Background: It is widely recognised internationally that participation in higher education is likely to lead to increased opportunities and resources. However, only a minority of learners from Roma backgrounds continue into post-compulsory education. As important research into inclusion continues, more attention must be paid to the identification…

State postsecondary education governance systems play an important role in the policy and decisionmaking processes that affect a state's ability to pursue its education and workforce goals. In general, postsecondary education governance relates to the responsibilities and authority of entities and leadership positions charged with developing,…

A new vision for institutional research is urgently needed if colleges and universities are to achieve their institutional missions, goals, and purposes. The authors advocate for a move away from the traditional service model of institutional research to an institutional research function via a federated network model or matrix network model. When…

The expansion and diversification of postsecondary education in the United States has led to greater options for students and prospective students for pursuing a college degree. With the roll out and scale up of sophisticated education technology systems, an important trend in higher education today is distance education. Despite the growing…

We propose two contrasting types of student decision-making based on social and cognitive psychology models of separate mental processes for problem solving. Informal decision-making uses intuitive reasoning and is subject to cognitive biases, whereas formal decision-making uses effortful, logical reasoning. We explored indicators of students'…

Communities relay expectations of behavior that influence residents' decision making processes. The study's purpose was to define and identify social, cultural, and human capital variables relevant to understanding community expectations of postsecondary attainment. The study sought an operational model of community expectancy that would allow…

The debate about high school reform is increasingly focused on the role of career-technical education (CTE) in helping to prepare "all" students for success in "both" postsecondary education and the workforce. The stand-alone vocational courses into which high school students with lower academic achievement were often channeled…

In March, 2009, President Obama proposed the American Graduation Initiative, which established the goal that by 2020 the United States will regain its position as the nation with the highest percentage of its population holding post-secondary degrees and credentials. The College Completion Toolkit provides information that governors and other…

Part of a collection of papers commissioned by Foundations, a project designed to identify the career development needs of students entering the National Technical Institute for the Deaf, this paper examines research on problem solving and decision making. The section on problem solving reviews various models and concepts associated with problem…

This handbook attempts to improve policy development and decision making relative to financing postsecondary education. Sections cover: (1) descriptions and comparisons of selected reports relative to recommendations for postsecondary financing; (2) position statements and/or comments on postsecondary financing from certain cooperative sponsoring…

Any state-level postsecondary education agency could perform its job more effectively through discriminate use of the available technology of informational and analytic planning approaches. The paper attempts to increase an awareness of how data, analytic techniques, and their product information should be used to assist state-level academic…

Describes and discusses an instructional systems media selection model based on training effectiveness and cost effectiveness prediction techniques that were developed to support the U.S. Navy's training programs. Highlights include instructional delivery systems (IDS); decision making; trainee characteristics; training requirements analysis; an…

Different approaches to program planning in the field of university continuing education are presented, including the purchase model, the doctor-patient model, and the process consultation model. The author adds another approach, the client approach, which represents the traditional relationship between the helper and the helped. (CT)

This publication consists of instructional materials and exercises intended for use in a workshop for school administrators on the chartering process. Chartering is a management tool that aids participative administrative decision making and communication. In particular, chartering helps two individuals or groups, who share different levels of the…

The first year of a project to develop, evaluate, and disseminate a system for occupational program planning in community colleges is discussed. The focus of the first year was the development of the system. This report of the first phase is divided into three parts. In part 1, materials and concepts important to the development of the system are…