Education & Pedagogy

Organization and recent trends in education in Japan are discussed. Part one of the report describes administration, structure, and curriculum. The central education authority is the Ministry of Education, Science and Culture. Matters of policy and finances are administered by boards of education on prefectural and municipal levels. Elementary and lower secondary school is compulsory starting when a child is six; upper secondary education can be obtained through full-time, part-time, or correspondance study. Tables outline required courses for each of the three levels. Interestingly, all female students must take four credits of general homemaking. New developments in education during 1974-76 are reviewed in part two of the report. Curriculum change is underway, involving updating of textbooks in order to incorporate humanitarian and civic responsibility in elementary and secondary courses. Trends in higher education include expansion of enrollment capacities of existing colleges; establishment of financial assistance to private schools; and creation of special training schools in areas such as public health, agriculture, and business. (AV)

An historical and sociological explanation for the misclassification of black and Mexican-American school children in special education classes for mentally retarded minors is presented in this dissertation. The California Education Code which extends back to the inception of California public education, reveals the legislative basis for the exemption policies and practices against exceptional children and nonwhite racial minorities specifically. The repeal of the separation of races clause in the education code, the basis for the exemption of specific racial groups, is found to intersect with the introduction of special education classes for mentally exceptional school children in 1947. Special education classes consequently evolved as a form of extra-legal exemption from normal school status for particular types of culturally different yet mentally able minority children. Historical data presented in the California Education Code are supported by a case study of an urban school district, Oakland, California. The organizational dependence of special education upon regular education, and the strong degree of local school autonomy are examined as sociological conditions for the growth of special education itself and the resulting minority classification. (Author/AM)

In this report, the plan for fulfilling the commitment of the Chicago Board of Education to increase the quality of educational opportunities for all students in desegregated settings is described. The plan, which is designed to be realized by the 1982-83 school year, is divided into three parts: (1) district programs, educational initiatives to be undertaken by each district to fulfill the need for basic skills education; (2) system programs, educational initiatives that will enroll students from all parts of the city, preschool through high school, in alternative educational programs that improve basic skills and develop special talents; (3) administrative actions, initiatives that give students the opportunity to enroll in summer school. The purpose, objectives, eligibility, location, schedule, implementation, and cost of activities to be implemented under each program are explained. Numerous charts illustrate the projections. Areas stressed in the plan are bilingual education, basic skills, advanced placement, career development, technical education, language and creative arts, and preschool education. (WI)

Population education is at different stages of development in the Asian countries, but almost all of the countries show an interest in developing population education programs. This manual for designing and implementing population education programs consists of six chapters. Chapter one highlights issues and problems arising in connection with curriculum development in population education and with teacher education programs for elementary and secondary school teachers. The objectives, selection of curriculum content, and mode of inclusion are discussed. Chapter two provides the general pedagogical background for organizing and managing training programs. In chapter three a general procedure for developing a training program is discussed, and case studies are offered of inservice teacher training programs in Asia. Chapter four describes different strategies for introducing population education in preservice teacher education programs. Variations in target groups, institutions, duration, objectives, and content are taken into consideration. In chapter five, the various target groups needing orientation or training through inservice programs are identified and their training needs outlined. The final chapter discusses training methods before, during, and after training, and suggests follow-up activities. (JD)

This publication contains the proceedings of the 1980 annual meeting of the Ohio Valley Philosophy of Education Society (OVPES) held at the University of Kentucky. There are four parts to the proceedings. The first part presents the presidential address "Strategic Thinking, Reason, and Education: A Critique of Re-Industrialization" and a response to it. The papers delivered at the general sessions are included in Part II. They are: "Aspects of the Reproduction Thesis" and "Theoretical Approaches to Education and Social Inequality." Part III, which comprises the bulk of the proceedings, contains the 16 papers delivered at the concurrent sessions. Topics discussed include: Dewey's aesthetics; the aesthetic-moral connection; evaluating intrinsic values; education and the imagination; marriage and divorce; a philosophical critique of special education; the role of coercion in teaching; Cremin's concept of education; the hidden curriculum; and the teaching of ethics. Part IV contains the minutes and treasurer's report for 1980, a membership list; and OVPES style guidelines. (Author/RM)

This monograph presents a digest and brief analysis of a 700-page congressional committee print entitled "Needs of Elementary and Secondary Education in the 1980's", issued in January, 1980, by the House Committee on Education and Labor. The major ideas of the 54 articles in the committee print are condensed, with additional attention given to the implications for trends in teacher education. The articles are grouped under three headings: the setting for educational decisions in the 1980s; challenges facing the education professions in the 1980s; and recommendations for action at the federal level. The format is a discussion and comparison of major educational themes, with extensive quotes from the articles. Among the challenges cited by the authors are the status of the curriculum, participation in decision making, special education areas, evaluation and research, and professional involvement. The implications for pedagogical education in the 1980s are brought together and analyzed in the last section. The ERIC Resources in Education (RIE) abstracts of the articles are appended. (FG)

The purpose of this study was to provide recommendations to the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Vocational and Adult Education for improving education in urban areas. Major project activities included a review of the literature, convening of a task force, the completion of site reports, a legislative review, and an examination of selected exemplary programs. Ten cities, each over one-half million population, were selected for the site report sample. Business, education, and community persons representing the sample cities were contacted by telephone and were asked for their views about problem/needs in vocational and adult education. The information gathered suggested problems and needs in several important policy areas. Among them were linkages and training; funding and legislative priorities; employment concerns; and vocational and adult education facilities, enrollment, services, and programming. In addition, it was found that desegregation and busing often draw the greatest attention of politicians, educators, and citizens, and the provision of educational training services becomes a secondary matter. (Site descriptions are appended.) (LRA)

