Institutional Practices and the Cultural Construction of Primary School Teaching in Botswana

This paper is based on a study which explores links between the interactional order of the Botswana primary classroom-frequently dominated by whole-class recitation routines-and the wider social order, which includes highly centralised control of the education system. Drawing on ethnographic observation, I argue that the institutional structures and practices of schools and training colleges are important-but covert-contributors to teachers' understanding of their professional roles. Firstly I describe the internal social structuring of two primary schools, the social hierarchy among those who work and learn there, and the cultural distance between the schools and their communities. Then I discuss the institutional practices of the primary teacher training colleges in Botswana, arguing that these do not challenge concepts of teaching already internalised by trainees. Such concepts include the authority of teachers, the use of English as a symbol of that authority, and the value placed on memorisation of knowledge for display.     

Learning the methods and the skills of global product realization in an academic virtual enterprise

This paper reports on and draws conclusions about the international course called European Global Product Realization. It was organized to provide university students with knowledge about distributed product development in virtual enterprises. The philosophy of the course is discussed together with its structure, contents, organization, infrastructure, deliverables and the experiences. Necessitated by globalization, the principles of operation of virtual enterprises were used in organizing the course. The knowledge accumulated in global product realization by the participating companies and academic sections provided the basis for the course and for the student projects. The organizers put the students of three European universities into the position of evolving young professionals who act as both knowledge producers and knowledge consumers. The design and engineering students took part in academic lectures and industrial case studies in a virtual classroom and practised collaborative product development in the emulated virtual enterprise. The academic virtual enterprise framework has been confirmed to be a solution for opening the conventional educational institutions. Our future work will concentrate on how to exploit disciplinary and operational research as the engine behind academic learning and teaching.     

Perspektywy --Ten Years of Rankings

The editor-in-chief of Perspektywy, a major educational publication house in Warsaw, Poland, describes a major activity of his organization, namely the ranking of secondary schools and higher education institutions. Indeed, Perspektywy is the major Polish organization providing rankings and elaborating league tables of Polish higher education institutions. In particular, Perspektywy has teamed up with a leading Polish newspaper, Rzeczpospolita, to produce major rankings in separate listings of the main state-operated and private higher education institutions. The author explains the methodologies employed for both sets of rankings and argues that his organization provides a valuable service to college-bound youth and their parents.     

Ranking and League Tables of Higher Education Institutions

Pointing out that globalization is a continuous process of adaptation and standardization affecting all aspects of social life in all societies, the author argues that higher education is essential for the facilitation of globalization. In the Eastern and Central European transition countries, higher education has been a main engine of transition, but it too must adapt to change, particularly to the rigors of a market economy that, among other things, requires that it be available to all and that it be financed from various sources, including tuition fees payable by all students. Also, governments must promote excellence to the extent of offering special funding to recognized centers of excellence. Higher education must be the engine that stimulates change and development throughout society.     

Is Higher Education a Public Good? A View from a Serbian Perspective

With particular reference to Serbia, the author discusses the claim that higher education is a public good and must be fully supported by the public authorities. She examines the proposition from an economic perspective, a legal perspective, and a normative political perspective and concludes that any scheme that offers free education to some while requiring others to pay tuition fees will be perceived as unfair by those who have to pay. And the situation of higher education in Serbia cannot improve until the general economic situation of the country improves.     

THE ACCESS TO HIGHER EDUCATION OF 80% OF YOUTH IN THE YEAR 2000

This article explores some of the probable consequences of the objective, elaborated throughout the French political spectrum, in favour of expanding French higher education enrollments such that by the year 2000, 80 percent of each age cohort will hold the baccalauriat and 90 percent of the latter will enroll in higher education. So far, the consequences of this objective have not been faced, particularly the tremendous changes required so as to make higher education in France universal. Certainly they will bring an end to the traditional elite nature of the French university with its emphasis on research and on the imparting of theoretical knowledge. Ineluctably, the emphasis will have to shift to practical courses and to career preparation. The author therefore suggests that the move to universality might best be accomplished by the development of numerous short‐term and vocationally oriented courses to be offered in distinct institutions to provide training to the bulk of the new entrants who will, for the most part, have completed high school in technical baccalaur éat sections. A traditionally oriented core within the university system will continue to offer long‐‐cycle courses admitting only the cream of the traditional general education baccalauriat holders and the best graduates of the new short‐cycle institutions. All the enrollees in the latter institutions should be encouraged to avoid over‐specialization so as to guarantee their professional flexibility with respect to future employment.

     

Higher Education in Latin America

This article presents an analysis of, and proposals for, international co-operation in higher education. It focuses on Latin American higher education, its current situation, and the expected transformation of the goals of higher education in the context of international co-operation. Education in the Twenty-First Century must be part of the world economic order. As such, it must attend to human necessities. One of the most important goals of the Twenty-First Century should be the building of a new kind of solidarity among human beings, one in which higher education systems will play an important role. The author describes the challenges that globalization poses to Latin American higher education.     

Globalization and Catholic Higher Education: A Dialogue for Harnessing the Impact of Globalization

The position and the role of Catholic higher education in the ongoing globalization of higher education are discussed. The author, the Secretary-General of the International Federation of Catholic Universities (FIUC/IFCU), presents a number of arguments in favour of the participation of Catholic universities in the processes of globalization while, at the same time, remaining true to their basic Christian values. The axis of this participation should be one of striving to humanize the phenomenon by serving "as the voice of those who have no voice".     

Dogmatism and Externality in Locus of Control As Related to Counselor Trainee Skill In Facilitative Responding

It was hypothesized in this study that dogmatism and externality in locus of control are inversely related to skill in facilitative responding when the effects of specific counselor training program, number of graduate hours in counseling, age, sex, race, and religious affiliation are controlled. The participants were 215 master's degree candidates majoring in guidance and counseling at three southwestern universities. Dogmatism and externality were measured by the Opinion Scale, and skill in facilitative responding was determined by application of the Gross Rating of Facilitative Interpersonal Functioning Scale to written responses of participants to 16 audiotaped client stimulus statements. Multiple regression and partial correlation techniques were used to test the hypothesis, and the results supported the hypothesis. The authors discuss implications of this study for counselor selection and education.