The issue of vocational learning (VL) for older workers (OWs) has become pivotal in European regions with an ageing workforce and facing economic changes and pressure to innovate. European Union policies recognize the value of formal, non-formal and informal learning to enhance workers’ skills, but report low participation of OWs in continuing formal VL. I contend that EU documents conceptualize learning according to a ‘cognitivist’ view and motivation as an individual endeavour, failing to acknowledge OWs’ subjectivities and working activities in providing the context for the development of their motives for learning. I adopt Cultural-Historical Activity Theory (CHAT) to direct the attention to the OWs’ subjectivities and their personal relationships with their objects of activities (work). CHAT allows subjectivities and activities to be brought together in a holistic framework. To illuminate the different ways in which objects influence motivation and learning, I introduce sociological strategies of production as objects of industrial activities and identify two radically different models as mass production and flexible specialization. Two case studies, based on unstructured interviews with OWs and managers in two firms representing both production models, provide elements to analyse the interrelation between OWs’ activities objects and their personal senses of these. My thesis concludes that: (i) OWs’ relation with their work contexts, rather than their personal qualities, influences their engagement in their working practices and leads to the development of motives for learning; (ii) strategies of production influence the intensity and richness of OWs’ workplace learning; (iii) OWs’ previous and parallel experiences of active roles contribute to the judgement of the current work and to engagement in this; (iv) EU policies for VL need to take into account how to support the OWs’ engagement in their jobs.

In general, educational practices in Zairean secondary schools point to a positivistic orientation to literacy, in spite of the fact that one of the stated aims of secondary education is to encourage independent thinking in students. For this reason, one of the aims of the present study was to promote greater independence in students by presenting a humanistic-interpretive approach to reading, as demonstrated by the practice of sustained silent reading. For this purpose, some of the students involved in the study (the experimental subjects) were presented with graded readers in English, in a 20h (1h/week) experimental reading programme. Moreover, in keeping with the view of reading as a unitary process, transferable across languages, a second aim of the study was to explore the possibility of transfer in reading ability between French as a L2 and English as a FL. Data were supplied by experimental and control subjects from questionnaires and cloze passages in French, and in English, that were administered before and after the reading programme. These data failed to provide unequivocal evidence for the expected transfer and improvement, and reasons are offered for this outcome. Nonetheless, the experimental subjects performed as well as the control subjects at the second administration of the measurement instruments. In other terms, one hour of sustained silent reading in English, along with 4 hours of traditional EFL teaching, appeared to be as educationally beneficial as the usual 5 hours/week orally driven, teacher-directed EFL classroom practice.

This study explores the policy-planning process in the provision of higher education in contemporary Mexico. A theoretical framework is developed by drawing upon current discussion on higher education coordination and planning. Particular emphasis is given to the relationships between their interactive and technical concerns. This analysis suggests that policy-planning in higher education is a process in which the disciplinary concerns of those academics involved co-exist with their vested interests. A "political nature" of policy-planning in higher education becomes apparent when the disciplinary concerns and the conflicting vested interests of academics converge. It is thus not necessarily the 'politician' who brings to this process its political dimension. The System for Permanent Planning of Higher Education (SiNaPPES), established in 1978 as the principal mechanism for the formulation of higher education policy in Mexico, is used as a case study and is at the heart of the discussion. An examination of the creation and subsequent operation of the SiNaPPES mechanism reveals the 'political nature' of the rationale behind its establishment. The analysis thus provides two perspectives on the creation of SiNaPPES. The concern of its formal history is technical planning while in the second, its alternative interpretation, is interactive planning. The analysis of the formal history that planning has not been fully achieved is challenged. The thesis argues that SiNaPPES, has been successful as a means of coordinating institutions and academics in higher education. The analysis is restricted to the period 1970-1986 leading up to the creation and operation of SiNaPPES in 1978 and the publication in 1986 of the third version of the National Plan for Higher Education (PNES). The study is supported by documentary evidence and interviews with those academics closely associated with the creation of SiNaPPES.

