The NATO official was quoted as saying that common languages such as French or German can be managed however “we can cross-check and say, that’s not exactly the right term, doesn’t capture the nuance  – Dari and Pashto, we had to accept because none of us could interpret it” (p. 1).

            American translators who can communicate in Pashto or Dari are few and far between and unable to meet the demand which Porter (2006) contended to constitutes a major obstacle to successful U.S. involvement in the region. He also observed that there are “no shortcuts” to language development as it “takes considerable time to develop language skills to the complexity necessary for intelligence and special operations” (p. 1). Consequently, the U.S. military, security and aid personnel operating in Afghanistan have come to rely heavily on local Afghans to serve as translators and effect the cultural mediation that is a critical component of relationship-building (Darley, 2007; Leigh, 2009).

In a literal sense, the importance of becoming a translator is boxed in his ability to make one language fathomable within another language. By definition, a translator is “an individual who translates written documents from one language to another” (Colorado Department of Education [CDE], 2002, n.p.). “The art of translation is a bridge, a link, a path – but also a mirror between two individuals, groups, communities, and governments” (Morocco Board News Service, 2009, n.p.)

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Robinson et al. (2008) discussed online translator training in terms of its relationship to social constructivist theory.  The emphasis on social interaction and information sharing between individuals that then produces greater understanding and the development of meaning is akin to an interactive online learning environment that places the learner at the center of the conversation and encourages self-direction and self-reflection impacted and tempered through exchanges with others (see also Tirkonne-Condit, 2005).

This description also applies to the process of translating – meaning is derived through the exchanges between the parties and the translator both mediates and participates in the interaction, changing it, and changing with it as a given translation experience is realized.  Robinson et al. stated that the perfect instructional context for translators is not hierarchical in nature, but balanced and interactional.  The term “facilitator,” rather than “teacher,” was favored by Robinson et al. (2008), and indeed many of the researchers contributing articles on translator training, as more in keeping with this perspective.  They outlined a translation and interpretation course offered at the University of Granada in Spain that utilized e-learning platforms supporting collaborative work and engaging scaffolded learning.  Learners are also required to perform self- and peer-assessments through the online assignments across a range of decoding and encoding exercises, and then through to complex and complete translations of online text.  Robinson et al. (2008) were enthusiastic about the use of online delivery of translator training with a social-constructivist orientation for avoiding some of the isolation pitfalls of virtual learning by providing a structure that requires students to engage in genuine interactions through scaffolded learning.

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One of the observations made by Banzet and de Geoffroy (2006) was that low rate of urbanization in the country made the provision of adequate schooling to all of the nation’s children a genuine challenge. Remote agricultural areas lacked the physical structure to house a school and lacked of curriculum materials or teachers versed in teaching across different ages. However, parents often eschewed school, needing their children at home to assist in subsistence farming. For many Afghan families education is still a formidable luxury. Unfortunately, security also remains a challenge as Roshan (2004) and others have noted that teachers and in some instances, students, have been attacked and schools destroyed by insurgent elements bent on returning Sharia Law and reversing the course of Western influence.

Another consideration noted by Banzet and de Geoffroy (2006) through their field research is the enormous diversity of the school-age population. This diversity extends beyond the already complicating factor of the significant number of potential languages and dialects spoken by students to the number of much older students entering the system who lack rudimentary knowledge and are essentially beginning their literacy and education in their teenage years. The degree of training that would be required of teachers in even the most advanced educational systems in the world to address such a disparity of need and experience is daunting. Finally, for an impoverished nation like Afghanistan, the challenge is monumental.

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While the burst of school enrollments that have occurred under the government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan have swelled the number of students enrolled at the primary school level (Shirazi, 2007), secondary education in Afghanistan, as in most developing countries has been a “neglected sector” (Moreno, 2005, p. 381).

The researcher observed that English-language studies on the Afghanistan education system and on secondary education in particular, have been so scant that it is impossible to conduct a comparative analysis due to no unavailability of reliable data. Primary education is “the priority” in the state-building of the nation and Moreno (2005) argued that donor funds have also been directed toward university and college programs in the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. The first Afghan institution of higher education opened in 1946. The University of Kabul was financially supported through external, private channels (Banzet & de Geoffroy, 2006, p. 7) and this continues to be the case in the recent time.

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The proposed study aims to qualitatively investigate the lived experiences of one translator in order to help understand the cross-culture relations among the translator and members of the international community in the HQ-ISAF. The research will cover the participant’s perceptions of cultural and educational encounters and experiences from his employment at the Linguistic Services Branch at the Headquarters. The researcher also aims to qualitatively examine via the case study approach the experiential and transformational learning experiences of a translator and the educational system of Afghanistan that led him to the delivery of a quality translation of language and culture among foreigners.

Setting and Sampling

This research is intrinsic case study. For this study the case is preselected (Stake, 1995, p. 4). Stake stated: “The more the intrinsic interest in the study, the more we will restrain our curiosities and special interests and the more we will try to discern and pursue issues critical to Θ,( the case)” (1995, p.4).

