The Role of Education in Restructuring Socialism: the Tanzanian case

Summary Tanzanian educators recognize the need to ally education more clearly to economic development, for they see in a revitalized economy the impetus for the growth of social services. The shortcomings in the educational system which must help accomplish this are clear. They realize that the ‘education for self‐reliance'policies have only slightly altered the nation's economy and have done little to create the ‘new’ socialist person. Teachers, their students, and parents do not yet possess the attitudes necessary to promote cooperation and service; and the majority of students do not attain the knowledge and skills necessary for an economy to prosper.

The nation's educational bureaucracy must also be committed to dramatic change. To date, only cosmetic changes have occurred in the way schools are administered. While leadership at the top has been sincere, regional and local educational leaders often only pay lip service.

Revolutionary change in Tanzanian education could come quickly through coercion and force. However, that is not the Tanzanian way and the chosen path. Instead, change is to be accomplished through the democratic process of enlightenment and dedication. This takes time. The major question is whether Tanzania still has the time.     

Restructuring Teacher Education,the National Interest and Globalisation

This paper argues that the repositioning of Asian countries as new ‘centres’ for world trade and commerce and the transformation of Australian society and economy to accord with this global consolidation, includes a general restructuring of all levels of Australia's ‘education industry’ and specifically the (re)forming of its initial teacher and professional‐education programmes. The need for such reformation arises in part from the restructuring of the work of teaching based on a broader definition of the people and educational settings that are involved in the teaching/learning process, a reworking of this teaching/learning process, the higher status given to certain substantive areas of study, such as languages other than English, and the management of education along corporatist lines. This paper suggests further that teacher‐education programmes should also provide students with the resources to critically analyse these changes, giving consideration to issues such as identity, the impact of new technologies on culture and learning, the use of language in promoting particular discourses, and the repositioning of education as a tool for economic reform.     

Global Trends,National Policies and Institutional Responses: Restructuring Higher Education in Malaysia

A significant global trend during the 1990s is the restructuring of higher education systems. The essence of this restructuring process is a redefinition of the relationship between institutions of higher learning, the state, and the market, and a drastic reduction of institutional autonomy. This article is an analysis of the restructuring process in the forms of privatisation of higher education and corporatisation of public universities in Malaysia. This analysis highlights the context of higher education reforms in the era of globalization, major trends in higher education reforms and Malaysias responses to these global trends. By focusing on the institutional level, this article examines the expansion and diversification of private higher education as well as the change in the governance and culture of public universities brought about by privatisation and corporatisation.     

The Restructuring of Higher Education in Economics

The changing structure of higher education in economics is discussed in the context of the dual elements of control exerted through the Universities Funding Council (UFC) research assessment exercises and the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) recognition exercises. The evidence points to a major restructuring taking place within the old university sector with the majority of economics departments making up a second 'mixed' tier while the new universities are primarily but not exclusively 'teaching' institutions. On the whole 'research' tier departments have achieved overall excellence but there are a few cases where a departments position is based on a specialist niche in the subject. While departmental size is linked to research output there is evidence of research excellence throughout the Higher Education (HE) sector and the paper argues against a severe rationalization of research funds. The significance of the changes for course delivery are briefly discussed.     

官方发展援助:全球教育发展不可或缺的资金来源

在我国国际与比较教育领域中,官方发展援助(ODA)是一个新的概念.2015年,联合国教科文组织在《教育宣言》及相关文件中曾明确提出,要通过提供官方发展援助等国际资金,弥补发展中国家教育发展经费的不足,以增加实现联合国2030可持续发展教育目标的可能性.本文从历史角度研究了官方发展援助的起源和发展;从资金投入、管理机构、援助领域和援助渠道四个方面探究了官方发展援助事业的实质;从60多年各国和各国际组织的实践初步归纳了官方发展援助实施的要求与分歧;从机构组织、资源保障和策略调整等方面提出了中国参与官方发展援助事业的建议.     

