THE ROLE OF THE INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF ACADEMIES OF SCIENCE IN INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION

The political changes occurring in eastern and central Europe in 1989 and 1990 and the breakup of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics in 1991 fragmented a large area in which science and technology policy was more or less centralized and rationalized. Each country in this area, as a result, has had to develop its own science and technology policy in very difficult situations of transition. One of the attempts made to re‐establish some order and unity in science policy in the former socialist countries has been spearheaded by the International Association of Academies of Sciences, founded in Kiev in 1991. It is attempting, on a voluntary basis, to assume some of the functions of the former Soviet Academy of Sciences, and in particular, to re‐create the scientific space existing before 1989‐1991. Among its many projects are efforts in favour of young scientists and closer co‐operation with other international organizations of academies.     

RECALL SCORES OF OLD AND YOUNG PEOPLE AS A FUNCTION OF REGISTRATION INTERVALS

The subjects, 24 old (mean age, 69 yr) and 24 young (mean age, 19 yr) people, were given one learning trial on paired associate lists under each of four temporal conditions: (1) 3 sec study (association) interval; (2) self‐paced study interval; (3) self‐paced study interval and 4 sec registration interval; (4) self‐paced study and registration intervals. The response interval for the single recall trial was self‐paced for all conditions. The subject was instructed to use the registration interval to ensure that the association between the paired items was “fixed” in his or her mind. The recall scores of the elderly subjects but not the young subjects improved significantly as a function of the registration interval. The results suggest that with advanced age more time is required for information processing, and specifically for the registration of an association and/or its transfer from primary to secondary memory. The significant improvement of the older subjects from the paced‐study‐interval condition to the self‐paced‐study‐and‐registration‐intervals condition supports the contention that modification of conditions under which the older person is expected to perform can result in substantial performance increments.     

THE TASKS OF ACADEMIES OF SCIENCES AND THE REFORM OF THE HUNGARIAN ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

The different national Academies of Sciences are as varied as their individual histories and the societies of which they are a part. At the same time, they all have certain characteristics in common. An Academy is usually the highest ranking scientific body in its country. It is independent of higher education institutions, of political parties, and of the state, even if it receives state subsidies. Among the special features of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, one can cite the fact that its General Assembly includes two hundred representatives of the Hungarian scientific community who serve three‐year terms but cannot participate in elections for new Academy members and that its forty research institutes and eighty research groups that are located and function in universities have a high degree of autonomy in regard to the Academy as such.     

STATE PARTNERSHIPS TO ENHANCE THE QUALITY OF LIFE OF OLDER AMERICANS WITH LIFELONG DISABILITIES

The Older Americans Act and its network of state and area agencies are dynamic mechanisms for human services. The “aging network” has entered a period of expanded policy arenas which require broader agendas and applications, from long‐term‐care systems development to assisting employers who are creating flexible work and retirement programs. It is appropriate for the aging and developmental disabilities networks to explore the intersections of their operations with respect to their methods of administration, advocacy, service systems development, and policies.     

ROLE OF THE SLOVAK ACADEMY OF SCIENCES DURING THE PERIOD OF TRANSITION IN THE SLOVAK REPUBLIC

The transformation of a socialist‐type Academy of Sciences into an institution capable of functioning in a democratic market economy is described. Prior to 1989, the Slovak Academy of Sciences was the state mandated coordinator of science and technology in Slovakia and was funded directly by the state budget. Since 1990, the Academy has had to share many of its prerogatives with other authorities and institutions, as in the case of the universities in regard to doctoral programmes, or to cede them out‐right, as in the case of the Ministry of Education and Science in regard to the coordination of basic research. Its budget has been drastically cut. It has also had to contend with the introduction of a western type of grant programme and system of evaluation for its subordinate institutes, some of which have been closed. In short, the Slovak Academy of Sciences must compete in an increasingly open science market in which it must give proof both of the quality of its work and of the relevance of the latter to the needs of society.     

