Arizona Expands Private School Tuition Tax Credits

Taxpayers receive a dollar-for-dollar reduction on their taxes for up to $750 donated to a school tuition organization.

Arizona is expanding its private school tuition tax creditsonly a day after the U.S. Supreme Court found the program legal, The Arizona Republic reports. In a bill passed by a 27-1 vote, the state Senate has increased donation limits from $500 to $750. The bill also removes donation limits for corporations and insurance companies.

The tax credits allow Arizona taxpayers to divert their income to school tuition organizations and get a dollar-for-dollar reduction on their taxes. According to The Republic, state residents moved $51 million in such a way in 2009. According to the Arizona Department of Revenue, the limit increases will have an impact on the state income tax and state, county and local severance tax collections, reducing them by $25 million and $29 million respectively.

Supporters of the program say it is a money-saving measure for the fiscally crippled state, because it saves the school system $5,200 for every student that transfers out of a public school.

A fiscal analysis of the bill noted that the state would break even from the proposed changes if about 3,300 students transferred to private schools in 2012.

source:http://www.educationnews.org/ednews_today/153306.html

Let's look at all the evidence from top educators abroad

Michael Gove is keen to see what we have to learn from education systems internationally, but the lessons may not be as straightforward as he thinks, says Valerie Hannon

Last week I saw a report that a US congresswoman wanted to change the official value of pi to precisely 3 as a way to help US 15-year-olds, after they came 25th in maths in the latest Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development's world study. The story was a hilarious spoof, but it well illustrates the strength of feeling about these global rankings.

Recently Michael Gove has stressed the importance of comparing education systems internationally, as seen in the OECD's Pisa studies, and of learning from the most successful nations. But what should our response be?

The education secretary enthuses about Andreas Schleicher, of the OECD, calling him the "most important man in English education" for the insights his work confers. Schleicher's analysis, according to Gove, shows, first, that "we [England] are falling further and further behind other nations"; and second, that the key to success is "to recruit the best possible people into teaching and provide them with high-quality training and professional development". This is true – as far as it goes. But it is a partial analysis.

What else have successful systems to tell us about the issues we face today? Schleicher's work demonstrates compellingly that demand for the competencies 20th-century school systems were good at imparting (routine cognitive and manual skills) is falling sharply among employers across the world. He shows that 21st-century systems need to prepare young people with the skills to undertake non-routine analytic and, especially, non-routine interactive tasks. Schleicher's conclusion is: "The skills that are easiest to teach and test are also easiest to digitise, automate and outsource."

The implication of these findings is that systems need to prepare students "to deal with more rapid change than ever before … for jobs that have not yet been created … using technologies that have not yet been invented". This is about learning how to learn, and new ways of thinking that involve creativity, critical thinking, problem-solving and decision-making. It is in sharp contrast to an emphasis on the capacity to reproduce facts. Reducing the debate into a "skills v knowledge" dichotomy is manifestly false. The issue is the right balance between content acquisition, and the skills and dispositions needed to succeed in fundamentally changed conditions. This is the key message of Schleicher and the OECD's work. It is to be hoped that the current curriculum review is permitted to take this wider view.

For this is the perspective being adopted by the world's leading systems. Rather than relying on past achievements, they are reconceiving how they approach the future. Take Finland – always at or near the top of the Pisa rankings. The director of the Finnish board of education has described how their system has identified the key competencies for lifelong learning, and is setting about transforming their system to ensure they're acquired. Critically, this entails enabling learners to "undertake meaningful problem-based inquiry, which might be multi-disciplinary, supported by blended teaching methods and hybrid resources". The Finns aren't giving up on acquiring knowledge. They just know it's not enough.

Then there's South Korea, another "top performing" system. Perceived as exam-driven, cramming its students, Korea is set to change. Exploring the work of its very best schools has revealed that they focus on providing concentrated time for some subjects (rather than shallow drip-feed); on personalising learning; on evaluating creativity; and on experience-based learning. South Korea is basing its innovation agenda on the "three C's": creativity, collaboration and character.