Child Education and Literacy Learning for Multicultural Societies: The case of the Brazilian National Curricular References for Child Education (NCRs)

The present paper discusses possible ways to promote a multicultural child education and literacy learning, focusing on identity building and language development. In the light of that framework, it critically analyses the Brazilian government's recently issued 'National Curricular References for Child Education'. It argues that the predominance of a monocultural, cognitive-based approach to child education and literacy learning, evidenced in the document, should be detrimental to children whose cultural and linguistic patterns are discontinuous with the school ones. It also highlights potentials of the multicultural thinking in reducing literacy learning discrepancies and promoting educational equity.     

Time for curriculum reform: the case of mathematics

Mathematics education is rarely out of the policy spotlight in England. Over the last 10 years, considerable attention has been given to improving 14–19 mathematics curriculum pathways. In this paper we consider some of the challenges of enacting curriculum change by drawing upon evidence from our evaluation of the Mathematics Pathways Project (MPP). From 2004 to 2010 this project, which was directed by England's Qualifications and Curriculum Authority, aimed to improve the engagement, attainment and participation rates of 14- to 19-year-old learners of mathematics. Our particular focus is upon the temporal problems of piloting new curriculum and assessment and we draw on Lemke's discussion of timescales, heterochrony and the adiabatic principle to consider the interlocking and interference of various change processes.     

Restructuring the System of Higher Education

We investigate the main question of whether higher education institutions are able to increase their performance due to mergers, takeovers, or organizational restructuring. The problem of measuring performance when there are several “output” and “input” indicators can currently be solved by recourse to a proven data analysis method (data envelopment analysis, DEA). Two models are presented to assess the educational and research performance of universities. The DEA model, which is input orientated and has constant returns to scale, was used to perform calculations. To conduct a comparative analysis of groups of universities that are at various stages of the restructuring process, the study authors proposed several classifications of universities:

• by number of consolidated and/or eliminated organizational units,

• by period when restructuring was completed,

• by type of restructuring mechanism, and

• on the basis of whether technical colleges have been joined to the university in question.

We used nonparametric statistical methods for comparing averages to test the proposed hypotheses. Our study sample consisted of 132 universities whose parent agency is the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation. The authors did not discover that the performance of the universities deteriorated as a result of the restructuring process. It turned out that universities that actively participate in restructuring processes in fact increased their performance level relative to other universities.

The study did not reveal that institutions that are currently in the process of being merged with or taken over by other institutions experience a temporary decline and subsequent restoration of their performance level. The performed analysis did not confirm the hypothesis that universities that absorbed technical colleges experienced a drop in their performance level. The results of the study unanimously show that by 2015 universities made progress in bridging the gap with the performance level of their leading competitors compared to 2010. The authors are aware that the verification of the accuracy of the proposed arguments requires a more detailed study of the universities. Because many countries have already accumulated a large amount of experience in how to restructure institutions of higher education, the results of the present study of the restructuring of Russian universities make it possible to draw comparisons as well as to use the developed theoretical concepts to explain and predict the possible consequences of using various restructuring mechanisms. The study is based on the widely accepted method of data envelopment analysis. This article represents the first time that this method has been used to benchmark university performance over time.     

Education sector reform: The Ugandan experience

In 1998 the Government of Uganda (GoU) began implementing an ambitious reform programme called the Education Strategic Investment Plan (ESIP) in order to effect Universal Primary Education (UPE). This paper offers a perspective on how the GoU has met the challenge of financing education reform, addressed the need to improve the quality of basic education and increased access and equity while improving efficiency at primary and post-primary levels of education. The development model described in this paper privileges good governance and donor co-operation within a Sector Wide Approach. Important lessons have been learned in Uganda including the need for political commitment to universal primary education within a clear conception of whole sector reform. However, the discourse of SWAPs tends to function primarily in the formal sphere and not at the level of the experience of most teachers, pupils and their families, yet it is at this level that national education policies have to be mediated in practice. More attention needs to be given in education sector reform to the processes as well as the context of change.     

