Educators and governments are paying increasing attention to international comparisons as they seek to develop effective policies to improve the performance of their education systems. Data from the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) are useful in revealing best practices across the world. Current data show that the United…

As European schools have become more autonomous, inservice education has changed from a way to update professional knowledge to a tool for change. This article describes recent inservice education developments, emerging guidelines, choices and trends, and problems and challenges. School-based programs are challenged by competing agency programs…

Numerous reports and articles have decried the mediocrity of U.S. students' foreign language skills and have called for improved language education. One study that looked at foreign language education in 19 countries suggests several characteristics of successful foreign language programs: starting early, providing an articulated framework,…