And finally, take one of the most improved cities in the world in terms of education performance – New York City. Gove recently hosted the former chancellor of the NYC school system, praising the rapid progress made by the city. What he omitted, however, was that NYC has acknowledged its current set of school improvement initiatives is inadequate to deal with the challenges young people face. So it has a launched an Innovation Zone, comprising a distributed network of schools, specifically to test and refine new approaches to learning and teaching that are more personalised and emphasise higher-level skills.

So yes, let's join the global education community seeking out the best ways to make learning engaging and relevant to young people in the digital age. But let's do it with open minds, and attention to all the evidence.

Valerie Hannon is a board director of the Innovation Unit.

source:http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2011/mar/29/pisa-international-education-systems-evidence-compare

Playing the Blame Game

Matthew Lynch - With skyrocketing costs, budget crises, inconsistent curricula, poor standardized testing scores, and poor morale among teachers, administrators, and students, the need for sustainable and pervasive educational change is greater now than ever before.

The numbers of questions related to the quality of the U.S. educational system from multiple sectors of society is at an all-time high. Many American parents have seen reports that American schools rank well below schools in countries such as China and Japan, or have heard President Obama declare a “dropout crisis” in the USA. An abundance of news reports and discouraging case studies has created panic among education stakeholders, who want to know why American school systems are failing. However, many insist on playing the “blame game,” which in most cases is counterproductive.

Many Americans believe that only a small percentage of leaders understand the complexities of the school system, and that individuals who do understand the intricacies of the system use their knowledge to justify the mediocre performance of our teachers and students. The American school system is the best-financed system in the world, but is one of the lowest performing. The American school system as a whole has an appalling performance record. For children living in urban environments, the story is even more alarming. Students from low socioeconomic backgrounds are often educated in dilapidated schools where the too many educators lack the credentials and skills necessary to perform their duties adequately. High student-to-teacher ratios are found in most urban schools, and these schools often lack the resources to deal with the diverse challenges they face, including unruly student behavior. Education has been called the great equalizer, but for students living in poverty-stricken urban areas it is little more than a babysitting service and a place to get a hot meal.

Many question whether the No Child Left Behind Act has contributed to achieving academic success. Although NCLB was well intentioned, it has not lived up to the hopes of government or schools. In the eyes of some, NCLB has actually contributed to subpar academics becoming even worse. If American educators and school personnel do not make a concerted effort to develop effective measures to hold schools accountable for the education of all of our children, then the education crisis will continue.

There is an exception to every rule: some urban school systems are providing a quality education. Unfortunately, however, only a small number of school systems meet the state and federal government student performance requirements. For underperforming urban school systems, the problem usually lies with the inability to sustain existing reform efforts and initiatives. Mayors and school superintendents in these areas often concoct grandiose reform plans that are merely political devices meant to beguile voters into believing they genuinely care about educational reform. The idea that politicians create school reform to gain popularity and votes is sad and sobering. It is discouraging to realize that our children’s futures might be used as a political device to win elections.

Politicians are not the only people at fault for the shoddy education American children are receiving, but no one will take responsibility for subpar educational environments. If administrators were asked who was at fault, they might point to a lack of parental involvement and too few quality teachers. If teachers were asked who was at fault they might also cite a lack of parental involvement and ineffective administration. If parents were asked who was at fault they might blame teachers and school administrators. Society in general seems to conclude that the lack of quality teachers, effective administration, and parental involvement are all factors contributing to educational failure.

Whatever the reason, Americans have become the laughing stock of the free world when it comes to K-12 education. The solution, of course, is for the country to unite and work together to carry the responsibility of enriching and continuing America’s future via educational excellence without playing the “blame game.”

source:http://www.educationnews.org/commentaries/152844.html

Indian talent pool in US waiting to be tapped

Most Indian students in the US plan to return home with a desire to give back to the motherland, offering a vast pool of talent that would bring top-rate higher education to India's young, a new study suggests.

India needs to recruit at least one million new faculty members for its college and universities if it is to meet the government's goal of making higher education available to 20 percent of young people by 2020.

India thus may be able to recruit some of the academic talent it needs from the more than 100,000 Indians currently studying in the US, suggests the study by Rutgers University, Pennsylvania State University and the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS).

