In March 2009, the RAND Frederick S. Pardee Center for Longer Range Global Policy and the Future Human Condition hosted a workshop called "Shaping Tomorrow Today: Near-Term Steps Towards Long-Term Goals." The workshop gave policymakers and analysts an opportunity to explore new methods and tools that can help improve long-term decisionmaking. The…

Examines the factors affecting the diffusion of educational assessment studies done in four countries (Indonesia, Malaysia, Phillipines, Thailand). The author concludes that educational research designs in developing countries must include mechanisms for information diffusion to the public and policy-makers to insure both short and long-term…

Provides a background for discussion of the lack of information policies in underdeveloped nations. The paper primarily refers to the conditions and problems of less developed countries, although it is observed that all countries are to a large extent underdeveloped in their information policies. (25 references) (MAB)

This book surveys current commitment to computers in education in many countries, with emphasis on use in Australia. For discussion of computer-related programs, countries other than Australia are categorized as (1) under-developed and uncertain--China, Thailand, and Yugoslavia; (2) developed but reluctant--Japan, Germany, and Sweden; and (3)…

Indicates how various degrees of malnutrition affect children's development. Reviews research conducted in several developing countries and the United States, and describes the nutritional status of children in the United States. Implications for nutrition programs, research and policy formation are pointed out. (Author/RH)

Responding to concerns expressed frequently by educators and parents that the mass media is having a negative effect on children's minds, the article reviews various existing and potential forms of media management. (DB)

Using an economic framework, studies on educational costs and related policymaking issues in the area of formal public education in developing countries are reviewed. Key issues include the nature of educational costs, determinants of educational costs, how cost analysis can improve educational policymaking, and informational needs for cost…

Third World nations' calls for a new international information order are discussed and the responses of Western governments and in particular of the United States government to those calls are analyzed in this paper. The paper notes the Third World countries' preferences for a more restrictive flow of information across borders, their limited…

The authors contend that problems associated with rapid population growth in developing countries must be tackled through comprehensive planning. They discuss impacts of demography on labor supply and demand and migration. Then they propose a practical framework for population and human resource development planning and policy formation. (SK)

Some of the trends and issues in worldwide adult literacy include the existence of the following: (1) an increasing percentage of literate people, perhaps resulting from more children's education rather than literacy initiatives for adults; (2) fuzzy definitions of literacy and inaccurate self-reported data; (3) a change in ideology, moving from…

The paper analyzes Section 8 of Nigeria's National Policy on Education, the section which aims to provide equal educational opportunities for all gifted and handicapped individuals. The paper discusses cultural, socioeconomic, and political factors that impinge upon implementation of Section 8 and the need for continuous policy evaluation in…

This paper outlines the rationale for, and functions of, national library policies within African countries; discusses some of the issues raised concerning national library policies at the 1970 meeting at Kampala of the Experts on the National Planning of Documentation and Library Services in Africa and at other similar conferences; reviews the…

Examines the main thrust of educational policymaking in Bangladesh during 1971-81 and compares policy goals with achievements. Finds there have been failures, but suggests underlying explanations for the persistent gap between policy goals and implementation come from the wider socio-political context in which educational policy is formulated and…

Looks at the socioeconomic rationale for higher-education provision in developing countries. Reviews costs and benefits associated with investment in higher education as a whole (especially in different postsecondary subjects) with particular attention paid to returns to scale from university expansion. Makes distinction between incidence and…

In the 1950s and 1960s, donors of international aid attempted to impose a Western, technological form of schooling on the developing nations. In the 1970s, however, rediscovery of a pluralistic concept of intelligence has led donors toward a reappraisal and emphasis on more culture-specific educational interventions. (SJL)