Data gathered by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) can be used to analyze the relative effects of educational systems in different countries. A simplified example of such analysis utilizes variations among countries, among age cohorts within countries, and between subject matter competencies within…

Asserting that U.S. policy makers have much to gain from studying child care financing and delivery approaches in other economically-developed countries, this paper summarizes aspects of the organization and financing of early childhood education and care (ECEC) services across 14 industrialized countries as of the mid-1990s. The first section…

The Randomized Control Trials (RCT) design and its quasi-experimental kissing cousin, the Comparison Group Trials (CGT), are golden to some and not even silver to others. At the center of the affection, at the vortex of the discomfort, are beliefs about what it takes to establish causality. These designs are considered primarily when the purpose…

This newsletter describes a research design enabling descriptive, comparative, evaluative follow-up studies of individual development in social contexts related to schooling. In addition, it describes a research project focusing mainly on evaluative studies of the ability of the educational system to confer, on different individuals in various…

Several national data sources available to the public can be used to examine institutional impacts of student financial aid and to compare institutional data with national averages. (Author/MSE)

In 1999, Ministers responsible for school education agreed to the new set of "National Goals for Schooling in the Twenty-First Century," with the aim of providing high quality schooling in Australia which would secure for students the necessary knowledge, understanding, skills and values for a productive and rewarding life. As a…

This investigation mapped the correspondence between indicators at the post-school level included in the comprehensive system of educational outcomes and indicators developed by the National Center for Educational Outcomes (NCEO) and indicators included in select national data collection programs. The NCEO model articulates outcomes and indicators…

A study examined the long-term effects of participation in the Retired Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) on participants from 20 RSVP projects nationwide. Three rounds of interviews were conducted. In Round 1, 750 volunteers were interviewed: 595 veteran volunteers and 155 new volunteers. In Round 2, 792 volunteers were intereviewed: 175 new…

Appendix I presents national inventories and analyses of the problems, objectives, and instruments pertinent to the rural areas of 21 countries. Data, including land area, agricultural ratio, and report and map sources, are provided for Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Denmark, Finland, France, Federal Republic of Germany, Greece, Iceland, Ireland,…

The study has as its purpose the examination and comparison of career education movements in the United States and Great Britain and is perhaps best described as a pilot effort. Specific questions addressed included: (1) How do career education efforts in the two nations compare in terms of national commitment, philosophy, and students served? (2)…

Describes a project conducted by UCLA (University of California at Los Angeles) and OCLC to compare the cost and time of creating core cataloging records for monographs as opposed to full cataloging. Topics include authority work, whether core records provide sufficient access to materials, and implications for national implementation. (LRW)

Discusses author's observations of poverty-related problems within rural Sri Lankan schools. Juxtaposes literature on Third World education problems at national, district, school, and individual levels. Concludes high educational expectations in developing world are tightly constrained by poverty, negative attitudes, and weaknesses of systems.…

Compares the "standard English" that has been employed in the formation of the English National Curriculum with the way Norwegian has found its place in the "Monsterplan" ("monster" meaning pattern or guideline in Norwegian). Notes that Norway (which itself has been dominated by other cultures and languages for…

Documents about adult education in Latin America at the Survey and Analysis Center of the Adult Education Association of the U.S.A. were reviewed to identify promising research directions. A theoretical framework for research should be developed and should include definitions of concepts and variables in different settings and identification of…

A broad international perspective is taken in this examination of the objectives of national repository planning; general principles on which a plan should be based; selection for national retention; criteria by which alternative national systems should be judged; and the main alternative models assessed against these criteria. (5 references) (CLB)