The survey of nearly 1,000 Indians who are either pursuing or have completed graduate study in the US found that only eight percent strongly prefer to remain in the US.

A majority, or 53 per cent, of them planned to return home from the United States after a few years of work, while 21 per cent said they were either in India already or were actively looking to return. The rest are undecided.

India's booming economy, better chances to secure a good job, the promise of an affluent lifestyle and being closer to family were the factors fuelling the movement home, the survey said.

The study finds the biggest factors deterring master's, PhD students, and post docs from returning to India are red tape, corruption, and absence of research opportunities, it said.

"The results are surprising and encouraging for Indian universities," said David Finegold, dean of the Rutgers' School of Management and Labor Relations, and one of the study's authors.

"We expected that more students would lean heavily toward remaining in the US. But our results suggest many young academics would be interested in pursuing a faculty career in India, if policymakers can address some of the key issues facing the Indian higher education system."

The study identified four key factors affecting the decision to return to India: Quality of life, career growth opportunities, hurdles like red tape and corruption, and a desire to give back to the motherland.

Just one of these four factors - the desire to give back - is strongly associated with a desire to return to India, it said.

"This study suggests some concrete steps that the government can take to address the large and chronic shortages of qualified faculty in India," said Dr. B. Venkatesh Kumar, a co-author of the study who is a Professor at TISS in Mumbai and visiting Penn State this year as a Humphrey Fellow. 

The authors offer a number of proposals that could help India attract new faculty, including creating a new Teach for India Higher Education fellowship programme to provide two- to three-year teaching positions for recent US PhD graduates. 

This could have the twin benefit of filling faculty shortages in India and helping new PhDs in the US who are struggling with a tight job market caused by cutbacks in public higher education.

Other policy proposals include developing leaders for Indian higher education, improving India's academic talent pipeline and enhancing the quality and transparency of higher education governance,

Also suggested are providing research opportunities for as many faculty as possible, raising the quality of state universities and private colleges, providing government-sponsored graduate fellowships and improving the staffing process in Indian universities.

source:http://www.indiaedunews.net/International/Indian_talent_pool_in_US_waiting_to_be_tapped_13687/

USA: Senators restrict public-sector and teacher unions' rights

Republicans in the Wisconsin state senate have approved a regressive plan to strip public-sector and teacher trade unions of most of their collective bargaining rights.

The US state's 14 Democratic senators had sought to prevent the move by fleeing the state, leaving the chamber short of the number needed for a vote, but the Republicans used a rarely used procedural move to allow them to vote on the measure in committee instead.

Crowds of protesters from EI's U.S. affiliates, the AFT and NEA, swamped the state capitol in Madison following the vote.

"The whole world is watching," they shouted as police guarded the entrance to the senate chamber. In the senate gallery, spectators shouted "you are cowards" as voting took place.

The plan has prompted weeks of protests in support of public workers and teachers.

The Republican-controlled state assembly is due to take up the legislation on Thursday morning, after which it will go to Republican Governor Scott Walker for signature.

Mr Walker argues the move is needed to help tackle a $3.6bn budget gap over the next two years but the education unions have said it is intended to weaken the power of the unions, which tend to back the Democrats in elections.

The Democrats had called for the Republicans to compromise over public-sector unions' bargaining rights.

But Mr Walker's proposal was approved by a special conference committee after it was stripped of financial measures, meaning that a quorum was no longer needed in the Senate. No Democrats were present to vote against the legislation. Republican Senator Dale Schultz cast the only 'no' vote.

In a statement published on his website, Governor Walker said: "I applaud the legislature's action today to stand up to the status quo and take a step in the right direction to balance the budget and reform government."

He added that the state's Democratic senators - who fled to neighbouring Illinois nearly three weeks ago to block a vote - had had plenty of chances to come back to Wisconsin and act.

Democratic senate minority leader, Mark Miller, said the Republicans had shown disrespect for the people of Wisconsin and their rights: "Tonight, 18 senate Republicans conspired to take government away from the people. Tomorrow we will join the people of Wisconsin in taking back their government."

State unions had said they would agree to Mr Walker's proposed changes to their benefits - which would amount to an eight per cent pay cut - as long as they retained collective bargaining rights.

