Policy intervention and power shifts: an evaluation of South Africa's education restructuring policies

This paper argues that the South African educational restructuring policy proposals are unlikely to become interventions that help bringing about greater development, equity, participation and redress. The reasons for this are manifold. It is contended that the policy proposals are flawed in their conceptualization of the problems and misjudge the educational context and dynamics on the ground. These interventions favour the interests of the more organized and privileged sections of society and only indirectly address the needs of the excluded and disadvantaged. The policy proposals are also based on problematic assumptions about policy and the policy process, and the relationship between policy and practice. Finally, these proposals do not have an appropriate understanding of the change process and are unable to develop strategies to influence the reform process and empower the disadvantaged to struggle for a fairer, more equitable and effective education and training system.     

Secondary Education and Research in New Zealand

Through the 1990s the secondary sector was a site of considerable change as the Government sought to ensure that the curriculum and associated assessment practices were designed to meet student needs and the long-term goals of New Zealand society. The new regime aimed to promote student achievement and in particular to attain more equitable educational outcomes for all New Zealand students. These were policy rather than practice driven initiatives that linked somewhat tenuously to research based evidence. This paper begins by giving an overview of the secondary sector in New Zealand and these educational reforms. The overview sets the context for the following section that describes links between educational research, policy and practice during this time. Key issues within the sector are highlighted and some of the ways research has been used to monitor changes and inform policy are identified. It is argued that much of the research over the past decade has been small scale and short term and while this has served the immediate policy agenda it has provided only fragmentary evidence to inform longer term goals such as improving student performance. The paper concludes by discussing some of the current initiatives that might contribute to improving the interface between research and policy/practice in secondary education. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Virtual professionalism and the challenge for Irish educators

Abstract

This paper attempts to assess policy making for special educational needs in Northern Ireland (NI) from the reform in 1996 of procedures for the identification of pupils with disabilities to current proposals for the reform of procedures for the selection of pupils for secondary education. The reports of Dyson (DENI, 1998b) and Bums (DENI, 2001a), focussing respectively and exclusively upon provisions for disabilities and abilities, are proposed as defining events in a period during which significant advances towards a more inclusive education provision coincided with disparate and fragmented policies for special educational needs. Drawing upon policy documents, regional reports and statistical evidence, the paper attempts to assess progress towards the inclusion for pupils with special educational needs in NI and to gauge government intentions to encourage greater inclusion for such pupils.     

A quiet revolution – International influence,domestic elites and the transformation of higher technical education in Ireland 1959–72

The upgrading of higher technical education which began in the 1960s marked the most influential intervention by the Irish government in the third-level sector since the establishment of the independent Irish state. A series of reforming initiatives extended educational opportunity and transformed the status of technical education at higher level. International pressures undoubtedly proved influential in stimulating policy change. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) encouraged far-reaching reforms through its critical evaluation of educational facilities for technical training in Ireland. But educational reform was not imposed by international agencies on a reluctant corps of national politicians and officials. International influences dovetailed with changing attitudes toward technical education within the Irish political and official elite. Leading politicians and public officials showed an increasing awareness that the previous neglect of technical education was untenable in an era of economic development and educational expansion. It was a timely combination of international scrutiny and domestic political re-appraisal, which triggered a radical restructuring and expansion of higher technical education in Ireland.     

Relevance education,strategies for curriculum change and pilot projects: A cautionary note

Pilot projects are increasingly adopted for the generation and promotion of educational innovations. Such small-scale initiatives can be most helpful during the early stages of educational reform, but, unless sufficient care is taken in their formulation, they can contribute to the emergence of unrealistic and over-optimistic proposals for project expansion. While not opposing the movement towards pilot projects, this paper draws attention to the hazards of such means of intervention by considering their potential for ‘relevance education’ initiatives in developing countries. The argument is supported by recent empirically-grounded research carried out on the Secondary Schools Community Extension Project in Papua New Guinea.     

Teacher preparation in Ethiopia: a critical analysis of reforms

The purpose of this article is to provide a more comprehensive picture of teacher preparation in Ethiopia on top of a closer scrutiny of current teacher education reforms. In particular, it presents teacher education within the context of policy implementation over the last six decades by highlighting key reforms and how these reforms impacted the education system in general and the teaching profession in particular. In analysing why and how the policy reforms took place, the paper draws on Chin and Benne’s strategies of change management and the world system theories. Further, based on government statistics, official policy documents, and observations, the paper argues that the series of policy interventions were short of addressing the challenges of teacher preparation, including maintaining minimum quality standards, though the sector’s expansion has had favourable impact on educational access and bridging regional and gender disparities.     

Community College Policy in Hong Kong: Intention,Practices, and Consequence

In order to increase the competitiveness of the workforce at low cost, the Hong Kong government brought in the idea of community colleges and the associate degree while keeping the same annual set quota of first-year, first-degree places at publicly-funded universities. At first glance, in doing so, the government could avoid expanding the sector of university education, which could eventually lead to credential inflation usually found in the West. However, the policy, perhaps unintentionally, boosts up students’ educational aspiration: while a greater number of students obtain an associate degree, they do not take an associate degree as a final degree but demand a bachelor degree. This rising demand, then, leads to the emergence and subsequent expansion of the self-financing sector of university education. This Hong Kong experience demonstrates that it is perhaps a mission impossible, to let more people have a higher education while keeping the sector of higher education intact.     