PLATO'S PHILOSOPHY OF LISTENING

In the article, Sophie Haroutunian‐Gordon asks, Did Plato have a philosophy of listening, and if so, what was it? Listening is the counterpart of speaking in a dialogue, and it is no less important. Indeed, learning from the dialogue is less likely to occur as people participate unless listening as well as speaking takes place. Haroutunian‐Gordon defines a philosophy of listening as a set of beliefs that fall into four categories: (1) the aim of listening; (2) the nature of listening; (3) the role of the listener; and (4) the relation between the listener and the speaker. The beliefs, as they fall into these four categories, have implications for one another, and, because they are logically related, constitute a philosophy of listening. In the article, Haroutunian‐Gordon argues that Plato had a philosophy of listening and describes its components.     

AN APPLICATION OF FORMATIVE RESEARCH IN PSYCHOLOGICAL EDUCATION

The purpose of this study was to design, implement, and evaluate an undergraduate peer‐helping program curriculum having as its primary objective the facilitation of cognitive/affective maturity. The study also sought to test the effectiveness and practicality of using formative research in designing and evaluating the peer‐helping program. The results of the study indicated that the final peer‐helping program, designed through the action/ reflection methodology of formative research, was able to facilitate increases in ego development as measured by the Loevinger Sentence Completion form. Implications are discussed.     

FURTHER EVIDENCE ON THE EFFECT OF DATE OF BIRTH ON SUBSEQUENT SCHOOL PERFORMANCE

In a previous paper (Hartley and Holt, 1971) the development of a three‐minute reasoning test was described, and its validity and reliability assessed. In this paper three experiments are reported which look in greater detail at these aspects of the test in different situations. The results of the experiments indicated that the test was less valid and was less reliable than was originally anticipated.     

THE EVALUATION OF RESEARCH AND THE IMPLEMENTATION OF A GRANT SYSTEM IN THE ROMANIAN ACADEMY

The Romanian Academy decided to conduct an evaluation of its research institutes based on facts, quantitative statistical data and indicators, as well as on qualitative factors specific to each scientific domain. A first report, concerning input data analyses (human, material, and financial resources), was issued at the beginning of 1995. A second one, consisting of a revised and updated version of input analyses, as well as an output evaluation (publications, patents, etc.) was due to appear in the autumn of 1985. During the spring of 1995, the Romanian Academy initiated a research grant system, open to all Romanian scientists and research groups, for the competitive funding of projects in fundamental and advanced research. Applications are screened and selected by four autonomous expert panels, after an ex‐ante evaluation; midterm and final evaluations (ex‐post) are also foreseen.     

SOCIAL DETERMINANTS AND POTENTIALS OF EDUCATION IN LATER LIFE: THE CASE OF AUSTRIA

Various theoretical concepts such as plasticity, competence, and potential have recently been applied to underline the possibility of later‐life development and change. Value and limitations of these concepts are discussed in view of learning in later life. A review of the special case of Austria and the educational attainments of its elderly indicates that social reality is slow in its transformation and that the disadvantageous educational achievements credited to today's older people hardly encourage them in pursuing later‐life studies. The paper reports results obtained by means of two questionnaires filled out by older students and teachers. This empirical investigation examines the influence of societal norms, social setting in institution‐related learning situations (age‐homogeneity vs. age‐heterogeneity), and instructors’ attitudes toward older students. The results demonstrate that permanent education and proper stimulation of the learning processes depend on a complex relationship between (competent) individuals, their social surroundings, and learning conditions that often prove unfavorable.     

ON THE ESTABUSHMENT OF THE UNIVERSITY OF THE PEOPLES OF EUROPE

The article is a plea for the establishment and the development of the University of the Peoples of Europe (UPE). As Europe comes together following the end of the post‐Second World War division, it is confronting a number of serious common problems of a kind amenable to solution by the concerted action of academics. The UPE, as a network of existing centres of academic excellence, could be harnessed to solve pan‐European problems of this sort on a pan‐European basis. As a part of its action, it would promote student mobility, but above all, it would facilitate the international movement of professors and advanced researchers. Steps should be taken to enhance the prestige of the participating institutions and to provide for the remuneration of participating academics.     

