Both the Portuguese appropriation of the lifelong learning policy proposed by the European Union since the mid-1990s and the definition of adult education policy in Portugal were based on a discourse that emphasised an "unacceptable educational deficit" for democracy. The role of the State in the "governance" of the public…

How do people use education to respond to change? How do people learn what is expected of "good citizens" in their communities? These questions have long concerned educational historians, civic educators, and social scientists. In recent years, they have captured national attention through high-profile education reform proposals and…

The confluence of three major forces has given a new significance to nonformal education for the developing countries--denied educational opportunities and resource constraints, questions about the relevance of formal education, and growing awareness of the importance of lifelong education. The absence of inadequacies of concepts and priorities of…

Examines the ongoing rural transformation in China in relation to agricultural reforms and the implementation of changing rural educational policies. Compares the Chinese decentralized approach to rural education, involving two-way rural-urban linkages and other alternative networks, to the American extension system. 21 references. (SV)

China's official history maintains that the radical egalitarianism of the Cultural Revolution (1966-76) led to economic disaster. This book challenges that view. Drawing on local interviews and records in rural Jimo County, Shandong Province, this study contends that the Cultural Revolution's political convulsions democratized village political…

Describes problems in rural education and highlights reform programs in rural schools. Many reform programs combine school improvement with rural economic development. Barriers to reform include the One Best System Model and consolidation. Local control of schools is a key to successful reform. (KS)

This case study examines the interaction between basic education (primary education, adult literacy, and nonformal adult education) and economic development needs in rural Zhuji County, Zhejiang Province, located in southeast China. In Zhuji, parents traditionally have endured hardships to send their children to school and otherwise encouraged…

Nonformal education, though unsystematized, is of at least equal importance with formal schooling in developing countries. Nonformal education can be classified as follows: (1) activities oriented primarily to development of the employed manpower; (2) activities designed to facilitate access to employment; and (3) activities not specifically…

As rural communities decline due to job losses in agriculture and other industries, they often aggressively court new industries. In such circumstances, a community should question what a proposed new industry will require in terms of infrastructure; the effects of the new labor force on schools, businesses, and housing; the impact on the…

The idea that education is connected to economic development and that the economy can be strengthened by strengthening education has become a cornerstone of the 1980s educational reform movement. The basic idea linking education and the economy is not new. Americans have invested in education with the expectation that it would yield substantial…

This paper discusses ways to make social work education more appropriate for the preparation of development practitioners to work with the people and communities of Appalachia. The current dominant theory developed by economists of Appalachian development is that of modernization. The theory emphasizes economic growth. Modernization sees society…

This paper differentiates between the "old story" of rural education and the emerging "new story." It describes the tradition (old story) in which rural education is related to the local and national economies and lays out fragments of the new story, a paradigm that combines rural education and the rural economy in a way that strengthens them…

This report summarizes a study examining the current conditions and unique nature of rural schools in Kansas. The purpose of the study was to identify problems that could be addressed through educational policy and state legislation. A literature review reports on the distinctive nature of rural life, factors leading up to school consolidation,…

This report overviews policy issues and research needs related to rural education in the South, focusing on educational systems in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia. It is generally accepted that the South compare unfavorably with the rest…

Addresses Australia's changing economic structure and the increasingly important role of adult education in rural economic development. Adult programs that positively impact rural development include training for employment, small business training, enterprise education, community awareness programs aimed at promoting understanding of how money…