Education & Pedagogy

Participation of U.S. adults in formal learning activities during the 1990s was examined by analyzing data from the 1991, 1995, and 1999 Adult Education Surveys that were part of the National Household Education Surveys Program. Overall, participation in adult education between 1991 and 1999 increased among all but one age group (35-44 years), all racial/ethnic groups, all education levels, all labor force groups, and all occupation groups (except those in professional or managerial positions). The groups that did not increase their participation rates had some of the highest participation rates in 1991 and constant rates of participation thereafter. However, more in-depth statistical analyses revealed that participation in work-related courses by Hispanics, individuals with lower levels of education, individuals with lower-status jobs, and individuals who are employed part time is lower than that of other groups. Adults with lower levels of education were also less likely to participate in nonwork-related courses, even after other factors were accounted for. Despite elimination of some inequalities, highly educated and high-status groups remained the main beneficiaries of adult education. A discussion of the survey methodology and data reliability is appended along with nine standard error and logistic regression tables. (Contains 48 references and 27 tables/figures.) (MN)

The knowledge needed by nurses to educate patients and their caregivers on medication use was examined to provide policymakers, practitioners, and others with the information needed to plan nursing education programs in England. The study focused on the following topics: the contributions of nurses to medication education; their preparation for the role of educating patients about medication use; and the impact of contextual factors on nursing education and clinical practice related to educating patients on medication use. The main data collection activities were as follows: (1) an extensive literature review; (2) case studies of three sites (sites offering adult nursing/elder care, mental health nursing, and specialist pathways in general practice nursing and community nursing in homes); and (3) a national survey examining learning outcomes, assessment strategies, and other curriculum design and delivery factors related to pharmacological knowledge, communication, and patient education skills. The following were among the key conclusions: (1) nurses need more education in pharmacology; (2) pharmacology should be taught in relation to its application in nursing practice; and (3) given the extensiveness and dynamic nature of pharmacology knowledge, a balance of formally taught programs, self-direction, and updating is needed. (Contains 66 tables/figures/boxes and 99 references.) (MN)

As more state and federal initiatives develop around the care and education of preschool children, the challenge is to link the public education agenda to the larger early care and education field. This paper discusses the essential elements of a public/private preschool partnership and considers questions related to providing quality preschool education to preschoolers while being sensitive to the effect that such partnerships have on the availability and affordability of child care for younger children and to other issues. The National Child Care Association recommends that any analysis of a community's preschool must be guided by the following six principles: (1) parental choice as paramount in program planning, development, and implementation; (2) careful and deliberate community planning; (3) continued collaboration and partnerships with the private early care and education community while building programs on existing agency structure, funding streams, and quality measures; (4) program structures involving integration of at-risk children with their peers and including a full range of education, early care, and school-age care; (5) public/private partnerships equitably and adequately funded at the full cost of providing the service; and (6) development of programs that are accountable to policymakers, government agencies, families, and the early care and education community. The report asserts that the six principles are essential to developing programs that meet parent and community needs and calls for policymakers to ensure that these principles are part of national, state, and local planning so that children receive care and early education that enhances their success as productive adults. (KB)

This paper explores educational stratification of unemployment in early labor market career; its institutional embeddedness in specific education and employment systems; and youth unemployment in France (F), the United Kingdom (UK), and West Germany (G), which greatly differ relative to major institutional characteristics of education systems and labor markets. Analyses use national Labor Force Surveys data to assess recent trends. The paper relies on single-stage and sequential logit models to estimate effects of individual educational achievement on unemployment risks and presents evidence of a sharp distinction between the educational stratification observed in G, F, and the UK. Findings indicate the following: (1) labor market entry occurs smoothly and immediately for vocationally qualified leavers in G, with extensive search for first jobs confined to the least qualified; (2) after initial employment in G, education plays a negligible role for risk of unemployment, which is more tied to features of employment positions; (3) in F and the UK, the match between qualifications and jobs is less clear-cut and level of education provides advantages in terms of less search unemployment and lower job instability, yet differentiation is much less pronounced; (4) in F and UK, education effects maintain positive impacts on job stability, suggesting a more gradual match between qualifications and attainment; and (5) results are stable for both time periods, indicating idiosyncratic changes in the educational stratification of youth unemployment. (Contains 58 references.) (YLB)

