印度喀拉拉邦的教育分权计划:理想与现实

许多发展机构的文献都提倡通过教育分权管理策略来促进地方参与教育的行动。尽管这种倡导有着长远的历史,但事实上,在许多教育体系中的教育分权计划并没有取得成功。印度喀拉拉邦的“人民分权计划运动”试图采用一个多方位的“大爆炸”方式实施分权计划,它虽有力量,但也存在局限性,其主要障碍是地方当局的技术能力有限,以及未转变参与者态度,未向参与者充分证明分权是符合他们需要的。     

试析三权分立制度嬗变的原因

在梳理三权分立制度的基础上,对其分权性质及分权原则发生嬗变的原因做了系统分析和探讨,认为三权分立制度嬗变是传统代议民主制走向衰落,行政集权民主制基本形成,政党政治民主制有效运作综合作用的产物。     

村民自治的成长:行政放权与社会发育--1990年代后期以来中国村民自治发展进程的反思

本文通过对1 990年代以来村民自治发展困境的反思,认为中国村民自治的成长从上看需要体制性的行政放权,从下看则需要现代社会组织的发育。村民自治是现代民主-国家建构中产生的,其制度设计中蕴含着现代民主理念。但中国的村民自治具有国家赋权的特点,民主自治的立法精神能否落实取决于行政放权所提供的体制空间。村民委员会为村民自治提供了制度性的自治平台,需要农民组织化参与。传统的家族组织不可能为村民自治提供所需要的组织资源,反而会扭曲村民自治的精神。只有市场化过程中形成的理性化社会和农民的自我组织,以及在民主自治实践中培育的农村公民社会,才能为村民自治的成长提供必要的社会条件。     

The micropolitics of school district decentralization

This case study of school district educational reform in the United States adds to the knowledge base of macropolitics of federal, state and local governing bodies and private sector agencies in formulating educational policies: It also contributes to our understanding the microplitics of policy implementation. Middle managers’ political acquiescence and resistance to district-wide decentralization and distributive leadership initiatives were studied using a longitudinal, ten-year (1998–2008) case study method. Middle managers were faced with a dilemma when the school district implemented a state sponsored decentralization policy that included adoption of distributed leadership and Total Quality Management (TQM). On the one hand, middle managers risked termination if they failed to implement legislated reform policies and the superintendent’s directives. On the other hand, if they succesfully implemented such policies their positions would become redundant. Initially responses of middle managers ranged along a continuum from acquiescence to resistance however as implementation of the decentralization initiative accelerated, middle managers’ political resistance increased in scope and intensity. Findings from the case study discussed in this article that superintendent’s success at implementation of district-wide decentralization policies is related to the nature and structure of microplolitics at the middle management level of the organization. In addition, findings suggest that internal evaluation processes used to assess the success of the district change process were compromised by miropolitics. Understanding that those who implement policy have the capacity to reshape and even prevent implementation as intended by officials at higher levels may contribute to reframing program evaluation methods as well as enhancing understanding of the politics of the superintendency.     

Decentralization and Social Partnership: The Development of Vocational Education at Shanghai and Shenzhen in China

In 1985, the Chinese Mainland introduced a policy of decentralization in order to help facilitate the spread of basic education. By looking specifically at the developmental experiences of Shanghai and Shenzhen, we can gain an in depth understanding of the specific circumstances incurred under new education reforms. While undergoing decentralization, the local government’s main responsibility was to implement the state directives and to act as the central government agency. During the development of vocational education, the level of decentralization in these two cities was situated somewhere between deconcentration and delegation. At the school level, the principal was mainly responsible for disseminating the state’s requirements. Teachers had to firmly follow the state’s instructions on teaching and learning. Other stakeholders’ roles were left unclear and informal. It is believed that the indigenous meaning of education and an authentic social partnership can only develop if formal channels are established through which stakeholders can express their ideas on education in the locality.     

Chinese education policy in the context of decentralization and marketization: evolution and implications

Education policy has been undergoing great transformation in China since the initiation of economic reforms and the open-door policy in the late 1970s. These market-oriented reforms and the pursuit of rapid economic growth in a globalized economy have significantly impacted China’s education policy and development. In line with the development of the market-oriented economy and its increasing integration with the global market, a more pragmatic perception of education has gradually taken shape in the post-Mao era, resulting in the decentralization and marketization of education in China. This article aims to examine the development of Chinese education policy in the context of decentralization and marketization since the start of the economic reforms. It will firstly make a brief contrast between the education policies before and after the economic reforms. Then, the decentralization and marketization in the field of education since the initiation of the economic reforms will be examined. What follows is an assessment of the impacts that marketization and decentralization had on education policy. This paper argues that the weakening role of the state in education provision and the disparity between rural and urban areas are key issues facing China’s education policy following the economic reforms and the open-door policy. It concludes by suggesting that equal and balanced development in education in China entails bringing the state back into the education sector.     

