This study investigates the incidence of over-education amongst recent Australian bachelor degree graduates and its effect on their earnings. We find that between 24% and 37% of graduates were over-educated shortly after course completion, with over-education most common amongst young females and least common amongst older females. Over-education…

Purpose: A preliminary observation reveals that children of Islamic studies (IS) academicians do not choose IS as their career discipline. In view of this, this paper aims to explore the dimensions of parental attitudes, behaviours, perceptions and aspirations in seeing a future in IS for their children. Design/methodology/approach: Fifteen…

The aim of this article is to examine current national early years' policy reform, which emphasises the importance of service integration, national quality standards and a quality knowledge base for educators concerning the provision of early childhood education and care. Using Queensland, Australia, as an example, a policy discourse analysis…

The rigidity of teachers unions has been given as a primary reason for their lack of representation among America's rapidly growing, although still relatively small, charter school sector. In the case of post-Hurricane Katrina New Orleans, the city rapidly converted from a union-backed teacher workforce to a largely nonunionized charter school…

We examine the importance of adult functional literacy skills for individuals using a quantile regression methodology. The inclusion of the direct measure of basic skills reduces the return to schooling by 27%, equivalent to two additional years of schooling, while a one standard deviation increase in the score increases earnings by 20%. For those…

As India's higher education sector is poised to grow at a tremendous pace, one of its main challenges would be provision of quality education. Teacher quality has been identified as one of the most critical factors affecting educational quality. As such, the immense importance of attracting high-quality entrants into the teaching profession cannot…

In this article, the authors explore consensus among economists on specific propositions based on a fall 2011 survey of American Economic Association members. Results are based on 568 responses and provide evidence of changes in opinion over time by including propositions from earlier studies in 2000 (Fuller and Geide-Stevenson 2003) and 1992…

Prior empirical studies have found that American workers report longer hours than do workers in other highly industrialized countries, and that the highly educated report the longest hours relative to other educational levels. This paper analyzes disparities in working hours by education levels in 17 high- and middle-income countries to assess…

The purpose of this article is to assess the course content relevance in contributing to wage- or self-employment of adult non-formal education and training (NFET) in the context of South Africa. The concern that informed this article is that adults who face long-term unemployment due to a lack of marketable skills remain unemployed after…

This report is first in a series of informational briefings developed as part of "The Guardians Initiative: Reclaiming the Public Trust," an effort to educate and engage trustees as advocates on key issues in higher education. While the tone of public criticism of higher education has sharpened, public understanding about the sector's…

Several studies have considered whether American college students' hold "realistic" wage expectations. The consensus is that they do not--overestimation of future earnings is in the region of 40-50%. But is it just college students who overestimate the success they will have in the labor market, or is this something common to all…

This study investigates the underrepresentation of women in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) occupations from the aspect of earning differentials. Using a national data source that tracked college graduates' work experiences over a ten-year time frame post-bachelor's degree, this study examines longitudinally the…

This study investigates the effects of adults' enrollment in and graduation from a two-year college on their hourly wages and occupational status in U.S. by employing a growth curve model and a piecewise model. College enrollment reduced hourly wages and occupational status by 13.8% and 2.74 points, respectively. Less-educated workers whose wages…

Continuous learning over the life course is necessary to successfully compete in a knowledge-based global economy. Workers are increasingly encouraged to remain in the labor force at older ages, which for many will require skills upgrading. While a wide range of individual and community factors play a role in whether older workers receive skills…

This executive summary highlights results from the full report (published separately) which includes two studies that describe the local context for teacher employment decisions. The first examines the local labor market, and the second examines employment for teachers who left Austin Independent School District (AISD). A separate technical report…