We present new data documenting medieval Europe's "Commercial Revolution'' using information on the establishment of markets in Germany. We use these data to test whether medieval universities played a causal role in expanding economic activity, examining the foundation of Germany's first universities after 1386 following the Papal Schism. We…

Ellen Swallow Richards is traditionally cited as the founder of family and consumer sciences (FCS). A chemist, she drew from her root discipline, applying its concepts to the needs of the family and the individual. Much of what she advocated was based on the work of mid-19th century German chemists, particularly Justus von Liebig. Before Richards…

PISA 2015 data show that, on average across OECD countries, as many as three out of four students from the lowest quarter of socio-economic status reach, at best, only the baseline level of proficiency (Level 2) in reading, mathematics or science. While in Canada, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Hong Kong (China), Ireland, Japan, Korea, the…

As the title suggests, the author provides a description of an international effort to develop an understanding of the present depth and priority of arts policies. As arts policy is not limited to education but formulated at all levels of community, including unions, individuals, philanthropic organizations, and government agencies, policy often…

Despite its increasing popularity and adoption across Europe, Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) is not without its critics. It has been argued that CLIL programmes are highly selective, that is, the students possess more favourable learning prerequisites than their monolingually taught peers. The present study contributes to this…

Following a landmark court ruling in 2005, more than half of Germany's universities started charging tuition fees, which were subsequently abolished until 2015. We exploit the unusual lack of grandfathering in these policies to show that fees increase study effort and degree completion among incumbent students. However, fees also decrease…

This article examines achievement motivation in connection with the political knowledge of upper secondary level pupils at German vocational grammar schools. The influence of achievement motivation in civic courses has been scarcely researched so far. In the expectancy-value model, expectations of success are important determinants of action in…

Resilience refers to the capacity of individuals to prosper despite encountering adverse circumstances. This paper defines academic resilience as the ability of 15-year-old students from disadvantaged backgrounds to perform at a certain level in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) in reading, mathematics and science that…

A problem recognized in the United States is that a K-12 public education in urban communities is more likely to support existing patterns of inequality than to serve as a pathway to opportunity. The specific focus of this research was on the poor academic performance in U.S. K-12 urban communities. Using Benet's polarities of democracy theory as…

If for much of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, the "Battle of the Teutoburg Forest", fought in 9 CE between Roman armies and Germanic tribes, was predominantly a reference point for nationalist and chauvinist discourses in Germany, the first decade of the twenty-first century has seen attempts to link public remembrance with…

Understanding today's Vocational Education and Training (VET) systems requires a comprehension of the rise and development, i.e. of the foundations of topical VET. This book provides a comparative view of its development in Europe. The contributions of renowned authors give insight into conceptual questions, cases, and challenges in this field.

In an effort to better understand how Americans' mobility outcomes compare with those of their counterparts in other nations, the Pew Economic Mobility Project partnered with the Russell Sage Foundation and the Sutton Trust to commission a multi-country study on economic mobility, "Cross-National Research on Intergenerational Transmission of…

Adolescents often do not consider sustainability in their consumption behaviours. Sustainability issues are challenging to communicate through course content alone. Against this background, the concept of fashion libraries (FLs) was introduced to adolescents at a non-denominational school in a small German city. The purpose was to explore whether…

In this reflection paper, Lihe Huang describes his experience studying abroad in Germany as a visiting scholar. Through the well-designed introductory seminar and study tour arranged by the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, which provided the grant for Huang's research on foreign languages teaching and intercultural education in Germany, he…

In this review essay, K. Peter Kuchinke uses three recent publications to consider the question of how to educate young people for work and career. Historically, this question has been central to vocational education, and it is receiving renewed attention in the context of concerns over the ability of schools to provide adequate preparation for…