Suchergebnisse

"The British Committee on the Theory of International Politics and Central Figures in the English School" published on by Oxford University Press.

Since the late 1970s the problem of urban education has been cast as partially a problem of governance and authority structures. This focus mirrors a larger preoccupation by educational reformers with democratizing the decision-making process in public schools, a preoccupation that is evident not only in this country but also many nations throughout the world. Borrowing from the private sector, the underlying assumption behind decentralization is that educational improvement is only possible if those closest to the point at which decision are enacted become the architects of these decisions. Thus, school-based management or participatory decision-making is viewed as a means to formally incorporate the voices of parents, teachers and the community in the management of their schools. This paper discusses the findings of a recently conducted study on school-based management in thirty of New Jersey's poorest districts (referred to as the Abbott Districts). These districts have begun a process of complex reform after the State's Supreme Court ruled that the state had failed to constitutionally provide a thorough and efficient education for its poorest students by the absence of parity funding. Populated by primarily black and Hispanic students, and representing most of the larger urban communities in the state, students in these districts exhibit performance levels significantly below that of the state average. The results of the study indicate that (1) genuine autonomy has been usurped by an intensification in state power and authority, (ii) state elites have provided little opportunity for districts and SBM teams to build capacity; (iii) the level of democratization or opening-up of decision making to local community members has been minimal as the teams become teacher dominated; and (iv) in the absence of clear guidelines from the State, conflict over the appropriate role of SBM members, principals, central office staff and local school boards has emerged. The paper on the basis of these findings explores some policy options that need to be considered both at the state and local levels as school communities move toward more decentralized governance structures.

This book provides a thorough introduction to East Central Europe and its renewed emergence since the momentous changes in the former Soviet bloc. By carefully differentiating between Central Europe, East Central Europe and the Balkans, (ac)Attila Agh shows how the term `Eastern Europe' was a political misnomer of the Cold War. Drawing on theories of democratization to develop a common conceptual and theoretical framework, this textbook is the first to place the political and social changes of this complex region in a genuinely comparative perspective.

While maintaining its historical functions of strengthening and cultivating the ideological faith of current or future high-rank Party cadres, the Central Party School (CPS) has fundamentally modernized its organization and curriculum. Traditional short-term political indoctrination coexists with graduate study for MA and PhD degrees in economics, philosophy, politics, international relations, Marxism, and political education. The aims of the CPS are to groom loyal and knowledgeable governors ("high-quality leading cadres") so to insure the Communist Party's long-term rule of China. The process of this transformation is full of disputes and conflicts at the Party center. Whether the national leadership will succeed in attaining its aims is not certain. (China J/GIGA)

This book provides a thorough introduction to East Central Europe and its renewed emergence since the momentous changes in the former Soviet bloc. By carefully differentiating between Central Europe, East Central Europe and the Balkans, Attila [ac]Agh shows how the term Èastern Europe' was a political misnomer of the Cold War. Drawing on theories of democratization to develop a common conceptual and theoretical framework, this textbook is the first to place the political and social changes of this complex region in a genuinely comparative perspective. Through broad thematic sections the stude.