In the 1980s, the Chinese government converted uppersecondary education to an equal mix of general and vocational/technical education. Although justified in economic terms, the development of vocational/technical education was actually prompted by a desire to reduce the social demand for higher education and use education as a social…

Traces the development of Ecuador's program of indigenous bilingual intercultural education. Describes the acceptance of a common alphabet for all indigenous languages; the "Macac" educational model; and the creation of bilingual primary and secondary schools and teacher training colleges. Stresses the importance of intercultural…

Arguing that the politicisation of decentralisation appreciably reduces educational quality and efficient resource allocation and negatively affects matters of equity in and delivery of education, the present study provides a critique of decentralisation and privatisation in education in Africa with special reference to Nigeria. On the basis of…

Education policy leaders from across the political spectrum identified and evaluated four models that national standards and testing could take. These models are: (1) "The Whole Enchilada," the most direct and aggressive approach in which the federal government creates and enforces national standards and assessments, replacing the…

In this article we argue, through a case study in a large, urban local authority in England, that local stakeholders in early years provision express a variety of perspectives on quality but are constrained by a national framework which promotes an "official" definition of quality. We offer a quality-defining model that captures the role…

Senate Bill (SB) 2042, authored by Senator Marion Bergeson, was passed to establish a new system for providing teacher preparation within the state of California. The credentialing reforms introduced in SB 2042 follow a tradition described by Irving Hendrik and stake their own claims regarding the locus of control over teacher quality, the role of…

As the most populous Muslim country in the world, Indonesia has a unique experience in dealing with Islamic education, a system that was established years before the country's independence. This paper summarizes the development of Indonesian Islamic schools with special reference to their changing curricula. Using the social constructionist…

Effective government relations is the key to meeting the fiscal and legislative needs of public education. This fastback is designed to help educators establish an effective government-relations program. It offers suggestions for identifying legislative priorities; forming internal and external networks and coalitions in support of the legislative…

This discussion paper examines mechanisms through which governments allocate resources to higher education, particularly in developing countries, in order to establish effective means to transfer these subsidies to institutions. The discussion of funding mechanisms develops within the context of three major types of government restrictions which…

The Brown decision of 1954 occurred when Blacks, who were migrating into the North in large numbers, became a highly visible political minority. Widespread interest in school integration on the part of the dominant majority stemmed more from a concern about societal integration than about the welfare of disadvantaged children. The Brown decision…

The "new federalism" policies of the conservative governments of Malcolm Fraser in Australia (1975-1982) and Ronald Reagan in the United States (1980-1985) are remarkably similar. Both men rode to power on the wave of conservative political, economic and social forces which swept the United States and Australia in the late 1970's. Both…

In 1995, Georgia became the first U.S. state to provide universal prekindergarten to 4 year olds. Although the lottery-funded program has received more attention from policymakers than any other program, there has been no systematic effort to chronicle the program's evolution or to draw lessons from its experience. This report illustrates the…

This article outlines the major goals of the Reagan administration's education agenda, discusses the political context of the goals, and identifies administration successes and failures in achieving those goals. Particular attention is given to federal spending on education, the impact on specific programs, and the legacy of those fiscal policies.…

A strong governor plays a major role in state education reform in Tennessee. This article documents the governor's influence from the initial study of state education through the mobilization of forces, battles with opponents, the legislative process, the final rulings, fiscal implications, and educational impact. (JD)

The author describes the practice of apartheid in South Africa, particularly as it affects education at all levels. Topics discussed include interracial tensions, sanctions by other countries, and education's role in social change. (CH)