Rural America has long been perceived as "left behind" by policies that leave it struggling while benefiting bustling urban cities and suburbs. That narrative holds some truth: rural America has a declining population, along with lower educational attainment and lower workforce participation than urban America. But while rural America…

This report explains some of the ways the payoff of postsecondary education can be measured and provides insights into why there is confusion about that payoff, despite strong evidence. Focusing on the variation in outcomes across individuals helps to clarify that the existence of the high average payoff, and the reality of significant benefits…

Excelencia in Education is committed to using data to inform public policy and institutional practice to achieve our mission of accelerating student success for Latinos in higher education. Every educational experience from early childhood to high school and into the workforce influences the potential for college success. For this reason, this…

With intense competition at the forefront of the global knowledge-based economy, the United States must embrace a strategy of building a skilled workforce. In the New Economy, the flow of capital coalesces around regions that have high concentrations of talent. Despite evidence that skilled workers are a vital element of regional economic…

The key to economic and social development lies in the knowledge and skill base of human capital. This report, presented to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Finance, calls for vigorous action on the part of the Government of Canada, in concert with the provinces and territories, to protect the Canadian economy from a skills shortage…

According to the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM), "manufacturing is the engine that drives American prosperity". When NAM and its research and education arm, The Manufacturing Institute, released the handbook, "The Facts About Modern Manufacturing," in October 2006, NAM President John Engler noted, that…

Comparative analysis of Canadian and U.K. national survey data examined educational attainment by gender, age group, and occupational category; extent of apprenticeship certification; and enrollment patterns for continuing adult education. Canada's higher educational attainment, flexible school-work transition, and higher continuing-education…

The United States is facing a great crisis: skills gaps in the work force imperil the nation's future. The crisis is elementary: the United States is not educating and training its citizens to be productive and competent members of the work force. Consequently, its people are not qualified enough to meet the demands of the high-technology economy…

This paper focuses on the political economy of public education in depressed rural regions of the United States. The general hypothesis explored is that occupational composition of the community workforce and associated educational requirements for employment are significant elements of the sociopolitical environment for public education. Part I…

The U.S. economy is undergoing a transition that may rival the changes produced by the Industrial Revolution. The general directions are clear: an ever smaller share of the nation's work force is employed in the manufacturing sector; service sector industries are the source of most new jobs; and some "high tech" industries have had explosive…

This paper is intended to provide a brief introduction to how economists assess the importance of education and training in the Australian economy and how the allocation of resources to education can be assessed. Included in the introduction are statistics illustrating the enormous impact of education and training on Australia's economy and a…

Competitiveness is a function of a nation's resources and how effectively those resources are used relative to that nation's competitors. The people of a nation, with their knowledge, skills, and attitudes, determine how effectively technology, capital, and trade will be used to the nation's competitive advantage. The competitive challenge to the…

Educational performance has become a crucial element in the United States' capacity to prosper in a new global economy of fierce competition. In addition to the traditional question of how the educational system contributes to students' intellectual growth, a new question is being asked: How does the educational system contribute to national…

Focusing on major issues related to the preparation of the nation's work force, the yearbook considers all sectors of manpower preparation--public and private schools, industry, military, and other agencies. Thirty contributing authors represent the broad fields of manpower and research. Section 1, The Opportunity for Leadership, contains chapters…

There is a strong and growing argument for higher educational attainment in the United States. The jobs that are expected to support the economy in the coming years will depend on a skilled workforce that is able to learn and adapt quickly to new challenges. However, demographic patterns demonstrate that relying on the traditional K-16 pipeline to…