The central argument of this thesis is that the contradictions between modernisation and restoring a national identity, drawn from the Arab-Islamic culture, have generated tensions in the Maghreb (Algeria, Morocco, and Tunisia). The thesis concentrates on the particular problems posed 4y language and language policies in these contemporary circumstances. Chapter One provides an overview of the major concerns of the thesis, with a special stress on cultural and language questions. The main argument of Chapter Two is that Western theories of development are based on the assumption of the universality of the Western model, and undervalue the social and cultural elements of developing nations, including the Maghreb. Chapter Three extends the analysis to the role of language and nationalism in the process of nation building and analyses, with special reference to Algeria, the contradictions between development policies drawn from the West, and language policies stressing an Arab-Islamic identity. This chapter deals particularly with the problems of having Arabic as the national language and French as the operational language. Chapter Four examines comparatively the interrelationship between language policies and the social and educational contexts of the Maghreb. The arguments of the chapter are: that language policies have been influenced more by ideological than practical considerations; that contradictions at the political level are reflected in the social and educational contexts; that these contradictions are affecting the educational system adversely. Chapter Five draws the themes of the thesis together, and reassesses contemporary difficulties over language policies in the context of modernisation problems. The chapter makes proposals for new language policies in a complex linguistic, cultural and economic, situation, with some concluding comments on the specific case of Algeria.

In inner London 7.5% of the school population is of mixed heritage, yet little is known about their experiences in the education system. Data from the 2001 Census shows that over half of mixed heritage children under the age of 16 have social backgrounds that suggest a strong middle class dimension, yet, as a group, they have persistently underachieved at school. This challenges associations between social class and success at school suggesting that other factors might well influence school experience. This thesis explores how mixed heritage children's school experiences are shaped by the ways in which others perceive their identities and make assumptions about their lives, based mainly on the colour of their skin. It examiners why some children are more able to develop the resilience to cope with these experiences than others. An inductive approach to data gathering was used. Exploratory interviews were conducted with an opportunity sample, semi structured interviews with education professionals and focus groups with a small-scale sample of mixed heritage children in an inner London Borough. Themes that emerged challenge suggestions that we have moved to a point where ethnic and racial groupings are less relevant than data on children's social backgrounds, suggesting that all mixed heritage children, regardless of social background, experienced racial discrimination, teachers' inaccurate perceptions about their identities and backgrounds and low expectations of their abilities and aptitude for learning. Whilst educational professionals explained that they knew little about these children and were unaware of any issues they faced, children appeared to be "invisible" at school, absent from policies and curriculum materials. Many lacked opportunities to discuss their identities both at home and school. These issues particularly influenced boys' school experiences. Whilst this research enables many mixed heritage childrens's voices to be heard for the first time, it argues that the challenges many face present a threat to their capacity to fulfil their potential and their sense of belonging in the school community.

This thesis is an analysis of the relevance of curriculum, especially school curriculum to socio-economic needs. After an Introduction which is Chapter I, Chapter II identifies from the Kothari the Education Commission 1964-1966 an interpretation of the socio-economic needs of India, the role of education, and how curriculum might contribute to development. The thesis argues that the theoretical position adopted by this Commission is understandable within the paradigm of "modernization" theory. The Kothari Commission's position and educational recommendations are analysed within a framework developed by Bill Williamson in his book Education. Social Structure and Development. In Chapters III and IV the various problems in education and development are analysed through the categories of relevance, equality and balance identified by Williamson which leads to some contrast and comparison with the theory positions adopted by the Kothari Commission. Chapters Five, Six and Seven continue the analysis by assessing the relationship between socio-economic development and education in historical context (Chapter V); in terms of major curriculum policies (Chapter VI); and in terms of selected curriculum practice (Chapter VII). The organizing theme running through the analysis relates to whether Indian education might be understood specifically in terms of 'dependency' as identified by Williamson, and how far India fits within concepts of a 'Dependent Society' pattern. Overall, the thesis falls into two parts. The first develops the theoretical basis which finally focusses on the significance of curriculum for development. The second part of the thesis concentrates on curriculum content and change in India, with some specification of the balance between national and international influences on education and curriculum. The thesis concludes with a commentary on the theory positions of Kothari and Williamson, identified in the first part of the thesis in the light of the evidence assembled in the second part of the thesis.

This thesis deals with the relationship between curriculum proposal and curriculum practice in the Brazilian Educational System. The thesis argues that there is a wide gap between curriculum proposal and the curriculum practice in Brazilian education. This argument is approached from the perspective of mediation processes, which occur between these curriculum phenomena. The study covers the period 1970 - 1990. Following the Introduction, Chapter One, based on the review of relevant literature on curriculum proposal and curriculum practice, analyses the state of the Brazilian Primeiro Grau [First Level] School, as regulated by the Educational Law 5.692, of 1971. Chapter Two examines some of the theories related to curriculum reforms, curriculum proposal and curriculum practice in order to provide a basis for the approach proposed for this study. Using the findings of Chapter One, this Chapter points to three arenas that are especially relevant for the relationship between curriculum proposal and curriculum practice. These arenas are: political support, bureaucratic structure and teacher training. In Chapter Three, fieldwork is carried out in Germany in order to refine the mediation concept and to look at how it operates in a country where one expects good education results. Chapter Four covers the fieldwork carried out in Brazil, more specifically in the State of Rio de Janeiro, in 1990. This research studies the mediation processes which occur in the relationship between curriculum proposal and curriculum practice in the three selected arenas. Finally, in the Conclusion, the major outcomes of this study, based on the evidence described in the previous chapters, are brought together. Understandings of the mediation processes, active in the three selected arenas in the relationship between curriculum proposal and curriculum practice in Brazil, are highlighted.

