Literacy

Iraq is a third world country.  While this is not a surprising fact to most people, it seems as if this little fact is lost on too many people with access to microphones.  It was a third world country before the 1991 Gulf War.  It was a third world country before Saddam was removed from power.  It will likely remain that way for some time to come.  Evolving out of the "third world" category is not a rapid process.  It involves much more than merely economics.  It also involves, culture, rule of law and widespread education.

I bring this up because I have repeatedly noticed the frustration of other trainers due to their initial expectations of Iraqi Officers and Soldiers.  We take so much for granted coming from the USA.  I have felt this frustration myself several times.  When I do, I have to stop take a breath, and remind myself where I was born.  While Saddam spent massive amounts of money on his military forces, he did so using the old Soviet Methodology - all quantity, very low quality.  In the USA, we take literacy for granted.  Here it is a mark of distinction.  A bachelor's degree here carries the same clout as a PhD in the USA.  US Officers are required to have a bachelor's and US Colonels have at least a Master's Degree.  Here, a high school diploma is the bar over which you must pass to become an officer.  In the US Army, it has been the basic requirement to become a soldier.  (They don't have GED's here.)  The result is that many Iraqi Soldiers are illiterate.  Special skill training classes are sometimes hard to fill, not because of a shortage of soldiers or recruits, but because of a shortage of ones that can read and write basic Arabic.  I spent some time today showing an Iraqi Lieutenant Colonel how to transfer a file from one computer to another using a flash memory stick and then how to send an e-mail.  I have been using e-mail for over 10 years.  Teaching staff officers how to do elementary computer work is almost a daily occurrence here.  All of this being said, Iraq has one of the most educated populations in the region, so you can easily imagine what it is like in other countries in the middle east.

This educational deficit is going to be one of the big hurdles to overcome in rebuilding this benighted nation.  This is why we soldiers consider rebuilding of schools and opening of new ones such a big deal.  This is truly a war for the next generation being fought by this generation.  We work with what we have for now, and we try to progress every day.  It will be slow and gradual.  Today must not be compared to yesterday, but better the next decade to this one.

Comments

[MKL]

I think the change will only start to take place with the Iraqi's young generation. Not just with education but the cultural part too. I read about the various conditions of the schools there and how some lack even bare necessities, that will have to be remedied...What are the schools like in your area?

[Don Cox]

Iraq urgently needs a big campaign of adult literacy classes. They could be held in the renovated schools in the evenings.

[David]

With such a lack of education, is it any wonder that its so easy to see how the terrorists can spread such a false message? Education, as it is here is the key to a better society.

Keep up the good work Major.

[membrain]

What an excellent point to bring, up especially your comparison to surrounding nations. Not only is Al-Quaeda fighting democracy, they are fighting basic literacy, much like the early Christian Church did in the Dark Ages. It puts things in perspective.

I don't think the reader above who spoke of using the schools to teach adult education in the eveings fully grasps what your saying.

Teaching adult education in the evening is what we do here, because we can. This kind of luxury is not even on the ordinary Iraqi's to-do list. They have to first protect and then nourish their families. I admire the work you are doing major. Thanks.

[Subsunk]

Major K,

You said it all when you said this:

"We work with what we have for now, and we try to progress every day"

Nothing in Life is ever perfect. There is not enough money, men, or materiel in this world to fight a perfect war or win a perfect peace. The mark of a Man is what he does with the things he is given. If he strives hard every day, and does his best, then he has done all that can be done.

"If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it all on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breath a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on!".....

If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And--which is more--you'll be a Man, my son!
----Rudyard Kipling

You Men Press On. Keep doing your best, and we'll keep fighting to support you in public and private. We are so proud of you and everything you've done. We know the job isn't finished, but we also know it will be.

Because you are Men.

Subsunk

[Katy]

I am so greatful to live in these United States!!!

[Basha]

I read this and thought of the old saying, you can give a man a fish, and feed him for a day, you can teach a man to fish and feed him for life. Education is the key to the improvement of any society, but we must remember that education begins in the home. If we do not encourage the future mothers of Iraq to learn basic reading and writing skills, we will continue to face this challenge with each generation. That may be the biggest cultural hurdle we face.

[collounsbury]

Iraq was indeed a developing country before 1991, however before sanctions it was a fairly wealthy developing country with a rapidly rising standard of living. To be sure Sadaam managed to badly damage that trend with his war on Iran, however literacy levels were in the 70 percent range.

This collapsed with the collapse of the schooling system and other support institutions in the 1990s and pre-US invasion (the effect of which was magnified by the demographic bulge).

The relevance here is that Americans in Iraq should not think that what they are seeing is Iraq as it was 20 years ago nor the only life Iraqis have known (although to be sure it is the case for those under 25-30).

As for the pious mumbling supra re "education" and mothers, quite simply when there is security, things will move forward, as in general the region values education rather highly. End of story.

Well, it is interesting reading the impressions of those who've parachuted into the region. While the whole affaire is fucked into a cocked hat, one rather hopes something may be extracted in the end.

[Osama - Iraqi]

Keeping the Iraqis uneducated was part of Saddam’s policy, his idea was (you can control an uneducated population easier than a one that is educated)... He also used it as a weapon against the Shia and Kurds.

[Toni]

Major-do you think you could possibly give the American public a state of the union address? You know, get down to basics on the Middle East and what positive effect our success in Iraq could have for the US Citizenry for the coming generations? I know it's alot to ask but you stated what needed to be said in a small little posting. I'd say the KISS Principle works here.

[devildog6771]

Great post Major. We need as many honest reports and evaluations as we can get. I agree with you about the power of education. What you guys are doing for the Iraqi is truly wonderful. It is also very insightful.

You are giving them the tools in more ways than one to rebuild their country. One day, hopefully, the Iraqi people will look back on this time and then at their thriving, free, country and say a silent thank you to a bunch of American soldiers who didn't come as occupiers but as friends!

[Tony B]

Major,

Thank you. That is all. Just, Thank you.

[Lieutenant K]

Maj K,
Hi sir, I'm Lieutenant K. I'm a SIGO up in Ramadi. I'm also a father of two, a writer, and a citizen soldier. I also spent four years on active duty, then "got out" for four years before joining the Guard. It's been a long and winding road. I recently found your blog, Lieutenant C's, and some others that I enjoy reading when I can.
As for you latest post, it is compelling the way we take basic literacy for granted in our military, and puts a new spin on the power of pen over sword.
I am careful not to violate OPSEC, so its a collection of mini essays. As a writer, I like to think I still keep it interesting without getting overly specific.
Thanks for all you do, and God Bless.

Lieutenant K
www.wordsmithatwar.blog-city.com