Learning cities in East Asia: Japan, the Republic of Korea and China

Lifelong learning cities emerged in Japan in the 1980s and 1990s; in the Republic of Korea in the 2000s and 2010s; and in China mostly from 2000 onwards. They were a countermeasure to the increasing challenges of global as well as post-industrial uncertainties at the turn of the century, when cities were trying to find governmental instruments to engage in cultural processes, community building and personal development as the new way of urban life. Learning was perceived to be a panacea to solve the social problems occurring in overwhelming processes of modernisation and industrialisation. The authors of this paper assert that the practice of and research on learning cities, especially in the East Asian region, need to go beyond the technical rationalities which are guiding government tools, and explain the realities to which they are meant to be applied. In order to do this, the authors investigated three separate but inter-connected scenes found in Japan, the Republic of Korea and China, revealing that the learning city is a phenomenon which reflects complex social dynamics and the interaction of many minds. While the cases in this region are distinctive, they do share some common characteristics. The authors place these within what they term a “community relations model”, which they contrast with the “individual competence model” which is usually found in initiatives of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and schemes implemented in the area of the European Union (EU).     

Private tutoring in Eastern Europe and Central Asia: policy choices and implications

Private tutoring has become increasingly visible in Eastern Europe and Central Asia since the collapse of the socialist bloc in the early 1990s. Yet, this unprecedented growth of private tutoring, in its varied forms and arrangements, has remained largely unnoticed by policymakers in the region. Based on the data from the cross‐national studies of private tutoring in 12 countries, this explorative study examines factors driving the demand for private tutoring and discusses government responses to private tutoring in Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Georgia, Lithuania, Mongolia, Poland, Slovakia, and Ukraine (research conducted in 2004–2005) and Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan (research conducted in 2005–2006). The article analyzes various policy contexts and examines challenges that confront education stakeholders and policymakers as they formulate their responses to the rapidly‐spreading and constantly‐changing phenomenon of private tutoring. Finally, the article discusses whether, and to what extent, the existence of regulatory mechanisms influences the scope, nature, and implications of private tutoring across the countries of Eastern Europe and Central Asia.     

Sensemaking and sensegiving in schooling reform: South Korea and China

ABSTRACT

This article analyses and compares the motivations and (re)actions of the education authorities and parents in South Korea and mainland China towards schooling reform. The focus is on two policy initiatives – Free Semester Programme in South Korea and Comprehensive Practical Activity Curriculum in China. Applying the theoretical constructs of sensemaking and sensegiving, it is contended that the policy actors in both countries mutually influence each other in their calculated responses to prevailing educational challenges and policy measures. The examples of South Korea and China illuminate the power of resources, processes and meanings as an integral part of sensegiving and sensemaking.     

The determinants of demand for private tutoring in South Korea

This study investigated the determinants of the demand for private tutoring (PT) in South Korea, especially focusing on the effectiveness of governmental regulations regarding the operating hours of cram schools in decreasing expenditure on PT. Survey data from 3,605 parents of 12th grade students were collected from 45 proportionally stratified high schools and analyzed using Tobit and censored least absolute deviation models. Results showed that among student and family background characteristics, students’ achievement level, household income, and parents’ educational level were positively associated with a higher consumption of PT. At the school level, students attending schools with higher student–teacher ratios were expected to spend more on PT. Urban schools under the high school equalization policy (HSEP) showed larger expenditure on PT than non-HSEP schools. Despite the public perception of the ineffectiveness of government policy on PT, this study finds that the local governmental regulation of PT positively contributes to decreasing the demand for PT.     

Private schooling for low-income families: A census and comparative survey in East Delhi,India

A census and survey of schools in the slums of East Delhi, India, explored the nature and extent of private education serving low-income families, and compared inputs to public and private schooling. Around two-thirds of all schools were private unaided, with more unrecognised private than government schools. Teaching activity was found to be considerably higher in private unaided than government schools, although teacher absenteeism was lowest in government schools. Most inputs showed either comparable levels of provision in government and private unaided schools, or superiority in private unaided schools. Possible implications are explored, concerning targeted vouchers, increased regulation and self-regulation.     

东亚一体化过程中的日本

中国-东盟自由贸易区的发展必然促使东南亚区域经济一体化，东北亚自由贸易区的发展也必然促进东北亚区域经济一体化。围绕中国的东南亚贸易区和东北亚贸易区也一定会促使东亚向着一体化发展方向迈进。同时，东亚的一体化也会发生泛化，东亚各国应共同主导东亚一体化的发展方向，防止日本一国主导东亚一体化的发展。     

Urban inequality,social exclusion and schooling in Dhaka,Bangladesh

This paper asks whether education is a viable route to better livelihoods and social inclusion for children living in poor urban areas in Dhaka, Bangladesh. It uses qualitative interviews with 36 students aged 11–16, living in slum and middle-class areas, and also draws on data from a larger, mixed-methods study to provide context. Many children from slums are excluded altogether from education, while others are incorporated into the system but on unfavourable terms. The paper identifies three principal ways in which this adverse incorporation can happen: through differential access to different types and quality of school; through obstacles that prevent children from poorer households from progressing through the system and reaching higher levels; and through subordinate power relations in the school, embodied in systems of assessment, labelling of students and discipline. These are likely to limit the potential for education to be a socially transformative institution.     

