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492. Widening Gap of Educational Opportunity? A Longitudinal Study of Educational Inequality in China
- Author:
- Min-Dong Paul Lee
- Publication Date:
- 06-2006
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- United Nations University
- Abstract:
- This study attempts to convey an accurate and dynamic account of educational inequality in China during the last decade. The study finds that there is clear evidence of rapid expansion of education, and younger students all over China are benefiting from the expansion. One of the most notable achievements is the virtual elimination of gender bias against girls in educational attainment. However, analysis of province-level school enrolment data over the last decade shows evidence of persistent regional inequality of educational attainment. Students from inland provinces continue to face strong structural inequality in educational opportunity, and this structural inequality becomes more pronounced as they progress to higher grades. Moreover, inter-cohort analysis reveals that the inter-provincial inequality in upper grades is increasing for younger cohort of students, meaning that educational inequality in China is deteriorating further. Lastly, a decomposition analysis shows that the causes of inter-provincial educational inequality are quite complex and cannot simply be explained by the urban-bias hypothesis that is often suggested as the main source of income inequality.
- Topic:
- Education, Human Rights, and Poverty
- Political Geography:
- China and Asia
493. Migration in the Development Studies Literature: Has It Come Out of Its Marginality?
- Author:
- Arjan de Hann
- Publication Date:
- 02-2006
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- United Nations University
- Abstract:
- This paper explores the role migration has played in development studies, and in debates on economic growth and poverty. It argues that, despite a recent surge of interest in international migration and remittances, research on human mobility particularly for labour within poor countries does not have the place it deserves, and that it used to have in the classical development literature. Review of the empirical literature suggests that in fact much is known about the migration–development relationship, provided we are careful with definitions, and allow for context-specificity to be a key component of analyses. Against this richness of empirical detail, the paper reviews theoretical models of migration, finding significant differences in understandings of migration and its role in shaping wellbeing, but also complementarities. This highlights the importance of interdisciplinarity, and institutional understanding of processes of economic growth. In particular, it stresses that development economics need to draw more strongly on the insights by and approaches of non-economist social sciences.
- Topic:
- Development, Economics, Education, and Migration
494. International Convergence or Higher Inequality in Human Development? Evidence for 1975 to 2002
- Author:
- Farhad Noorbakhsh
- Publication Date:
- 02-2006
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- United Nations University
- Abstract:
- The concept of convergence is extended to the human development index. Evidence of weak absolute convergence is found over 1975-2002. The results are robust and verified by various conditional β -convergence models and also supported by the evidence of weak σ -convergence. Population weighted analyses provide support for polarization in the human development index amongst developing countries but a slight reduction in world inequality. The dynamics of regional analysis reveal a movement of sub-Saharan Africa towards the low band of human development with Asia and Latin America making progress. High immobility of the early part of the period is followed by considerable upward and downward mobility in the latter part indicating a possible case of the 'twin peaks' type of polarization.
