Doctoral education as a policy field is an important link between educational, research and innovation policies. It is gaining importance in European and national policy discussions. Doctoral education policies are increasingly formulated at the supranational level, even though the European Commission does not possess formal competence in terms of…

There is much to welcome in Doug Richard's independent report on the future of apprenticeships. The Richard review offers proposals for redefining and improving the quality of apprenticeships, and for focusing them more on the needs of employers. But will the proposals work, if adopted, and what will be the impact on adults? For this article, the…

Nearly thirty years after the Cold War era commission's report titled "A Nation at Risk: The Imperative for Educational Reform," educators and historians must evaluate its relevance and its contribution to the shifting educational paradigm in the United States.

Good teaching matters. There is persuasive evidence that students benefit from high quality instruction and that these benefits are cumulative for students who have good teachers for several years. Teacher effectiveness matters so much that low-income students lucky enough to have three very good teachers in a row in elementary school earn test…

The Center for Law and Education (CLE), a national advocacy organization with offices in Boston and Washington, D.C., strives to assist low-income students, parents, and advocates improve their public schools and work with their communities to fulfill every student's right to a high-quality education. In Massachusetts, CLE provides legal support…

Historically the field of early care and education has focused on one type of standardsprogram standards to define requirements for important features of the services children receive. Recently another type of standards has come to the forefront of early care and education policy and practiceearly learning standards that define expectations for…

A background for discussion of curriculum reform and some concrete examples of what is occurring in parts of the United States are presented. The current debate over the undergraduate curriculum is reviewed, summarizing the criticisms and key recommendations of the most influential recent reports. State and institutional responses to these reports…

Quality education has always been a priority for UNESCO and its Member States--a priority that was reaffirmed at the Dakar World Education Forum in 2000. In this regard, the Director-General invited Ministers of Education to participate in a Ministerial Round-Table Meeting on Quality Education on 3 and 4 October 2003, during the thirty-second…

This article relates the evolution of field-related accreditation standards since the 1982 Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) Curriculum Policy Statement to the changes that have occurred in agencies, students, and educational institutions. It demonstrates how CSWE modifications helped solve some problems while creating new ones. The authors…

This document details the position of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) regarding universal access to early childhood education as represented in a resolution of the AFT convention in 2003. The document points out that the lack of access to high-quality preschool programs is a major problem affecting nearly every working family, and as the…

Online teaching technologies still have three main disadvantages: cost, complexity, and negative impacts on productivity. In many areas of Canada, cost is still a major factor affecting ownership and use of computers and other new technologies. Until online teaching technologies become as simple to use as telephones and new cars, they will…

In June 1991 the Iowa State Board of Education established a task force to conduct a comprehensive review of vocational-technical education in the state. The 10-member task force was asked to develop a vision for vocational-technical education in Iowa, including the roles and relationships between secondary and postsecondary education…

The objectives, curriculum, and role of higher education and key policy and practice issues were reassessed against the backdrop of recent and predicted demographic, economic, and political changes and trends in Great Britain. Special consideration was given to the fact that "mature" learners now constitute the majority of entrants into…

A Texas State Job Training Coordinating Council task force developed a series of recommendations regarding improving Texas' current employment and training system to prepare the state's residents for the "smart jobs of the future." A formal literature review was conducted, and regional forums were held and attended by a wide range of…

This white paper outlines a proposed framework for post-16 learning in England. Chapter 1 discusses the principles underpinning the new policy, which are as follows: investing in learning to benefit everyone; lifting barriers to learning; putting people first; sharing responsibility with employers, employees, and the community; achieving world…