Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Half Of Australian Youth Aged 18-20 Are Not In Training, Bob Birrell, Daniel Edwards

Dr Daniel Edwards

The authors undertake a detailed analysis of data from the 2006 Census. The data reveal that a substantial proportion of Australia's 18 to 20 year olds are not participating in any form of education. In addition, of those non-attendees, labour force participation is also remarkably low. A supplementary table to the report, which shows education participation rates by Australian federal electorates is also available.

Educational Resources And Impediments In Rural Gansu, China, Emily Hannum, Peggy Kong

Emily C. Hannum

This report seeks to provide a portrait of schools serving rural communities in northwest China, and to shed light on factors that encourage and discourage school persistence among children in this region. To achieve these goals, we analyze a survey of rural children and their families, schools, and teachers in Gansu province. The project interviewed children in the year 2000, when children were 9 to 12 years old, and again four years later.

In part one of the paper, we provide a descriptive overview of the material, human, and cultural resources available in sampled primary and middle schools. Where possible, …

Building Sustainable Networks For Young Women And Icts Throughout Australia, Kathryn Moyle

Professor Kathryn Moyle

No abstract provided.

The Widening Gap Between Demand For And Supply Of University Graduates In Australia, Daniel Edwards, Bob Birrell, Ian Dobson

Dr Daniel Edwards

The rapid growth in demand for university-trained personnel over recent years has mainly been filled by growth in the skilled migration program. The authors argue that more domestic students should be trained. The Coalition Government does not agree. It claims that 'unmet demand' from prospective university students has been met and that additional subsidised places are to be created. This article scrutinises these claims and concludes that they are not correct. The authors point to a shortfall in domestic higher education training. Over the period 1995-96 to 2005-06 there has been little or no growth in domestic undergraduate commencements (growth …

Single-Parenthood And Children’S Reading Performance In Asia, Hyunjoon Park

Hyunjoon Park

Using the data from Program for International Student Assessment, I examine the gap in reading performance between 15-year-old students in single-parent and intact families in 5 Asian countries in comparison to the United States. The ordinary least square regression analyses show negligible disadvantages of students with a single parent in Hong Kong and Korea, once students' demographic characteristics and socioeconomic background are held constant. Students in single-parent families in Indonesia and Thailand outperform their peers in intact families. The negative effect of single parenthood remains significant in Japan, even after parent-child communication is controlled. Interpreting the weak effect of single …

Decomposing Consumer Wealth Effects: Evidence On The Role Of Real Estate Assets Following The Wealth Cycle Of 1990-2002, Michael Donihue, Andriy Avramenko

Michael R Donihue

During the period from 1990 to 2002, U.S. households experienced a dramatic wealth cycle, induced by a 369 percent appreciation in the value of real per capita liquid stock-market assets, followed by a 55 percent decline. However, despite predictions at the time by some analysts relying on life-cycle models of consumption, consumer spending in real terms continued to rise throughout this period. Using data that include the period from 1990 to 2005, traditional approaches to estimating macroeconomic wealth effects on consumption confront two puzzles: (i) econometric evidence of a stable cointegrating relationship among consumption, income, and wealth is weak at …

The Case For Early Targeted Interventions To Prevent Academic Failure, Irma Perez-Johnson, Rebecca Maynard

REBECCA A MAYNARD

The persistent achievement gaps among children of different race/ethnicity and socioeconomic status in the United States represent an issue that has commanded public, policy, and research attention on and off for about 100 years now, and it is once again in the forefront of policy-making agendas. Debates nevertheless abound on the most promising and cost-effective strategies to address the problem. We examine critically the available evidence on the benefits and costs of early childhood education and conclude that early, vigorous interventions targeted at disadvantaged children offer the best chance to substantially reduce gaps in school readiness and increase the productivity …

To "Keep The Past In Lively Memory": William Carl Bolivar's Efforts To Preserve African American Cultural Heritage, William Welburn

William C Welburn

The contributions of William Carl Bolivar, a Philadelphia African American bibliophile and journalist, are considered. Bolivar’s interest in historical documentation shaped his sense of interconnectedness with the collective memory of Philadelphia’s black community. His collecting interests are manifested in his column published in the Philadelphia Tribune, in his contributions to the American Negro Historical Society and other social and cultural organizations in Philadelphia, and in a published catalog of portions of his collection. Bolivar’s network of collectors and associates formed a “nucleus for a larger effort” to preserve African American cultural heritage. Their collecting efforts formed the foundation for black …

Greening The Business Economics Curriculum: A Paradigm For Environmental Stewardship In The 21st Century, Asayehgn Desta

Asayehgn Desta