Training of early childhood education and care staff

This chapter examines the training of early childhood education and care workers, taking six countries (Denmark, France, New Zealand, Spain, Sweden, and the United States) as cases to explore variations and issues. It is argued that country approaches to staff training need to be understood in relation to the structure, purposes, and underlying values of services in that society, and the dominant constructions of young children and early childhood workers. The chapter identifies subjects meriting further investigation and considers options for future policy development.     

A cross-cultural study of parents' perceptions of early childhood programs

Cross-cultural studies in early childhood education assist in expanding perspectives and gaining increased understanding and appreciation of programs in other countries. Because both Sweden and the United States are interested in parent involvement in early childhood programs, a survey was conducted to assess parent's perceptions of these programs. Following a review of family life and early childhood education in Sweden and the United States are the specific components of the cross-cultural study. A stratified random sample of parents whose children were involved in early childhood programs was done in St. Louis County, MN, United States, and Kronobergs Lan, Småland, Sweden. In the first section of the five-part survey, parents indicated the degree to which they agreed or disagreed with statements about such areas as governmental support of children and families. Parents in Sweden felt more support of the government, whereas parents in the United States used early childhood programs as a support mechanism to increase their confidence. In the other four sections of the survey, parents rated the importance of various types of parental involvement and the importance of various materials, activities, and caregiver actions in their children's programs. In general, parents in Sweden valued informal contact and inner-directed creative materials and activities. Parents in the United States valued more confining activities such as rote counting, community-based experiences, and compliance with adult expectations. The influence of the macro-society on parents' perceptions as well as microsystem interactions and environments is evident in this study. As early childhood educators learn about and adapt new ideas to their own programs, the potential of cross-cultural studies becomes realized in improved opportunities for young children and their families.     

Financing early childhood education and care services

After exploring how the goals, organization and content of early childhood education and care relate to costs and financing, this chapter addresses three central topics: 1) the level of early childhood education and care spending; 2) the mechanisms used to generate and distribute resources; 3) the financial contributions by governments, business, social organizations, and parents. Special attention is given to the contrasting examples of Sweden, the United States, and Mexico. A final section presents general conclusions and identifies issues for policymakers and academics.     

CHANGING SOURCES AND PATTERNS OF FINANCE FOR HIGHER EDUCATION: A REVIEW OF INTERNATIONAL TRENDS

The last decade has seen considerable changes in patterns of financing higher education in both industrialized and developing countries. Financial stringency affecting public budgets, rapid growth in student numbers, and concern for both efficiency and equity have resulted in changes both in systems of financial support for students and mechanisms for funding higher education institutions. This article reviews recent changes in sources and methods of financing higher education in OECD countries, including Australia, France, Germany, Japan, Netherlands, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the United States. It examines attempts to shift some of the financial burdens, for higher education from public to private sources, through the introduction of tuition fees and student loans, not only in industrialized countries, but also in developing ones in Africa and Asia.     

法、美、德、俄高等工程教育“卓越”之缘

法、美、德、俄在高等教育发展的历程中,致力于将工程教育和工程技术人才的培养视为国家持续发展的潜力所在和提升国家竞争力的有力保证,并以其“卓越”的教育质量享誉全球.其“卓越”缘由在于:分工明确的高等工程教育系统确保其功能的有效发挥;适切性、综合性、实践性的培养过程设计使工程本质得以充分体现;制度化、前瞻性认证基准及政策报告规约和引领高等工程教育改革.     

李贽研究在国外

我国明代杰出思想家、文学家、史学家李贽不仅在中国思想史上占有重要地位，在世界思想学术界亦有重要大影响，日本、德国、瑞典、美国、意大利、新加坡等国均有一些学者从事李贽研究。本文侧重介绍了日本、美国、新加坡以及意、法、瑞士、前苏联等国学者研究李贽的概况与实绩，进而阐述了李贽思想对各国思想界的深刻影响。     

职业教育法律体系的国际比较

许多先进国家通过激励和发展职业教育,为经济的可持续发展抢得了先机,实现了社会经济的高速发展。通过对美国、德国、韩国、日本、法国和英国职业教育的法律体系比较,以期对我国职业教育的发展起到启示作用,以达到完善我国职业教育法制化建设的目的。     

