The number of foreign students admitted to graduate schools at American colleges and universities grew in 2008 for the fourth straight year, but the rate of increase over the previous year declined for the third consecutive year, according to survey results released by the Council of Graduate Schools. Based on previous years' data, this year's…

What does it take to run an international-education office? A detailed understanding of obtuse federal regulations, the ability to recruit foreign students on a shoestring budget, and a talent for creating study-abroad programs that are both academically rigorous and highly popular. That was the message in dozens of sessions last week at the…

Almost two years ago, Boise State University instituted a workload policy that worried some faculty members. Its basis is an algebraic-seeming formula with components--"teaching: 6 + x; scholarship: 2 + y; service: 2 + z"--that critics found difficult to believe could provide the flexibility that administrators promised. Some professors thought…

The authors maintain that higher education has tamely responded to pillory by political conservatives. This essay advocates for Michael Berube's defense of liberalism in higher education, "What's Liberal about the Liberal Arts? Classroom Politics and "Bias" in Higher Education." The writers also counter what they view as conservative attacks on…

This article outlines the policy context for teachers' learning and continuing professional development in Scotland and considers this in relation to the perspectives of key informants gained through interview. The analysis draws on a triple-lens conceptual framework and points to some interesting contradictions between the policy text and the…

The Intelligent Design Movement has attempted to infuse Intelligent Design into the curriculum of public schools ever since the Edwards decision, which ruled that "creation science" was a violation of the the "Establishment Clause. Kitzmiller v. Dover" was the first legal case to challenge the teaching of Intelligent Design in…

The No Child Left Behind Act declared that improving education in every school in the United States was a top national priority. However, this act did not acknowledge how state departments of education have successfully constructed reforms for the past few decades, despite the power struggle between governors, legislators, school districts, and…

Turning his distinctive analytical lens to the politics of American education, the author looks at contemporary educational policy issues from theoretical, practical, and historical perspectives. This comprehensive overview documents and explains who influences educational policy and how, bringing to life the realities of schooling in the 21st…

In 2005-06 almost half of the pupils in California's public schools were Latinos, but Latinos only received about 15 percent of the BA degrees awarded by public and private colleges in the state. Texas has a comparable Latino population, but does significantly better than California in getting Latino students through college. The implication of…

Class-size reduction (CSR) mandates presuppose that resources provided to reduce class size will have a larger impact on student outcomes than resources that districts can spend as they see fit. I estimate the impact of Florida's statewide CSR policy by comparing the deviations from prior achievement trends in districts that were required to…

This dissertation evaluates the impact of elementary school policies on child health behaviors and obesity in the United States. Two chapters address nutrition policies, two chapters address physical activity policies, and a final chapter estimates the health care cost savings associated with a decline in childhood obesity prevalence. The use of…

Hole-in-the-Wall as a concept has attracted worldwide attention. It involves providing unconditional access to computer-equipped kiosks in playgrounds and out-of-school settings, children taking ownership of their learning and learning driven by the children's natural curiosity. It is posited that this approach, which is being used in India,…

According to the "work made for hire doctrine" of the Copyright Act, the creators of artistic and literary works are not legally granted ownership of works created in the course of employment; ownership rests with the employer. However, through "de facto" custom and court dicta, academics may enjoy a "teacher exception" that grants them copyright…

Are the central pedagogical concepts and practices of the Humboldtian university, with "Bildung" as the overarching goal, only part of an elitist history of the university in the past or may they still be of relevance for the 21st century? What processes are involved in fostering "Bildung" then and now? This article…

There is a crisis relevant to the publicly funded education of Aboriginal students in Ontario. This article, which presents the details of the crisis, analyzes recent policy statements released by the Ontario Ministry of Education designed to address that crisis. By defining the nature of this critical juncture, presenting how these policies may…