THE EFFECTS OF CURRICULUM ON PRESCHOOL CHILDREN'S PERCEPTIONS OF THE ELDERLY

Perceptions of the elderly were determined for 42 4‐ and 5‐year‐old children. The Social Attitude Scale of Ageist Prejudice (SASAP) was used to examine how these young children perceived elderly people after being exposed to a developmentally appropriate classroom curriculum that focused on the characteristics and positive aspects of the elderly. In a pretest‐posttest design, a decrease in prejudice score was found for children in the experimental group from pretest to posttest; an increase in prejudice score was determined for the control group. Results of this study also indicate that young children are more negative toward elderly persons’ abilities than toward their social characteristics and that level of grandparent visitation is unrelated to SASAP score.     

CRITERIA AND PROCEDURES FOR THE RECOGNITION OF FOREIGN QUALIFICATIONS

The criteria and procedures for the recognition of foreign qualifications are not sufficiently known to most evaiuators of foreign qualifications. This lack of knowledge results in inappropriate and incorrect evaluations and recognition decisions. The purpose of this article is to explain who evaluates and reaches decisions as to foreign qualifications, what the role of national recognition centres is, how such centres co‐operate internationally, and how international co‐operation has led to the advancement of agreed upon methods, criteria, and procedures for the recognition of foreign qualifications. The biggest step forward in this respect is the Draft Recommendation on General Procedures and Criteria for the Evaluation of Foreign Qualifications that was recently developed by an expert group and which, in its final form, will be a subsidiary text of the Council of Europe/UNESCO Convention.     

RELIABILITY AND STRUCTURAL VALIDITY OF THE TEACHER RATING SCALES OF EARLY ACADEMIC COMPETENCE

Currently, there are few strengths‐based preschool rating scales that sample a wide array of behaviors believed to be essential for early academic success. The purpose of this study was to assess the factor structure of a new measure of early academic competence for at‐risk preschool populations. The Teacher Rating Scales of Early Academic Competence (TRS‐EAC) includes two broad scales (Early Academic Skills and Early Academic Enablers) and was completed by 60 teachers for 440 children enrolled in Head Start and public preschool classrooms. Evidence from two exploratory factor analyses supported a five‐factor solution for the Early Academic Skills Scale (Creative Thinking, Critical Thinking Skills, Numeracy, Early Literacy, and Comprehension) and a five‐factor solution for the Early Academic Enablers Scale (Approaches to Learning, Social and Emotional Competence, Fine Motor Skills, Gross Motor Skills, and Communication). TRS‐EAC scores also demonstrated good to excellent reliability and were related to children's performance on direct measures of early academic skills.     

MEDICAL EDUCATION IN GERIATRICS: THE LASTING IMPACT OF THE AGING GAME

In an effort to sensitize medical students to the problems of the frail elderly, a simulation experience known as the Aging Game is a required portion of the Introduction to Clinical Medicine course for medical students at Duke University. The immediate positive effect of the Aging Game has been documented (Journal of the American Medical Association, 262, 1507‐1509), but its long‐term impact has not been established. To obtain follow‐up, a brief 10‐item questionnaire was mailed to all medical students. Both objective and subjective data were collected to ascertain the impact of the Aging Game over time (class years two through four), and objective responses were analyzed by the Mantel‐Haenszel chi‐square test of general association. The lasting effect of the intervention was confirmed over the 2‐year follow‐up period. The experiential nature of the intervention and the resultant increase in empathy for the frail elder explain the success of the Aging Game.     

