Following an interpretative approach this paper investigates the role of knowledge orders, understood as settings which attribute relevance to specific expertise. The changing patterns of incorporation of expertise in policy formulation as well as public justification are analysed for German and British labour market policy. From a comparative…

This article reviews recent policies for 14-19 learning in Wales and Scotland, and discusses the extent to which these policies have diverged from England following parliamentary devolution in 1999. It distinguishes different types of divergence and suggests that many policy differences have not been about major issues of educational philosophy or…

This article presents a collection of work that grew out of an international symposium sponsored by the History of Education Society UK and held in Hamburg in 2007. The symposium aimed to contribute to understandings of different approaches to researching the extent to which education has contributed historically to social change in respect of…

This paper provides evidence on the sources of differences in inequality in educational scores and their evolution over time in four European countries. Using Programme for International Student Assessment data from the 2000 and the 2006 waves, the paper shows that inequality decreased in Germany and Spain (two "decentralised" schooling…

The belief in the central role of the teacher has a long and comparative history. This article aims to critically analyse the discourse of the centrality of the teacher by both historicising and problematising the ideas and practices associated with this discourse. First, the article describes the discourse as it was taken up during the…

The article compares the educational policy trajectories of four societies in the South-west Indian Ocean: Madagascar, Mauritius, Ile de la Reunion and South Africa. The main purpose is to trace the political pathways and differing educational policy trajectories of former colonies of Britain and France. Five metaphors are invoked in this paper to…

British prime minister Margaret Thatcher's policies for higher education in Britain are compared with the influences of Ronald Reagan and Jerry Brown on California's higher education history. (MSE)

Compares the events leading to the contrasting educational policies that apply to the placement of language minority students in Britain and the United States. The supportive institutional structures of these policies are examined, and the ways these differences reflect contrasting assumptions about language development and definitions of equality…

Employer approaches to work-based training were identified in a survey of 106 private sector companies based in Scotland in 1989. The survey data were analyzed in relation to the following: Britain's economic weakness, the industrial relations and educational reforms developed by the state as a response to the weak economy, existing labor force…

Both Germany and Great Britain have recently experienced increases in unemployment. Both countries have developed substantial labor market programs. Germany offers full-time adult training and retraining courses for employed and unemployed persons. Great Britain has a system of youth training but, until recently, has done little for adults. It has…

This book presents the results of a study of the British work camps that were initiated in the 1920s as a result of the political need to reduce unemployment among ex-servicemen and that evolved in 1929 into a national system of residential centers to "recondition" long-term unemployed men by exposing them to hard physical labor. The…

Compares the role of government policy in encouraging employer investment in training and development in Britain and Australia. Suggests that a comparative approach provides a guide to what to avoid and a way of monitoring performance, rather than specific strategies to adopt. (SK)

Analyzes the increasingly global economy, stressing industrialized nations' interdependence, need to remain competitive, and consequent need for human capital development. Outlines educational reform strategies and compares U.S. and British reforms. Concludes British reforms attempt to increase access to education whereas U.S. reforms seek to…

The paper compares aspects of decision making in health and education in the United States and Great Britain from 1890-1970. The major purpose is to demonstrate variety in the degree of centralization within the two policy areas during this period. Centralization is defined as the degree to which all resources of a given type are controlled by one…