This article primarily aims to investigate the effects of decentralization on educational autonomy in Taiwan through historical and documentary analysis. To draw an analytical framework, it begins with a brief examination of the concept of autonomy. This is followed by an examination of how decentralization has influenced the…

A 10-year strategic plan for early childhood education introduced by the New Zealand Ministry of Education in 2002 included policies to create a teacher-led early childhood profession by 2012. This article reviews the provisions of the strategic plan and argues that it emerged from a critical ecology of the early childhood profession with a…

This study examines an elementary school which during enrollment in the European Network of Health Promoting Schools, 1993-2003, and the Norwegian Physical Activity and Healthy Meals Project, 2004-2006, selected physical activity (PA) as a prioritized area. Survey data, school documents, and focus group data were collected and analyzed through a…

In this paper, we use economic concepts to examine the choice that states make between giving appropriations to public colleges or need-based financial aid to students. We begin by reviewing the economic justification for state support for higher education. Next, we introduce a simple economic model for comparing and contrasting appropriations and…

Advances in neuroscience, developmental psychology, and program evaluation have been combined to develop a unified framework that provides evidence-based guidance related to early childhood policy. This research shows how insights from the field of economics-- human capital theory and monetary payoffs--also contribute to that framework.…

Teaching policy analysis is compared to teaching research skills. Both involve the selection of an appropriate analytical tool to be used with multiple units of analysis; and in both, the selected instrument must fit the purpose of the analysis or the product is not useful. Policy analysis frameworks characteristically address policy process,…

A record-breaking number of Congressional pork-barrel projects this year has loaded college and university plates with more earmarks than ever before, despite growing worries that the noncompetitive grants undermine the American scientific enterprise, and in spite of promises by some lawmakers to cut back. An analysis by "The Chronicle" shows that…

President Bush is leaving the White House with a mixed record on higher education. His administration catapulted conversations about holding colleges more accountable for their performance into the national spotlight, and it pressed for some increases in federal spending on student aid and research. At the same time, Mr. Bush faced criticism from…

This paper analyses a higher education policy issued in China in 2002: the Quality Assessment of Undergraduate Education Policy. The policy was designed with four main objectives: improvement, compliance, information and accountability. However, it has not completely fulfilled its objectives, especially regarding improvement and accountability,…

Educational policy might productively be conceptualized with an ecology metaphor. Each policy, thus considered, exists within a complex system that reflects varied international, national, regional, and local dynamics. Using this metaphor provides policy analysts with a view of the regularities and irregularities of any policy, its process, its…

This report was written out of a recognition that there has been little effort to systematically examine the value to anchor institutions of engaging in significant community investment. In the absence of such research, the authors believe that institutions tend to overestimate the costs and risks and underappreciate the potential benefits. In…

This report provides a first-of-its-kind descriptive summary of private school expenditures. It includes comparisons of expenditures among different types and affiliations of private schools, and it also compares those expenditures with public school expenditures for districts in the same state and labor market. Results indicate that (1) the…

The extent to which funds under the Title I of the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) should be expended on training services has been a topic of discussion by Congress, which is considering reauthorization of WIA. This paper describes a policy initiative by Illinois that requires Local Workforce Investment Areas (LWIAs) under Title I of WIA to expend…

California has made significant strides in reducing the numbers of underprepared teachers in the state's schools. Data indicate that measures put into place over the last few years to address the maldistribution of underprepared teachers are clearly working. However, the current budget crisis and the decrease in the numbers of those entering…

One of the most important factors in school performance is parental involvement. However, many parents do not have the flexibility in their work schedules or the leave policies necessary to attend school functions. As a result, legislators are creating policies to address this issue. This policy brief tackles the following questions: (1) What is…