National Education Association President, Dennis Van Roekel, said: “These are actions more fitting for comic book arch-villains. A new crop of state leaders have launched blistering attacks on working families disguised as budget and education reforms, and many have sought to strip workers’ rights to have a voice through their union.”

EI General Secretary, Fred van Leeuwen, said: “Educators around the world are behind their U.S. colleagues, and strongly condemn this assault on trade union members’ basic right to collective bargaining.

“Those political leaders who attack education workers with such regressive moves, fail to understand that successful education reform cannot be achieved without the involvement and consent of teachers, education workers and their school communities. EI will make this point, among others, to ensure that the teacher voice is heard at next week’s International Summit on the Teaching Profession in New York, where we will advocate for a strong and respected teaching workforce in all countries.”

source:http://www.ei-ie.org/en/news/show.php?id=1555&theme=rights&country=usa

Global experts at AMU's conference on chemistry

Aligarh: Hundreds of delegates from India and abroad will gather here for a two-day 'international conference on chemistry' being organized by theAligarh Muslim University (AMU) on Saturday.

The conference is being organized as part of AMU's centenary celebrations.

The International Conference on Chemistry:Frontiers and Challenges will see the participation of delegates from the US, Poland, Saudi Arabia andMalaysia. Scientists from India and abroad will also deliver lectures. Around 500 delegates shall present their papers during the conference.

The inaugural function will be held at Kennedy auditorium, organizing committee Chairman Syed Ashfaz Nabi said. Padma Vibhushan awardee, former governor and former AMU Chancellor A.R. Kidwai, will be the chief guest.

source:http://indiaedunews.net/Uttar_Pradesh/Global_experts_at_AMU's_conference_on_chemistry_13640/

India rejects US offer for English teachers for Madrassas

The Indian Government has turned down an American offer to provide experts for teaching English in the Indian Madrassas.

The Human Resources Development department has flatly refused the US proposal of sending Americans to teach English to the Madtrassa schools in various parts of the country.

The US proposal, which came through the ministry of External Affairs, has been rejected on the ground that the Indian government does not want to interfere in the functioning of Madrassas. “Our policy is of non-interference. The Indian government does not play any proactive role and simply monitors educational schemes for Muslims through its minority cell,” Times of India reported quoting the HRD sources as saying.

In India many Madrassas, where Urdu is taught, have already started teaching English.

India has about 7,000 registered Madrassas with some 3.5 lakh students on their rolls.

Another reason, though unstated, is the fear of evoking a political outcry.

“US is seen as an aggressor by Muslims. Any attempt to bring American teachers in madrassas would have been seen as interference,” a source was quoted as saying.

Source: http://news.worldsnap.com/education/india-rejects-us-offer-for-english-teachers-for-madrassas-99985.html

India No. 4 in World's Best Education Destination list

It is an ill-kept secret that Indian education standards are among the best in the world. But now, it's official. India stands at number 4 in the list of most desired education destinations.

The Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC), the body which conducts GMAT recently conducted a survey, which pegged the United States and the United Kingdom at No. 1 and 2, but what has come as a real surprise is India's rank. The third most powerful Asian nation has been placed at the 4th most desired place to study management courses.

GMAT is one amongst the top B-school entrance test which is conducted at global level. Canada has secured the third position in the lot. Even Spain and Israel have appeared in the list among the top preferred destinations for B-schools.

 

Source: http://education.in.msn.com/news/article.aspx?cp-documentid=4611231

Outstanding response to Cambridge IGCSE Enterprise writing competition

We've received more than 650 entries for the Cambridge IGCSE Enterprise student writing competition from all corners of the globe.

The competition is being run to celebrate the launch of Cambridge IGCSE Enterprise. Learners in Cambridge schools were asked to write a short essay on their favourite entrepreneur, how that entrepreneur inspires them, and what question they would put to their chosen entrepreneur if they had the chance to meet them.

Entries have come in from South America, the United States, Europe, the Middle East, Sub-Saharan African, and Asia Pacific.

