In the rapidly changing atmosphere of the global economy, productivity has become a very important concept for long-term economic growth, development, regional and global competitiveness, raising social living standards and increasing the level of welfare for countries. In the 21st century, when scientific knowledge, technology, innovation,…

In the past decade, hundreds of impact evaluation studies have measured the learning outcomes of education interventions in developing countries. The impact magnitudes are often reported in terms of "standard deviations," making them difficult to communicate to policy makers beyond education specialists. This paper proposes two…

Job uncertainty and ambiguity is a reality in many current societies, therefore, the idea of self-employment has taken a more active role, not only out of necessity, but also because it brings innovation and development to societies. In view of this situation, the following question arises: how can we strengthen the entrepreneurial spirit of our…

In 19 (sub)samples from seven countries (United States, Austria, Germany, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Vietnam, Brazil), we analyzed the impact of parental education compared with wealth on the cognitive ability of children (aged 4-22 years, total N = 15,297). The background of their families ranged from poor indigenous remote villagers to academic…

Micro and small enterprises comprise approximately 60-70% of enterprises in South and Central America. Most of these enterprises, particularly micro enterprises, are managed and owned by women. These women for the most part lack both skills and training in the use of computers and the Internet, and access to the use of information and…

This book is a report on, and a comparative analysis of, the experiences in vocational and technical education of twenty-three developing countries. Following the introductory section, the second chapter presents brief summaries (schematic presentations) of the educational systems in each of the countries. Focusing on policy, planning, and…

A survey is presented of the scope of the program of the Agency for International Development in the field of educational assistance to certain developing countries. The survey revises and updates previous surveys completed annually since 1966. The regions of the world in which A.I.D. operates--Africa, the Near East and South Asia, Latin America,…

Barriers that hinder development of cooperative arrangements among libraries in Costa Rica are identified by studying librarians' perceptions of obstacles. A ranked list of barriers shows that the most important obstacles are related to administration and governance, absence of guidelines, poor public relations, and a limited number of…

Eight papers, each presented at one of three conferences sponsored by the International Institute for Educational Planning (IIEP), are published together in this collection. It provides an overview of the current interest in developing nations in the role of administration in educational development, particularly as that role involves the…

A research project examined ways in which labor market signals and indicators were being used and might be used to identify needs that could be met through national Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) systems. Three case studies were undertaken in Bangladesh, Zimbabwe, and Costa Rica. The studies used a matrix that identified on…

Discusses attribution theory and its effect on teachers' attitudes toward students and describes a study of 155 elementary teachers in Costa Rica that investigated the consequences of the teachers attributing student performance to low ability and to insufficient effort. Cultural values that may affect the outcomes are also discussed. (28…

This book explores the problems and issues of secondary-school financing in developing countries. It outlines the rationale for expanding secondary education, investigates under what conditions it might be possible to do so at sustainable cost levels, presents case studies of secondary-school financing, and offers policy recommendations. The first…

The feasibility of creating independent research and education centers that deal with public policy issues in developing countries is assessed. Countries that were surveyed include Brazil, Colombia, Bolivia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, South Korea, Philippines, Pakistan, and Nepal. For each country, a report describes the social and political climate…

This symposium is comprised of three papers on competencies in human resource development (HRD). "The Development of a Competency Model and Assessment Instrument for Public Sector Leadership and Management Development" (Sharon S. Naquin, Elwood F. Holton III) reports on a streamlined methodology and process used to develop a competency…