- Topic:
- International Relations, Civil Society, Development, and Education
495. Voices of Hope, Voices of Frustration
- Author:
- Kathrin Keil
- Publication Date:
- 01-2006
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Institute for the Study of Diplomacy, Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University
- Abstract:
- Can international students successfully obtain visas and pass through security checks in order to study in the United States? For most international students interested in studying in the United States, the answer is yes. In the 2005 fiscal year, nearly 256,000 student visas were issued, which marked a significant improvement from the approximately 236,000 issued in 2003 and the approximately 238,000 issued in 2004. While visa issuance for international students has not rebounded to pre-September 11 levels—approximately 320,000 student visas were issued in fiscal year 2001—it would be erroneous to assume that changes implemented to U.S. admission policies post-9/11 are the sole cause for this drop in international student enrollment in U.S. institutions of higher education. First of all, a comprehensive study of the impact of 9/11 on the U.S. visa system conducted by the Washington, DC-based Migration Policy Institute revealed that changes made to the visa system following the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks were mostly administrative. While these “administrative” changes may have caused visa interview and adjudication backlogs that hindered visa processing, changes to the system were not designed to make it harder for international students to obtain visas. Also, the State Department contends that the worldwide number of visa applications dropped after September 11 and that “the overall visa refusal rate has remained virtually constant since prior to September 11.” Most importantly, there are other factors to consider when evaluating why international student enrollment has declined, such as the growing competition from other countries' universities in terms of tuition costs, student recruitment activities, and academic programs.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy, Diplomacy, Education, Terrorism, and Immigration
- Political Geography:
- United States
496. Oxfam Publishing: Girls' Education in Africa
- Author:
- Sam Gibson
- Publication Date:
- 12-2005
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Oxfam Publishing
- Abstract:
- Sub-Saharan Africa has some huge problems to reslove if it is to achieve gender equality in education, and fulfill the Millennium Development Goals related to education and gender. Conversely, the region has some of the most innovative and enterprising examples of initiative that promote gender equality in education. This paper focuses on sub-Saharan Africa and considers some of the most significant obstacles that African girls face in achieving the education that is their right. The paper then reviews the most significant initiatives–those that are 'gender-neutral' and those that have a specific focus aon gender equality–that have enabled African countries to overcome these obstacles.
- Topic:
- Development, Education, and Gender Issues
- Political Geography:
- Africa
497. The Spread of Innovations through Social Learning
- Author:
- H. Peyton Young
- Publication Date:
- 12-2005
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- The Brookings Institution
- Abstract:
- Innovations often spread by the communication of information among potential adopters. In the marketing literature, the standard model of new product diffusion is generated by information contagion: agents adopt once they hear about the existence of the product from someone else. In social learning models, by contrast, an agent adopts only when the perceived advantage of the innovation--”as revealed by the actions and experience of prior adopters--”exceeds a threshold determined by the agent's prior beliefs. We demonstrate that learning with heterogeneous priors generates adoption curves that have an analytically tractable, closed-form solution. Moreover there is a simple statistical test that discriminates between this type of process and a contagion model. Applied to Griliches' classic results on the adoption of hybrid corn, this test shows that learning with heterogeneous priors does a considerably better job of explaining the data than does the contagion model.
- Topic:
- Civil Society, Demographics, Development, and Education
498. No Child Left Behind: How to give It a Passing Grade
- Author:
- Martin R. West
- Publication Date:
- 12-2005
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- The Brookings Institution
- Abstract:
- The No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) has the potential to improve many of America's schools, but this potential is currently undermined by serious flaws in how the program evaluates school performance. Because NCLB's measurement system compares only students' performance at a single point in time against state-determined standards, the information generated on school performance is often misleading and creates perverse incentives for states to lower their expectations.
- Topic:
- Development, Education, and Politics
- Political Geography:
- United States
499. CATO Institute: Saving Money and Improving Education: How School Choice Can Help States Reduce Education Costs
- Author:
- David Salisbury
- Publication Date:
- 10-2005
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- The Cato Institute
- Abstract:
- Historically, elementary and secondary education has been the largest item in state budgets. During the past three decades, state spending on public education has grown both in terms of revenues spent per pupil and as a percentage of total personal income. Spending on K–12 education is expected to continue to rise during the next few years, mainly because of the increased number of teachers and other school personnel that will be needed to meet increased enrollment.
- Topic:
- Civil Society, Economics, Education, and Politics
500. CATO Institute: Corruption in the Public Schools: The Market Is the Answer
- Author:
- Neal McCluskey
- Publication Date:
- 04-2005
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- The Cato Institute
- Abstract:
- One of the most frequently voiced objections to school choice is that the free market lacks the "accountability" that governs public education. Public schools are constantly monitored by district administrators, state officials, federal officials, school board members, and throngs of other people tasked with making sure that the schools follow all the rules and regulations governing them. That level of bureaucratic oversight does not exist in the free market, and critics fear choice-based education will be plagued by corruption, poor-quality schools, and failure.
- Topic:
- Economics, Education, and Politics
- Political Geography:
- United States