In the light of the global trends towards international assessment, inter-country comparison and policy convergence, this article critically discusses the contextual factors that influence educational success in Shanghai and Singapore. Focussing on the structural and cultural frames, this article maintains that the educational achievement in…

This paper argues that political conflict over educational policy at the local level is cultural in its origins and represents a deep division in U.S. society about the values that should be taught in the public schools. The research reported in the paper focused on a single case study of a recall election in the Orange Unified School District…