EMPIRICAL SYNTHESIS OF THE EFFECT OF STANDARD ERROR OF MEASUREMENT ON DECISIONS MADE WITHIN BRIEF EXPERIMENTAL ANALYSES OF READING FLUENCY

Intervention researchers often use curriculum‐based measurement of reading fluency (CBM‐R) with a brief experimental analysis (BEA) to identify an effective intervention for individual students. The current study synthesized data from 22 studies that used CBM‐R data within a BEA by computing the standard error of measure (SEM) for the median data point from the baseline and intervention data. The median CBM‐R score from the intervention that the authors of each study identified as most effective fell within the SEM (68% confidence interval) of the baseline data approximately 30% of the time, but the ranges for the two author‐identified most effective interventions overlapped over 75% of the time. Extended analyses were consistent with the BEA results for approximately three‐fourths of the instances after considering the SEM of the baseline and intervention phases. Using matched passages did not improve the overlap of the ranges, but there was less overlap when the study used three data points per condition. Results emphasize the importance of considering SEM of CBM‐R data when comparing interventions within a BEA. Further implications for practice and future research are included.     

IMPACT OF ANOMIA AND LIFE SATISFACTION ON OLDER ADULT LEARNERS

An examination of the relationship between the attitudes of two populations of older adults and their participation in education‐related activities reveals statistically significant associations in both populations between Anomia and Zest and Participation in Educational Activities, and between Life Satisfaction, Mood Tone, and Zest and Self‐Directed Learning Participation. These findings indicate that self‐directed learning participation is correlated with a person's affirmation of self and its accomplishments, sense of satisfaction and pleasure, and a high level of enthusiasm and ego involvement in activities. The correlation between Anomia and Zest and Participation in Educational Activities reinforces the need for a strong social dimension in education‐related activities among older adults in order to mitigate the effects of personal isolation or anomia. The findings also call for an understanding of nonpartidpation in education‐related activities as an expression of anomia, alienation, or power‐lessness. Practitioners are encouraged to consider how educational programs may effectively bridge the gap of powerlessness and alienation experienced by many older adults.     

ALTERNATIVES IN AURAL REHABILITATION: PROVIDER TRAINING OF NONAUDIOLOGISTS IN THE DELIVERY OF HEARING‐AID SUPPORTIVE SERVICES TO OLDER PERSONS WITH HEARING LOSS

Recently, Patterson and Dancer (1987) suggested a model wherein persons who normally come in contact with older hearing‐impaired persons can be trained to assist the older hearing‐aid user in adjustment to amplification. Their four‐phase educational model offers an alternative to traditional aural rehabilitation programs by using personnel from senior centers, nursing homes, and state and local agencies as program providers.

The present article elaborates more fully on the training that protocol providers will receive from audiologists certified by the American Speech‐Language‐Hearing Association. Providers will be carried through five stages: empathy, effective communication skills, knowledge of the interaction of aging and hearing loss, the phases outlined in the Patterson and Dancer model, and guidelines for referrals. Objective‐based provider and client response criteria are outlined for moving the client from the initial receipt of the hearing aid to its ultimate acceptance and use on a doily basis.     

FIRST MEETING OF THE STANDING CONFERENCE ON UNIVERSITY PROBLEMS

There are a number of international organizations or bodies, which create a framework for international co‐operation in higher education in the European region. (In some cases such co‐operation may involve only some of these countries, while in other instances it may cut across the outer boundaries of the European region).

In 1978 a new organization was created by the Council of Europe's Standing Conference on University Problems (CC‐PU) whose terms of reference are: “as a committee of experts under the authority of the new Council for Cultural Co‐operation (CDCC):

• to organize or encourage cooperation among European nations in the field of higher education and research;

• to propose activities to the CDCC for inclusion in the annual programme of activities;

• to promote relations among European universities and institutions

  of higher education and research”.

The first meeting of CC‐PU was held from 20 to 21 December 1978 in Strasbourg. Professor Dominique Rivier, Rector of the University of Lausanne was elected as its Chairman and as its Vice‐chairman, Professor Paul Sabourin from the Cabinet du Ministre aux Universites (France).

The following information concerns issues discussed during the first meeting of the Conference; these were the Council's Cultural Co‐operation (CDCC) activities in promoting student mobility in the countries of the European Community3 and interrelations between employment and training.