The Programme for International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) will establish technical standards and guidelines to ensure that the survey design and implementation processes of PIAAC yield high-quality and internationally comparable data. This document provides a revised version of the technical standards and guidelines originally…

This article focuses on the financing of education in Kenya. It reviews government, parental, community, and international efforts aimed at improving education during a period of economic austerity. (JDH)

Noting that economic crisis until recently was considered a peculiar characteristic of free-enterprise economies, this article provides factual information demonstrating the economic crisis in the planned economies of eastern Europe. It describes in detail the consequences of the crisis for education in Poland. (JDH)

Following a brief history of education over the last forty years, this article provides a discussion of the meaning, impact, and relevance of the recent educational reform movement in the United States. (JDH)

This article describes the static or declining economic conditions of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden and relates these conditions to restrictions on education, the relationship between education and employment, control of education by governing authorities, and the employment conditions of teachers. (JDH)

By means of a case study of the Saint Louis, Missouri school desegregation and reorganization program, administrative procedures for avoiding desegregation or creating an appearance of compliance are discussed. The strategies used include public relations, inbreeding of staff, coopting and/or dividing citizen action, and stalling for time. (MH)

This article explores the realities of community financing of state and private schools in Zimbabwe. It reviews the implications of historical influences and lists present efforts to redress past injustices. (JDH)

Presents excerpts from a symposium in Charlottesville (VA) at which researchers, policymakers, and journalists discussed educational issues and the relationship of research to reform. Discusses issues concerning communication problems between groups and why it is important to keep talking with each other. Explores ways of improving the…

Indonesia faces many barriers to making a decision regarding educational policy for economic development and individual growth. These include the large population, cultural problems, lack of skills, the guardianship syndrome, and the fallacy of foreign expertise. (CH)

Four evaluation methods for determining educational policy are objectivism; subjectivism; emotive-imperative; and instrumentalism. For the objectivist, the rationale for undertaking an evaluation is based on empirical verification or non-verification of claims of existing policies or activities. Secondly, the objectivist is interested in…

Reports on changes taking place in British primary school curriculum component called variously: "craft design and technology (CDT)," or "design-related activities." Explains the philosophy behind the reform and relates various classroom experiences which typify current practice. (JDH)

Noting that mass education is a product of the affluent society, this article details efforts in West Germany to maintain quality education in times of shrinking economic growth, decreasing entry-level enrollments, level-funding, and decreasing political priority. Provides facts and figures on population trends, educational funding, demographic…

This article highlights the problems school authorities face in reducing spending and the effects the resulting cuts have upon the school they administer. (JDH)

To help the unemployment problems of Egypt, the authors recommend the restructuring of agriculture; orientation of investment to foreign-exchange earning export industries; the phasing out of employment guarantees in the public sector combined with educational and training reforms; and contingency employment programs, concentrated on the…

Discusses how declines in enrollments, budgets, public confidence in schooling, and the legitimacy of administrative authority have politicized the educational environment. Discusses distinctive features of politics and management of decline, how decline has prompted a policy reassessment, and competing explanations for failures and problems with…