Open and Dual-Mode Universities in East and South Asia

This article draws primarily upon Asian research, literature, and experience to describe the open and dualmode universities of East and South Asia. It describes their origins, admissions, development, delivery methods, and applications of technology. It discusses their successes and failures and the contributing political, social, economic, and cultural factors. It questions whether Asian distance education is best served by adopting Western models or whether there is need for the evolution of indigenous systems more firmly based upon local, vocational, social, and cultural needs. It considers faculty development and performance improvement issues and concludes by arguing for more research and evaluation to increase the institutions' standing with the governments, students, and communities they serve.     

Equalising schooling,unequalising private supplementary tutoring: access and tracking through shadow education in China

The global expansion of mass schooling has greatly increased opportunities for low-income families, and governments have devoted much effort to equalising access and quality in education systems. Alongside regular schooling, the so-called shadow education system of private supplementary tutoring has grown rapidly across the world. The fact that rich families can purchase more and better quality shadow education undermines the achievements of increased equality of opportunities in formal schooling. Drawing on a mixed-methods study in Shanghai, China, the article shows how shadow education has offset school equalisation policies through differentiation of access and through sorting mechanisms. Shadow education occupies a space beyond strict government control in which privileged families and elite schools ignore and mediate the equalisation policies, seeking competitive advantages. Uneven access to shadow education and tracking within it shape, maintain, and exacerbate inequitable schooling experiences at individual and institutional levels.     

Recent Education Developments in South East Asia: An Introduction

In the field of school effectiveness and school improvement, scholars as well as practitioners often complain about the absence of theory to guide their work. To fill this gap, Creemers (1994) developed a comprehensive model of educational effectiveness. In order to gain empirical evidence, we tested some of the main components of the model in lessons of mathematics in the 1st year of lower general education in The Netherlands. The results show that the main factors in the model – time spent, opportunity to learn, and the quality of instruction – are most important in predicting achievement. No evidence was found for the relationships between levels.     

Spatializing a global education phenomenon: private tutoring and mobility theory in Cambodia

ABSTRACT

Along with the dramatic expansion of private tutoring around the world, a significant body of literature has been produced to understand this phenomenon. While many studies consider the issue of geographic location, the spatial dimension tends not to be a central focus of private tutoring studies. In contrast, the present essay applies mobility theory to research from Cambodia, where private tutoring is essential to student success. It does so in order to place private tutoring provision into a broader perspective that includes but moves beyond the economic dimensions of supply and demand and the sociological dimensions of economic, cultural, and social capital to include consideration of how private tutoring provision is constrained by a multidimensional spatial field of possibilities and how private tutoring participation is enabled by one’s position and abilities in relation to that field. The paper argues for increased attention to ‘spatial capital’ in studies of private tutoring and education generally.     

中日韩与俄罗斯经济关系透析

中日韩三国近年来均成为俄罗斯的重要经济伙伴,三国与俄罗斯的经济关系分别表现为日俄经贸合作发展缓慢、韩俄经贸合作发展平稳、中俄经贸合作发展快速.面对以自我为本位的日本竞争政策,中韩应积极合作,推动东亚一体化向共赢、共存、共荣的方向发展.     

东亚文化圈下中韩大众文化比较分析

作为东亚地区各国经济文化交流的纽带,东亚文化圈对东亚各国的政治思想、文化制度、社会形态产生了深远的影响。中韩两国具有不同的社会体制、经济制度、文化形态,但长期以来中韩两国之间大众文化交流十分密切,一个很重要的原因是东亚文化圈影响下所具有的共同的文化背景。本文将对东亚文化圈影响下中韩两国大众文化进行对比分析,对于深入理解两个大众文化的发展、促进两国文化交流十分重要。     

中国古代私学对古代朝鲜、越南、日本的影响

中国古代私学作为中国传统文化教育的重要组成部分,对中国周边国家产生着深远的影响,其中,以古代朝鲜、越南、日本最为典型。中国古代私学的教育思想、私学大师的教育教学活动、私学的独特类型对这些国家产生了非常重要的影响,促进了这些国家早期文化教育的普及和发展,为中外文化交流做出了贡献。     

美、日、韩私立高教政策比较及其启示

近年来,不论是西方发达国家,还是亚洲发展中国家,均在积极地实施私立高等教育发展政策,这有力的推进了各国高等教育的普及化进程。我国私立高校起步较晚,相应的政策尚不完善,所以,他国的成功经验对我们不无启示。