This chapter describes the expansion of postsecondary or tertiary education throughout the world, the motivations for the expansion, and the commonalities and differences in the systems.

This article presents a comparative analysis of educational inequality by family background and gender in Taiwan and the Czech Republic, which have both experienced substantial educational expansion in the last half-century under different educational systems. We highlight the specific institutional histories of both countries and examine the role…

Taking the students' perspective, Education Policy Outlook 2018: Putting Student Learning at the Centre analyses the evolution of key education priorities and key education policies in 43 education systems. It compares more recent developments in education policy ecosystems (mainly between 2015 and 2017) with various education policies adopted…

This special issue of Research in Comparative and International Education investigates the spread and development of two-year and community college institutions worldwide. While not all post-secondary education falls within the scope or definition of community colleges, both post-secondary and community college education tend to serve the needs of…

This paper examines the internationalization of postsecondary education in Australia and Canada. The author discusses the contextual similarities and differences between the two countries, the shifting rationale "from aid to trade" behind Australia's internationalization attempts and some of the reasons for Australia's success.…

This study provides insight into equity issues in post-secondary education by exploring and assessing the history, the reality and the potential developments in higher education for minority students in China, in comparison to post-secondary education for aboriginal students in Canada. It highlights access to post-secondary education by these…

Education is an area that is highly devolved in the UK, and the fact that all four constituent countries have pursued very different policies in the recent past provides a good testing ground to undertake a comparative review of the merits or otherwise of the education reforms that have taken place. There is, of course, an important policy context…

This paper describes how the global talent pool is changing. The expansion of higher education in rapidly-developing G20 nations has reduced the share of tertiary graduates from Europe, Japan and the United States in the global talent pool. If current trends continue, China and India will account for 40% of all young people with a tertiary…

This paper views seeking the optimal balance between state strengths and the scope of state functions for "good governance" as the formation of a homogenization-heterogenization matrix of policy initiatives in different social settings. Homogenization refers to a global tendency for institutional changes and governance framework to…

The educational system of Sri Lanka is described in this 15 section document. Sections 1 and 2 provide a general overview of the country and a history of its educational system. Section 3, "Organization and Administration of the Education System," describes the programs and responsibilities of the central and regional administration. The…

This report, part of a series on the state of recurrent education in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) member countries, focuses on recurrent education in West Germany. The West German thrust for continuing adult education has come from business, industry, and the 1969 Labor Promotion Act which publicly funds…

In an attempt to familiarize interested persons with the German university system, the German system of higher education is described including recent changes. Covered are: (1) degrees granted; (2) the organization of the universities; and (3) the social role of the professions. The German universities, in the present changing situation, are…

Worldwide expansion of enrollment in postcompulsory education has contributed to an ambiguous "post-adolescence" life stage as young adults transition into adult citizenship. Possible pathways at the end of compulsory schooling have diversified, particularly in developed countries under the influence of vocationalism. Young adults need…

This report presents a collection of annotated bibliographic and other information relating specifically to the areas of post-secondary and short-cycle education outside the United States. The bibliography is divided into five sections. Section I is an annotated bibliography of general information. Section II is an annotated bibliography of…

This report, part of a series on the state of recurrent education in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) member countries, focuses on recurrent education in Norway. The report describes and reviews the considerable effort undertaken in Norway to design a more satisfactory relationship between education and society and…