Favourite entrepreneurs include shoe designer, Jimmy Choo and Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg, Oprah Winfrey, Sir Richard Branson and Michael Dell among many others. Some students named their entrepreneurial parents as their favourite, while many successful entrepreneurs in students' home towns have been used as the subject of the essay.

The deadline for the competition was 11 February and the entries are now being considered by a panel of judges.

Nick Mazur, Marketing Manager for Cambridge IGCSE Enterprise, said he had been delighted with the response.

'The competition has captured the imagination of Cambridge learners around the world,' he said. 'Cambridge IGCSE Enterprise teaches students about the real world of business and is a dynamic course that students are enjoying. The subject is currently being piloted in schools around the world and students will take their first exams this June. It's obvious from the entries that the entrepreneurial spirit is something young people can connect with. The quality of entries has been excellent. The judges will have a hard task choosing the winner.'

The winner will be announced during March and will receive an Amazon voucher to the value of £100 for their school as well as a box set of the BBC TV series Dragons' Den.

Source: http://www.cie.org.uk/news/announcements/detail?announcement_id=37199

Forget fuel costs, US farmers cheer oil surge

Kansas City, Missouri/Winnipeg, Manitoba: Not too long ago, a surge in oil prices such as this week’s would have caused a groan of misery from the US farm belt, forced to pay higher prices for tractor fuel and fertilizer. Today, farmers are far more likely to cheer.

The farm sector’s response to a surge in fuel costs has inverted for two important reasons: the rise of biofuels now means more corn and soybeans are likely to be drawn into the fuel pool; and the disconnect between natural gas and crude prices means fertilizer costs are not being dragged higher.

While neither trend is new, it’s been put in sharp relief this week as US oil prices surge to $100 for the first time since 2008 amid Middle East unrest.

On balance, the surge is far more likely to lend support for a near-record corn sowing season than it is to crimp farm income through higher costs for crop chemicals and transportation charges, analysts say.

“All indications are that the only thing that will keep a farmer from planting this year is if he drops dead walking out the door ... and then somebody else will grab his tractor and plant for him,” said Missouri corn farmer Richard Oswald.

“There is every incentive in the world to plant. High oil prices are just one more incentive.”

In addition, the surge has come long after most farmers have tilled their fields and locked in fertilizer purchases, leaving them better prepared than in 2007-2008, according to National Corn Growers Association CEO Rick Tolman.

“When we saw this (runup) a couple years ago, it really raised input prices and squeezed the margin,” said Tolman.

This year input costs may pinch, but they won’t puncture the upbeat mood. Grain futures have fallen sharply this week as risk-averse speculators flee the market, but most remain within sight of their records struck in 2008.

Profits this year look to be strong. The US department of agriculture has forecast farm income to be $94.7 billion in 2011, up 19.8% from the 2010 forecast and the second highest inflation-adjusted value in the past 35 years.

Limited impact

To be sure, higher oil prices raise transportation costs for farmers just like everyone else.

However, fuel to run farm machinery, trucks and other equipment accounts for only a tiny portion of overall inputs -- about 3% of the total cost of growing corn on an acre of land in central Illinois this year, said Gary Schnitkey, professor of farm management at University of Illinois.

That’s more than offset by the bullish impact on grain prices.

“I think crude oil probably causes (crop) commodity prices to go up more than costs,” Schnitkey said.

Another important factor is natural gas, used to make urea, a source for nitrogen fertilizer used on corn. Fertilizer generally accounts for more than 40 percent of the total operating costs for corn, versus 16 percent for soybeans, according to US department of agriculture data.

Until the past few years, a rise in oil prices would almost certainly have dragged natural gas higher; however the discovery of decades’ worth of cheap domestic shale gas has put a semi-permanent damper on the market, keeping prices at unseasonally low levels even as oil surges.

Partly as a result of the benign natural gas cost, fertilizer prices look to hold steady through the US spring planting season and then soften, said David Asbridge, president of NPK Fertilizer Advisory Services in St. Louis, Missouri.

“At the world level, we’ve got plenty of nitrogen fertilizer,” he said. “We’ve got a lot of imports coming into the US and there’s really no reason for prices to stay as high as they are.”

Oil prices have risen to a record premium over natural gas on an energy-equivalent basis. Natural gas futures traded below $4 per million British thermal units (mmBtu) on Thursday, near a three-month low.

