Local Education Policy Research Articles

Water Quality, Brawn, and Education: The Rural Drinking Water Program in China

Although previous research has demonstrated the health benefits of water treatment programs, relatively little is known about the effect of water treatment on education. This paper examines the educational benefits to rural youth in China of a major drinking water treatment program started in the 1980s, perhaps the largest of such programs in the world. By employing a cross-sectional data set (constructed from a longitudinal data set covering two decades) with more than 4,700 individuals between 18 and 25 years old, the analysis finds that this health program has improved the individuals'education substantially, increasing the grades of education completed by 1.08 years. The qualitative results hold when the analysis controls for local educational policies and resources, village dummies, and distance of villages to schools, and by instrumenting the water treatment dummy with villages'topographic features, among others. Moreover, three findings render support to the brawn theory of gender division of labor: girls benefit much more from water treatment than boys in schooling attainment; youth with an older brother benefit more than youth with an older sister; and boys gain more body mass than girls do from having access to treated water. The program can account for the gender gap in educational attainment in rural China in the sample period. Young people that had access to treated plant water in early childhood (0-2 years of age) experienced significantly higher gains in education than those who were exposed to treated water after early childhood. The estimates suggest that this program is highly cost-effective.

The OECD and the local: PISA-based Test for Schools in the USA

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) has recently piloted the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA)-based Test for Schools in the USA. In this paper, I contend that by connecting directly with local school boards this new initiative has the potential to further promote the OECD's educational agenda in local policy debates. I begin to develop this argument by providing an overview of the OECD and its work. I then lay out a theoretical framework around global governance and knowledge production within the context of the OECD. Next, I provide a brief overview of the traditional PISA study and compare it to the new PISA-based Test for Schools initiative. This context provides the foundation for a discussion of the ways in which a school-based international assessment can operate as a governance tool, allowing international organizations to have greater influence in the formation and implementation of local educational policies.

Lesson Learned from the Experiences of Small Schools in Thailand

This research conducted a quantitative survey on small school stakeholders’ views on a controversial plan to close/merge small schools and the policy recommendations for small school's improvements from 146 school principals, 494 teachers, 1,365 parents and 33 local organization administrators. The results revealed various opinions on the controversial plan depend on their benefits or interests. The parents and local organization administrators reflected that small schools could provide educational opportunity for children to learn near home and small schools develop good habit and well personality of the children, limiting in budget and small number of teachers. The lesson learned from the experiences of 6 substantial small schools in the west- central Thailand through a lesson distilled process; school and classroom observation, individual interviews, and dialog. It demonstrated patterns of academic, human resource and budget management within the small schools, and factors affecting the efficiency and limitation in improving quality of small schools by recognition of views and needs of students and their families, potentials of small schools, support from the local organization administrators and educational ministry's policy.

The mother tongues as second languages: nationalism, democracy and multilingual education in Taiwan

After nearly half a century of authoritarianism characterized by Chinese nationalism and Mandarin promotion, democratization in 1990s Taiwan was accompanied by a Taiwanization movement featuring calls for the revitalization of local languages and the promotion of linguistic equality. To that end, the government began planning for local language education, and, starting in 2001, children have had to attend one weekly hour of mandatory local language education. This curriculum, which is often referred to as ‘mother tongue education’ in Taiwan, has been criticized as being of little value for language acquisition and transmission. Squeezed between Mandarin – the language of instruction, public affairs and increasingly language of home – and English – the international language – the so-called Taiwanese mother tongues are increasingly being learned, taught and used as second languages. Based on a review of secondary sources, public document analysis and interviews with Taiwanese public officials and language revivalists, this paper offers an overview of local language education policy and planning in Taiwan, with a special focus on the respective influences of democratization, human rights promotion and identity politics.

School Choice in London and Paris - A Comparison of Middle-class Strategies.

Education is one major public service in which quasi-markets and other choice-based mechanisms are now established methods of delivery. The types of school people choose, and the extent to which their choices are realized, have a fundamental impact on the outcomes of any mechanism of school choice. In this article, we provide a comparative analysis of the school choice strategies of middle-class families in London and Paris. We draw on approximately 200 in-depth interviews carried out across the two cities. This enables us to investigate the extent to which middle-class school choice strategies transcend the institutional context provided by both the local (state and private) schools market and national education policy in England and France. We discuss these findings in the context of current school choice policy and consider their implications for future policy design.

