The recent economic crisis in Iceland has raised issues of the sustainability of Icelandic higher education to new levels of importance. A key strategy in relation to this economic crisis is to consider the merger of the four public universities in Iceland and to introduce a much higher engagement with online and open delivery methods of higher…

To solve two enduring problems in education--unacceptably large variation in learning opportunities for students across classrooms and little continuing improvement in the quality of instruction--the authors propose a system that centers on the creation of shared instructional products that guide classroom teaching. By examining systems outside…

Included in this report are seven comparative case studies of innovation processes in higher education in Sweden. The purpose of the study is to chart dysfunctions in the system in planning for change, and also to gain more knowledge of the organization by studying it when it has been "disturbed" through introduction of an innovative…

The management of change, defined as organizational measures for promoting change and, therefore, close to management for change, is discussed. It is recognized that change does not necessarily represent improvement; evaluation of innovations constitutes one of the most important tasks of management. In this report the first chapter outlines the…

This document, adapted to readers who are not familiar with institutional details in Swedish higher education, outlines planning and management at regional and central levels. Emphasis is placed on qualitative aspects of planning and on identification of obstacles and possibilities of change and innovation. A central problem for the study is to…

Innovation processes in the Swedish Higher Education System are described and related to a general theory of innovation. Using the theories of Kurt Lewin, characteristics of higher education as a social system and factors which determine the nature of the forces towards a certain type of change are defined. (JMF)

This publication is one in a series of case studies dealing with educational innovation in various western European countries and the United States. This particular report discusses educational innovation in Sweden. The author attempts to describe the basic structure and character of the Swedish educational system, in addition to examining…

The Centre for Educational Research and Innovation Studies on innovation have tried to evaluate what is happening in different member countries to achieve a balance between organized processes for change and free initiative of the individual school or teacher, and to establish effective institutions in the different national circumstances. The aim…

School change is examined using the experiences of local educational change projects in Sweden. Specifically discussed are Swedish educational development centers that encourage experiments directly involving teachers and the SSK experiment in Uppsala designed to give teachers, parents, and pupils a greater say and more responsibility in…

The introduction, "Education and Local Development," provides a theme of rural education and development, with emphasis on widening the limits of programs and facilities to serve all age groups. International perspectives on rural education are infused into the 20 selected papers through the participation of several authorities from…