Despite a political climate demanding evidence-informed decision making in education both within individual countries and at the international level, empirically grounded European research in this field is scarce. This paper reports on a European Commission-funded study that sought to identify and analyze different initiatives across Europe aimed…

How do open and distance learning institutions review and renew themselves to ensure their continued fitness for purpose? Here we report on the work of a change team in the UK Open University, a Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning created to examine, innovate and improve student support. The existence of the Centre for five years from…

Voucher programs and their supporters have had a tough last few years. The Florida Supreme Court declared vouchers in that state unconstitutional in 2006. Three years later, the Arizona Supreme Court did the same. In 2007, voters in Utah handed a resounding defeat to a voucher program there. In 2009, the U.S. Congress refused to continue funding…

Reducing health inequalities is a key priority for the Scottish Government. Health authorities are expected to meet quality targets. The involvement of people with learning disabilities in health service review teams has been one of the initiatives used in by National Health Service Quality Improvement Scotland to empower patients and improve…

Knowledge transfer and exchange is the process of increasing the awareness and use of research evidence in policy or practice decision making by nonresearch audiences or stakeholders. One way to accomplish this end is through ongoing interaction between researchers and interested nonresearch audiences, which provides an opportunity for the two…

Throughout the world, the demand for higher education is increasing exponentially, pushed forward by the realities of a global economy and accompanied by pressure to open up opportunities for prospective students from all backgrounds. The importance of a knowledgeable, highly skilled population has become clear and many countries have made great…

This article examines the development and the legacy of a policy making experience that was undertaken in Brazil from 2004 to 2006, under a project labelled "Educating for Freedom". The project sought to provide prison inmates with access to education. It was carried out by a coalition that comprised the Ministry of Education, the…

Early care and education has been designated as the 2000-2001 focus of the Education Commission of the States (ECS), a nonprofit, nationwide interstate organization that helps governors, legislators, state education officials, and others identify, develop, and implement public policies to improve student learning at all levels. Noting that there…

Describes two years of an organizational change program in which a major federal agency utilized race training and organizational development methods to improve the effectiveness of its equal employment opportunity program. (Author/AM)

One way of supporting college instructors who wish to improve student assessment practices is to offer a framework for change that raises the public profile of assessment policy, acknowledges that there is room for improvement, and provides methodological and collegial support to help instructors formulate and address practical problems. A…

The information division at Cornell University (New York) information resources division has determined that its traditional program development method is inadequate to meet the demographic, fiscal, and technological demands of the 1990s. It is changing its systems analysis and design procedures to deliver applications better, faster, and with…

This handbook is a guide to effective action strategies on dealing with overpopulation. Divided into five sections, the book outlines programs, suggests references, and lists resources that are helpful for thinking and for planning action on population issues. Section one focuses on strategies to change the current population policy choices made…

The next 25 years will see dramatic changes in the U.S. Arctic and sub-Arctic. Some major forces generating these changes are national energy demands, Alaska oil and gas development, environmental conservation pressures, and the reallocation of over 200 million acres of U.S. public land among Federal, State, and private interests. To provide…

This policy brief synthesizes the proceedings of a symposium on children and family services, focusing on elements of successful collaboration among human services agencies. In the first section of the brief, the meaning of collaboration in the family services context is clarified, and ways in which the current focus on collaboration differs from…

The process of reengineering the administrative information system at the University of Idaho required careful planning, development of a set of philosophies, and several strategies for ensuring success. The latter included a humorous symbol (a jitter bug) to express concern, improved institutional communications, and a focus on logistical issues.…