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Abstract After WWII, Singapore launched decolonization and the state elites were under strong compulsion to blend the Chinese and other racial communities into a national whole. Chinese schools, equipping students with worldview and cultural‐linguistic abilities very different from those at other schools, hindered the completion of this task. The state elites sought to resolve this problem by replacing Chinese schools, but this policy antagonized the Chinese and undermined the legitimacy of the ruling regime. To pacify the Chinese, they switched to uphold Chinese schools as an integral and distinct category in the education system. This strategy, nevertheless, kept Chinese schools culturally compartmentalized and sacrificed the objective of promoting interracial integration. To rectify this situation, the ruling authorities sought to blunt the cultural distinctiveness of Chinese schools by strengthening Chinese teaching in English schools. However, this policy was not very successful, because the Malays – the adversary of the Chinese – resented it. This study demonstrates that state formation is a complicated project containing conflicting tasks, it reminds us state hegemonic strategies always bring about contradictory results and the connection between education and state formation is always dialectical.

For the past two centuries, higher learning has been set firmly within the bounds of the Nation State. With the rise of a "higher education space" in the European Union, a range of powerful and influential decision-making bodies are giving new meaning to the "supranational dimension" in the world of academe. In this book, some leading higher education researchers and practitioners address issues related to the relationship between higher education and the Nation State. Guy Neave takes us on a historical excursion, showing trends towards Europeanisation and de-Europeanisation in different forms in various parts of state levels of government in higher education in the United States. Alberto Amaral takes up the issue of quality assurance in the European context. Kurt De Wit and Jef Verhoeven report on recent developments concerning the interplay between higher education policies at the Nation State and supranational levels. In addition, Antonio Ruberti addresses the issue of research co-operation, and Fons van Wieringen discusses privatization in post-compulsory education in the Netherlands. (HoF/text adopted)

This article describes the special relationship between the state and higher education in Turkey in the context of a case study of Mulkiye College, currently the College of Political Sciences at Ankara University. By focusing on the social and organizational context within which institutionalization takes place, it shows how conflict and functional factors each play a role in the process of institutionalization. The article demonstrates how attention to an organization and its field yields critical information about the macro processes that govern micro individual habits as well as taken-for-granted outcomes that contribute to our understanding of societal order. It is suggested that Mulkiye College presents a unique case study that contributes towards an understanding of the relationship between higher education organizations and the state in Turkey. ; peer-reviewed

"Alan Sears examines education reform in relation to a broad process of cultural and economic change. His book makes the case that education reform is one aspect of a broad-ranging neo-liberal agenda that aims to push the market deeper into every aspect of our lives by eliminating or shrinking non-market alternatives. The author begins by showing that advocates of education reform have had to make the case that the current system is not working. This sets the ground for an examination of the so-called "common sense revolution," a claim that drastic change was required to redesign government policies to fit a changing world. Lean production methods are a crucial component of this changing world, and broader social and cultural change is now required to consolidate the emerging order built on the spread of these methods. Education reform is designed to recast the relations of citizenship, contributing to the cultural and social change promoted through the social policy of the lean state."--Jacket

Education Policy provides an international perspective on education policy, and of the role and function of education in the global economy. It covers the major topics of central significance in education and the sociology of education. At the same time it maintains a unique position in respect to globalization, education and the nation state

Legal Issues of Special Education is for university faculty staff teaching courses on education law and policy. It also serves as a resource for students conducting research, government officials, and professionals in these fields. Combating discrimination on the basis of disability and special needs education is an area that is receiving increased attention from the European Commission and the Member States. This is reflected in the fact that the year 2003 has been designated the European Year of Disabled Citizens. This timely book is about raising awareness of the rights of disabled people to full equality and participation in all areas. It aims to show that disability is an issue of concern to all of us

"When credit markets to finance investment in human capital are missing, the competitive equilibrium allocation is inefficient. When generations overlap, this failure can be mitigated by properly designed social arrangements. We show that public financing of education and public pensions can be designed to implement an intergenerational transfer scheme supporting the complete market allocation. Neither the public financing of education nor the pension scheme we consider resemble standard ones. In our mechanism, via the public education system, the young borrow from the middle aged to invest in human capital. They pay back the debt via a social security tax, the proceedings of which finance pension payments. When the complete market allocation is achieved, the rate of return implicit in this borrowing-lending scheme should equal the market rate of return"--Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis web site

U.S higher education borrows its structure from both the British undergraduate college and German research university, but its character is profoundly influenced by major philosophical beliefs that shape American public life. During the 20th century, economic and social changes transformed higher education into a primary gateway to the middle-class, and women and minorities made inroads against longstanding exclusion from mainstream higher education. Americans came to view broad access to higher education as a necessary component of the nations ideal as a land of opportunity. In this regard, U.S. higher education reflects essential elements of the American character: independence, suspicion of government, ambition, inclusiveness, and competitiveness. This publication describes the major characteristics of American higher education and important issues that challenge it, linking back as appropriate to these essential philosophical underpinnings. ; American Council on Education

An attempt is made in this paper to analyze the state of primary education in India. Using various data-sources and secondary research, we provide a description of the salient features of the public education system in India for primary schools (grades one through five) as well as educational outcomes, both in terms of quantity and quality. Literacy rates, especially in the younger age groups, for both boys and girls are on an upward trend. This is an extremely positive outcome as historically India has suffered from endemic illiteracy. However, rising literacy rates have been accompanied by unevenness of achievements: across Indian states and across various socioeconomic groups. States in the Western and Southern zones of India outperform those in the East and Center. Moreover, the densely populated states of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Rajasthan continue to lag behind the rest of India. Literacy rates for girls, rural residents, and especially members of scheduled castes and scheduled tribes also lag behind those for boys, urban residents and the upper castes. In terms of physical access to schools, more than ninety percent of the Indian population now has a primary school located within one kilometer of their place of residence. However, many schools have only one or two classrooms and most lack running water and toilets. These features are not conducive to a learning environment. The really critical aspect of the Indian public education system is its low quality. Even in educationally advanced states, an unacceptably low proportion of children who complete all grades of primary school have functional literacy. There is a lot of 'waste' in the school system as evidenced by the large percentage of children who drop-out before completing primary schooling. Such inefficiency is compounded by teacher apathy, teacher absenteeism, very high pupil-teacher ratios and inadequate teacher training. Public expenditure on education in India has been rising over time. After the District Primary Education Programme (DPEP) which was launched in 1994, the federal government launched the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) in 2001 with the goal to universalize primary education (grades one to five) by 2007 and elementary education (grades one to eight) by 2010. Unlike the DPEP, SSA is funded entirely by domestic resources and provides the states with a strong initiative backed by funding to tackle illiteracy among the young members of their population. Another policy that has been very successful in increasing enrollments, attendance and retention of students in primary school is that of the provision of mid-day meals. There are lessons to be learnt from the diverse experiences of Indian states in terms of their achievements in literacy. While in Kerala, strong social intermediation by the government has proved successful, in Himachal Pradesh, social capital and community participation seem to have led to similar success.

Education policy is at the very top of the political agenda - the proclaimed top priority of the 'New Labour' government. Yet Labour has inherited a quasi-market education system and remains under the direction of reform during the coming year. This book examines new directions on issues of selection and educational opportunity, gender and racism and the question of school effectiveness and school improvements. The politics for the National Curriculum and its assessment are explored, alongside issues of lifelong learning and IT policy. The book explores the key questions of the future reform of education in contemporary Britain with contributions from the leading experts in education, education policy, politics and sociology