The Week in Review / Educational Policy Institute

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Playing the Guessing Game

February 15, 2008

Alex Usher, Vice President, Educational Policy Institute

Trying to guess what’s going on in Ottawa right now is a mug’s game. Unlike the old Liberal habit of leaking and trial-ballooning every budget line item weeks before a budget, the Tories play budget-making the old-fashioned tight-lipped way. Even the budget’s broad themes are hard to guess at the moment. This is more than a little worrying given the implications of this budget for student aid in Canada, and the very real possibility that over a third of the country’s grants are going to disappear the year after next.

But I’ve been speaking to a lot of people in Ottawa lately and I have developed a theory about what’s going to happen on February 26 when the federal budget is announced. And my bet is most of you won’t like it. ...Read More

Lotsa Kids... 512 million children are enrolled in secondary school worldwide. Over half are in either East Asia and the Pacific or South Asia. Approximately 242 million (47.2%) are girls....See More

Source: Worldbank





	In Bronx School, Culture Shock, Then Revival Elissa Goutman, The New York Times Despite warnings that he was a cultural mismatch for his school, a principal has outlasted his predecessors. Spellings Asks Appeals Court to Reconsider Ruling on NCLB Funding Mark Walsh, Education Week Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings is asking a federal appeals court to reconsider a ruling that revived a major challenge to the No Child Left Behind Act.	In Budget Debate, Democrats Poised to Try to Wait Out President Bush Alyson Klein, Education Week Democrats in Congress say they are prepared to resist President Bush's level-funding budget proposal for education until the next president—who they hope will be more inclined to raise spending—takes office. That means the outcome of this year’s budget showdown could hinge on the November election, not on a compromise between the White House and Capitol Hill. California students fare well in AP exams Mitchell Landsberg, The LA Times About 20% of public school pupils scored three or better in at least one test. But black students lag.


	Fewer student loans demands tuition restraint NACAC Crashed by the credit crunch, a Michigan college student loan program stopped making loans this week, making it even tougher for students to get money for college. The news should be a wake-up call for state policy makers. Call for Equity for Community Colleges Scott Jaschik, Inside Higher Education American higher education “is not sustainable,” and risks a growing detachment from reality if it does not come to grips with the needs of community colleges and the way higher education and government consistently mistreat the sector.	Views on Immigrants Cost 3 California Community-College Trustees Their Posts Beckie Supiano, The Chronicle of Higher Education Three members of the board that oversees California's community colleges have lost their seats. The reason: They supported state legislation that would make some undocumented students eligible to receive financial aid. Best You Can Be Without a Degree Elizabeth Redden, Inside Higher Ed Fifty years from now, today’s soldiers won’t be telling their grandkids that their college bills were taken care of, said Patrick Campbell, legislative director for Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA).


	In Oil-Rich Mideast, Shades of the Ivy League Tamar Lewin, The New York Times Education City, the largest enclave of American schools overseas, has become the elite of Qatari education. More apply to UK's universities BBCnews.com Some 26,517 more people applied for university courses in the UK this year than in 2007, a rise of 6.7%.	Turkish Parliament Allows Some Head Scarves to Be Worn on Campuses Aisha Labi, The Chronicle of Higher Education The Turkish parliament voted on Saturday to pass a pair of constitutional amendments that would allow Muslim female students who wear head scarves as a profession of their religious faith to do so on university campuses.


	New secondary grads trail in math courses Elizabeth Church, The Globe And Mail A large percentage of Ontario high-school students arriving at community college do not have the math skills they need to succeed in technology and business programs, new research shows.	Path to a better future Moira Farr, University Affairs Aboriginal leaders like Kevin Chief are inspiring a new generation of kids to stay in school. Post-secondary students, faculty launch advocacy ads Keith Gerein, The Edmonton Journal Student and faculty leaders from across Alberta jumped into the provincial election today with a new advocacy campaign that calls on all parties to boost investment in post-secondary education.


	Rudd to review school funding Anna Patty, The Sydney Morning Herald THE Federal Government will review the controversial funding model for private schools it inherited from the Howard government, following revelations that at least half of the nation's 2000 non-government schools will receive $2.7 billion in overpayments over the next four years. Students rank Aussie unis third in world Milanda Rout, The Australian OVERSEAS students have ranked Australia as the third best country in the world for university education, a new survey has revealed.	Sporting lure to stay at school Paige Taylor and Justine Ferrari, The Australian A HIGH school in the goldfields hub of Kalgoorlie is unlocking the secrets to keeping indigenous students in class. Breakthrough agreement with Chile on skills training Queensland Government Press Release Vocational education students from Chile will be trained on scholarships in Queensland next year following a breakthrough agreement on skills training with the Chilean Government. Grades worse than in 1960s Anna Patty, The Sydney Morning Herald THE literacy and numeracy performance of Australian students has not improved since the 1960s, suggesting the increase in money invested on education has been misdirected, a study has found.


	ATE Regional Centers: CCRC Final Report Community College Research Center Based on fieldwork at eight sites, this report discusses the role that regional centers play in the National Science Foundation’s Advanced Technological Education program. Download and View PDF Here


The Educational Policy Institute is an international non-profit think tank dedicated to the study of educational opportunity. The Week in Review is a weekly publication that highlights the top news stories, reports and statistics related to academic preparation and access and success in the US, Canada, and beyond. The publication also features a commentary written by either President Watson Scott Swail, EdD or Vice-President Alex Usher. To submit comments, news releases, or submissions, please email Dr. Watson Scott Swail at wswail@educationalpolicy.org or call (757) 430-2200.