This paper assesses the growing UK private sector in education and questions whether it is, as its supporters suggest, a valuable addition to an already diverse national system. An earlier "Perspectives" paper (Woodfield et al 2011) explored the emerging partnerships between public and private sectors. This follow-up explores the roles…

Families across the country are facing hard times. With inflation rising much faster than earnings, unemployment stubbornly high and the government about to embark on the most severe programme of fiscal austerity since the Second World War, living standards are being squeezed and women are on the frontline. With 80 billion British pounds set to be…

The aftermath of the international financial crisis of 2008/2009 and current economic downturn in the world economy has unsurprisingly put publicly-funded higher education (HE) systems under immense pressure in most parts of the world. Added to measures of the past 20 years, aiming at introducing cost effective management approaches imported from…

This article argues that in moving from being self governed to being state governed the policy drivers for higher education are no longer those of the system itself but are derived from a set of policies designed for the reform and modernisation of the public sector of the economy. The formation of higher education policy therefore needs to be…

The English Academies programme has become one of the most controversial aspects of the New Labour strategy for education and public sector reform. And in many ways, given the significance of the programme, that controversy is understandable and appropriate. This is particularly so because, as the author argues here, Academies are indicative of…

In this White Paper, the Business Roundtable recommends access to AMERICA 21, a 21st-century approach to lifelong learning for workers, as well as assistance for job dislocation. AMERICA 21 would channel funding from the myriad of existing initiatives into a modernized, streamlined system that leverages and builds on today's best private and…

"Excellence" has been a prevalent term in New Labour rhetoric on education, most notably in the stated goal of "excellence for all" in education. Despite that, the meaning of the term has remained imprecise, and the implications of universal excellence unclear. In this paper, three distinct definitions of excellence are…

Testimony to a congressional subcommittee stresses the importance of national broadband communications networks such as NREN and NSFNet to the educational community. Approval for a proposed private sector competition for a cooperative agreement with NSFNet is expressed, and the necessity for a common infrastructure for the NREN is discussed. (LAE)

Examines and assesses the mythological dimensions of deregulation in the telecommunications industry. Addresses the underlying beliefs that deregulation (1) lessens the economic role of government; (2) benefits consumers; (3) diminishes economic concentration; (4) is widely supported; and (5) is inevitable. Argues against an uncritical acceptance…

A conference event is mediated through keynote speeches, power point presentations, professional role-playing and the turgid language of policy agendas, initiatives, benchmarks and outputs. Serious human concerns rarely surface in the orchestrated and anodyne arena of professional conference-going. The ready recourse to ritual and procedure means…

Argues that (1) vocational education and job training must be responsive to market forces to influence economic development; (2) national policies must encourage links between training and market forces and a balance between public and private training; and (3) strategies must incorporate the social and political contexts. (SK)

This essay discusses the effects of feminism on educational policy in Australia and the role of feminist educators in developing and implementing the feminist agenda. It also examines the conditions framing Australian feminist work in education. The essay reviews the gains that girls and women have made in educational attainment and employment, as…

Organized labor in Oregon supports a high-skill, high-wage economic development strategy. The Oregon AFL-CIO Committee on Worker Education and Training has made policy recommendations that support this strategy. The Oregon AFL-CIO believes that fundamental reform of education is needed and recommends the following: emphasis on a high level of…

Historically, the roles of the public and private sectors in VET have been characterized by the following broad stages: (1) unstructured and unregulated VET; (2) supply-driven, state dominated VET; and (3) market-driven VET. More recently, the combined forces of globalization, technological change, and liberalization of markets have forced…

This advisory report presents 18 recommendations for cost sharing, cooperation among institutions, and meeting future demands for higher education in Ontario. A framework for public policy is offered which stresses the themes of excellence, accessibility, and responsibility and urges differentiation in strengths among colleges and universities, a…