Sampling strategy for this study is primarily a result of my experience at the Kabul ISAF Headquarter location. Personal experience with the translators employed through the Linguistic Branch allowed  me to identify with the prospective participant. Selection of the case is purposive.

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Among the range of ethnic and tribal groups populating Afghanistan, Wardak (2004) identified the “Hazara, Aimaq, Baluch, Brahui, Nuristani, Pashaie, Pamiri, Kirghiz, Qizilbash, Mongols, Arabs, Gujars, Kohistanis, Wakhis and Jats” (p.3) in addition to the Tajiks, Uzbeks, Turkmen and the ethnic majority Pashto (p.3). Wardak (2004) stated that the tribal groups are mostly distinguished by their language or dialect differences. The migratory nature seen in many of the Afghan people and frequent contact with strangers — both Afghan and foreign — have served to place members of different tribal groups in close proximity with one another. The differences that exist however have been effectively exploited at various times in the nation’s history since this served the agenda of invading forces (Geller & Moss, 2008; Wardak, 2003).

Regardless of tribal or religious affinity, and cutting across classes and other social divisions, Dupree (2002) identified Afghans shares common trait who likes to socialize. The caveat she noted is that many Afghans most enjoy socializing with their families or close friends, thereby reinforcing tribal identities. However, hospitality provided to close relations and to strangers alike is a hallmark of Afghan culture (Emadi, 2005).

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In order to understand the patterns and recurrences among the codes, Miles and Huberman (1994) suggest moving to the next level with pattern coding which allows for identification of emergent themes. The same researchers suggest that pattern coding is crucial for getting to the next level but include the point that codes that do survive the onslaught of several passes at the case and several attempts to disqualify them often turn out to be conceptual hooks on which the analyst hangs the meatiest part of the analysis. Miles and Huberman also point out that “pattern codes are hunches: some pan out but many do not” (p.72).

Memoing and reflecting and pattern coding are all steps that move from the immediate to the general. In addition to reporting data, “they tie together different pieces of data into a recognizable cluster, often to show that those data are instances of a general concept” (Miles and Huberman, 1994, p. 72). Memoing and reflecting can also go beyond coding and form a relationship to any aspect of the study – methodological, personal, and substantive. They are useful when an idea strikes!

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The strong education that some Afghan refugees received in the Iranian refugee camps and in other countries through both formal and informal educational systems has created some problems when repatriation to Afghanistan has occurred. In some instances, reintegrated refugee students are not only far advanced of their peers in their Afghan classrooms, they are better educated than their teachers (Banzet & de Geoffroy, 2006).

Recent Studies on Afghan Students

Banzet and de Geoffroy (2006) undertook a five-week field study on the education system implemented following the 2001 fall of the Taliban and the establishment of the Ministry of Education within the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. The researchers interviewed Afghan educators, policy makers, and international and Afghan NGO workers in Kabul, Bamiyan, Samangan, Balkh, Bahlan and Nangarhar. They reported that since the inception of the new government in 2002, Afghanistan has experienced a rapid expansion of its education sector, with the end result that the nation was experiencing its highest enrollment rate in western-style education in the nation’s history with approximately 4.3 million children in school in 2004 (their figures did not include all the students enrolled in madrassahs). The researchers calculated that the 2.5 million boys and girls between the ages of 7 and 18 were still not enrolled despite the new constitution establishing a compulsory education of students up to grade.

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In the article titled ‘Debating the Future of Audit’ by Ronan Nolan, the issues regarding the impact of international economic crisis on the value of statutory audit have been described. Mr. Nolan has summarized a number of issues that were discussed at an Audit Forum hosted by Chartered Accountants Ireland. The issues included were regarding the appropriateness of the financial reporting standards, the accounting expectation gap and the audit expectation gap, quality assurance procedures, the scope of the audit, communication to regulatory authorities in case of certain entities, form of the audit reports, and the role of those charged with governance of the entity in the effectiveness of the audit engagement.

According to the article, following the recent banking crisis and international economic scenario, the role of statutory audit has become more prominent than it was before. A number of people from different fields have raised questions regarding the effectiveness of audit in the current economic situation. According to politicians, regulators and other stakeholders, the value of statutory audit is being compromised due to the constraints placed by the overall economic crisis. Chartered Accountants Ireland attempted to bring these issues in the open and attempted to initiate a debate over different ways in which the value and integrity of audit can be saved and its purpose met in the future.

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The ongoing presence of U.S. and NATO military, security and aid organizations within Afghanistan underscored the need for greater cross-cultural understanding and improved communication across the stake holding cultures.

Much of the recent literature on the work of U.S. personnel within Afghanistan considers the positive impact that genuine cultural competency can have on state-building and infrastructure improvement efforts (Andersen & Kooij, 2007; Barakat & Wardell, 2002; Dupree, 2002; McNerney, 2005-2006; Thompson, Adams, Taylor & Sartori, 2007). A critical element of these efforts is the development of effective translation and accurate cultural mediation (Norton & Kamal, 2003; Ross, 2008). These various forces shaped the lived experience of the participants of the study are among the many causes which may have led them to decide to become a translator and cultural mediator between Afghan society and those of the U.S. and its NATO allies.

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