Reviews

Reviews in this articles:
Researching the Researchers
The Research Foundations of Graduate Education: Germany, Britain, France, United States, Japan , Burton R. Clark (Ed.)
Reviewing the Scottish Tradition
The Revival of the Democratic Intellect , Andrew Lockhart Walker
Quality and Heresy
The Quest for Quality: sixteen forms of heresy in higher education , Sinclair Goodlad     

Patterns of subsidies to higher education in Europe

The patterns of government subsidies to higher education in France, Germany, Netherlands, Sweden, and the United Kingdom (UK) are compared and contrasted. The subsidies are subsequently evaluated in the light of stated policy objectives, with particular attention to the objectives of efficiency and equity. Two extreme models of financing are considered; one in which public subsidy covers 100 per cent of the private costs of higher education, including income forgone by students, the other in which public subsidy to students is kept at a minimum. The study concludes that the ideal package from the standpoint of efficiency and equity is (1) a grants system in the last few years of secondary education; (2) a system of fees equal to about 30–50 per cent of institutional incomes and (3) an income contingent loan scheme (or graduate tax) for both undergraduate and postgraduate students.The research for this paper was sponsored by the United States Education Policy Research Center for Higher Education and Society under HEW Contract No. 300-76-0026. The views expressed are not necessarily those of the Center. Our thanks are due to J. Froomkin for valuable comments on an earlier draft.     

西方国家宗教与公共教育关系的政策模式探析

西方国家在其教育世俗化的过程中,由于历史和现实因素的影响,对宗教与公共教育关系的处理采取了不同的政策,从而形成了有代表性的四种模式:以法国为代表的激进的排斥模式、以美国为代表的温和的分离模式、以英国为代表的积极的包容模式和以德国为代表的协调的伙伴模式.对于西方国家在长期历史中形成的应对这一问题的有益经验,我们应以科学的态度加以研究、学习和吸收.     

借鉴先进经验 搞好高职“双师型”教师队伍建设

建设“双师型”教师队伍,是提高高职教育教学水平,实现高职教育培养目标的前提和保证。通过分析和借鉴美国、加拿大、德国和法国等一些发达国家职业教育的成功经验,并结合辽宁信息职业技术学院的实际情况,阐述了建设＂双师型＂教师队伍的途径和方法。     

发达国家高等学校的权力关系模式及其借鉴意义——读《学术权力——七国高等教育管理体制比较》

德国、意大利、法国、瑞典、英国、美国、日本七国高等学校的学术权力与行政权力关系模式,既有共同性,又有差异性。归纳和提炼七国高等学校的学术权力与行政权力关系模式,借鉴七国高等学校学术权力与行政权力整合的做法和经验,建立起具有中国特色的高等学校内部管理体制具有重要意义。我国高等学校内部的学术权力与行政权力关系配置,应先以加强学术权力为基础,从二元权力渗透、行政权力主导向二元权力渗透、学术权力主导转变,进而建立起学术权力与行政权力耦合的新机制。校务委员会制、董事会制、教授委员会制是高等学校内部管理体制改革的取向。     

美英德法四国的双语教育

少数民族教育直接关系到我国少数民族地区的经济发展和社会进步。在少数民族聚居地区实施双语教学是发展民族教育的重要途径。但是,在少数民族双语教育方面仍然面临着许多问题。文章将系统地介绍关国、英国、德国、法国的双语教育的历史背景、语言政策和具体实施情况,以期对我们更好地开展双语教学有所启发。     

巴黎协定：西德重新武装及其对欧洲政治格局的影响

美国为重新武装西德，并把它拉入北大西洋公约组织，炮制了西方九国《巴黎协定》。该“协定”使西德获得主权，以一个与英、法平等地位的大国重新出现在欧洲政治舞台上，成为美国在西欧的重要盟国。以美国为盟主，以西德为主要力量的西方军事集团最终建立起来，苏联鉴于欧洲的新局势，建立了华沙条约组织，形成欧洲两大军事集体团对峙的格局。     