A cost-benefit analysis of the Harijan education program of Kerala,India

This article examines various aspects of a special program of education called the Harijan Education Program (HEP) operated by the Kerala State Government (India) for the education and advancement of a severely disadvantaged group of people called the Harijans of Kerala. An evaluation, through cost-benefit analysis (CBA), shows that the net present value (NPV) of the program and its redistribution benefits in favour of the Harijans are both negative and hence the HEP is not directly an economically viable program. Nevertheless, the program has bestowed and generated a considerable number of other non-quantifiable and non-measurable benefits such as ‘psychic’, ‘inter-generation’, ‘advanced education options’, ‘hedging options’, as well as many social benefits of a demographic, political, environmental and dynamic nature on the Harijans in particular, and the community in general. Accordingly, the authors believe that the program has considerable social and political advantages and therefore should be continued during the remainder of this decade with proper and careful monitoring of all outcome aspects before the program is either scaled down or phased out. Unfortunately, apart from this preliminary and tentative study conducted by the authors, no attempt has been made to date by either the Indian or Kerala governments to appraise the cost and benefit of such an important program which attempts to eradicate the extremely disadvantaged conditions of the Harijans, a still controversial and outcaste group in India.     

The social transmission of knowledge at the University: Teaching style and epistemic dependence

It is argued that an epistemic authority would induce greater influence in transmitting knowledge to students when there is a correspondence between the (authoritarian vs. democratic) style of the authority and students’ perceptions of their relation to the authority (high vs. low epistemic dependence). In two studies it was predicted, and found, that students who perceived themselves in a state of low epistemic dependence towards their teachers were more influenced by a democratic than by an authoritarian teaching style. This difference in appropriation was not found for students who perceived themselves in a state of epistemic dependence towards the epistemic authority.     

Effect of School Decentralization and School Climate on Student Mathematics Performance: The Case of Hong Kong

For more than a decade, the Government of Hong Kong has instituted a policy of school decentralization aimed at devolving authority to all stakeholders, including the representatives of School Sponsoring Bodies, principals, teachers, parents, and community members. This study examines the relative contribution of two dimensions of school decentralization – teacher participation and school autonomy – to students' mathematics performance, and examines the role of school climate as a mediating variable between decentralization and performance. Data for the present study come from the second cycle of the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA 2003), which is a large international assessment measuring 15-year-old students' literacy performance across over 40 countries and regions around the world. Using multi-level analysis, the study finds that teacher participation is more important than school autonomy for student mathematics performance in Hong Kong. In addition, the effect of teacher participation on students' performance is mediated by four major school climatic factors – sense of belonging, disciplinary climate, students' morale and student behaviour – in Hong Kong's secondary schools.     

对新时期爱国统一战线几点思考

从新中国开始,中国就着力要建设成一个民主化国家。为此,建国以后,特别是在改革开放以后,中国在中国共产党的领导下进行了一系列的改革,以期在中国建立一套适合其中国本身发展需要的民主政治制度。文章着重分析改革开放后中央在政治改革过程中的权力下放,同时对中央如何进行权力的有效控制进行了剖析。     

高中生民主素质与学校民主教育研究

Using the method of purpositive sampling, this research makes an empirical study on the relationship between the schooling for education and democratic qualities of public high school students in Beijing. The results show that the democratic qualities of the students in public high school of Beijing are better as a whole, but they are still lack of democratic knowledge and abilities, etc. The results of correlation analysis, multiple regression analysis and independent-samples T test show that there are four different kinds of relationships between the schooling for education and democratic qualities of students. Firstly, there is little distinct correlation between school reputation and democratic knowledge, attitude and abilities of students. Secondly, there is little distinct correlation between prospective achievement and democratic knowledge and attitude of students, but have a large correlation with the democratic abilities of students (P<.001). Thirdly, there is a large correlation between teaching and democratic knowledge, attitude and abilities of students (P<.001). Lastly, there is a large correlation between activities participation and democratic knowledge, attitude and abilities of students (P<.001) __________ Translated from Jiaoyu Xuebao 教育学报 (Journal of Educational Studies), 2008, 4(1): 14–18, with updated and additional content     

Educational decentralization policies in Argentina and Brazil: exploring the new trends

This paper compares educational decentralization policies implemented in Argentina and Brazil during the 1990s, focusing on the rationales and contexts of the policies, and through a review of secondary sources and some official documents. The paper argues that school decentralization, the movement toward transferring functions and responsibilities to schools, appears as a new and extended reform that was accompanied by more traditional forms of decentralization, but also by a process of centralization of planning and evaluation at the national level. This new form of centralization/decentralization is seen as linked to the neoliberal restructuring of the state, to pressures from globalization processes and forces, and to various internal demands for improving quality and efficiency in the delivery of education.     

Morality at the margins: a silent dimension of teaching and learning

Teaching is a moral endeavour. It transmits moral messages based on values and expectations. This paper explores the relationship between school practice and the democratic values endorsed in the Swedish national curriculum. A lunch‐time episode illustrates the discrepancy between the national curriculum’s ethical values and their realization in practice. This discrepancy problematizes the decentralization process in Swedish schooling. Furthermore, it suggests that episodes at the margins of school practice may be just as important to the moral curriculum of school as the knowledge‐related elements conventionally deemed to be the core of the curriculum.     