Political unrest in Libya, which pumps nearly 2% of world oil output has sent Brent crude prices near $120 a barrel to a two-and-a-half-year high this week.

Upbeat countryside

All that means the mood in the countryside remains fairly ebullient as corn futures prices hold over $6.00 a bushel and government agricultural officials look for American farmers to plant 92 million acres to corn this spring, up from 88.2 million acres in 2010/11.

Ethanol makers are expected to consume a record 5 billion bushels of corn this year, or about 36% of the harvest, the USDA says.

And with strong global food demand for a growing population, food prices are forecast to rise 3.5% this year, nearly double the overall inflation rate.

This year, with natural gas costs staying low, and global demand for short supplies of corn strong, farmers won’t be deterred from planting corn.

“This year, with the price of corn where it is, and the yield advantage of corn over soybeans and the fact that it’s good to rotate, all of those are in favor of corn holding its acreage,” said North Dakota State University agronomist Joel Ransom.

source:http://www.livemint.com/2011/02/25113137/Forget-fuel-costs-US-farmers.html

India asks US to prevent exploitation of foreign students

New Delhi: India on Wednesday said it expected the US to prevent its universities from exploiting foreign students, as has happened in the case of Tri-ValleyUniversity in California in which about 1,500 Indians face an uncertain academic future.

External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna, in a suo motu statement in the Lok Sabha, said the government was confident that the "unfortunate development" in the Tri-Valley University would not affect the "excellent cooperation" between India and the US in higher education, under which over a lakh Indian students are studying in American universities.

"The government expects the United States would take steps to prevent such (Tri-Valley) universities from exploiting foreign students. The government would also advise Indian students to exercise due diligence in applying to foreign universities," he said soon after the Question Hour ended.

"I am confident that this unfortunate development will not affect the excellent cooperation between India and theUnited States in higher education, which includes the presence of over 100,000 Indian students at US universities, and who enjoy a strong reputation for academic accomplishments and responsible conduct," he added.

Krishna said while India recognized the right of every government to investigate and prosecute fraud, it has asked the US government that all Tri-Valley students, who are themselves victims of fraud, should be given adequate time and opportunity to transfer to other universities or adjust their status. And, if they desired so, they should be allowed to return to India honorably.

Noting that the US government had closed Tri-Valley University last month foralleged immigration fraud and other irregularities, Krishna said the university was authorized in February 2009 to admit a limited number of foreign students, but had not enjoyed state accreditation.

Its 1,500 Indian students constituted 95 percent of enrolment at the university and they were there on valid visas or authorization.

"US authorities had questioned a number of Indian students and 18 of them were initially detained and then released with radio monitoring devices on their ankles, pending completion of their investigations for possible involvement in irregularities," he said.

Krishna said India had strongly protested the radio collars as "unacceptable", which should be removed immediately and the US authorities had begun progressively removing them.

The US authorities, he said, have also assured that innocent students would have adequate opportunity to readjust their status or transfer to other universities.

Assuring that the government and the Indian embassy and consulates general in the US were fully engaged in addressing the welfare and academic future of the affected students, the minister said the Indian mission had got in touch with most of the students despite them being dispersed across the US without registering their new contact details.

The embassy and consulates "have provided all possible assistance to them, including through direct meetings, by organizing a free legal aid camp and issuing appropriate guidance and advisories", he added.

Krishna said that he personally took up the matter with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Indian Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao had also conveyed India's concerns to American authorities during her visit to the US.

source:http://indiaedunews.net/International/India_asks_US_to_prevent_exploitation_of_foreign_students_13579/

US: New funding models for international education

One year ago, in a speech to American international education leaders in Washington DC, Chancellor Nancy Zimpher (pictured) of the State University of New York argued that presidents, chancellors and senior administrators cannot simply talk about making their campuses more internationalised - they must do something. She said: "Rhetoric is not going to get it done. We have to commit ourselves, we have to hold ourselves to public action." 