The private sector is playing an increasingly important role in financing and providing educational services in many countries. (Often the term "private sector" encompasses households' out-of-pocket expenses rather than describing for-profit or not-for-profit sectors.) Private sector development has not arisen primarily through public policy design but has been affected by the design and limitations of public policy. Analyses of case studies of 11 of 70 World Bank education projects in 1995-97 reveal that the World Bank's interest in private sector development is in capacity-oriented privatization to absorb excess demand for education. This is crucial to the bank's general strategy for education lending: promoting access with equity, focusing on efficiency in resource allocation, promoting quality, and supporting capacity building. Absorbing excess demand tends to involve poorer families, usually much poorer than those that take advantage of other forms of privatized education. The bank emphasizes capacity-oriented privatization, especially of teacher training for primary and secondary schools, as well as institutional capacity building for tertiary and vocational education. The underlying principle is that strengthening the private sector's role in noncompulsory education over time will release public resources for the compulsory (primary) level. (Case studies of World Bank projects in the following countries are appended: Dominican Republic, Maldives, Chile, Mauritania, Argentina, Senegal, Burkina Faso, Mali, Indonesia, El Salvador, and Comoros. Contains 74 references.) (KC)

To address the need for special education teachers trained in rural and culturally diverse settings, a field-based special education program was implemented in Kayenta Unified School District (KUSD), Arizona, on the Navajo Nation. KUSD provided teacher housing, classroom space, sites for practicum coursework, and some student teaching placements. KUSD teachers and administrators were hired as instructors and guest speakers for some courses and were involved in the selection of participants. Northern Arizona University contributed tuition waivers and administrative support, and the U.S. Department of Education provided funding. Since 1992, 109 students have been admitted into the program, and 104 completed it; 67 students were Native American, primarily Navajo. The high retention rate was attributed to the field-based nature of the program. The Native American students were predominantly paraeducators for the KUSD and therefore were able to remain employed and maintain their residence in their home communities. KUSD administrators supported their paraeducators by releasing them from duties for professional development and other relevant program activities. Culturally and linguistically relevant curriculum was integrated in all coursework, and mentor teachers helped non-Native participants adjust into the community. Of the 78 program participants who graduated, 44 were Native American and 34 were non-Native, an unusually high rate for both groups. Fifteen former participants completed their master's degree in education. Most Navajo students remained in the area and secured teaching positions with KUSD. (TD)

The current status of education for 1998 is presented as an indicator report, analyzing key data that measure the health of education, monitor important developments, and show trends in major aspects of education. The report first presents three "Issues in Focus": "College Access and Affordability"; "Progress in the Educational Achievement of Black Students"; and "Progress in the Educational Achievement of Hispanic Students." Following the discussion of issues are 60 indicators of the current status of education, 10 of which are new. The indicators are organized into six sections: (1) access, participation, and progress; (2) achievement, attainment, and curriculum; (3) economic and other outcomes of education; (4) organization and management of educational institutions; (5) climate and diversity of educational institutions; and (6) financial and human resources of educational institutions. Within each section, indicators on issues in elementary and secondary education are integrated with those on issues in postsecondary education to reflect the continuity of educational experiences. The report includes the text, tables, and charts for each indicator plus the technical supporting data, supplemental information, and data sources. Appendices comprise over half of the publication and contain supplemental tables and notes, estimates of standard errors for the statistics, data sources, a glossary, an index, and a list of selected publications of the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). (MLF)

Spurred by the inclusion trend, adapted physical education (APE) has emerged as a fundamental education service for children with disabilities in recent years. Although only 15 states have a certification or endorsement in APE, the Adapted Physical Education National Standards examination has produced certified APE educators in 21 additional states. All states offer at least one course in APE at the undergraduate level; a few offer an undergraduate minor; but undergraduate majors are scarce. Many graduate programs offer majors in APE, but some school districts and states view APE as frivolous, especially in rural areas. Perspectives on APE from three states with large rural areas are provided. Florida has a strong emphasis on APE, with state certification, two university master's programs, a federally funded summer inservice program, and several distance education programs. In Texas, certification has a chance of passage after 25 years of lobbying. The state's 15 certified APE educators are in or near metropolitan areas. Rural school districts in north Texas contract with Texas Woman's University. Three other colleges are proposing personnel preparation programs, and two are planning distance learning projects. Alaska has high rates of suicide, student drug use, and high-risk behaviors, and most of its resources go to treatment instead of school health programs. Alaska Natives and disabled people receive especially little attention. APE is considered a related service in many districts. The only personnel preparation program for physical education in Alaska includes APE issues in the regular curriculum but plans to adopt a fifth year MAT model. (TD)