Artificial intelligence and education in China

ABSTRACT

This paper examines the political economy of artificial intelligence (AI) and education in China, through an analysis of government policy and private sector enterprise. While media and policy discourse often portray China’s AI development in terms of a unified national strategy, and a burgeoning geopolitical contestation for future global dominance, this analysis will suggest a more nuanced internal complexity, involving differing regional networks and international corporate activity. The first section considers two key policy documents published by the central Chinese government, which are shown to implicate educational institutions as influential actors in national and regional strategies for AI development, with a significant role in plans to train domestic expertise. The second section outlines three prominent private education companies: New Oriental Group, Tomorrow Advancing Life (TAL), and Squirrel AI. These companies are selected to represent important aspects of China’s development of educational AI applications, including the influence of a well-established private education sector, and a growing interest in international corporate activity. The paper concludes with the suggestion that while central government policy reserves a significant role for education in the national AI strategy, the private sector is utilising favourable political conditions to rapidly develop educational applications and markets.     

Emerging regions, persisting rhetoric of educational aid: The impact of the Asian Development Bank on educational policy making in Kazakhstan

This study explores the Asian Development Bank's (ADB) discourses and practices in the context of its educational sector support in Kazakhstan. Drawing on the document analysis and interviews with the ADB staff and Kazakhstan's education officials, the article examines ADB's discursive and operational frameworks in this Central Asian country. The findings indicate that the ADB had a significant impact on educational policy formation in Kazakhstan by establishing and maintaining boundaries of educational policy discussions. Findings suggest that, despite the emerging discourse on new aid modalities, the rhetoric of educational aid persists in regions such as post-Soviet Central Asia.     

The principals as literacy leaders with indigenous communities: professional learning and research

Recent educational changes in China such as the decentralization policy and the marketization of education have introduced concepts such as performativity, competition and effectiveness to the education sector and they have become part of the educational lexicon. Such policy shifts force more local participation in teacher education programmes and schools are now identified as the prime site for offering relevant professional learning activities to teachers. However, interestingly, research on professional development of teachers in China has not devoted significant attention to the voices of teachers. This paper examines how teachers from seven schools in Guangdong Province view the effectiveness of these school‐based learning activities within the new context of educational change.     

Work‐related learning for students with significant learning difficulties: relevance and reality

The 14–19 proposals brought work‐related learning to the forefront of educational policy. We look at how the tenets, which underpin them, can be interpreted and applied for students with significant learning difficulties. We examine the nature of vocational or work‐related learning for students with severe and or profound and multiple learning difficulties as currently reported by schools in England. Its relevance for this group of learners is discussed in the light of the proposals and we consider the reality of current practice in relation to the slippery concept of vocational learning. Finally, we reflect on important recent policy commitments relevant to our research, but published after its completion, outlined in the White Paper 14–19 education and skills. We note and welcome its explicit consideration of the needs of students with significant learning difficulties. At the same time we remain concerned and perturbed about its affirmation of educational aims that are narrowly conceived in relation to an economic imperative.     

Changing policy and legislation in special and inclusive education: a perspective from Northern Ireland

It is now 15 years since the signing of the 1998 Belfast (or ‘Good Friday’) Peace Agreement which committed all participants to exclusively democratic and peaceful means of resolving differences, and towards a shared and inclusive society defined by the principles of respect for diversity, equality and the interdependence of people. In particular, it committed participants to the protection and vindication of the human rights of all. This is, therefore, a precipitous time to undertake a probing analysis of educational reforms in Northern Ireland associated with provision in the areas of inclusion and special needs education. Consequently, by drawing upon analytical tools and perspectives derived from critical policy analysis, this article, by Ron Smith from the School of Education, Queen's University Belfast, discusses the policy cycle associated with the proposed legislation entitled Every School a Good School: the way forward for special educational needs and inclusion. It examines how this policy text structures key concepts such as ‘inclusion’, ‘additional educational needs’ and ‘barriers to learning’, and how the proposals attempt to resolve the dilemma of commonality and difference. Conceived under direct rule from Westminster (April 2006), issued for consultation when devolved powers to a Northern Ireland Assembly had been restored, and with the final proposals yet to be made public, this targeted educational strategy tells a fascinating story of the past, present and likely future of special needs education in Northern Ireland. Before offering an account of this work, it is placed within some broader ecological frameworks.     

