Responses to national reports during October 1984 through May 1985 concerning the state of American higher education are analyzed. Quantitative content analysis and qualitative rehetorical criticism are used to examine responses to national reports. Three national reports are of concern: "Involvement in Learning,""A Nation at…

National reports on higher education are seen as a form of democratic propaganda whose aim is participation. Their progress is described through content analysis of media responses. "Aesthetic judgment" is seen as the key to participation in reform by college faculty and administrators. (Author/MLW)

This report seeks to answer four questions about data used every day in comparing higher education in the United States with that in other countries, particularly the 30 advanced post-industrial democracies, including the United States, that are members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). These questions are: (1)…