DEVELOPMENT OF THE CONCEPT OF HIGHER EDUCATION RESTRUCTURING IN BULGARIA DURING THE 1978‐1987 PERIOD

The concept of reform according to which the restructuring of the Bulgarian higher education system considered as a dynamic open system and as a product of the country's social development, is based on the discussions, relative to the restructuring of the educational system, that took place between 1978 and 1987. The changes in the concept of educational models, those of higher education included, not only reflect the results of social development but embody a new position arising from the requirements of scientific and technological revolution. The latter have transformed education from a result into a cause and have thus conditioned the rate of social and economic development. The author thus attempts to relate the evolution of the concept through its different stages. He points out some specific problems and decisions which characterize the complexity and the outlooks of the decision.     

The cognitive contribution to the development of proficiency in a foreign language

The present paper reports results of a longitudinal research project studying the contribution of cognitive skills and other factors to proficiency in a foreign language (L2) in the Hungarian educational context. The larger project aims to describe the levels of L2 proficiency of school-aged populations in order to explore the conditions and factors contributing to processes and outcomes in foreign language education in public schools. For this purpose, paper and pencil tests were administered in English and German as a foreign language to nationally representative student samples. The project also aims to find answers to some theoretical questions; therefore, a questionnaire and other assessment instruments complemented L2 tests to provide insights into how participants' cognitive, affective and first language (L1) variables, as well as their social and school variables interact with one another over time. Students' general thinking and learning abilities were assessed with an inductive reasoning test.In the present paper we focus on the relationship between students' proficiency in English or German and inductive reasoning skills to show how general cognitive abilities interact with levels of L2 proficiency. We use a multivariate context to explore complex relationships between L2 levels in English and German and inductive reasoning skills if influences of other variables are controlled. We present results of multiple regression analyses on L2 listening, reading, and writing tasks in the two target languages. In the present paper we use both cross-sectional and longitudinal data to examine the relationships between students' L2 proficiency in the first phase (2000) and two years later (2002). Thus, a longitudinal research design was implemented by repeating cross-sectional assessment at a two-year interval.     

GOVERNMENT AND STUDENT FINANCIAL AID IN THE USA: CONTEMPORARY PATTERNS OF DEVELOPMENT

This article attempts to provide a comprehensive summary of the existing federal programmes of student financial assistance and a brief summary of the mechanisms involved for the programmes supported by the federal and the state governments in the USA. In addition, the article offers a glimpse of some of the concurrent ideas and trends appearing in the system in the early 1990's. The data provided and the sources of further information serve as evidence of the government's involvement in the qualitative and quantitative changes that are currently taking place within the American higher education system and give hints as to the impact of these changes in financial assistance upon the total system.     

Tempus I at the Technical University of Sofia: The Political Economy of Academic Survival

This study focusses on an investigation of the patterns of institutional change influenced by the TEMPUS I (European Community/European Union) assistance programme in Bulgaria during 1990‐1994, specifically at the Technical University of Sofia. The theoretical model of the research has used as its point of departure Burton Clark's concept (1983) of institutional relations and has examined the roles of state, government, market, and academic oligarchy in the dynamics of university administration and management during the transition period. The data collected demonstrate that the role of TEMPUS I JEP grants was a major factor in favour of change in the process of development and the implementation of new institutional policies and organizational structures. The study opens for discussion a number of issues related to the role and the policies of multinational funding agencies in a national university setting undergoing institutional change, forms of academic governance, and the conditions and requirements related to the implementation of market‐oriented approaches in academe.     

User Interfaces for a Virtual Learning Environment: Two Study Cases

A recent powerful idea in the design of Web-based learning environments is the usage of virtual places. The employment of interface metaphors is one of the approaches enabling inexperienced users to feel comfortable in such virtual environments. We have designed a Virtual Environment for Distance Education and Training (VEDET), which provides basic virtual spaces, resources, and services. In this paper we discuss the user interface of two Web-based distance learning courses Business on the Internet and Business English, developed on the basis of VEDET. A web-based learning environment has been implemented to support the delivery of these courses. Two examples of interface metaphors have been developed and adopted, each presenting a coherent image of the environment. © IFIP, published by Kluwer Academic Publishers