The crisis caused by the COVID-19 virus has far-reaching effects in the field of education, as schools were closed in March 2020 in many countries around the world. In this article, we present and discuss the School Barometer, a fast survey (in terms of reaction time, time to answer and dissemination time) that was conducted in Germany, Austria…

Few realize that, historically, the women elected to serve as "Queens" of Howard University, were often reflections of political, social, and cultural issues of the time. This parade of beauty, intellect, and charm, was an unofficial barometer of where the University as well as the country stood on matters that pertained to cultural…

Students in introductory college science courses often have a simplified understanding of the scientific method. To introduce students to the complexity of the scientific process and the value of empirical observations, I implemented a semester-long assignment that required introductory-level college science students to build and calibrate weather…

This paper critiques the idea that secular education policy can neutrally recognise children's non/religious identities at school. It also empirically analyses how one child becomes restricted by, and eludes, classed, gendered and adult-centred moral codes enacted through local school recognition. The concept of "policy assemblage" is…

This article evaluates the degree to which international students are satisfied with different dimensions of their university experience, namely, their arrival, living, learning, and support service experiences. Using quantitative survey research methods based on data from the International Student Barometer (ISB), the study evaluates the…

Do teachers spend more time on actual teaching and learning in a typical lesson compared to previous years? Do they feel prepared to teach when they start teaching? What sort of continuous professional development programmes do they participate in and how does it impact their practice? This report looks first at how teachers apply their knowledge…

Joseph O. Milner explores a narrowing of differences between English teacher educators and classroom teachers. Using North Carolina as a national barometer for his action research, Milner cites the shifting attitudes of classroom teachers toward the shared values of English teacher educators, and he opens the door for similar research projects in…

Even though a first-year writing course remains a near-standard component of the college experience, its "content" and the "path" students take to enroll in it are not so standard. Two recent changes at a public, land-grant institution with a selective admission policy and an undergraduate population of approximately 10,000…

This paper examines voluntarism as a response to the challenges faced by people growing old in rural communities that are themselves being transformed in fundamental ways, both socially and demographically. Informed by evolving theorisations within the rural aging and geographies of voluntarism literatures, we outline the key processes in space…

In the context of decades of successful economic reforms in Ghana, this study investigates whether ethnicity influences economic well-being (perceived and actual) among Ghanaians at the micro-level. Drawing on Afro-barometer 2008 data, the authors employs logistic and multiple regression techniques to explore the relative effect of ethnicity on…

This paper investigates the influence of the economic, social, and cultural variables on life satisfaction in Asia and Europe. The second section sets a unifying theoretical framework for all three domains by defining life satisfaction as a function of aspirations and expectations which in turn are affected by micro- and macro-level variables. On…

A Course Barometer is a method for addressing the loss of informal feedback in a distance education setting. Originally proposed and used at the University of Trollhattan Uddevella this paper describes how the idea of a course barometer has been adopted by Central Queensland University. The paper suggests connections between anonymity, observable…

The purpose of this report is to review the body of literature concerned with reducing school failure by improving equity in schools and classrooms. The literature review will be used to inform the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Project "Overcoming School Failure: Policies that Work" and hopefully, future educational…

Our main objective in this paper is to evaluate the possible association between interpersonal mistrust and unhappiness among Japanese people. Based on cross-sectional data for the Japanese general population from the Asia Barometer Survey (2003-2006), we analyzed the relationship between interpersonal mistrust and unhappiness using a logistic…

Many policymakers feel pressure to claim that No Child Left Behind (NCLB) is boosting student performance, as Congress reconsiders the federal government's role in school reform. But how should politicians and activists gauge NCLB's effects? The authors offer evidence on three barometers of student performance, drawing from the National Assessment…