Key developments affecting higher education worldwide are examined, including post-World War II expansion in the Third World, broadened access to education, autonomy, and accountability. Reforms driven by societal demands, changing patterns of funding and access, and the political role of students. Issues for the near future are discussed.…

A literature-based model of the legislative politics of policy innovation is examined in light of Minnesota's experiences with the school choice issue. A revised model, reflecting case-study findings, is presented. The leadership area is identified as the arena where lawmakers can exert leverage on restructuring public education. (SLD)

Two periods in British higher education are compared for the approaches taken to widening educational access. It is concluded that government policy in the postwar period emphasized expansion for the purposes of labor force development, whereas more recent expansion policy reflects a government commitment to greater accountability and social…

Reviews federal legislation and court decisions of the past 30 years that have influenced policies related to special education of limited-English-speaking students. Discusses the right of handicapped children to a public education, overrepresentation of minorities in special education, challenges to the validity of IQ tests, and changing…

Reports on a study by 20 Chinese higher education institutions about educational finance. Compares the relationship between educational investment and per capita national income in 38 market economies and 3 centrally planned economies. Provides a formula that indicates the rate of increased funding necessary for educational reform in China. (CFR)

Asserts that divergent views about the level of educational funding in China exist among policymakers. Discusses the difficulty of measuring the Gross National Product and comparing it with other nations. Concludes that educational funding in China is much lower than other nations with comparable levels of economic development. (CFR)

Discusses the role of educational research in preservice and inservice teacher education in Poland. The paper notes that, after 40 years of Communist rule, it is important to overcome the shortage of well-established local communities and of strong organizations of individuals interested in developing Poland's education. (SM)

Discusses the long history of social and political constructions of differences in United States society and public schools, including the social constructions of diversity, educators' policies for handling diversity, the influence of white ethnic groups, and racial and sex discrimination. (SM)

Maintains that the world is nearing the end of a great age of democratic revolutions. Asserts that civic or citizenship education is in danger of being sidetracked by the national educational reform movement. Argues that "CIVITAS," a civic education curriculum framework, provides a model for effective citizenship education. (CFR)

Asserts that K-12 schools and colleges have made strong efforts to diversify faculty and student bodies and to expand multicultural and global education. Examines the political and social values that underlie the debate about social values, multiculturalism, and the goals of education. Concludes that world studies explores a wider world than a…

Explores student and youth organizing and campus activism. Two major issues in current and future campus organizing are reproductive choice and national service plans as proposed by the Clinton Administration. Campus organizing can instill the principles of empowerment in the activists who will be the leaders of tomorrow. (SLD)

In Michigan, highly politicized school-finance reforms and the charter-school and school-choice movements present enormous challenges for school business officials. There is greater demand for administrator accountability and credibility, an open environment, effective communication skills, efficient use of data, long-term vision,…

Argues that the City University of New York's recent reversal of its policy of providing remedial instruction to those needing it was accomplished despite substantial opposition and without regard for the human or financial consequences, with little understanding of academic freedom, and under the influence of conservative policymakers wishing to…

Reviews current court cases pertaining to infringements on academic freedom and considers their relationship to arguments concerning tenure. In particular, raises such issues as how the First Amendment protects the academic freedom of faculty and if there are alternative safeguards. Concludes that eliminating tenure would jeopardize academic…

School choice is a promising education reform in the U.S., transferring power over basic education decisions from bureaucrats to parents and allowing poor children a chance to receive excellent education. This paper describes three categories of choice, examines the Constitution and Supreme Court, explains how to design a legally sound school…