With claims that neo-liberalism is the "specific defining political/economic paradigm of the age in which we live?…?" [Apple, Michael. 2006. "Educating the 'Right' Way: Markets, Standards, God, and Inequality." New York: Taylor & Francis, 14.], an invited symposium at the 2012 International Convention on Science, Education…

Japan and Great Britain are both island nations with long histories. Nationalists in both nations like to emphasise the things that separate members of 'our' nation from others across the sea, and this includes language. In the British case the arrogant assumption that 'everyone else can learn English' has led to a serious decline in the number of…

Intercultural competence (IC) has been promoted by many educationalists as the most exalted type of competence in modern foreign language teaching (FLT). Among the difficulties to incorporate IC into FLT can be due to the fact that teachers may not have sufficient knowledge on the concept. To test this hypothesis, we attempt to answer the…

The new demands imposed upon the education industry world-wide by "globalization" and "information revolution" are analysed in this paper, centred on the ethical constraints surrounding the teacher, and the challenges facing management. The concept of the modern Sisyphus is presented herewith, to capture the…

This study reviewed current issues in preparing qualified teachers for increasing diverse student populations in the U.S. and in other multicultural and multiethnic countries. Based on the framework of community-based and multicultural teacher education, this literature review paper analyzed issues and problems existed in the current curriculum,…

This paper aims to establish that globalised social and linguistic changes have a more complicated impact on local behaviours and attitudes than is believed. Based on statistical analysis of nationally representative surveys in Japan, the paper presents evidence against the following two propositions: (1) globalisation increases local demand for…

In 2003, citizenship education had recently been introduced to the national curriculum for England, and the model adopted was proving to be influential in a variety of settings worldwide. We sought to challenge a nationalist version of citizenship education by proposing "education for cosmopolitan citizenship" arguing for citizenship…

This article examines how education unfolded as a science in Estonia in the period 1944-1991, i.e. from the second Soviet occupation to the fall of the USSR. Historical analysis of the way prominent scholars and institutions succeeded in overcoming the adverse conditions of that period is conducted by viewing their respective contributions through…

Families living on small islands face limited options for the school education of their children. This exploratory study on Kangaroo Island, South Australia, considers some of the issues they face and the choices they make. It is based on informal, semi-structured interviews with parents, grandparents and children. Results show that all informants…

Understanding multilateral institutions' role in the construction of desirable goals for educational reform is a key element to grasp the weight globalisation has on local practices of education. Comparative studies of civics and moral education point to the idea of 'citizenship' as a site revealing not only the political economy but also the…

The increase of communication methods in the globalized world, the reduction of locality to a minimum in the economy and as a result of this, the migration from less economically developed countries to developed countries which in turn results in close interaction between ethnicities, all make it impossible for a homogenous society to exist and…

Recent decades have seen rapid growth of national participation in international tests as well as expanded national assessment testing. This article addresses the relationship between these forms of testing and educational developments: educational enrollments, women's participation in schooling, repetition rates, student centrism in the…

This article discusses how intercultural communication theory informed an approach to information literacy support for the University of New Brunswick's online MEd program in Trinidad and Tobago. By applying established frameworks for understanding and comparing cultural values across national groups, the author designed and implemented a hybrid…

This article investigates careers of early-career academics in the Russian academic system as it strives to improve its position in the global academic landscape. The typology of "boundaried" and "boundaryless" careers is applied in order to analyze careers in Russia. Two types of academics were identified:…

Contemporary liberal education owes its existence to various educational ideas and pedagogical formulas that emerged from the 18th century intellectual movement known as the Enlightenment. Many Enlightenment conceptions, principles, and practices such as public schooling, equality of opportunity, freedom of expression, critical thinking,…