The article examines the importance of effective secondary education for all children as Australian society embraces globalization. In a global era, where societal development will rely on the knowledge and skills of the workforce, an effective education will become even more important for socio-economic engagement and equality. Students from…

This article examines data from two different studies concerning issues of social justice, gender and schooling and specifically the practices of secondary teachers, "Mr B", a teacher from a school in Tasmania, Australia, and "Mr C", a teacher from a school in Bedfordshire in the United Kingdom. Both teachers' practices and…

Explores reasons for replacement of the Unified School with the Quality School in Norway and the consequences thereof for both individuals and the country. Unified School reform is derived from an equality-driven educational policy, whereas Quality School reform is competitiveness-driven. (Contains 30 references.) (PKP)

"Today's Education and Training: Tomorrow's Skills" represents British Labour Party policy for education and training, aiming for higher grade point averages and high-quality education and training for 16-18 year olds within 5 years and for "A-levels" for half of all 16-19 year olds within 10 years. This article raises parity…

In Finland, the transition from an agricultural to a service economy was unusually late and rapid. Finns still show high respect for work and formal education. Although Finland has a well-developed educational system and high levels of educational participation, unequal educational opportunities remain and are increasing. Future educational policy…

This paper examines what happens to "vocational education" within an education market. We ask the question: how does the policy emphasis on competition and choice fit with the rhetoric of facilitating school-to-work transitions for all students? Findings from interviews with high school principals and representatives from the Edmonton…

Introduces a series of articles about Canadian educational policy issues, comparing British and Canadian policymaking milieus during the 1980s. All the papers address wide-ranging attempts to reconstruct notions of commonness alongside concessions to, and celebrations of, linguistic and cultural plurality in an uncertain, postliberal world. This…

In Australia, education is expected to serve national and international market economies and is being steered by market forces within and beyond education. Recent forms of education markets raise social-justice issues inadequately treated in literature. Markets operate according to profit motive and are not premised on equality or fairness…

'Intelligence' has long been a problematic concept for educational policy-makers. Sociologists of education concerned to explain social inequalities in educational attainment have suggested that, despite the through-going criticism of the classical IQ concept, teachers continue to maintain practices which ensure that their taken-for-granted ideas…

Examines twenty-five year history of the influence of educational politics on educational policy and governance in Sweden, with particular emphasis on the 1990s and the first 3 years of the 21st Century. Concludes that educational politics and new system of school governance has increased access to all levels of education. (Contains 24…

Addresses the main themes of the Swedish Conservative Party's educational politics in the 1970s and 1980s, noting some international parallels. Conservatives have long promoted early division of children for different societal tasks. For substantial periods of time, schooling has been of secondary importance to the Swedish Right. Includes 36…

Discusses implications of major reforms in secondary school zoning in New Zealand, highlighting freedom and equity considerations. Zoning's primary aim has changed from balancing out different schools' declared needs to emphasizing parents' rights. The new zoning provisions involve both a strong role for freedom and a weak role for equity. (72…

Analyzes the design of French Socialist egalitarian education policy, highlighting the education system's organizational aspects, financial aspects, and size. The Socialist government's performance suggests that schooling structures tend toward great continuity, despite small victories for egalitarianism. Pressures from teacher unions and…

Explores varied special-education policy frameworks currently implemented in England and Scotland and their relationship with procedural fairness and substantive justice. Drawing on post-1993 policy documents, identifies dominant special-education policy needs. Unfortunately, legal and bureaucratic policy frameworks are supplanting traditional…

There has been a dramatic growth in private higher education in Brazil in recent years. The World Bank has promoted this expansion on the basis of the private providers' ability to ensure a rapid increase in enrolment, to improve quality through competition between institutions and to bring benefits for society at little public cost. However, the…