Playing by the rules? The professional values of head teachers tested by the changing policy context

School leaders face potential conflicts between the demands of national and local education policy and the values and ethics that brought them into teaching and subsequently into school leadership. This article asks whether head teachers’ values are changed by the policy context, and looks at incidents in head teachers’ professional lives that have put their values to the test. It draws on case study work undertaken with one primary school and two secondary school head teachers in an English urban local authority. The article concludes that, for all the opportunities and limitations of educational policy, the greatest influence on the agency of school leaders is the personal history that has shaped their values and given direction to their moral compass.

“Languages aren’t as important here”: German migrant teachers’ experiences in Australian language classes

Narrative studies with migrant teachers offer new perspectives on local educational practices and policies. As part of a study investigating German migrant teachers’ experiences in Australian language classes, this paper uses narratives to evaluate present language education strategies in Germany and Australia. It examines the provision and uptake of foreign languages as a subject area in the two countries and compares existing educational goals and arrangements regarding language education in Germany and Australia. The German migrant teachers’ accounts illustrate how current school policies and the value placed on language proficiency and multilingualism in the two countries’ education are impacting on learning and teaching in the language classroom. The findings have significant potential to inform and stimulate the evaluation of recent national initiatives in language education in Australia.

“You're Trying Hard, but It's Still Going to Die”: Indigenous Youth and Language Tensions in Peru and the United States

This article discusses emerging research on youth and Indigenous languages. Based on a comparative and international Indigenous education study in Peru and the United States, the intersection between Indigenous community spaces, schools, and languages is examined. Given global trends of Indigenous language loss, comparative research provides the opportunity for exploration of these challenges in distinct settings where youth can help redefine local and national language and education policy as critical stakeholders and actors.

Education and National Identity. The Local Cultural Heritage and its Effects Upon Present Local educAtional Policies in Arad County from Romania

Abstract The study is focused upon the concept of local cultural heritage from Arad county in Romania. It opens a debate upon an issue which was little investigated in Romania: the impact of local cultural legacy upon the concept of national identity. This cultural heritage was created for the future generations by some leading scholars from Arad county in Romania, scholars which in the past played a key role in building Romania as a unitary and national state. This legacy had a direct impact upon the concept of national identity on the level of educational policies and also upon the issue of multiculturalism. We used a combined empirical and historical method whit the purpose of disclosing palpable effects at some local educational policies from the present Arad county in Romania. These effects, as we discovered, have solid roots in Vasile Goldis thought. We argue that for the actual European debate upon the integration process is crucial to understand the fact that the goal of maintaining national identity at cultural and educational levels could be achieved significantly easy by accepting the visions of those who contributed in the past in the building of some present national states from Europe. These visions, we argue, are compatible with the concept of Euro region. However, the results shows that in the near future will be necessary, on the one hand, to consolidate the actual achievements and, on the other, also will be necessary a strong process of decentralization the political decision about educational policies at the Euro regional level.

The dilemmas and complexities of implementing language-in-education policies: Perspectives from urban and rural contexts in Uganda

Language-in-education policies are a highly debated topic in Africa and at the root of understanding inequalities in Africa's education systems. This article explores the implementation of Uganda's recent local language education policy; how it has been received and practiced in urban and rural contexts, and the major challenges and implications addressed by education stakeholders in each context. The study confirms that the use of local languages as the language of instruction has contributed to the improvement of literacy skills, children's participation in lessons, and their understanding of content. Nevertheless, the local language policy was fiercely disputed by teachers, parents and various authorities at district and national levels, as many appeared to be concerned with the policy constraining children's academic success at upper primary levels and limiting their transition to secondary education. Through the study, the authors highlight critical misconceptions and assumptions in language-in-education within both policy development and in local education practices and perceptions. The article points to a review of language-in-education in its entirety; across mediums of instruction and assessment for lower and upper primary levels; across teaching methodologies for second language acquisition in multilingual environments; and across socio-economic divides in rural and urban regions of the country.