This document is intended for adult education providers in Victoria, Australia, who intend to deliver courses leading to one or more of the following certificates in general education for adults: Certificate I in General Education for Adults (Foundation); Certificate II in General Education for Adults; and Certificate II in General Education for Adults (Further Study). The following topics are discussed in the introduction: general information (copyright information and licensing/franchise arrangements); course information; course names, qualifications, and information about the courses' consistency with the Australian Qualification Framework; course development (consideration of industry and market needs and review for reaccreditation); course outcomes; course structure; assessment strategy; delivery of the course; articulation and credit transfer; and ongoing monitoring and evaluation). Appended to the introduction is a series of tables detailing the alignment of the indicators of competence of the National Reporting System and the learning outcomes of the Certificates in General Education for Adults (CGEA). Each of the remaining four sections, which together constitute more than 90% of the document, consists of an introduction and four modules for one of the following streams of the CGEA: reading and writing; oral communication; numeracy and mathematics; and general curriculum options. Administrative guidelines and appendices detailing annual report formats and examples conclude the document. (MN)

This book on the financing of higher education is divided into two parts; the first analyzes national trends and the second focuses on the financing of higher education in five states--California, Florida, Michigan, Minnesota, and New York. Three major changes in higher education finance are noted: first, a shift in responsibility away from public and governmental sources to students, families, and institutions; second, a shift from grants to loans as the predominant form of student financial assistance; and, third, an increasing reliance on allocated tuition fees as a source of student financial assistance. The eight chapters are: (1) "The Price of Passive Resistance in Financing Higher Education" (Brian M. Roherty); (2) "The Changing Landscape: Higher Education Finance in the 1990s" (David W. Breneman and Joni E. Finney); (3) "Shaping the Future" (Robert Zemsky and Gregory R. Wegner); (4) "California: Financing Higher Education Amid Policy Drift" (Mario C. Martinez and Thad Nodine); (5) "Florida: Protecting Access and Anticipating Growth" (Yolanda Sanchez-Penley, Mario C. Martinez, and Thad Nodine); (6) "Michigan: Fiscal Stability and Constitutional Autonomy" (Mario C. Martinez and Thad Nodine); (7) "Minnesota: Uncertainty in a Time of Constrained Resources" (Joan E. Sundquist); and (8) "New York: Politics and the Funding of Higher Education" (Kathy Reeves Bracco and Yolanda Sanchez-Penley). An appendix lists participants in the National Roundtable on the Public and Private Finance of Higher Education on which the third chapter is based. (Individual chapters contain references.) (DB)

This paper is the result of a request from the European Commission Directorate General XXII for an in-depth study into the vocational education and training system in one of the countries of the New Independent States of Mongolia. This document examines those parts of the Kyrgyz education system with direct links to Vocational Education and Training (VET). The following topics are discussed: Kyrgyzstan's geography, climate, infrastructure, population, culture, religions, economy, labor market, and education system; initial vocational training and the vocational-technical school (VTS) system (the VTS system's organization; tasks and responsibilities of the Directorate for Vocational and Technical Training; the VTS system's financing, staffing, students, curricula, methodological tools, technical equipment, teaching tools, and physical premises; international cooperation in the area of initial vocational training); the system of special secondary education (the system's organization, contents, financing, staffing, and students); retraining of unemployed people in Kyrgyzstan's VTS system; main problems of VET in Kyrgyzstan (international coordination, general upgrading of the state VET system; establishing of relevant links between VET, the Employment Service, and the labor market; financing); and recommendations. Appendixes constituting approximately 40% of this document contain the following: overview of an information system being developed for the Department for Training of Workers and Entrepreneurs; list of existing vocational training centers under the Ministry of Labor; and list of institutions by the Ministry of Education providing technical and/or VET at the secondary level or through special secondary education. (MN)

