Singapore is no longer content to produce only engineers and technocrats, says Tharman Shanmugaratnam, minister for education. The government wants to foster a dynamic environment that can attract thinkers and leaders in many fields, not just science. Singapore's planners envision their city as the "Boston of the East"--where the alchemy…

This article describes Israel's latest conflict--plummeting government spending and strikes by faculty members and students which are threatening the stability of the country's universities. The founders of the modern state of Israel considered higher education to be so important that they established the country's first two universities long…

The Bush administration is likely to call for more accountability and higher accreditation standards for colleges and universities, but many accrediting agencies and institutions of higher education oppose standardized measures, saying they can't evaluate complex institutions objectively. (SLD)

Differences in political ideology between college and university administrators and federal legislators have brought about lack of communication, mistrust, and indifference between Congress and higher education. This article discusses the bridging of these differences through common understanding and collaboration to meet the challenges faced by…

Barack Obama agreed to answer a series of questions submitted via e-mail to his campaign. This article presents excerpts of "The Chronicle"'s exchange with the senator and candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination, in which he discussed his policy suggestions for student aid and college access; the appropriate role of the federal…

The recent release of another critique of accreditation provides an opportunity to sort through some of the mass of ill-informed rhetoric in Washington regarding the nature and limitations of collegiate approval processes. The new report, "Why Accreditation Doesn't Work and What Policy Makers Can Do About It," comes from the American Council of…

Researchers who track the American labor market told Congress last week that, contrary to conventional wisdom, the United States has more than enough scientists and engineers and that federal agencies and universities should reform the way they train young scientists to better match the supply of scientists with the demand for researchers. At a…

Members of the Secretary's Commission on Opportunities in Athletics (U.S. Secretary of Education) continue working to bring about gender equity in college athletics, but they are not reaching many answers to the complex questions involved, including those occurring when a college drops sports teams. (SLD)

An Education Department plan to restructure ERIC, the government's network of education-research clearinghouses, has members of Congress concerned and they have asked that the plan not be put into effect until they can study it further. The department's plan follows a year-long review of ERIC. (MLW)

A trend away from state support of university research with commercial potential is noted, because of state budget restraints, changes in political leadership, and the belief that support of university research is not an efficient way to help businesses and create jobs. Cuts in specific programs in Virginia, Illinois, Texas, Kansas, and Nebraska…

This article discusses how federal and state governments can improve student access to private and public higher education institutions. Florida helps to achieve that with a common course-numbering system across community and four-year colleges, which permits students to easily transfer credits. Both the Senate and the House of Delegates in…

Discusses how colleges and state agencies are divided over responsibility for the costs of helping students with disabilities, with slow progress delaying student accommodations and straining college finances. (EV)

Saudi Arabia has been developing at breakneck speed since the end of World War II, when oil production transformed this country of Bedouins into one of the richest polities in the world. Its higher-education system, however, has not kept pace. The Ministry of Higher Education was not established until 1975, and its task was to educate a population…

The text is provided of the National Governors' Association's report on the state of teaching and teacher education, state efforts to date, the state role in improving the status and education of teachers, national policy to support teaching, and actions for governors to take in recruiting, educating, and keeping good teachers. (MSE)

The text of a report by the Education Commission of the States study panel is presented, offering eight challenges and 22 recommendations to state leaders concerning student preparation for life after college, college preparation, college participation and completion, student diversity, student involvement and performance, faculty motivation, and…