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This report discusses policies and practices that shape quality and equity in early childhood education and care. It examines how the work environment, including the educational background of staff, and the policies that shape teaching approaches affect the quality of the education provided to our youngest learners. The book concludes with an overview of current thinking about how young children use, and are affected by, information and communication technologies (ICT). Linking the way children interact with ICT inside of school to the way they already use it outside of school could be the key to unlocking technology’s potential for learning.

Children learn at a faster rate during the first five years of their life than at any other time, developing cognitive, and social and emotional skills that are fundamental to their future achievements and well-being throughout childhood and as adults. Despite compelling evidence that high quality early childhood education and care programmes can make a crucial difference to children’s progress through school and success in adult life, large differences in access to and the quality of these programmes persist within and across countries.

This issue of Higher Education Management presents papers from the 1996 General Conference of OECD's program on Institutional Management in Higher Education. Papers were presented which addressed themes given priority for the next five years: regionalisation, lifelong learning, and diversification. The impact of major changes in institutional structures on staffing issues is also examined along with the consequences of these changes and current priorities on capital funding and expenditure concerns.

Higher education policy is the key to lifelong learning and this is particularly important as the ageing population is increasing in many countries. It is a major driver of economic competitiveness in an increasingly knowledge-driven global economy and it also brings social cohesion and well-being. Countries are increasingly aware that higher education institutions need to foster the skills required to sustain a globally competitive research base and improve knowledge dissemination to the benefit of society. Kazakhstan’s higher education system has made progress over the past ten years.  However, there is scope for improvement in delivering labour-market relevant skills to Kazakhstanis, and in supporting economic growth through research and innovation.

In examining the higher education system in Kazakhstan, this report builds on a 2007 joint OECD/World Bank review: Reviews of National Policies for Education: Higher Education in Kazakhstan 2007. Each chapter presents an overview of progress made in the past decade across the main areas explored in the 2007 report. These include quality and relevance, access and equity, internationalisation, research and innovation, financing and governance. The report also examines policy responses to evolving dynamics in higher education and the wider socio-economic changes.

Half a million higher education graduates enter the labour market every year in Mexico. While their labour market outcomes are considerably better on average than those of upper secondary education graduates, some higher education graduates face periods of inactivity and unemployment. Many graduates who find work end up being over-qualified or working in the informal sector. This report finds that the Mexican higher education system needs to be better aligned with the labour market to help students develop the skills employers seek. Students need better support to succeed in their higher education studies and develop labour market relevant skills, which will help facilitate their achievement of good outcomes in the workforce. This calls for a comprehensive whole-of-government approach and the involvement of all higher education stakeholders. The report proposes a set of policy recommendations to address these issues and help Mexican higher education graduates achieve better outcomes in the labour market.

The report was developed as part of the OECD Enhancing Higher Education System Performance project and is a companion to the OECD report, The Future of Mexican Higher Education: Promoting Quality and Equity, which focuses on broader issues in higher education, including governance, funding, quality and equity, as well as two key sectors of higher education: teacher education colleges and professional and technical institutions.

Amsterdam has the characteristics of creativeness, openness and diversity that make it attractive to global talent and a young population. It has strong research universities and excellent transport infrastructure including one of the world’s leading airports. It is the financial capital of the Netherlands and home to many multi-national companies. Amsterdam’s cultural and architectural heritage have ensured that it is better-known globally than many cities twice its size.

However, the Amsterdam metropolitan region still has unfulfilled potential. This report looks at how to encourage effective interaction between the higher education sector and the region, not simply on the transfer of technology and knowledge, but on the mobility and skills of people. It considers how to develop and transform the talents and competences both of the young non-Western minority and of the 30+ age-group.

This publication explores a range of helpful policy measures and institutional reforms to mobilise higher education for the development of Amsterdam. It is part of the series of the OECD reviews of Higher Education in Regional and City Development. These reviews help mobilise higher education institutions for economic, social and cultural development of cities and regions. They analyse how the higher education system impacts upon regional and local development and bring together universities, other higher education institutions and public and private agencies to identify strategic goals and to work towards them.

Andalusia is the most populous region in Spain with over 8 million people. Historically a crossroads of three cultures – Hispanic, Jewish and Arabic – it has enjoyed remarkable growth and development over the past decades, but still lags behind the Spanish averages in key socio-economic indicators.

The recent economic crisis has affected Andalusia more than other regions. How can the region and its universities fuel local growth and create jobs and new businesses? How can the Andalusian University System improve students’ learning and employment outcomes? How can the region capitalise on its existing assets and promising clusters?

This publication is part of the series of OECD reviews of Higher Education in Regional and City Development. These reviews help mobilise higher education institutions for economic, social and cultural development of cities and regions. They analyse how the higher education system impacts upon regional and local development and bring together universities, other higher education institutions and public and private agencies to identify strategic goals and to work towards them.