A critique of Koh’s (2014) ‘Doing class analysis in Singapore’s elite education’

Aaron Koh contributed to a collection of multi-site global ethnographic articles published here (2014, Vol. 12, No. 2) that present class reproduction as operationalised in elite education. While the collection adds to the current international critique of meritocracy, a close look at Koh's contribution reveals that critical ethnography can lose its representational and persuasive power if muddled by theoretical and methodological haziness and if it fails to forefront participants' voices. This response is meant to encourage Koh to re-present his data and position so as to sure up his comment on this important issue.     

Issues Arising from the Long-Term Evaluation of Cognitive Acceleration Programs

Since the early 1980s we have been engaged in the design, implementation, and evaluation of “cognitive acceleration” programs, which claim to enhance students’ general intellectual processing skills. We have published extensive data showing long-term effects of these programs on students’ cognitive development and academic achievement. In this paper the theory base of cognitive acceleration will be briefly outlined and some typical results re-presented. The main body of the paper will be devoted to a discussion of a number of issues which arise from the analysis of long-term effects. Although the examples will be drawn from the cognitive acceleration programs, the issues are general ones which might apply to any long-term study.     

生产型增值税亟待向消费型增值税转型

消费型增值税比生产型增值税有明显的优势,但在增值税转型过程中会遇到诸如财政压力大、固定资产存量不易处理、发票管理难度大及刺激外延式再生产等问题,为此要积极采取渐进式转型、扩大税基、重新认定纳税人、统一发票管理等措施,促进增值税的顺利转型.     

关于我国增值税税负不公问题的分析

我国自1994年开始在全国推行增值税,目前增值税是我国最大的税种,但在增值税实践中存在的税负不公、重复征税问题一直没有得到很好地解决,在一定程度上影响和限制了增值税作用的充分发挥,本文在分析我国增值税现状和产生税负不公原因的同时,试图找到一些解决的办法。     

Teacher identity past and present: What can a genealogy of schooling tell us?

ABSTRACT

The evolution of teachers’ identities in Australia highlights the struggles between state and civic over the control of schooling and also the contingent nature of the teacher identity itself. A genealogical analysis of this history makes visible these contingencies, but more importantly suggests that little reckoning has been afforded to teachers’ agency within these social struggles. This gap in understandings of teacher identity, as even potentially agentic, highlights the need for a more nuanced understanding of teachers and their transformative potential. In particular, it calls for a focus on teachers within elite private schools because these costly schools are highly influential as the aspirational model for schooling provision. If teachers’ agency in these neoliberalised spaces were possible, if they could be empowered in their stewardship of the educational enterprise, then their activation would be crucial in any wider reform effort.     

浅谈信息化对品牌价值的提升

说明有效的信息传播,能促进产品和服务的价值链延续和品牌价值提升,同时指出信息化在深化品牌文化与内涵过程中有着重要意义。     

增值性学生评价探析

我国传统学生评价过分强调鉴定、甄别与筛选的功能,其目的是“选拔适合于教育的儿童”,导致我国素质教育向纵深发展步履维艰,所以,传统学生评价受到越来越多的质疑和批评。增值性学生评价从“选择适合于学生的教育”的目的出发,重视学生评价的改进、激励和发展功能,秉承尊重差异、注重起点、关注过程和强调发展的理念,因此,它自美国诞生以来迅速受到广大师生的欢迎。     

养老保险金的充足与保值增值探讨

养老保险是社会的防震器和再分配的重要手段之一,养老体系的完善及养老金的正常运转和发放,是中国经济发展和社会和谐的重要保障.目前,我国养老保险存在从现收现付制到累积制过程中的\"空账\",筹资缺乏,投资运营回报率低等问题,建议通过资金缺口透明化、加大社保支出占财政支出的比重等政策手段实现养老保险的保值增值.     

Parental satisfaction with disabled children’s school inclusion in Italy

The principal aim of the present study is to examine the level of parental satisfaction with inclusive education for their children with disability attending Italian schools of any grade level. The survey involved 285 parents of pupils randomly selected from the population of students with disability certificates. On average, parents expressed a high level of satisfaction. Four principal components of parental satisfaction were extracted from the item scores of the questionnaire: inclusive educational practices; environment and special equipment; classmates’ and families’ acceptance; integration between education and rehabilitation activities. Various correlations were found between these aspects and both child-related and context-related variables. In particular, children’s emotional regulation abilities evaluated by teachers are involved in various dimensions of the parents’ satisfaction. On the other hand, satisfaction with the integration between the educational and rehabilitation activities showed a significant negative correlation with the fathers’ and mothers’ educational level. Lastly, parental satisfaction towards classmates’ and families’ acceptance appears to be the most critical aspect and tends to decrease in relation to school level, while it is positively linked with the number of hours the support teacher spends in class. Taken together, these results stimulate useful considerations to promote better practices in inclusive education.     

Using Charter Schools to Alleviate Racial Exclusion in Rural America: An Innovative Idea or a Trojan Horse?

ABSTRACT

Racial segregation has remained a lasting legacy of rural schools in southern states. Our article explains a case where community leaders created a diverse charter school to change its historical practice of an isolated White private school and isolated African American public schools. We scan documents and literature related to this integration strategy to surface key themes when using rural charter schools to alter patterns of school segregation. First, we explain pressing issues in rural schools. Second, we describe how segregation and inequality have evolved in the South. Third, we explain research showing how charter schools maintain patterns of school segregation, but with exceptions and nuances in certain contexts. Fourth, we consider the benefits and tensions surrounding one rural charter school that offers an integrated educational program. Benefits range from societal to individual as the school fosters an environment where students are exposed to diverse educational experiences. Tensions include shifting power and funding dynamics and the possibility of using a good example to shepherd in less effective charter models elsewhere.     

The impact of charter schools on the efficiency of traditional public schools: Evidence from Michigan

This paper examines the competitive effects of charter schools on the efficiency of traditional public schools. The analysis utilizes a statewide school-level longitudinal dataset of Michigan schools from 1994 to 2004. Fixed effect and two alternative estimation methods are employed. Overall, the results suggest that charter competition had a negative impact on student achievement and school efficiency in Michigan's traditional public schools. The effect is small or negligible in the short run, but becomes more substantial in the long run.