This article examines the promotion of literacy through information and communication technologies (ICTs) and through various modes of distance learning. After a general discussion of these approaches, the article focuses on efforts towards reducing illiteracy in Nigeria through integrated strategies for literacy delivery and especially through…

This article brings together, and builds upon, previous scholarship on juvenile delinquency, motherhood, and education in 1950s America, and explores how the widespread contention that inadequate mothering was responsible for a rise in juvenile crime and social deviance helped shape the organization of schooling in the postwar era. In the first…

Following the political changes of 1994 in South Africa, the decision was taken to replace the traditional skills-based education system at primary and secondary school level (Grades 1-12) with an outcomes-based education system (OBE) . The implementation of the OBE system did not come without problems, giving rise to revised initiatives. The OBE…

Like the African proverb, "It takes a village to raise a child", many educational researchers charge that it takes a comprehensive school reform to raise student achievement. With the passing of the No Child Left Behind legislation in 2002, national officials authorized the Comprehensive School Reform program to support low performing…

In this article the move toward international education in the community college is questioned. Who benefits when two-year schools are globalized? An alternative to the current international approach is suggested. The case is made that community colleges serve the public interest when curricula are centered on solving problems unique to the…

This case focuses on an urban middle school that has recently seen much improvement in the academic performance of its students and its reputation within the community. These positive changes, however, have come about largely because of what might be perceived as a narrow focus on standardized curricula, pedagogy, and assessment techniques.…

Under the leadership of Tony Blair New Labour committed itself to raise standards, tackle educational failure and use education to combat disadvantage. This paper examines New Labour's approaches to school improvement, particularly the origins and enactment of "zero tolerance" strategies, the different groups of schools identified as…

Traditionally, Kyrgyzstan, like other countries of the former Soviet Union, held a fairly high position from the standpoint of the population's average level of education. As of the beginning of period of transition, the level of education in Kyrgyzstan was relatively high. By 1991, the rate of literacy among the adult population was 97.7 percent.…

This article deals with the question of how the restructuring of educational systems in Nordic countries affects teachers' working conditions. It is based on results from the project "Restructuring in Education: Reform policy and teacher professionalism in different Nordic contexts" in which the construction of the "New…

Asserts that ideology is a central concept in educational policy. Argues for a rehabilitation of ideology from a purely pejorative concept to a more nuanced theory of ideology as a product of discourse. Avoiding a reductive definition of ideology provides educators with a nuanced perspective that makes language central to a critical understanding…

Summarizes some of the facets of plural models of justice and considers three implications for policy: Plural models enlarge the agenda of evaluation; tensions within and between different facets of justice need to be acknowledged; and plural models entail collapse of the distinction between evaluation and action. Argues that the latter two…

Home economists have a legitimate role in shaping public policy. Much has been said about how to influence the policy development process; this extends to the realm of analyzing policy that has already been developed. (JOW)

In this article, the author discusses Deliberative Polling as the most credible and practical method of public consultation. As compared with self-selected forums or samples of convenience, it employs scientific random samples. As compared with the snapshots of an inattentive public often offered by conventional polls, it assesses informed public…

This case study on the impact of a state takeover in one of South Carolina's most rural school districts ("referred to as the County School District") was completed using a quasi-experimental mixed methods design to examine the impact on academic achievement, school performance, and school leadership as a result of the South Carolina…

How did standardized tests become the measure of performance in our public schools? In this compelling work, Mark J. Garrison attempts to answer this question by analyzing the development of standardized testing, from the days of Horace Mann and Alfred Binet to the current scene. Approaching the issue from a sociohistorical perspective, the author…