This thesis examines the inability of the Brazilian State to accomplish effectively its constitutional duty to deliver elementary education to all children of 7 to 14 years of age. The overall argument in this thesis is that there is a lack of "political will- on the part of the Brazilian State to resolve this problem. The concept of "lack of political will is theorised as "lack of conditions existing in the State enabling it to be an actor in elementary education". The thesis has six chapters. Chapter One introduces the problem, the arguments, and the structure of the thesis, and discusses the theoretical basis of the thesis. Chapter Two tests the arguments against data on the relationship of the State to elementary education in the Vargas Era (1930-1945). Chapter Three tests the arguments against data on the relationship of the State to elementary education during the Redemocratisation Period (1946-1964). Chapter Four compares the arguments with data on the State's relationship to elementary education during the Military Regime (1964-1985). Chapter Five examines the arguments in relation to data on the relationship of the State with elementary education in the period of the New Republic and the Collor Government (1985-1992). Finally, Chapter Six presents the Conclusions and Recommendations of the thesis. The main conclusion of the thesis is that it is possible to create the necessary conditions for the State to function as an actor in elementary education.

This thesis examines the cost-effectiveness of the Greek Supplementary Schools with respect to the two aims they pursue: 1. The good performance of their students in the A-level Modern Greek examination and 2. The maintenance of a 'Greek cultural identity' by their students. In the study I used a random sample of nine schools with 203 students from successive year cohorts. The data was collected through questionnaires, interviews, and group conversations. The ML3 package and the value added method were employed to analyse the factors affecting the A-level results. Discourse analysis with some elements of conversation analysis was used to examine the cultural aim of the schools. The study found that there are differences in the cost-effectiveness of the different Greek Supplementary schools. These differences are mainly due to the student intake (GCSE grade) and to the school type, that is whether it is a church school, a parent's association school or an independent school. The cost of the school appears to have a negative effect on performance, but the effect disappears when the type of school dummy is included. The study also showed that girls do slightly better in the exams than boys and that educated mothers positively influence the performance of students. Also, certain characteristics of the teachers and head teachers as well as factors related to the school organisation and ethos were found to have an effect on the A-level grades. The cultural analysis showed that the school did not appear to be responsible for creating the Greek Identity of students, but developed and reinforced what the family had already given. When the two main types of analysis were brought together, it was found that these two aims are jointly pursued in these schools. The findings of this research will be of use to decision makers in the field of educational provision in the Greek Supplementary Schools. The results show that cost-effectiveness analysis is a useful tool that should be used in school effectiveness studies. The study also shows that in analysing the cost-effectiveness of schools the multi level approach has significant advantages over simple input-output methods.

This thesis is centrally about knowledge changes and inclusive education in Latin America. It explores the ways in which politics of knowledge and teacher professional activity have changed, seem to be changing and resist change in the light of state policies which relate knowledge, literacy, technology and ESOL education as part of a strategic educational plan for sustained development and the inclusion of vulnerable sectors in the region. It reports the findings of a qualitative research study carried out in the field of ESOL literacy development in the second largest South American system of education, the province of Buenos Aires, using multiple methods of data collection. The thesis intends to assess what the present politics of knowledge are and to describe the ways ESOL teachers embrace change at ideological and practical levels when faced with novel policies. Findings show inconsistencies between theory and practice that place at risk innovation and the possibility of inclusive education and democratic participation of vulnerable social sectors in a knowledge society. These inconsistencies are evidenced in teachers‟ ineffective strategies to embody those changes in their daily practice, in highly complex contexts of work, by ignoring students‟ needs, by structuring authoritarian interaction patterns in class and by neglecting curricular aims. Also, ideological clashes are disclosed through contradictions between politicians´ discourses and the strategies implemented top down to support policies in educational institutions with vulnerable intakes. The main contribution of this thesis is the notion that this mismatch between policies and politics in the Province of Buenos Aires results in anarchic conditions of work in schools and the inexorable reproduction of inequality evidenced in schooling without learning, the ghettoisation of schools and effective ESOL education restricted to upper social classes. To conclude, as a further contribution of this thesis beyond mere analysis, I will explore a possible contextualization strategy of policy implementation and context bound teacher education provisions to address the needs in ESOL teacher education found in my research context.