In the year since her speech, we at SUNY have been moving toward an approach we call 'performance-based reinvestment', which is designed to create the financial resources needed to achieve sweeping internationalisation goals. And we have developed tools that we hope will assist other American institutions of higher education to also meet their potential. This approach and these tools can be effective even as budgets are slashed.

It is particularly timely that this approach be shared now, given the administration's recently announced '100,000 Strong Initiative' and Obama's call in his State of the Union address to reform immigration laws so that the US retains talented and responsible foreign graduates of its colleges and universities.

With these calls, the Obama administration is clearly signalling the need for an aggressive posture both on the outbound and inbound sides of the international education equation. 

The dilemma

As Zimpher observed last year, many college and university presidents have made it a standard part of their talking points to set increasing targets for study abroad, faculty international engagement and curricular internationalisation.

While those of us charged with achieving these international objectives applaud this increased attention to the importance of internationalisation, many of us also note that in this economic environment the rhetoric is rarely matched by the budget to achieve these lofty goals. In fact, in many cases our international budgets are simultaneously being cut, even as ever-higher objectives are set.

With diminished resources and increasing expectations, is it better for international officers to encourage institutional leadership to pull back? In essence, to reduce expectations? We think not. Far better would be to persuade campus leadership to adopt a new approach that will increase our capacity to achieve the objectives that have been so publicly and repeatedly advocated, by both campus and national leaders.

But to do this we need entirely new sources of funds; ideally, funds that are sustainable and within our ability to nurture and grow. The approach being pursued by SUNY is intended to break the shackles of diminished resources and expectations.

SUNY's approach: Performance-based reinvestment

The United States remains the most desired destination for international students, and demand for international education continues to grow at a high rate. Yet despite the large numbers of international students on US shores, these students comprise less than 4% of our total enrolment in higher education.

Furthermore, although overall enrolment is currently at a national high water mark, all projections show looming declines in domestic enrolment, as the current demographic bulge moves through the system and the economy improves - both of which are inevitable over the next two to four years. In other words, we must anticipate increasing absorptive capacity at many US institutions. 

We must strategically tap into this market to both internationalise our campuses and provide the financial resources to achieve our objectives. It is critical to create a 'virtuous circle', connecting new income associated with international student tuition with the other imperatives of internationalisation, ie study abroad scholarships, faculty internationalisation grants, scholars-at-risk funding, international services infrastructure, etc. 

Showing your institution the way

The capacity building model we are advocating requires two things. First, senior university administrators must admit that their rhetoric is not currently matched with adequate funding. Second, they must agree to make international student recruitment a priority, but that it must be linked to the other key internationalisation goals. In other words re-invest some negotiated quantum of that new, 'found' revenue into the areas mentioned above.

It is time to put their money where their mouth is - and the strategy we outline here can help them do so.

SUNY has developed a simple forecasting model - a tool - that provides institutions with the means to make a compelling case for internal change. It allows administrators to demonstrate in concrete numbers how goals and allocations affect each other, and the desired outcomes.

Using this model, leaders can demonstrate the advantages of redirecting some percentage of incoming international tuition revenue back toward international operations holistically. It is up to each institution to determine how these funds would be allocated among its various priorities, be they study abroad scholarships, faculty internationalisation grants, programme subsidies, or professional development and administrative support systems. 

At SUNY we believe that with our tuition structure a 'sweep' of about 18% of the first year's international student tuition will be sufficient to meet very ambitious internationalisation goals. At your institution, the percentage may be less or more.

One thing is certain, however: much can be done with even a remarkably small 'sweep'. The forecasting model we have developed has allowed SUNY to test our recruiting assumptions against our core internationalisation capacity objectives. Other institutions can do the same. 

We encourage all colleges and universities to explore your own opportunities using this tool. Even small numbers can create meaningful impacts at small institutions; five new study abroad scholarships per year as a result of this strategy means five lives changed. However we believe that, in most cases, the benefits can be far more significant than just a few scholarships.

Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton have issued a challenge with the '100,000 Strong Initiative', asking us to dramatically increase study abroad to China, yet providing no tangible funding sources beyond the suggestion that it be found by us in the private sector. 

How better to fund initiatives such as this one, than through revenue generated by incoming international student tuition revenue, which is, in fact, private sector-based? 

