This article considers important junctures in the evolution of Irish educational policy. For this purpose, the author makes appropriate references to the theoretical framework of Jack Mezirow. In particular, Mezirow's treatment of "meaning schemes", "meaning perspectives" and "paradigm shifts" are applied toward a…

This paper discusses how the rhetoric of "diversity" is mobilised within New Labour HE policy discourse around widening participation (WP). The paper argues that these constructions of diversity derive an important element of their symbolic power from an association with notions of "equality"--and yet the radical/egalitarian…

Under current arrangements, the Scottish Parliament has powers covering domestic matters such as health, the justice system, economic development, environment and transport, and education. Defense and foreign policy are not devolved; tax-setting is only partly devolved. The author prognosticates that the Scottish National Party (SNP) will exercise…

Education has become a central issue in West Papua. During the Suharto regime, the Indonesian government paid little attention to educational investment in the province which led to poor educational infrastructure and a shortage of teachers. As a result, the quality of human resources in the province is poor. Since 2001, the adoption of the…

The inadequacy of present-day public school financial and performance reporting restricts policymakers. With existing spending and activity information now generally available, public officials can determine only overall education resource levels and make allocative decisions only among gross input categories such as relative amounts of labor and…

Because of its inherent political nature, projects for developing civic education in emerging democracies have often been criticized for being a tool for hegemonic control by the "West." Much of these suspicions have been pointed at the United States (US) due to the government's policy of supporting educational reform in emerging…

Two dueling national agendas characterize discussions surrounding teacher quality and teacher education reform. For professionalists, teacher quality is synonymous with meeting a set of professional standards. For deregulationists, these standards are roadblocks that deter high-quality candidates from pursuing jobs in teaching. Despite differences…

This article is a policy analysis that considers how the policy option of using federal programs to promote educational choice was proposed and debated in the 106th and 107th Congresses. This debate was part of the reauthorization of Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) between 1999 and 2001. Over the past 20 years,…

In this new era of globalization, it is more important than ever for the American citizens to have a college education so they can obtain good jobs and have a fair chance at the American Dream, but it is becoming increasingly difficult for them to get such an education--including in New England. According to the most recent report of the College…

By revisiting the work of the Black Caucus and the radical rhetorics connected to Black Power and the black radical tradition, in this essay the author hopes to rebuild a frame where the picture of an African-American-vernacularized paradigm for critical literacy and social justice can emerge. She revisits the twinning of "Black Power/Black…

The long-sustained effort of conservatives and their think tanks and media outlets to win support for school choice, market forces, and privatization schemes in education is paying off. But it is encountering steady resistance from the public education establishment and its supporting teachers' unions. Actions, reactions, strategies, and the…

Research in Israel has shown a high level of non-democratic, and even anti-democratic, attitudes among Israeli high-school students. Similar findings in the adult population indicate that this is not a "childhood disorder" that evaporates with age, but something which could pose a threat to Israel's young and fragile democracy. The…

This article reports how an "Education Week" review of hundreds of e-mail exchanges that detail a pattern of federal interference in "Reading First" have skirted legal prohibitions. In regular e-mail discussions, Christopher J. Doherty, the Reading First director at the U.S. Department of Education until last September, and G. Reid Lyon, a branch…

The purpose of The Arizona Long-Range Strategic Educational Technology Plan is to map the future of the "education support systems" necessary for Arizona's children to succeed in today's world. The plan details goals and strategies for policy makers, the State Board of Education, the State Department of Education, Institutions of Higher…

This study investigates the relationship between parents and politics. In part one, the effect of having school-aged children on parents' political outcomes is examined. Do the resource constraints associated with child-rearing depress participation, or does the presence of children increase activity? One finds that parents are more active in…