Tracing historical and cultural factors which gave rise to the Nordic Education Model, this volume explores why Northern European education policy has become an international benchmark for schooling. The text explains the historical connection between a Nordic ideal of democracy and schooling, and indicates how values of equality, welfare, justice, and individualism might be successfully integrated in national school systems and curricula around the world. The volume also highlights recent debates around the longevity of the Nordic model and explores the risks and challenges posed by international policy and assessment agendas. Exploring how Nordic education polices successfully merge social equity with academic excellence, the book combines cultural, historical, sociological and philosophical analysis with a deep exploration of curriculum and teaching. This book will be of great interest to researchers, scholars, and postgraduates working across the fields of curriculum, comparative education, cultural studies and history and philosophy of education and education policy.

This publication presents an overview of adult education in the United States, based on information from a variety of expert sources. The Bureau of Occupational and Adult Education (BOAE) requested a set of study documents to aid in developing position statements that reflected the Bureau's view of the chief issues surrounding the concept of lifelong learning. This synthesis is an attempt to draw together the content of these studies, to provide a manageable and accurate portrayal of the massive set of materials. These documents, over a thousand pages, addressed-in detail and in depth-the following broad topics: (1) An overview of the state of adult learning in the United States today; (2) Evaluation of the benefits of adult learning; (3) Projections of, with estimates for, future needs of American society and the implications for adult learning; (4) Assessments of the major problems confronting today's adult learners. The chief caution to be considered, based on this examination of the study documents, is that future developments will be difficult if present disagreements among the experts persist.

Co-published by Routledge for the American Educational Research Association (AERA) Educational policy continues to be of major concern. Policy debates about economic growth and national competitiveness, for example, commonly focus on the importance of human capital and a highly educated workforce. Defining the theoretical boundaries and methodological approaches of education policy research are the two primary themes of this comprehensive, AERA-sponsored Handbook. Organized into seven sections, the Handbook focuses on (1) disciplinary foundations of educational policy, (2) methodological perspectives, (3) the policy process, (4) resources, management, and organization, (5) teaching and learning policy, (6) actors and institutions, and (7) education access and differentiation. Drawing from multiple disciplines, the Handbook’s over one hundred authors address three central questions: What policy issues and questions have oriented current policy research? What research strategies and methods have proven most fruitful? And what issues, questions, and methods will drive future policy research? Topics such as early childhood education, school choice, access to higher education, teacher accountability, and testing and measurement cut across the 63 chapters in the volume. The politics surrounding these and other issues are objectively analyzed by authors and commentators. Each of the seven sections concludes with two commentaries by leading scholars in the field. The first considers the current state of policy design, and the second addresses the current state of policy research. This book is appropriate for scholars and graduate students working in the field of education policy and for the growing number of academic, government, and think-tank researchers engaged in policy research. For more information on the American Educational Research Association, please visit: http://www.aera.net/.

First Published in 1995. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

Reflections on an international education. George Walker's career in education has fallen into three parts: the first as science teacher and university lecturer in science education; the second as promoter and practitioner of comprehensive education in the United Kingdom; the third as international educator. In 1991 he became director general of the world's oldest and largest international school in Geneva. Eight years later he was appointed to his present post as director general of the International Baccalaureate Organization.

This report, ninth in a series, is designed to indicate progress made by the United States toward the eight National Education Goals. Following a statement of the eight Goals, part 1 explains the nature and purposes of the Goals. Part 2, "Summary of Progress to Date," evaluates national and state progress made toward these goals since 1990, the year they were established, placing emphasis on state improvement over time. Part 3 summarizes national progress, and part 4 summarizes state progress for each goal for the 34 state indicators. Much has been accomplished, but progress toward the Goals has not been uniform across the Goals or across the states. Much more must be done, particularly with regard to teacher education and professional development, mathematics and science achievement, the reduction of drug and alcohol use, and the promotion of safe and orderly schools. Three appendixes contain technical notes and sources for national and state indicators and acknowledgments. (Sld).