The international implementation plan for the Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (DESD) identifies four elements for the achievement of sustainable development through education: (1) recognising the challenge; (2) collective responsibility and constructive society; (3) acting with determination; and (4) the indivisibility of human…

Economic rationalism is a major driver of the education system in many parts of the world. In the scramble to facilitate economic rationalism, the education needs required at national level to keep nations, like Australia, competitive into the twenty-first century have not been fully considered. Such countries have ignored the needs of education…

One of the most striking features of the modern world is its changing demographic profile. In almost any policy arena, the issue of demographic change (or ageing) sits alongside globalisation, climate change and the knowledge revolution as areas which are transforming societies, including the ways in which we organise and go about our work…

The millennium development goals have created new challenges for development evaluation. The main unit of account has shifted to the country level. Evaluation ownership must move from donor agencies to developing countries. The recognition that rich countries have development obligations is opening up evaluation frontiers beyond aid. A…

Both Kerala and Finland have made notable achievements in the realm of literacy: Kerala has one of the highest rates in the developing world and Finland ranks first in literacy among developed countries. Both also share a cultural history of granting women a high status in their respective societies. Using Kerala and Finland as examples, this…

Suicide by self-poisoning is a prevalent cause of death worldwide. A substantial proportion of individuals who poison themselves come into contact with medical services before they die. Our focus in the current study was the medical management of drug self-poisoning in industrialized countries and its possible contribution to suicide prevention.…

There is a paucity of research on motivation and education in developing countries. Although psychological constructs relating to academic engagement and achievement have been identified and researched in a number of cross-cultural settings this body of research has rarely been extended to the developing world. The processes by which students from…

This article examines the dominant view of the changing relationship between education, jobs and rewards in the global knowledge economy. This asserts that the developed economies can resolve issues of individual aspirations, economic efficiency and social justice through the creation of a high-skills, high-wage "magnet" economy. Here…

Although youth in the United States remain substantially more violent than adolescents and young adults in most industrial countries, the National Institutes of Health's (NIH) State-of-the-Science Conference on Preventing Violence and Related Health-Risking Social Behaviors in Adolescents identified many reasons for optimism about our capacity to…

This report seeks to address critical issues such as these by synthesising the evidence on innovations in more market-driven education systems. The analysis draws on data from over 20 OECD and non-OECD countries, including both developed nations that seek to move beyond established systems of state-run schools, and developing nations where formal…

The variety and growing number of continuing training providers in France have led the government to question whether these bodies constitute full-fledged service producers functioning in a market situation. In the absence of quality standards and rules governing competition, many questions arise as to the ways it is to be implemented and…

This paper examines the conception of functional literacy advanced by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), a 29-member organization of leading industrialized countries, as part of its 1994 International Adult Literacy Survey (IALS). The paper suggests that embedded within this conception of literacy and the discourse…

The Commonwealth of Learning (COL), headquartered in Vancouver, British Columbia, encourages opportunities for learning throughout the British Commonwealth through distance education and the application of communication technologies to education, and provides activities for strengthening member countries' economic and social development. Functions…

The reason for interest in educational innovation, the significance of the choice of innovations made by international organizations, and the barriers to the communication of experiences derived from innovation are examined. Emphasis is placed upon the social sciences taking more interest in the study of innovation. (DE)

This booklet provides guidance on the support of volunteers in adult literacy and basic skills work. It outlines recommendations that provide practical advice as well as a framework for action to ensure that the quality of basic education provision is maintained and improved. Topics include financial implications in providing support for…