国外远程教育中的合作学习初探

合作学习是开放大学的主要特征之一,存在于远程教育的方方面面。笔者在研究印度、英国、法国、美国、瑞典、土耳其等国远程教育现状的基础上,对国外远程教育的相关理论、合作学习的必要性、合作学习内容和形式、成功合作学习所需的条件及当前存在的主要问题等方面进行了文献梳理与比较分析,希望能为我国远程开放教育合作学习的进一步开展提供一些参考。     

THE “NEW” SOCIAL HISTORY AND THE HISTORY OF MORAL EDUCATION

The rise of mass education systems in 19th‐century Europe and North America was often followed by establishment of programmes of compulsory moral/civic instruction. Few of the “new” social history's techniques have been applied to the latter phenomenon, although those techniques have produced broad reassessments of public education.

Using the example of France at the turn of the twentieth century, this paper offers such an application. It shows how a social history of moral/civic education would lend itself to comparative historical research, help our understanding of the roots of public social policy, throw new light on the question of social class, and invite reformulation of traditional administrative and intellectual history of education. The closing section outlines possible avenues of research, and offers bibliographical guidance on the development of moral/civic education in France, the United Kingdom, Germany and the United States.     

Biting Behaviors Among Preschoolers: A Review of the Literature and Survey of Practitioners

Biting behavior occurs frequently among young children in child care settings. Research indicates several possible reasons for biting behavior including developmental as well as emotional issues. This study examines procedures that have been established to handle childhood biting by early childhood education child care facilities in a southeastern state of the United States. We were interested in whether these child care providers considered biting a normal developmental behavior or an abnormal, dysfunctional behavior. Additionally, how did their philosophy about childhood biting relate to their handling of biting incidents in their facilities?     

中国中小学英语教师资格认证体系构想

本文在介绍、评价和比较美、英、法、德、日等欧美发达国家和我国周边国家的中小学教师资格认证体系,及英美两国测试和教育评估认证机构设立的英语教师资格认证体系的基础上,提出我国应借鉴国际经验,完善中小学英语教师职前教育和在职培训的内容与模式,并建立一套全国统一且具有各省和直辖市特色的中小学英语教师资格准入和在职资格晋级制度。     

Early Childhood Education in Societal Context: Teachers in Three Countries Speak About Early Childhood Education

Building on the cross-cultural patterns and systems research as well as social constructivism, in-depth interviews were conducted with key informant early childhood teachers in three regions with similar characteristics in Sweden, Russia, and in the United States. Inductive analyses revealed differences in responses among Swedish, Russian and American informants related to the macro-, meso-, and micro-levels of societal system. United States teacher informants had a great number of separate topic comments and distributed them more evenly across all levels than did Russian and Swedish teacher informants who had more emphasis at the meso level. United States and Russian teacher informants discussed the lack of societal support for young children and their families, while Swedish teacher informants seemed to almost take this support for ranted. United States teacher informants suggested that early childhood programs were important in developing support networks among parents, while Russian teacher informants often gave information to parents and Swedish teachers spoke about mutually sharing information. United States teacher informants desired both strict rules with strong academic content and extension of the child's initiations through play; they emphasized activities and materials. Swedish teachers discussed a child- centered approach to social learning and creativity and desired to be with children rather than do activities with them. Russian teacher informants emphasized the importance of obedience, aesthetic education, and preparation for school and the labor of the larger society. These study outcomes deepen understanding about the multidemensional relationships between early childhood programs and societal contexts in which they are embedded, and they suggest alternative approaches to working with young children and their families.     

制度变迁中的政党中心主义

本文运用比较制度分析方法提出了不同于英国-美国的商人阶层主导式现代化、法国-德国-日本的官僚体系主导式现代化,俄国-中国以及很多后发国家走了一条政党组织主导的现代化模式,并据此提出了政党中心主义。在理论上,政党中心主义将是对长期主导国际社会科学的国家中心主义、尤其是社会中心主义的挑战。在国家治理层面,本文提出发展道路的不可复制性以及各种政治力量的平衡对于国家长治久安的不可或缺性。