Indicators in this volume provide international benchmarks for assessing the condition of education in U.S. states and in the United States as a whole by comparison with many other industrialized countries for which data are available. On six sets of indicators (37 indicators in all), country-level and state-level measures are arrayed side-by-side to facilitate comparison. The indicators are grouped into six categories: (1) background; (2) participation; (3) processes and institutions; (4) achievement and attainment; (5) labor market outcomes; and (6) finance. The presentation of each indicator includes an explanation of what it measures, why it is important, and key results from a comparison of countries and states. Throughout the report, comparisons are most often made in the text among like-sized entities. The presentation of each indicator also includes separate tables for states and countries and graphs that display states and countries together. Supplemental notes and a statistical appendix include supplemental and technical information on how measures in the indicators were calculated, and a glossary is included. (Contains 37 two-part tables and 37 figures, some of which have several parts.) (SLD)

A reversal in rural-to-urban migration patterns is creating increasing interest in the quality of education in rural areas and in techniques for meeting educational needs in sparsely populated regions. Wholesale urbanization of rural schools generally is rejected as a potential solution: it is logistically inefficient; centralization and standardization are met with growing resistance; and conventional solutions to educational problems produce uneven results when applied to rural areas. This book addresses the broad spectrum of rural education issues within OECD member countries. The authors identify innovative programs, policies, and strategies and point toward the more promising paths for rural school improvement. They also issue warnings about some of the blind alleys and dead ends that can be encountered. The major topics covered include delivery systems, in-school innovations, support mechanisms, and community-school linkages.

The original essays in this volume examine reform-related issues in teacher education in Great Britain, Canada, Japan, Ukraine, United States, and Western Europe. A distinguished group of educators reviews the social context of the teacher, the economics and value of teaching, the pace of change, government policy and teacher control of the profession, and the evolving role of the teacher and education system in the face of political and social upheaval.

How can First Nations schools in Canada offer a curriculum that is at once authentically and deeply Aboriginal while comparable in content, quality, and standards to provincial and territorial education? First Nations Education Policy in Canada is a critical analysis of policy developments affecting First Nations education since 1986 and a series of recommendations for future policy changes. Jerry Paquette and Gérald Fallon challenge the fundamental assumptions about Aboriginal education that have led to a Balkanized and ineffective educational system able to serve few of the needs of students. To move forward, the authors have developed a conceptual framework with which to re-envision the social, political, and educational goals of a self-governing First Nations education system. Offering a sorely needed fresh perspective on an issue vital to the community, First Nations Education Policy in Canada is grounds for critical reflection not only on education but on the future of Aboriginal self-determination.