This article focuses on questions and attitudes towards higher education in the British Social Attitudes (BSA) survey series. First, we analyse the changing BSA questions (1983-2010) in the context of key policy reports. Our results show that changes in the framing of higher education questions correspond with changes in the macro-discourse of higher education policies. Second, we focus on the 2010 BSA survey responses to investigate how attitudes towards higher education are related to respondents' characteristics. Respondents' socio-economic position predicts attitudes towards higher education. Graduates and professionals are most likely to support a reduction in higher education opportunities, but those who have so far benefitted least from higher education are supportive of expansion. One interpretation -- with potential implications for social mobility -- is that those who have already benefited from higher education are most inclined to pull the ladder up behind them.

Higher education is a key factor in a nation's effort to develop a highly skilled workforce for competing in the global economy. In this paper, current trends in accessibility, equity, participation and financing of higher education in Kenya are examined. The paper explores the challenges which need to be confronted and discusses the way forward for reforming higher education policies in Kenya to widen access and advance equity by suggesting a number of strategies. It highlights the need for programmes and policies focusing on improving access to quality secondary education experiences; increasing aspirations and application to higher education; and the improvement of policies on financial support to disadvantaged students through the already existing Higher Education Loans Board. It concludes with a number of recommendations including a new revenue allocation particularly to the rising numbers of higher education aspirants from low income, rural, ethnic minorities and women.

K-12 online physical education (OLPE) is as an educational opportunity in at least 30 states in the US (NASPE, 2006; 2010; 2012). The purpose of this study was to examine physical education teacher educators' perceptions toward and understanding of K-12 OLPE. Bandura's Social Cognitive Theory (1986) served as the theoretical framework for this study. Data were collected utilizing semi-structured open-ended interviews. Participants (N = 25) were current physical education teacher education (PETE) faculty members at universities granting bachelor's degrees in physical education certification. Participants believed that NASPE (2004) National Physical Education Standards could be met online, except for Standard 1, which relates to motor skill competency. Participants were almost unanimous in their beliefs that OLPE should not be designed for elementary-aged children, but is viable at the high school level. This study provided initial insight into PETE faculty members' knowledge about and perceptions of K-12 OLPE, however additional research is warranted.

Policies play a critical role in the implementation of open, distance education and opening up higher education. To encourage participation of different stakeholders in related practices, policies may need to embody values and benefits for those stakeholders. It is in this perspective that this study was conducted to investigate the policy environment for opening up public higher education in Rwanda. An interview was conducted with a leader/policy maker at the University of Rwanda and three policy documents were analyzed. Results indicated that existing policies were unlikely to inform practices that contribute to opening up higher education. Related policy documents were decontextualized in some aspects. Different ways in which these policies may be contextualized to inform opening up higher education were recommended. The findings and recommendations are particularly important to policy makers and institutional leaders who are interested in opening up higher education in Rwanda and other settings.

As a result of scientific and technological developments in today's world, global education has started to take its place in the educational systems throughout the world and become more significant in recent years. Since global education has multiple effects on societies, it is also crucial in helping students to become informed, active, and global citizens. This study employs document analysis, a qualitative research method, in order to examine how the themes regarding global education are shaped in the Citizenship and Democracy Education textbook and curriculum designed for the eighth grade students. Findings of the study showed that some themes, regarding global education, are embedded into the curriculum only to provide knowledge without any emphasis on necessary skills and values, and other sub-themes completely ignored along with the global dimension of citizenship education.

"Vocational education" and "community education" have evolved into largely separate fields. Bridges are reconstructed by adopting a view of vocation that recognizes the meaning people find in their work and the public value of the work they do. While these considerations underpin recent initiatives to revive a civic spirit among the "professions," it is suggested that they apply across a much wider spectrum of occupations. Arendt's theory of "action" serves as a lens from which to inquire into the nature of vocational practice when enacted as public and democratic deliberation with members of the community on important issues affecting their lives. The author concludes that, appropriately understood, vocational practice includes the facilitation of Arendtian "action," thereby constituting a form of community education. The author furthermore suggests that modelling types of public pedagogy characteristic of community education would enrich vocational education and help foster practitioners' capacity to act as civic agents.

The traditional German model of skill formation was based on the rather strict segmentation between vocational training and higher education. However, during recent years this differentiation has slowly dissolved, partly by politically motivated developments to increase the permeability between both sectors and partly as a result of latent changes in the participation in higher education leading to a higher degree of "academization". After a short description and analysis of recent trends in higher education and vocational training, especially the expansion of higher education, the article focuses on two processes to achieve more permeability and cooperation between both parts of the German qualification system: (1) the introduction and extending of dual study programmes and (2) the opening of access to higher education for vocational qualified people without the usual school credentials (e.g. the "Abitur"). The article concludes with two scenarios regarding trends in the participation in higher education.

Using an equity perspective, this article compares the education systems of the United States and the Netherlands. Existing data examining student demographics, the organizational structures, curricula, funding, and student outcomes are examined. The Netherlands appears to be getting a "bigger bang for their buck." We make the case that since the 10th Amendment to the Constitution makes U.S. education a state function, 50 states can have significant variance in their instructional standards, funding, and outcomes. At the secondary level, these differences may partially explain U.S. students' lagging achievement as measured by international tests. Fundamental questions about the U.S. education system are posed for a broader discussion. [This paper was presented at the National Education Finance Academy Conference (St. Louis, MO, March 26, 2015)]