The article is a critical sociological analysis of current transnational practices on creating comparable measurements of dropout and completion in higher education and the consequences for the conditions of scientific knowledge production on the topic. The analysis revolves around questions of epistemological, methodological and symbolic types…

In this paper, I argue for more and better learning metrics in higher education, eventually through an international, comparative assessment of students' learning outcomes. Better learning measures may help to improve transparency in the system by addressing the information asymmetry problem. If not addressed adequately, the lack of transparency…

A discussion of the use of performance indicators for evaluation and funding of higher education institutions by governments offers 10 lessons for governments and funding agencies, drawn from a study of the role played by performance indicators in the systems of Denmark, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Norway, and Sweden. (MSE)

Data on educational opportunity for U.S.A., Seden, Spain and Germany are used to portray diverse status profiles of students. Then changes in rates of attendance for three status categories in Sweden from 1950 to 1970 are measured in three ways. Results show a strong tendency toward social "democratization" in Sweden. (Editor/JT)