National Differences, Global Similarities

by Baker, David

• ISBN13: 9780804750219
• ISBN10: 0804750211
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2005-03-08
• Publisher: Stanford Social Sciences

Summary

Using American schools as a reference point, this book provides a comprehensive, comparative description of schooling as a global institution. Each chapter develops a story about a particular global trend: continuing gender differences in achievement, new methods nations employ to govern their schools, the rapidly increasing use of private tutoring, school violence, the development of effective curriculums, and the everyday work of teachers, among other topics. The authors draw on a four-year investigation conducted in forty-seven countries that examined many aspects of K-12 schooling, such as how schools are run, what teachers teach, and what students learn in mathematics and science. Baker and LeTendre present the results of the study in a non-technical and accessible fashion, outlining the implications of current trends for both education policy discussions and theoretical explorations of the role of education in society. Running throughout the book is a discussion of how world educational trends and the forces behind them will work to change and shape the possible directions education may take in the future.

Author Biography

David Baker is Professor of Education and Sociology at Pennsylvania State University, and publishes widely on comparative education, the organization of schools, and sociology. Gerald LeTendre is Associate Professor of Education Policy Studies at Pennsylvania State University, and is the author of Learning to Be Adolescent.

Table of Contents

List of Tables and Figures	ix
Preface	xi
1. The Global Environment of National School Systems	1	(15)
2. The Declining Significance of Gender and the Rise of Egalitarian Mathematics Education	16	(18)
3. Symbiotic Institutions: Changing Global Dynamics Between Family and Schooling	34	(20)
4. Demand for Achievement: The Worldwide Growth of Shadow Education Systems	54	(17)
5. Rich Land, Poor Schools: Inequality of National Educational Resources and Achievement of Disadvantaged Students	71	(15)
6. Safe Schools, Dangerous Nations: The Paradox of School Violence	86	(18)
7. The Universal Math Teacher? International Beliefs, National Work Roles, and Local Practice	104	(13)
8. Schoolwork at Home? Low-Quality Schooling and Homework	117	(17)
9. Slouching Toward a Global Ideology: The Devolution Revolution in Education Governance	134	(16)
10. Nation Versus Nation: The Race to Be the First in the World	150	(19)
11. Conclusion: Observing Modern Schooling as an Institution	169	(10)
Bibliography	179	(12)
Index	191