It is proposed that, although Finland has tightened the national role in the governance of higher education institutions in recent decades, a shift toward competition has meant a shift toward control by market forces. The effect of this policy on the roles and stratification of institutions is examined. (Author/MSE)

Describes the Best Village Competition of Trinidad-Tobago, instituted in 1963. Through competitions, concerts, and exhibitions, it has succeeded in involving nearly every resident in programs that fortify local culture, artistic expression, athletic achievement, and public health while promoting national unity. (DM)

Special science and mathematics programs available to students at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel are described. The Summer Science Institute, mentor programs, screening procedures, science clubs, an outdoor interactive science museum, science fairs, mathematics olympia, a "mathematics by mail" program, and the International…

Presents a marketing plan for noncredit education and training at community colleges. Includes a situation analysis focusing on available markets for skills-specific or job-specific noncredit training, products (i.e., training and trainees) and consumers (i.e., individuals and organizations), and on maintaining a competitive edge over training…

Tests whether previous experimental findings on the use of power hold for actual organizational interactions among employees in three Canadian organizations. Uses the critical incident method. Finds cooperative goals are associated with the exchange of resources, strengthened work relationships, and productivity. (NL)

To meet the national demand for access to higher education, Australia's system must become more market centered and customer driven. Smaller, regional universities have advantages that allow them to be more competitive than others. By identifying and building on their strengths, they can have an important role. (MSE)

Increasingly, states are establishing policies designed to decrease the time public-college students take to attain their undergraduate degrees, stimulated by private college claims of four-year degrees that actually take only four years. State financial aid for summer school attendance is a major part of the strategy. The approach appears to be…

While colleges and universities debate the value of teams, businesses use teams as a matter of survival. Motivated by competition and high cost, business leaders have created a new culture based on shared risk and reward. Decision making is no longer the responsibility of the few at the top, but is shared within and between most segments of an…

Argues that bookstores are not superior and do not pose a threat to libraries. Discusses what libraries can learn from bookstores; where bookstores fall short; low wages of bookstore clerks; misshelving problems in bookstores due to the classification system; how the library classification system can be improved; and libraries' strengths. (AEF)

Education Department officials closely followed the wishes of Congress when issuing new rules for a highly regarded Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education grant competition. Last year, after Congress directed agency officials to give grants in 18 specified "subject areas," and also suggested recipients, it was criticized for…

Describes the New Mexico High School Supercomputing Challenge, a year-long project sponsored by New Mexico Technet, Los Alamos National Laboratory, and other statewide institutions that engages high school students, teachers, and professionals in complex scientific problem-solving that include written reports, mathematical models, and…

Discusses the strategic importance of institutional research in open universities in order to stay competitive with other more traditional universities. Suggests that a wide range of staff should be encouraged to conduct research based on reflective practice and emphasizes the need to conform to appropriate methodological and ethical standards.…

Considers the changing academic education landscape in light of the technology-driven Internet. Topics include alternative educational opportunities, including part-time and distance learning; additional education needed by employed workers; new competitors, including corporate universities; using technology to integrate education, work, and…

Faced with pupil flight to more prestigious public and private schools, French secondary schools create "good classes," reinforce security and discipline, and try to strengthen links to feeder schools. Parents remain skeptical about relevant criteria for judging school quality; measures are needed to equalize their choosing ability.…

Examines whether private school vouchers would increase educational quality in public and private schools. Even in models featuring X-inefficient (budget-maximizing) administrators, vouchers' effects on quality are ambiguous. Vouchers may reduce the enrollment response to changes in public-school quality by placing different households on the…