The report of an OECD IMHE Programme working group on institutional management in France is presented, focusing on four main themes: staff, diplomas and degrees, institutional administration, and relations with the central government. (Author/MSE)

Some major recent developments in program and student evaluation in Canadian colleges and universities are outlined and factors contributing to their success are identified. Critical issues involved in program evaluation, criteria for excellence, and evaluation of student learning are discussed, especially as related to questions of accountability…

Argues that the accelerating trend of standardization has produced a sameness in American education. Highlights Hillsdale College's refusal to accept federal funds, out of a conviction that quality in liberal education can only thrive without government interference. (SK)

There are two principal reasons for separating teacher education institutions from higher education institutions: (1) Schools of education are unable to achieve essential autonomy as long as they are part of traditional institutions of higher education; and (2) The location of teacher education programs in universities precludes involvement of…

Controversy continues over the merits of field-based teacher education as a superior preparation system versus campus-based preservice teacher education. The first in a series of articles addressed to this controversy focuses on the problem of the lack of autonomy in schools of education. (JN)

The goals of socially mandated government regulation in education must be clarified to remove the confusion and doubletalk. A balanced approach and clearly defined positions on both sides are recommended. (Journal availability: University of Utah College of Law, Salt Lake City, UT 84112, $4.00 per issue, $2.00 per article.) (MSE)

Many American institutions have turned their backs on millions of dollars from Middle East oil-producing countries for fear of strings attached that might limit faculty hirings or what would be taught or might discriminate against Jewish or other scholars. (MLW)

The rising demand for accountability has had a great influence on the design and use of management information systems. The purposes of accountability, needs assessment, and program evaluation would be well served if a set of indlcators could include information about the outcomes of higher education. (MLW)

Two contrasting views of social policy toward organized athletic competition are presented: (1) Hackbart vs Cincinnati Bengals, Inc. suggests a laissez faire approach; and (2) Nabozny vs Barnhill holds that courts should apply basic tort law to ensure respect for basic standards of civilization. Implications for colleges and universities are…

The challenge in university governance is to provide sufficient autonomy to sustain academic vitality while ensuring that this energy is directed toward the broad public interest. Maine and New Jersey, two very different states, have been experimenting with structural changes, primarily decentralization, to balance autonomy with accountability.…

Analysis of selected set of charter-school research reports through late 2001. Finds, for example, that charter schools are more autonomous than other public schools, but that the jury is still out on some of the most important questions, including those about innovation, accountability, equity, and outcomes. Provides a framework for examining…

A creditable response to society's needs and expectations can be best undertaken by establishing a national agenda in academic medicine that places a high priority on health services research and the scientific analysis of the entire health care system. The expansion of the cadre of health service researchers is needed. (Author/MLW)

Britain's higher education system illustrates how increased governmental influence can change social systems and produce unintended consequences. A model of change used to analyze this situation also suggests a form of accountability that can reduce unintended consequences, based on sharing of both power and responsibility by government and…

The Danish experience with university democratization suggests that the process is irreversible and that its progress is determined by how the initial change was begun two decades ago. It is also proposed that government attempts to intervene and revoke traditional institutional autonomy threaten to invalidate the progress made. (Author/MSE)

Pennsylvania's 10-year-old system of 14 state-owned universities has focused on increasing the stature and character of individual institutions, limited centralization, and fostered cohesion and cooperation rather than competition, particularly in difficult economic conditions. (MSE)