O COTIDIANO DOS EXAMES FINAIS: PRÁTICAS DE UMA ESCOLA RURAL DE NOVO HAMBURGO (1961-1971)

The aim of this study is to reconstruct the daily assessment practices of final exams identified with local educational policies and, to some extent, also regulated schooling for certain social groups, as in Novo Hamburgo/RS. The research developed from the perspective of cultural history uses the methodology of document analysis. We attempted to reconstruct context scenarios that identified trademarks educational policies of an era and demonstrated the fragility of this practice which began its process of democratic opening in the 1970s. The difference between the prescribed and practiced is evident in the data organized, not always what established guidelines and regulations is guaranteed in teaching practice. What still sets a question is the influence that development policies have played since 1968, an aspect that greatly improves the utilization of the final results of the institution under study.

Space, Place, and Social Justice

This article develops a methodological approach based on the spatial theory of Henri Lefebvre to address relationships between space, place, and social justice in education. In understanding the contradictory effects of globalization on local education policies and the continuing effects of historical geographies in education, Lefebvre’s theory foregrounds the multiple scales and rhythms of practice that produce social space. The article illustrates this by sketching the broad patterns of South African education and their spatial production. It suggests that the notion of affordances may be used in analyzing and interrupting the production of inequalities in schooling. In conclusion, the article considers methodological directions that a Lefebvrean rhythmanalysis might entail.

Pushouts, Shutouts, and Holdouts

This mixed-methods study examines educational experiences of Latino immigrant young adult dropouts in New York City, along with pre- and postmigration factors that impact school participation. Due to age, interrupted schooling, and limited English proficiency, high schools view this population as hard to serve. Increasing numbers of these youth turn to adult and alternative education programs, seeking a pathway to college and job training. Data presented raise questions about the impact of local and federal education policies on educational access for immigrant young adults and contribute to the national conversation about education and career pathways for disconnected and underserved youth.

Implications for school nursing through interprofessional education and practice

To explore the interprofessional collaboration between nursing and social work professionals in their delivery of health services for schoolchildren. Interprofessional education has long been recommended as a way to meet the need for effective collaboration in school health service with a view to improving the quality of health care. No local study in Hong Kong has looked specifically at how nursing and social work professionals carry out school health services through interprofessional education and practice. Therefore, an examination was conducted of collaboration on a community-based school caring project. A qualitative design was employed, using semi-structured interviews, field observation and field debriefing. Seven nursing students and five social work students were recruited and interviewed in 2011. The transcripts were analysed using qualitative content analysis. Three themes were identified: (1) early identification of children's needs through interprofessional collaboration for health promotion, (2) prompt referral for schoolchildren in need, and (3) comprehensive planning and implementation of school health service. The strength of collaborative work between nursing and social work professionals is that it helps to identify and address these complex health needs of children. Healthcare providers are hence able to develop a fuller understanding of children's problems, which in turn enables them to provide appropriate and effective health promotion interventions. The development of interprofessional education for school health services should be envisaged by the local higher educational institute and policy makers to reduce children's risk-taking behaviours and promote their health and well-being. Health educators and health policy makers can better understand how interprofessional education and collaboration can promote children health service for regional and national policy and practice.

CONTRIBUTIONS OF A NONPROFIT EDUCATIONAL MEASUREMENT ORGANIZATION TO EDUCATION POLICY RESEARCH

ABSTRACTAs part of its mission, Educational Testing Service (ETS) has conducted education policy research focused on promoting equal opportunity for all individuals from early childhood through adulthood. This report provides a sampler of this extensive work in three areas chosen to represent major historical foci:• Analyzing, evaluating, and informing public policy in educational governance, including school finance; teacher policy; and federal, state, and local education policy;• Examining differential access to educational opportunity in three areas of longstanding interest to ETS: the gender gap, advanced placement programs, and graduate education; and• Reporting on the educational outcomes of the U.S. population and describing the contexts for these outcomes and for the gaps in outcomes that exist among segments of the population.

The Bologna Process and its Impact on Local Governance: A Case Study

This paper empirically investigates the policy process at University College Dublin (UCD) and its constituent School of Business as it responded to and implemented the tenets of the Bologna Process. The paper investigates how, supranational agencies engage with national policy entities and individual institutions. It reviews how regional and supranational processes and discourses and policy making affected UCD's institutional dynamics and policy production. The production of this policy suggests that policy is shaped predominantly by local policy actors and global influences situated outside of the nation-state. These findings suggest that the nation-state’s role in some cases may be overstated in current debates. This paper sustains the suggestion of a global policy field (Lingard, Taylor & Rawolle, 2005) and demonstrates a reconstitution of the local education policy field at UCD.

