. For anyone who believes any of this, a closer examination of the political landscape is desperately needed. How can any government take corruption seriously simply by signing a document it wrote up itself, and making several speeches? Fighting corruption requires setting up automatic mechanisms that are here to stay, usually in the form of independent entities that have both the power and the authority to deal with corruption no matter who is involved. Be it a minister or an employee.

But we don’t have that, and it doesn’t look like we’re heading in that direction any time soon. In a recent statement, Rifai said something I found quite interesting. It is along the lines of the same recycled language regarding corruption that we’ve heard many times before in Jordan:

“It is the state’s first enemy: it weakens public confidence in government institutions and contradicts equal opportunity and justice, in addition to its disastrous impact on the reputation of the country’s economy and investment environment,”

I find these words interesting simply because public officials tend to always politicize and economize corruption. It’s always about public confidence or investor confidence - there’s always something at stake, something to lose. But no one ever stands up and says you know what, corruption is immoral. The reason corruption rubs people the wrong way is because of the morality that surrounds it. It is that morality, or rather immorality, that manifests in the people being wronged. Instead, we say corruption is bad because it makes us, the government, look bad.

But this is all besides the point. The language being used these days is forceful and serious, but it all boils down to this government not wanting to be attached to the past government’s image, and thus doing their utmost to shift public perceptions. Because politics is, after all, all about perceptions.

However, our problems stem far deeper than a newspaper headline of some corruption case involving a single person. Scapegoats are commonly use to detract attention from the greater problems, the problems that imply, if not insist, that corruption does in fact stem from much deeper issues. When high-ranking government officials are business-minded individuals with private sector mentality - far from the much-needed public servant - there is always a risk. It doesn’t matter if they resign from the board of anything and everything they’ve ever been on, a stint in the public sector offers opportunity, especially if everyone knows they won’t be around for very long. It is like letting loose a hungry child in a candy store and then expecting him to restrain himself by sheer will.

But even this is both a generalization (which is not to say it isn’t a reality) and indeed not the biggest problem.

The bigger problems lie beneath that individual - the system of corruption that sustains their actions and make them possible. From money laundering via “investment opportunities” to bribing members of the security apparatus to a judicial system that is far from independent. There is a network that is alive and well, and most importantly, hidden. It is practically impossible for anyone, be they a minister or an employee, to pull off anything without tapping in to this network. Even citizens are some times exposed to glimpses of this network, some even engage with it from time to time, but those who are a part of it depend almost completely on it. It is a network consisting of many names and faces; some known, others not so much. It is obviously an unofficial network, and I merely call it that due to its interconnected nature.

For journalists, which are supposed to be one of the major channels to fight corruption, it is fairly impossible to prove any of this, and what corruption we do hear about is usually stories that are leaked to the press, and those stories are almost always red herrings - distractions designed to divert our gaze away from the bigger problem. Besides, the media is not set up to hold anyone accountable. It merely reports on what it is told, or what it is allowed to report.

So, with no independent mechanisms of accountability in place, corruption will likely continue to not only exist in Jordan, but thrive. While the Iraq war opened the floodgates for such corruption in Jordan back in 2003 and onwards, it would be folly to think that such opportunities won’t come again.

The solution?

There is little the people can do to combat public sector corruption, and the rare few that might consider it for even a moment will instantly consider their safety first. In all likelihood, most of us will eventually and inevitably be forced to deal and interact with this network, in its smallest form. It will come in the guise of someone asking for a bribe, but that individual will not be alone; he will have the support of the network to which he belongs. These thriving networks of corruption tend to get so big that they eventually self-destruct and collapse, and if left unattended, leave behind fertile ground for other networks to emerge.

This is of course not to say that everyone in the public sector is corrupt. I would argue that the overwhelming majority are not. However, as history has shown, it is usually a minority that are strong enough and interconnected enough and picky enough as to who they allow to become a part of their network - that tend to run the tables.

But again, this sort of corruption can only be solved through a top-down purge and a subsequent establishment of mechanisms of accountability. This is unlikely to happen any time soon.

On a final note, this is quite an inspiring video from TED, where lawyer Shaffi Mather has decided to take on the booming business of corruption in India’s public sector by using social entrepreneurial methods. From what we can gather from his talk, the idea is to establish a business where citizens can accomplish an ordinary task they would otherwise need to bribe someone in government to do, by paying this institution. The idea is that the fee would likely be much cheaper than the bribe, thus not only offering a sense of affordability to the citizen, but also depriving government officials, which would weaken their support system. It is a naturally controversial proposal, and many idealists would likely argue that citizens shouldn’t be paying anyone at all when it comes to getting what their entitled to. However, using corruption-plagued India as the case study, one could also argue that this initiative is meant to address the realities of “what is”, rather than what “should be”.

U.S. Department of State NONIMMIGRANT VISA APPLICATION

38. Do you seek to enter the United States to engage in export control violations, subversive or terrorist activities, or any other unlawful purpose? Are you a member or representative of a terrorist organization as currently designated by the U.S. Secretary of State? Have you ever participated in persecutions directed by the Nazi government of Germany; or have you ever participated in genocide?

You’ve gotta be a bit more subtle than that…

Fellow Jordanian tweeps are tweeting (spontaneously) the “Top 50 reasons living in Jordan Rocks”. Thought I’d post it up just as a mental break from all the cynicism and the daily realities that can make you forget how great Jordan really is…