The article examines the standardization of primary education as one of the development trends of the British school at the present moment in the context of improving its efficiency and quality. It analyses the positive results of the standard-based reforms (modernization of primary education content, improvement of younger students' outcomes,…

The office and functions of the university visitor in Britain have deep-seated origins in the common law. The visitorial jurisdiction is exclusive in domestic and internal matters. Despite cases brought by disgruntled members of universities, the office of the university visitor was not abolished, and its powers were not eliminated. Analyzes these…

Concern that British further-education colleges are market driven led to recommendations for regional planning and collaboration. Interviews with five college principals and analysis of colleges' strategic plans found that colleges are unlikely to cooperate unless a sufficient degree of autonomy for individual institutions is provided. (SK)

This paper argues that, using Eric Ashby's writing on academic freedom and autonomy and Burton Clark's essay on different modes of coordination, the British government has unnecessarily terminated the University Grants Committee and, in its overreliance on market forces, is threatening the future academic integrity of British universities.…

Summarizes the work of the Parliamentary committee that both investigated broadcasting in Great Britain and concluded that the present system ensures freedom for broadcasters and programing variety for the public. (JMF)

Describes the autonomous workings of the British Broadcasting Corporation and the Independent Broadcasting Authority, where editorializing is prohibited, advertising is limited, and the aim of programing is to provide the public with real choices at all hours, and to maintain high standards of planning, writing, production, and presentation. (JMF)

Britain's higher education system illustrates how increased governmental influence can change social systems and produce unintended consequences. A model of change used to analyze this situation also suggests a form of accountability that can reduce unintended consequences, based on sharing of both power and responsibility by government and…

During the first half of the 1990s, the British government turned inspection into an ambitious instrument of educational policy-making. What happens when schools are inspected is the subject of this book. Based on a 3-year study, it answers such questions as "What happens when the inspectors announce that they intend to call?,""How…

The growth of the Council for National Academic Awards' validating process as a means of monitoring and approving standards of courses in British polytechnics and colleges has been a significant educational development in recent decades. The nature of the agency-institution relationship, and its changes over time, are examined. (MSE)

A survey of attitudes toward Britain's University Grants Committee as intermediary between government and universities shows that it secures the maximum self-government for the institutions at any given time. Economic and political pressures have dampened enthusiasm for the agency, but do not warrant abandoning it. (MSE)

Describes the British government's Technical and Vocational Education Initiative, explaining how it has been managed in schools and local education authorities, outlining management mechanisms, comparing rationale and rhetoric with the reality of management, and interpreting empirical evidence to evaluate its effectiveness in managing curriculum…

The system of external course evaluation in the nonuniversity sector of British higher education, currently under review as institutions seek greater autonomy and the state seeks better quality and control, is described. Implications of proposed system changes' implications for interinstitutional relationships and the balance of power are…

An educational planning exercise that increased centralization in Britain's public sector colleges in 1984-85 is described, and the issues it has raised about the relationship of government and institutions and the nature of educational policymaking are discussed. The responses of eight institutions to the changes are examined. (MSE)

Observers in various European, South American, and Asian countries outline current general trends, issues, and prospects in higher education in those countries. (MSE)

The interrelationship between science teaching and research in British universities is examined and such proposals as eliminating research at some universities or focusing on only those research areas which promise financial returns are criticized. Ways in which science research run by government or industry can threaten university autonomy are…