Describes the recent evolution of Portuguese basic education in which the concept of competence and the process of curriculum development became major aspects of an innovative movement at a national level. Describes the context and explores the concept of competence, and presents a formulation for the characteristics of mathematical competence for…

Presented are case studies of youth unemployment/employment in Ireland and Portugal. A common feature of the analyses is the role of training in realizing the national potential and eliminating the mismatch between young people and available jobs. Includes possible/desirable measures to improve employment situation in these two countries. (JN)

Argues that the best moment for responding to student writing is before any draft is completed. Analyzes ways in which this can be put into practice in the composition classroom and reports on how a group of undergraduate, intermediate-level Portuguese English-as-a-Second-Language writers reacted to this kind of pre-text feedback. (Author/SM)