Time for action, from the top and from below

Now is the time for American colleges and universities to make the case for a more coherent national policy toward the export of US higher education services, and the recruitment of international students as a key component of that export trade.

There must be a rational discussion among key government agencies, including the Department of State, the Department of Commerce and the Department of Education, as well as leading educational associations and bodies such as NAFSA, IIE, AIEA, APLU, ACE, AIRC, the College Board and others. Now is the time for a summit designed to chart a new direction. 

But institutions should not wait for the summit. They can start at home, with their own institution. Now. They can share their successes and frustrations as they work toward a common goal of becoming the most internationalised system of higher education in the world, providing opportunities for all students to obtain the international experiences that they need to become productive members of the global workforce. 

SUNY's forecasting model is designed to allow all types of institutions - small and large, public and private - to concretely demonstrate how the changes advocated here can produce positive, tangible capacity improvements in a very short time. The model can be downloaded here.

* Mitch Leventhal is Vice-chancellor for Global Affairs at the State University of New York (SUNY). A version of this article was sent to members of the Association of International Education Administrators earlier this year. The AIEA holds its annual conference from 20-23 February. 

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source:http://www.universityworldnews.com/article.php?story=20110211204106430

France wants to 'reinvent' English language teaching from age three

Philippines probes collusion with bogus schools; US publisher to target mobile learning in India; Rwanda threatens teacher training truants with sack

French Minister for National Education Luc Chatel is keen to start language learning in nurseries. Photograph: Mehdi Fedouach/AFP/Getty Images

Children could start learning English in France's nursery schools from age three as part of a strategic review of language education launched by education minister Luc Chatel.

Chatel announced last month that he wanted to "reinvent the learning of English" in schools. He said a team of specialists were examining a range of options aimed at boosting young people's skills in English and other foreign languages.

Specialists would investigate starting learning from age three, he said. "We have been experimenting with this and there have been some good results," he said.

He also wants to develop online language learning and to encourage more secondaryschool children to go on language-study trips to English-speaking countries.

But the minister's commitment to high-quality language teaching has been called into question. As part of cuts to education budgets announced last month, schools are likely to lose up to 1,000 specialist language assistants from classrooms from the start of the next academic year.

According to the Le Monde newspaper, educationalists are sceptical about using computers for language learning from such a young age. "Putting three-year-olds in front of computers?" asked Christian Chevalier, general secretary of the SE-Unsa teachers' union. "We are not opposed to developments in teaching that are useful. But you need a human to impart knowledge. Only a high-quality teacher who can speak English can teach the language," he said.

Philippines investigates collusion with fake schools

The Philippines bureau of immigration last month launched an internal investigation into the conduct of some of its officers, who are alleged to have helped bogus English language schools bring students into the country from South Korea.

Bureau acting commissioner Ronaldo Ledesma told the Philippines News Agency that a surge in the number of foreign nationals who were studying without permits could be linked to immigration staff working with language schools.

Ledesma said the investigations followed the recent arrest of 86 South Koreans and two Japanese minors found studying without visas. Last month 70 South Korean minors were held after a raid on a school at a resort in Batagas province, PNA reported.

US publisher to target mobile learning in India

US education publisher McGraw-Hill is to collaborate with technology services provider Wipro to deliver training content, including English language lessons, via mobile phones and laptops to users in developing countries. The mConnect platform will be piloted in India.

Meanwhile, US dictionary publisher Merriam-Webster has launched a version of its English language dictionary for iPhone users with voice recognition. Merriam-Webster claims that the free app allows users to look up a word by speaking it into their handsets.

Rwanda threatens teacher training truants with sack

Rwanda's ministry of education has warned teachers who failed to take part in a five-week English proficiency training course that they could be sacked.

Over 50,000 teachers were expected to take part in training as part of a national strategy to introduce English as the medium of instruction in schools. According to the government, 96% of teachers enrolled in the session, which ended in December.

Emmanuel Muvunyi, executive secretary of the teacher service commission in Kigali, told the New Times newspaper: "We know [the teachers] and we are going to take appropriate measures."

Max de Lotbinière
max.delotbiniere@guardian.co.uk

source:http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/internationaleducationnews