This commentary explores the role that academic developers (ADs) play in universities. Three case studies illustrate the roles that ADs may enact as agents of change. They reflect an emergent shift from acting as the institutional teaching and learning "'expert" (i.e. agent of change) to a more adaptive, collaborative partnership model…

Issues concerning interprofessional collaboration (IPC) for children at risk have become a priority globally as well as in Norway. By international standards, the Norwegian educational system is regarded as inclusive and collaborative in terms of the external services that support schools and pupils. However, a debate continues on how to best…

The article focuses on the workplace as a learning environment in work-based early childhood teacher education in Norway. The main question is: Which understandings of the workplace as a learning environment are to be found in regulations and policy documents, among students and among staff managers? Taking as the point of departure, a theoretical…

The article has two parts. Part one deals with some historical developments in the field of special education in Norway. There has been a change in formulated policy from a clearly segregated system, then integration and mainstreaming and now intentions about inclusion as an ideal. The second part is about children with behavioural difficulties…

There is a growing interest in policy research on student completion and non-continuation and bodies such as the European Commission and OECD are focusing on the subject. There is also increasing national interest in the issue in many countries and they are looking to each other for input on effective policies. However, there are significant…

This article investigates how state authorities in Norway and Finland design national curriculum to provide different policy conditions for local curriculum work in municipalities and schools. The topic is explored by comparing how national authorities in Norway and Finland create a scope for local curriculum. The data consist of interviews with…

This paper discusses the emergence of assessment for learning (AfL) across the globe with particular attention given to Western educational jurisdictions. Authors from Australia, Canada, Ireland, Israel, New Zealand, Norway, and the USA explain the genesis of AfL, its evolution and impact on school systems, and discuss current trends in policy…

Understanding the effects of class size reduction (CSR) has been an enduring issue in education. For the past 3 decades, Project STAR has stimulated research and policy discussions regarding the effects of CSR on a variety of outcomes. Schanzenbach (2007) reviewed STAR studies and concluded that small classes improved student academic outcomes.…

Researchers have calculated the relationship between human capital development and economic output by various means of econometric modeling and by use of numerous indicators under the context of an assortment of human capital theory. This study was conducted to identify new interpretations of the expansion of human capital in the form of tertiary…

Due to European agreements and policy expectations, national authorities are revising their formal curricula in line with an evidence-oriented policy. The article explores how new trends in formulating curricula can be regarded as an outcome of experts' semantics and impact on education policy. The article reanalyses documentation from a project,…

Education is a public health issue. Poor educational outcomes are correlated with many health and social ills. To improve the quality of education, it will be necessary to take advantage of the leverage points of policy, evidence, and implementation science. The idea of evidence informing policy may be non-controversial, but a closer examination…

In different ways and in different contexts it has been and still is argued that music education should be prioritized because of its positive impact on pupils in terms of general development as good citizens and in terms of skills in other disciplines. In this article, the authors discuss whether this tendency is best interpreted as an example of…

This article offers an analysis of four Norwegian policy documents on inclusion of minority language pupils. The main concepts of this policy will be reconstructed and re-described, applying Niklas Luhmann's systems theory at different levels of the analysis. Luhmann's theory about society as a conglomerate of self-referential social systems…

High dropout rates from upper secondary school are related to substantial societal costs, and are hence a major policy concern. The Norwegian folk high schools provide a non-academic education in an intimate and nurturing environment where interpersonal and social skills are emphasised, and where individuals grow in sense of self-esteem and sense…

This study investigated the relationship between policies related to the recruitment, selection, preparation, and certification of new teachers and (a) the quality of future teachers as measured by their mathematics content and pedagogy content knowledge and (b) student achievement in mathematics at the national level. The study used data…