"Straight A's: Public Education Policy and Progress" is a biweekly newsletter that focuses on education news and events both in Washington, DC and around the country. The following articles are included in this issue: (1) State of American Business: U.S. Chamber of Commerce Says U.S. Could Face a "Severe Worker Shortage" Unless…

Human resource development (HRD) as a scholarly endeavor and as a practice is often criticized in the adult education (AE) literature and by AE scholars as manipulative and oppressive and, through training and other interventions, controlling workers for strictly economic ends (Baptiste, 2001; Cunningham, 2004; Schied, 2001; Welton, 1995). The…

Race-exclusive programs of American universities and colleges, created initially to level the playing fields for under-represented students in higher education, are now considered discriminatory and illegal. The concerns levied against higher education institutions have been in response to two 2003 U.S. Supreme Court cases on race and admission at…

This document provides an annual report and financial review of the Bernard van Leer Foundation, a private institution created in 1949 for broad humanitarian purposes. Following an introduction by the chairman of the Foundation's board of trustees, a report of the executive director details the first full-year of implementation of the Foundation's…

This document provides an annual report and financial review for 1996 of the Bernard van Leer Foundation, a private institution created in 1949 for broad humanitarian purposes. Following a summary by the executive director of the Foundation, the report includes a description of the foundation and its grants. It then lists, by country, the major…

There is a growing concern about the well-being of children in America and the circumstances that surround their growth and development. One explanation for the social problems that confront young people is a decline in the effectiveness of the social institutions that children rely on for support. The decline in effectiveness leads to a decrease…

This document provides an annual report and financial review for 1998 of the Bernard van Leer Foundation, a private institution created in 1949 for broad humanitarian purposes. Following an introduction by chairman of the Foundation's board of trustees, a report of the executive director details the second year of implementation of the…

Discusses the economic implications to Los Angeles (California) of K-12 public education funding from educational agencies. It reveals the relative size of the K-12 public education sector in the United States and summarizes the role of education in the Los Angeles area in terms of human capital, enhancements in industrial productivity, and…

Reviews a series of 10 World Bank documents examining policy implementation activity in Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Lesotho, Swaziland, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. The reports are concise and well documented and show a great conceptualization of education issues (such as deteriorating enrollments contracting educational finances) and policy…

Examines and discusses two views of political economy: (1) the classical model of Adam Smith; and (2) the social capitalist model associated with Friedrich List. Explores two varieties of vocational education and training that emerge from a comparison of Smith's and List's ideas. (CMK)

Compares the training and development of principals in Singapore (a one-year course with mentoring) and England and Wales (the part-time National Professional Qualification for Headship without mentoring). Addresses the conditions for effective mentoring and the positive and negative aspects of mentoring. (CMK)

The body of literature on the concept of the "knowledge economy" is both recent and rapidly growing, especially in the related fields of economics and management, yet both less recognised and less established in the field of education. It is a concept that has inspired many national governments and world policy institutions such as the OECD and…

A new urban landscape characterizes cities around the globe, eclipsing the smokestacks of the 19th century and skyscrapers of the 20th century, yet the topography of the 21st century digital cityscape is almost invisible. In sharp contrast to the limits of interaction imposed by geography, architecture, and physical distances characteristic of…

This article discusses the strategic concepts for the development of Chinese education and human resources for the next 50 years. These concepts include: (a) Strategic Choice: Human Resources Are the Most Important Resource Development; (b) Strategic Targets: Realize the "Three Steps" of Education and the "Two Promotions" of…

This article expresses focuses on the challenge of producing a higher education teaching cohort that can keep pace with the demands of economic, scientific, and technological development. Particular attention is given to the shortage of elite high-quality teachers and how to attract and maintain them, including superior programs run in a…