The 2008 presidential election stands as a "change" election. The public's anxiety over the challenges globalization poses to the future of the American Dream is driving a desire for the country to change direction. The American people understand that what will give the nation a competitive advantage in a global marketplace are the…

In the present study I describe the 150-year history of school-based English language assessment in Japan. The history is divided into four major periods according to the purposes of English language education set by the government in the different periods: (1) 1860 to 1945, when English was first introduced and taught in schools mainly for elite…

The primary purpose of this article is to share with the reader the beliefs, on a variety of topics, of William Lester Bodine, co-founder, first president, and first Honorary Life President of the National League of Compulsory Education Officials. The convention's annual proceedings are the source for his reflections, ideas, aspirations, and…

It is now common for young people in full-time compulsory education to hold part-time jobs. However, while the 1990s experienced a rise in illicit drug use particularly among young people and an increase in the level of interest in identifying factors associated with drug use, little attention has been paid to the influence of the money young…

Local autonomy is one of the recent trends in reforms of compulsory education. However, several parallel trends such as individual accountability, performance and visibility challenge professional autonomy. The aim of this article is to explore how accountability and transparency reforms affect teacher autonomy in Norway and Sweden. The authors…

The implementation of assessment policies can sometimes achieve almost the reverse of what was originally intended. Studies published in a special issue of "Assessment in Education" provide the basis for this bird's eye view of particular practices in post-compulsory education and training in the UK. Problems identified include the trend…

Government-provided services are caught in the jaws of a "cost-tax vice". On the cost side, the long-term trend of rising relative prices of services, including education, seems set to continue. The other jaw of the vice is the high efficiency cost of raising additional taxes. Recent research making the case for public provision of…

Innovation Education and Practical Use of Knowledge was introduced into the Icelandic National Curriculum for compulsory schools in 1999, where it is defined by the curriculum writers as a "school subject" but is not allocated any direct time in the recommended guidelines for subjects. This paper describes a master's research project…

Beginning in 2006, the "two exemptions and one subsidy" (TEOS) policy was integrated into the New Mechanism for Assured Funding for Rural Compulsory Education (hereafter the "New Mechanism"). The New Mechanism includes TEOS, raising the standard of public expenditure guarantees for rural compulsory education stage schools,…

One route to uncovering schooling's goals for an improved citizenry is to track certain subjects of the compulsory curriculum. In this case, health is investigated, and especially its messages on smoking and drinking. First introduced as scientific temperance instruction (in the 1880s), renamed hygiene (from about 1910), then as health (from the…

This essay explores factors creating Missouri's minimum attendance laws for black students from the end of the Civil War to the enactment of compulsory education in the state in 1905. It argues that, although blacks made notable efforts at educational advancement, they were caught in a crossfire of opposing forces stemming from wartime…

This paper reports on research into the use of ICT within a one-year initial teacher education (ITE) course in the UK, specialising in physical education (PE). The study examined how the course, which operates in both university and school-based settings, endeavoured to support trainees' use of ICT in PE and then to identify areas where the…

Current Educational Reform in Japan is oddly captured with confused conceptions of "compulsory education." The Ministry of Education blankets such connotations of it, as a national budget system, mandated school curriculum, responsible partnership of school with community and accountabilities of local school board, in defense of vested…

This study investigated characteristics of five IMO winners and influences from their formal and informal educational experiences. In particular, this study provides in-depth understanding of former Korean IMO winners' characteristics and environmental influences. Also, implications including education for parents of the gifted, professional…

According to records from 2002, there will be a continuous increase in the number of classes, full-time teachers and teaching staff in urban primary and junior secondary schools during the period 2005-2020. At the same time, the demand for classes and teachers of non-compulsory education will decrease yearly. It is estimated that the budgetary…