联邦主义的宪政诉求——以1922年湖南省宪为例

在中国近代宪政运动中,代表联邦主义宪政的湖南省宪以其分权制衡、地方主义和倚重民权的宪政理念、制度设计,显示了联邦主义者寻求建立民主、稳定、统一的宪政国家的宪政诉求,其进步、合理成份应当肯定.而联邦主义与近代中国国情相背离的国家结构观和制宪技术的某些局限则值得反思.     

The Decentralisation Of Education In Kerala State, India: Rhetoric And Reality

The decentralisation of educational administration has been widely advocated as a strategy to promote local participation in education. However, the fact that this advocacy has a long history raises the question why decentralisation has not been achieved in more educational systems. The answers to this question are many and complex. Among them are difficulties with the implementation of reforms. The present study examines some of these difficulties in Kerala State, India. It determines that although Kerala has a strong reputation for political participation, the rhetoric of decentralisation in the educational sector has not matched the reality there. The lessons to be learned in this context have wide implications for the theory and practice of decentralisation in education.     

The Decentralisation Of Education In Kerala State,India: Rhetoric And Reality

The decentralisation of educational administration has been widely advocated as a strategy to promote local participation in education. However, the fact that this advocacy has a long history raises the question why decentralisation has not been achieved in more educational systems. The answers to this question are many and complex. Among them are difficulties with the implementation of reforms. The present study examines some of these difficulties in Kerala State, India. It determines that although Kerala has a strong reputation for political participation, the rhetoric of decentralisation in the educational sector has not matched the reality there. The lessons to be learned in this context have wide implications for the theory and practice of decentralisation in education.     

民主行政视阈中的新公共管理

基于民主行政理论视角,通过分析新公共管理运动中,政府再造者对政府与其内外部行政环境关系的调整,文章认为新公共管理在追求行政效率的同时,也蕴含着对分权、参与和回应性等民主价值的关怀。     

Rejoinder to D. Brent Edwards Jr. and His Interpretation of Our Position on Democratic Education and Social Justice

We review our involvement in social justice movements and projects over the past half-century that led to our understanding of importance of democracy. We contrast our understanding based on our extensive involvement in schools, our record of accomplishments from national and state legislation. e.g., “New Careers” projects, task forces in Australian state schools, to successful inclusion of the excluded into higher education, e.g.,. Upward Bound and HEP with Critical Pedagogy which at least from its most prominent advocates is mostly talk, little action. We contrast our testable democratic theory with clearly articulated principles with Critical Pedagogy efforts to impose “truth.”     

Comparing efficiency in a cross-country perspective: the case of Italian and Spanish state universities

The growing internationalization of European Higher Education requires more emphasis on cross-country comparisons. In this paper, an efficiency analysis of Italian and Spanish universities is conducted; as well as from a comparative perspective. The efficiency scores are obtained using data envelopment analysis. The results demonstrate a good average efficiency in both countries relative to each “country-specific” frontier; but when compared together, Italian universities seem relatively more efficient. Malmquist indexes show, in both cases, efficiency improvements in the period considered. In the Italian case, this improvement is due to major “technological changes”; that is, the introduction of some structural reforms in the sector (e.g., Bachelor/Master curricula). In the Spanish case, there is an improvement in “pure” efficiency, which is due to new funding models. Further stages of the study underline the role of “regional effects”, probably due to different socio-economic conditions in Italy, and to the decentralization process in Spain.     

Information Search Behaviors of Indian Farmers: Implications for Extension Services

Abstract

Purpose: In India, a national survey conducted in 2003 showed that only 40% of farmers accessed extension. But little is known of the characteristics of farmers who did not access extension. However, this understanding is needed in order to target approaches to farmers, who differ in their access and use of information, that is their information search behaviors. The main objective of this paper is to segment farmers from this survey based on their information search behaviors and identify the factors that determine farmers' information search behaviors.

Design/methodology/approach: Cluster analysis is applied to the number of sources accessed and frequency of source used, to define farmers' information search behaviors.

Findings: The four groups that emerged are: ‘no search’, ‘low search’, ‘moderate search’ and ‘high search’. Sixty percent of farmers had no search behavior, which means they had not accessed any extension that year. By state, the largest group of these farmers was in Rajasthan. By comparison, the largest group of high searchers was in Kerala. Using Rajasthan and Kerala as case studies, these search behaviors differ by landholding size and education. ‘No search’ farmers had the smallest landholdings, lowest education, used fewer inputs and relied on groundwater for irrigation. By comparison, ‘high search’ farmers had the largest landholdings, most education, used more inputs and irrigated using canals.

Practical implications: The difference in search behaviors between the case study states, and within the states, shows that targeted extension approaches are needed to reach different farmers, particularly the no, low and moderate search groups, with programs customized to address their context-specific information needs.

Originality/value: Using information search strategy as the basis for analysis, this paper provides additional evidence of the need to consider the context-specific situations of farmers when designing extension services.