Policy Issues Surrounding Processes of Centralization and Decentralization in European Education Systems

Four levels of authority within the educational decision‐making structure in seven European countries and states for primary and lower secondary education are analyzed. Next, the results of an investigation on loci, domains and modes of decision making are presented, indicating a slightly higher degree of school autonomy in England/Wales, the Netherlands and Sweden than in the other countries and states. A more evaluative assessment shows that democratization, market orientation, recession and general aims of improving the quality and equality of education are important background forces in shifting patterns of centralization and decentralization in the investigated countries and states.     

Linking research,extension and education: why is the problem so persistent and pervasive?

Abstract

Weak linkages among research, education and extension (REE) institutions result in systematic “bottlenecks” in national agricultural technology systems and limit their effectiveness to contribute to development (ISNAR, 1989; Roling, 1990; Kaimowitz, 1990). The advantages of strong linkages are well known. Evidence shows that integrating research, education and extension can improve the overall performance of agricultural technology systems (Engel, 1990; Ortiz, 1990). As Moris (1991) states, “It would be difficult to over-emphasise the enormous tactical importance of having smooth interorganizational linkages for achieving sustained agricultural development”.

If this is the case, why then is the “problem of weak linkages” so persistent and pervasive.

This paper discusses some of the problems and opportunities related to integrating and linking research, extension and education institutions, and to incorporating the active participation of farmers in technology innovation. First, the paper first gives general background to the linkages problem and discusses recent shifts in REE orientation. It then successively addresses issues of policy and structure, pluralistic approaches, and integrated REE. Finally, the paper addresses the implications of the discussion and makes some general suggestions for approaches that might be useful in attacking the “linkages problem”.     

Prior knowledge moderates instructional effects on conceptual understanding of statistics

This study investigated the effects of different teaching and learning methods for statistics for 2 levels of prior knowledge on cognitive load, propositional knowledge, and conceptual understanding. Teaching methods were whether or not to provide students with propositional information, and learning strategies were self-explaining the learning material and explaining in pairs. The results indicate that prior knowledge facilitates propositional knowledge development and leads to differential effects of teaching and learning methods on conceptual understanding: Only low prior knowledge students profit from additional information in the learning task and/or explaining in pairs. An implication of these findings is that low prior knowledge students should be guided into the subject matter by means of working in pairs on learning tasks that comprise additional information. Once students have developed more knowledge of the subject matter, they should be stimulated to work individually on learning tasks that do not comprise additional information.     

Interdisciplinary project teams on agriculture and environment: A problem-oriented approach

Abstract

In a one-year, postgraduate, professional training course an interdisciplinary project approach is taught to prepare disciplinary specialists for interdisciplinary team work. This paper is based on five years of experience with such projects and deals with the conditions necessary to engage successfully in interdisciplinary project teaching. A high degree of organisation, firm guidance at the start of the project, feedback on actual practice from experts, the importance of cyclical working methods, the use of project planning techniques and product-oriented thinking are elements to be stressed. As an illustration a project is presented on environmental policy for a specific target group: greenhouse horticulturists in the province of Zuid-Holland, The Netherlands.     

Sexual behaviour profiles of HIV-positive youth in the Netherlands

Young people living with HIV are challenged when it comes to exploring their sexuality. Their sex education is hampered by the fact that their preferences and attitudes towards sexual behaviour are little known about. In this study from the Netherlands, Q-methodology was used to identify sizeable and meaningful sub-groups sharing common attitudes and viewpoints. Thirty of 48 eligible HIV-positive young people aged 12–21 years treated in one of the four Dutch HIV centres rank-ordered 45 statements on the topic. Thereafter, they explained their ranking. By-person factor analysis identified five distinct sexual behaviour profiles (SBPs): (a) safer sex & disclosure to steady partner; (b) motivated by faith and culture; (c) disclosure to good friends, values peer support; (d) conscientious, worries about disclosure and future; (e) self-confident, faith and family are important. Profiles differ in terms of the roles of culture and religion, the influence of family and friends, personal views about disclosure of HIV status, knowing the transmission mode, and viral load. Study results indicate that different approaches to sexual health education are required based on these different orientations. Q-sorts and SBPs may be helpful in discussing sexual behaviour with HIV-positive young people and in developing tailored strategies to meet their interests and needs.     

Europe and the United States: the implementation of geographic information systems in secondary education in two contexts

Since its inception in the early 1990s, geographic information science and its related technology, geographic information systems (GIS), have diffused slowly into select groups of K‐12 classrooms worldwide. The technology has not been adopted at a rate commensurate with expectations. The purpose of this article is to explore GIS implementation by comparing the variable status of GIS education in pre‐collegiate education in the United States and Europe and factors that appear to play a role in diffusion. The authors use a model of internal and external factors that influence adoption of education innovation as a heuristic to compare and draw conclusions.     

TOXMAP: a GIS-based gateway to environmental health resources

The National Library of Medicine (NLM) has an extensive collection of environmental health information, including bibliographic and technical data on hazardous chemical substances, in its TOXNET databases. TOXNET also provides access to the United States Environment Protection Agency (EPA)'s Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) data, which covers release of specific chemicals via air, water, and land, and by underground injection, as reported by industrial facilities around the United States. NLM has developed a Web-based geographic information system (GIS), TOXMAP , which allows users to create dynamic maps that show where TRI chemicals are released and that provides direct links to information about the chemicals in TOXNET. By extracting the associated regional geographic text terms from the displayed map (e.g., rivers, towns, county, state), TOXMAP also provides customized chemical and/or region-specific searches of NLM's bibliographic biomedical resources. This paper focuses on TOXMAP's features, data accuracy issues, challenges, user feedback techniques, and future directions.