The Management of Dilemmas in School Restructuring: A case analysis

While there is growing interest in studying principals' perceptions of their work lives in terms of dilemmas, relatively few studies have gone beyond this to investigate how leaders manage and cope with such 'intractable' situations and the consequential effects and outcomes. Accordingly, this article provides an in-depth qualitative case study of the dilemmas faced by a principal who is involved in the restructuring of his school. It then analyses the ways in which he manages and copes with these intractable situations, and the effects and outcomes that result. The article begins by outlining a framework used in the analysis. It addresses some considerations of method, before describing relevant school and system contexts. Finally, the in-depth case study is presented using the structure associated with the framework described earlier. Among the key findings are that dilemmas present opportunities as well as challenges for visionary, proactive and creative school leaders.     

Nonformal Education,Distance Education and the Restructuring of Schooling: Challenges for a New Basic Education Policy

This article argues that the present crisis of basic education for young people in Africa reveals problems that are more fundamental than enrollments, inputs and costs. They are related to the very structure and substance of educational provision. Of particular concern is the fact that schools find it difficult to respond to the different needs and circumstances of their pupils and to organize learning experiences that are sensitive to the social, cultural and economic environment. The author maintains that non-conventional approaches to learning, associated with nonformal education and distance education, have important but distinct contributions to make to the reform of mainstream schooling and could help to open up the formal system from within.     

Nonformal Education, Distance Education and the Restructuring of Schooling: Challenges for a New Basic Education Policy

This article argues that the present crisis of basic education for young people in Africa reveals problems that are more fundamental than enrollments, inputs and costs. They are related to the very structure and substance of educational provision. Of particular concern is the fact that schools find it difficult to respond to the different needs and circumstances of their pupils and to organize learning experiences that are sensitive to the social, cultural and economic environment. The author maintains that non-conventional approaches to learning, associated with nonformal education and distance education, have important but distinct contributions to make to the reform of mainstream schooling and could help to open up the formal system from within.     

面向职业教育现代化建设的产教联盟协同育人研究

实施产教融合是职业教育现代化建设的关键,产教联盟协同育人是产教融合的组织和表现形式。加强产教联盟协同育人,有利于完善我国技术技能人才育人体系、促进产学研深度融合、实现教育资源共建共享,对建设现代高素质技术技能人才队伍具有重要意义。面对职业教育现代化发展的新趋势,我国应加快基于产教联盟的信任机制、协同机制和育人机制构建,并从加强顶层设计、强化综合保障、创新育人模式等路径发力,构建完善的产教联盟协同育人体系。     

The Restructuring of China's Higher Education: an experience for market economy and knowledge economy

Although we all learn differently, we all need to be able to engage certain fundamental reasoning skills if we are to manoeuvre successfully through life—however we define success. Peirce's philosophy provides us with a framework for helping students (and ourselves) develop and hone the ability for making deliberate and well‐considered choices. For, embedded within Peirce's complete body of work is a design for thinking that provides a sturdy foundation for the development of three important learning capabilities. These capabilities are 1) the ability to identify, compare, and contrast qualities, 2) the ability to perform analyses, and 3) the ability to interpret the meaning of signs. Although these capabilities may seem like the sort of skills that only older and academically inclined students can master, even young children and the intellectually challenged can learn to use them as well. Once teachers learn to develop their own intellectual potential by expanding these capabilities within themselves, they will be able to begin bringing about the development of these capabilities in their students. Once identified, developed, and applied to the mastery of educational skills and subject matter, these three fundamental learning capabilities (qualification, analysis, and interpretation), can form the foundation of a common‐sense approach to educational reform. Peirce asserts that good reasoning must be informed by ethical considerations, which in turn has been informed by the highest of aesthetic impulses. From this, we can extrapolate the importance that an educational model based upon Peirce's philosophy must place upon aesthetic and ethical considerations, as well as logical ones. Once fully understood, the philosophy of education embedded within Peirce's epistemology can revolutionize educational practices at all levels of learning.