Educational oases in the desert : the Alliance israélite universelle's girls' schools in Ottoman Iraq, 1895-1915

__A history of the French schools that pioneered female education in Ottoman Iraq's Jewish communities.__ Chapter 4 From the Baghdad Girls' School to the Laura Kadoorie School for Girls, 1905-1915 -- A Time of Change: Baghdadi Jews and the Revolution of 1908-1909 -- Recovering from Cholera: The Enrollment Explosion in the Girls' School in 1905 -- Student Enrollment and School Construction, 1906-1910 -- The Opening of the New Building of the Laura Kadoorie School for Girls -- The Impact of the New Building -- Albala and Her Assistants -- Albala and Vocational Education -- Albala's Struggles with the Central Committee -- The New Director: Rebecca Bassan -- The End of the Ottoman Period: 1914-1915 -- Conclusion -- Chapter 5 The AIU Girls' Schools in Hilla, Mosul, and Basra, 1911-1915 -- The Founding of the Hilla Girls' School -- Alice Abrevaya and the Hilla Girls' School, 1911-1913 -- Rosa Farhi and the Hilla Girls' School, 1913-1914 -- The AIU's Arrival in Mosul, 1906-1908 -- The Founding of the Mosul Girls' School, 1908-1912 -- Rachel Sasson and the Mosul Girls' School, 1912-1915 -- Late Ottoman Basra and Its Jewish Community -- Founding the Basra Girls' School -- The Basra Girls' School, 1913-1915 -- Conclusion -- Conclusion -- Some Comparative Notes on the AIU Girls' School in Baghdad -- Vocational Training in the Ottoman and Arab Jewish World -- Final Thoughts -- Notes -- Bibliography -- Index "During the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the Alliance Israélite Universelle [AIU], a Paris-based Jewish organization, founded dozens of primary schools throughout the Middle East. Many were the first formal educational institutions for local Jewish children. In addition to providing secular education, the schools attempted to change local customs and 'regenerate' communities. Educational Oases in the Desert explores the largely forgotten history of the AIU's schools for girls in Ottoman Iraq. Drawing on extensive archival research, Jonathan Sciarcon argues that teachers viewed female education through a gendered lens linked to their understanding of an ideal modern society. As the primary educators of children, women were seen as society's key agents of socialization. The AIU thus concluded that its boys' schools would never succeed in creating polished, westernized men so long as women remained uneducated, leading to the creation of schools for girls. Sciarcon shows how headmistresses acted not just as educators but also as models of modernity, trying to impart new moral and aesthetic norms onto students."--The cover. Provided by publisher During the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the Alliance Isralite Universelle (AIU), a Paris-based Jewish organization, founded dozens of primary schools throughout the Middle East. Many were the first formal educational institutions for local Jewish children. In addition to providing secular education, the schools attempted to change local customs and "regenerate" or "uplift" communities. Educational Oases in the Desert explores the largely forgotten history of the AIU's schools for girls in Ottoman Iraq. Drawing on extensive archival research, Jonathan Sciarcon argues that teachers viewed female education through a gendered lens linked to their understanding of an ideal modern society. As the primary educators of children, women were seen as society's key agents of socialization. The AIU thus concluded that its boys' schools would never succeed in creating polished, westernized men so long as women remained uneducated, leading to the creation of schools for girls. Sciarcon shows how headmistresses acted not just as educators but also as models of modernity, trying to impart new moral and aesthetic norms onto students. During the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the Alliance Israélite Universelle (AIU), a Paris-based Jewish organization, founded dozens of primary schools throughout the Middle East. Many were the first formal educational institutions for local Jewish children. In addition to providing secular education, the schools attempted to change local customs and'regenerate'or'uplift'communities. Educational Oases in the Desert explores the largely forgotten history of the AIU's schools for girls in Ottoman Iraq. Drawing on extensive archival research, Jonathan Sciarcon argues that teachers viewed female education through a gendered lens linked to their understanding of an ideal modern society. As the primary educators of children, women were seen as society's key agents of socialization. The AIU thus concluded that its boys'schools would never succeed in creating polished, westernized men so long as women remained uneducated, leading to the creation of schools for girls. Sciarcon shows how headmistresses acted not just as educators but also as models of modernity, trying to impart new moral and aesthetic norms onto students. Pioneering Jewish education : the AIU in Baghdad, 1864-1895 -- From Danon to Sutton : The Baghdad Girls' School, 1896-1899 -- Making adjustments : Oro Sémach's tenure in Baghdad, 1899-1904 -- From the Baghdad Girls' School to the Laura Kadoorie School for Girls, 1905-1915 -- The AIU Girls' Schools in Hilla, Mosul, and Basra, 1911-1915