Competency-based training and training packages are mandatory for Australian vocational education and training (VET). VET qualifications are designed to provide learners with skills, knowledge, and attributes required for Australian workplaces. Yet, toward the end of December 2011, there were 171,237 international student enrolments in the…

This paper reviews discourses on multicultural education and the concept of intercultural competencies in the European and Nordic country of Finland. We focus on their present uses and perceptions by decision-makers, researchers, and also student teachers. Some prognosis for the future is made based on a short case study from art teacher education…

Robotic competitions continue to gain popularity in the educational community as a way to engage students in hands-on learning that can raise a student's interest in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. In 1992, For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology (FIRST) held its first competition and presented a style of…

Current challenges of globalization in a democratic post-industrial information society make the competency-based approach a standard in the creation of the global educational environment. This study describes the special aspects of the integration of the competency-based approach into the educational theory and practice of post-Soviet countries,…

Many states are experimenting with mechanisms for making college more affordable while maintaining quality and access. This report examines promising or innovative state programs to improve college affordability and credential attainment. Many of these approaches show innovative thinking and bear watching to see if they result in meaningful…

The basic concept of personalized learning (PL) -- instruction that is focused on meeting students' individual learning needs while incorporating their interests and preferences -- has been a longstanding practice in U.S. K-12 education. Options for personalization have increased as personal computing devices have become increasingly affordable…

The article proposes a self-study system which suggests web links to learners. The suggestions depend upon the learner's chosen competences selected from a competence structure for a particular knowledge domain. Three experiments were conducted, where the first compared the perceived usefulness and value of the links generated by different…

At present, India's education system turns out millions of young people who are ready to think, but not enough people with entrepreneurial or employment skills. As India faces increasing limits on its resources, both economic and natural, the competency and capability of human resources play a pivotal role in developing and sustaining the economy.…

Teaching is the number one in-school factor affecting student outcomes. And a central part of the strategy for improving teaching involves better teacher preparation. There is a great need for more relevant and innovative teacher preparation programs, and Education Evolving believes creating a new program--potentially within a non-conventional…

Procurement in the corporate world is increasingly complex, multi-faceted and interdisciplinary. This paper explores existing knowledge specifications relating to procurement management competencies and proposes a new procurement management competency framework (PMCF) and a competency-based postgraduate programme for postgraduate students in…

As the business world becomes more complex, the role of professional higher education in the development of "reflective practitioners" becomes more cogent. In this article, the authors argue for the Bases of Competence model, which articulates base competencies required of today's higher education professional graduates, as a tool in…

With chapter contributions from seminal scholars in the field of comparative and international education (CIE), this book examines the ways in which comparative education is being taught, or advocated for, in teacher education within higher education institutions worldwide. A particular concern raised by the authors--in locations as diverse as…

In its 2007 curriculum, New Zealand introduced Key Competencies (KCs) that are intended to ensure students' future participation in the economy, communities, and also to introduce metacognitive and socio-emotional dimensions to learning. The KCs also have important implications for contributing to students' wellbeing and resilience. However, they…

An important trend in Dutch Vocational Education and Training (VET) to ensure the curriculum continuity of sequential educational programmes is the design of continuing pathways encompassing more than one qualification level. These continuing pathways are characterised by different design formats and differences in learning environment…

Increasingly, school districts, schools, and their partners are incorporating technology into strategies that help engage young people who have fallen off track to on-time graduation get back on track and move into effective educational pathways. This is especially true in light of the continuing pressure to raise high school graduation rates and…