The President's Council on Sustainable Development, established in 1993, was charged with the following missions: (1) to make recommendations to the President to advance sustainable development, including a national sustainable development action strategy; (2) to expand public awareness of the challenges inherent in moving toward sustainability, including the need to manage the nation's natural resources more carefully; and (3) to institute a Presidential Honors Program recognizing exemplary efforts that advance sustainable development. The Public Linkage, Dialogue, and Education Task Force (PLTF) was one of eight task forces organized by the Council. The mission of the PLTF was to foster dialogue between the public and the Council, ensuring that interested stakeholders were kept informed about the Council's process and encouraging public comment on that process, and to formulate policies on how to integrate sustainable development into the nation's formal and nonformal education systems. This report summarizes the observations, findings, and recommendations made by the PLTF to the Council and the President. The first two chapters lay the groundwork for the PLTF recommendations. Chapter 1 explains the importance of dialogue and education for working towards sustainability. Chapter 2 defines education for sustainability and outlines its objectives. Chapters 3 through 5 present the PLTF policy recommendations: Policy Recommendation 1 is Formal Education Reform (Chapter 3), Policy Recommendation 2 is Nonformal Education and Outreach (Chapter 4), and Policy Recommendation 3 is Strengthened Education for Sustainability (Chapter 5). This report also provides specific examples of diverse sustainability education projects and initiatives currently underway. The appendix contains a resource guide listing those organizations and groups cited in the examples. (PVD)

This paper, one of a series from the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education's (WICHE) project "Higher Education and the Economy of the West," presents a summary of interviews, conducted by the WICHE staff during the fall and winter of 1991-92 with 22 "Frontier Thinkers." Issues discussed included planning for the future, responding to the public, serving a new clientele, effective collaboration, and curriculum reform. In addressing higher education's future in the global marketplace, interviewees noted the importance of understanding the connection between a single system of education and the economy, the need to change the culture of higher education, suggested the use of planning as a catalyst, and discussed the role of the states. Accountability was seen as the best way for higher education to demonstrate responsiveness to its public, but a role was also seen for governing boards in this area. Almost all the respondents referred to the need for a commitment to collaboration; most frequently mentioned were partnerships that link higher education with elementary and secondary education. Other issues mentioned were more effective use of technology as the means to serve a new clientele, revision of undergraduate curricula, a focus on internationalism; and changing the faculty rewards structure to encourage behaviors to revise and modernize the curriculum. Appended is a roster of Frontier Thinkers. (CH)

This paper examines the financing of tertiary education in Brazil, Colombia, Mexico and Peru, comparing the affordability and accessibility of tertiary education with that in high-income countries. To measure affordability, the authors estimate education costs, living costs, grants, and loans. Further, they compute the participation rate, attainment rate, and socio-economic equity index in education and the gender equity index as indicators of accessibility. This is the first study attempting to estimate affordability of tertiary education in Latin America within a global context. The analysis combines information from household surveys, expenditure surveys, and administrative and institutional databases. The findings show that families in Latin America have to pay 60 percent of per-capita income for tertiary education per student per year compared with 19 percent in high-income countries. Living costs are significant, at 29 percent of gross domestic product per capita in Latin America (19 percent in high-income countries). Student assistance through grants and loans plays a marginal role in improving affordability. Moreover, the paper confirms previous findings of low access to tertiary education in the region. One policy implication of the findings is that Latin American governments could take steps to make tertiary education more affordable through student assistance. (Contains 25 tables, 16 figures, and 25 notes.) [This paper is a product of the the World Bank's Education Sector Unit in the Human Development Sector at the Latin America and Caribbean Region.]

Children with disabilities are a minority that are not prioritised in the context of education programmes in India, although they are often found in many marginalised groups that are catered for if non-disabled, for example, girls, scheduled tribe, scheduled caste, and other backward caste children. Inclusive education may be a way of merging these children's needs in order to improve school quality and achieve EFA [Education for All]. However, a dominant special needs conceptualisation of IE [Inclusive Education] in India, combined with negative attitudes towards disability, are currently preventing this approach. After exploring the relevance of disability and inclusive education in the context of EFA, this paper analyses the interpretation and implementation of inclusive education in India. The issues and constraints faced by the stakeholders involved, and the implications these may have, particularly for children with disabilities, lead to the conclusion that a twin-track approach to disability may assist not only in improving education access, but also the reconceptualisation of inclusive education as a school quality issue. In the long-term, it is hoped that this could assist in fulfilling the right to education for all children. The vicious cycle of poverty and disability is succinctly demonstrated in the Department for International Development (DFID) framework in Appendix 1. Information on access and zones of exclusion from primary and secondary schooling is provided in Appendix 2. (Contains 4 footnotes.)