高等教育与社会就业——一种公共政策的分析

高等教育与社会就业的关系极其复杂,一些研究发现了"就业"与"就学"的相互替代、高等教育发展与经济发展的"反周期"、高等教育调节分割的劳动力就业市场供需关系等现象,这些发现已经具有了公共政策的意义。事实上,很多国家在运用高等教育调节社会就业中取得成功。本文研究了高等教育调节社会就业的理论基础和主要经验,提出了我国现阶段运用高等教育作为公共政策工具调节社会就业的四个方面的政策选择。     

Globalisation and the politics of international tests: the case of Israel

Comparative international tests of students' achievements have become increasingly popular over the past decade. An outcome of this widespread practice is the tendency of various countries to evaluate their national status according to their pupils' international ranking in such achievement tests, partly due to the common belief that high ranking is an indication of the nation's future ability to compete in the global market. Using PISA 2000 and PISA 2006 data, the present study aims to show that the low achievements of Israeli pupils were to be expected, and that their average scores are a reflection of the economic and demographic characteristics of their country. Our findings suggest that the public debate in Israel on school achievements has been magnified out of all proportion. We also discuss the educational policy which derives proposals for educational reform from a conception of globalisation of education. This policy focuses on the setting of standards for educational achievements aimed at improving pupils' place on the international scale. Finally, we claim that the focus on the international grading of educational achievements deflects public attention from an understanding of the significance of inequalities within the country.     

Resolving paradoxical criteria for the expansion and replication of early childhood care and education programs

Conceptual bases of intervention and policy are often subject to paradoxical dilemmas, such as the need for a coherent program model versus recognition of the diversity of a target population. This article aims to identify underlying paradoxical bases for expansion and replication of early childhood care and education programs, and to suggest potential resolutions of these paradoxes. Clarification of such paradoxes may provide guidance for the many decision points which arise in processes of identifying, expanding, and replicating early childhood programs based on evidence of quality or success. First, a brief history of early childhood care and education in the U.S. from the viewpoint of expansion and replication is presented. A five-fold typology of expansion and replication processes is proposed: staged replication, franchised replication, multi-site demonstrations, mandated replication, and government-supported private sector expansion. Second, paradoxes associated with the process of replication are considered, such as: (1) the “can it work” versus “does it work” paradox; (2) the fidelity versus local cultural relevance paradox; (3) the replication versus addition paradox; (4) the replication versus program improvement paradox; and (5) the representativeness versus feasibility paradox. In a concluding section, recommendations for funders, policy makers, and evaluators are made regarding next steps in expansion and replication of early childhood care and education programs.     

Policy Perceptions of Headteachers and Governors in Catholic Schooling

The initial focus of this research centred on a study of the extent to which government legislation and action since 1965 has threatened or eroded the Catholic Church's influence over its schools within the maintained sector [1]. However, it became clear that this focus was based on the assumption that the Catholic Church in England and Wales had a clear set of educational principles which were not only distinct from those of the state but involved different policy outcomes. Moreover, during the course of the study, evidence emerged which indicated that the Church had not given as much attention to the principles underlying its educational policy as it had to the maintenance and numerical expansion of the schools themselves. It was also realised that the nature of Catholic education cannot be determined solely by examining the Church's official documents. Whilst official Church pronouncements indicate what Catholic education ought to be, they may not correspond to a reality of what a particular Catholic community has made of Catholic education. Therefore, this paper examines some of the beliefs and attitudes of a sample of Catholics involved in Catholic schooling.     

Access to Schooling in a Post-Apartheid South Africa: Linking Concepts to Context

This paper focuses on the policy issue of expanding schooling in a post-apartheid South Africa. The Project of placing about two million children of school-going age in school is viewed as central to the rebuilding of South Africa. The paper argues that this project should be located within the peculiar history of this country's educational underdevelopment. Challenging the constraining influence of the New Right context should be central in conceptualising the provision of expanded school access. Access policy should be based on a notion of educational development that is linked to the overall socioeconomic development of this society. The view is promoted in this paper that a policy of quantitative expansion of schooling should not ignore the quality of such schooling.     

Exploring the future of lifelong learning: advocacy, research and footprinting

This reflective think-tank contribution begins by comparing advocacy and research as distinct modalities of professional and social action. In practice they frequently elide and merge into one another. While alliance and complementarity between the two modalities is constructive for shaping policy and practice, it poses risks when governments and state apparatus play their own advocates, co-opting research into the endeavour. Established classification and distribution policy logics are ill-attuned to transversal and holistic agendas such as lifelong learning; this leads to competition between interest groups defined by educational sector and level, and it occludes life-course perspectives on learning that have the capacity to resituate understandings of shared interests. Transversal and holistic agendas demand forms and styles of evidence that can encompass these qualities; indicators and benchmarks as currently employed in educational policymaking are under-developed with respect to lifelong learning. The successful example of eco-footprinting could suggest a way forward that is not only evidentially more appropriate, but could also achieve greater impact for the development of lifelong learning policy and practice.     

The Economics of Education: From a Free Social Benefit to the Commercialization of Educational Services

Abstract

The article discusses the specific features characterizing the development of the market for commercial educational services under modern Russian conditions. The study finds that many parents have reacted negatively to the introduction of market forces to the education sector. Paid educational services provided by the school are not popular despite the fact that they offer a number of advantages. The results of the study have revealed a number of factors that have led to the expansion in the sector of informal education, includeing low teacher salaries, difficulties in registering a tutoring service business, the desire to reduce financial costs, and the fact that schools insufficiently prepare students to pass the Unified State Exam. The movement of students who seek assistance from the informal educational sector has placed a strain on the institutional relationships between students and teachers.