The Assumptions and Possible Futures of Standards-Based Education

Standards-based education is the most important and widely implemented education reform idea of the last several decades in the USA, one supported by the full weight of the mainstream bipartisan educational establishment. Motivated by ‘global economic competitiveness' as the ideological driver and big business as the empirical driver, it has become a settled and integral part of local, state and federal education policy. In spite of all this, little has been said about its fundamental assumptions and their implications for the future. This is especially concerning because its most notable implicit assumption is that the ever-increasing consumption of the planet's finite natural resources by a seemingly ever-increasing population can continue indefinitely. This is a mathematical impossibility. Therefore, this difficult discussion needs to be more fully engaged and possible solutions explored, which this article strives to do.

Risk Factors for Preterm Birth in Five Maternal and Child Health Hospitals in Beijing

BackgroundPreterm birth, the birth of an infant prior to 37 completed weeks of gestation, is the leading cause of perinatal morbidity and mortality. Preterm infants are at greater risk of respiratory, gastrointestinal and neurological diseases. Despite significant research in developed countries, little is known about the causes of preterm birth in many developing countries, especially China. This study investigates the association between sciodemographic data, obstetric risk factor, and preterm birth in five Maternal and Child Health hospitals in Beijing, China.Methods and FindingsA case-control study was conducted on 1391 women with preterm birth (case group) and 1391 women with term delivery (control group), who were interviewed within 48 hours of delivery. Sixteen potential factors were investigated and statistical analysis was performed by univariate analysis and logistic regression analysis. Univariate analysis showed that 14 of the 16 factors were associated with preterm birth. Inter-pregnancy interval and inherited diseases were not risk factors. Logistic regression analysis showed that obesity (odds ratio (OR) = 3.030, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.166–7.869), stressful life events (OR = 5.535, 95%CI 2.315–13.231), sexual activity (OR = 1.674, 95%CI 1.279–2.191), placenta previa (OR 13.577, 95%CI 2.563–71.912), gestational diabetes mellitus (OR = 3.441, 95%CI1.694–6.991), hypertensive disorder complicating pregnancy (OR = 6.034, 95%CI = 3.401–10.704), history of preterm birth (OR = 20.888, 95%CI 2.519–173.218) and reproductive abnormalities (OR = 3.049, 95%CI 1.010–9.206) were independent risk factors. Women who lived in towns and cities (OR = 0.603, 95%CI 0.430–0.846), had a balanced diet (OR = 0.533, 95%CI 0.421–0.675) and had a record of prenatal care (OR = 0.261, 95%CI 0.134–0.510) were less likely to have preterm birth.ConclusionsObesity, stressful life events, sexual activity, placenta previa, gestational diabetes mellitus, hypertensive disorder complicating pregnancy, history of preterm birth and reproductive abnormalities are independent risk factors to preterm birth. Identification of remedial factors may inform local health and education policy.

Latino Immigration and Representation in Local Politics

Theories of racial politics argue that areas with large minority population are characterized by greater levels of policy equity, yet empirical research often fails to find evidence for this prediction. In this article, we develop and test an alternative view of the relationship between minority group size and the representation of minority interests in government using the case of Latino representation in local politics. We argue that Latino group size results in both favorable and unfavorable policy outcomes for Latino communities. The nature of the Latino population, specifically the extent to which it is composed primarily of citizens or noncitizens, explains when each outcome will occur. Latinos achieve more favorable policy outcomes for their interests when the size of the Latino citizen population increases but less favorable outcomes when the number of Latino noncitizens increases. The negative effect of noncitizen group size is mediated by the presence of Latino citizens and representatives. Our hypotheses are tested using data from a national sample of several hundred local school districts and educational policy outcomes.

Investigating risk factors for preterm birth in rural Tanzania: a case-control study

BackgroundPreterm birth (before 37 weeks gestation) is the third leading cause of neonatal death in Tanzania and accounts for 28% of neonatal deaths worldwide. Preterm infants are at greater risk...