U21 Ranking of National Higher Education Systems: a project sponsored by Universitas 21
world is free and open education. Free is an attractive ideal, but free and sustainable is an elusive combination. These efforts are ultimately still dependent on the kindness of philanthropists, volunteers, and legislators. The other face the merchants’ vision is the expansion of education as a privatized commodity provided by for-profit companies. Some open-educational innovators, like Wiley with Flat World Knowledge, are turning to the private sector to sustain innovations. Meanwhile, in investor circles from New York to Silicon Valley, the idea of education as a rich field ripe for disruption is gaining more currency than it’s ever had. (121) 6. The regrettable case of the Afghan German Management College is instructive is this regard. According to the 2011 UNDP Report Case Study: AGMC Business Education via Distance Learning detailing its functioning, ‘The AGMC was inaugurated in June 2006 by a small group of military officers of the Armed Federal Forces of Germany who served the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), a NATO-led security mission in Afghanistan’ who saw the need for distance-learning (via Internet), competency based small business training especially for women in rural Afghan villages. Despite the impeccable bona fides of its founders, its innovative nature and non-profit status, it was never able to obtain required accreditation by the Afghan Ministry of Higher Education (due to their requirement that the College have a large resident-learning component at a much higher cost of provision). It has thus been in the process of shutting down operations since the beginning of 2012. (Tim Lehmann, Personal Communication, 1 June, 2012).
When Does FDI Reduce Emigration from Central and Eastern European Countries
This paper investigates the relationship between emigration flows and foreign direct investments (FDI) in Central and Eastern European countries (CEEC). This link is addressed through the following questions: are outgoing labour force and incoming foreign direct investments in those countries complements or substitutes and how does the human capital situation in the country change the effect FDI has on emigration? For the empirical analysis, data from eight CEE countries for the period of 1998-2010 was employed. The estimation results revealed that FDI and the level of educational attainment in the country work as push factors of emigration; however, when interacting, they discourage people from leaving. This suggests that only simultaneous programs should be implemented in the improvement of the educational quality and in the attraction of foreign investors in order to reduce excessive emigration from CEECs.
Predictors of health-promoting behaviors among freshman dental students at Istanbul University.
The aim of this cross-sectional study was to determine the predictors of health-promoting behaviors among freshman dental students at Istanbul University. Data were collected from a convenience sample of 111 students using questionnaires including a sociodemographic section, the Health-Promoting Lifestyle Profile II, the Health Value Scale, the Generalized Self-Efficacy Scale, the Perceived Stress Scale, and the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, t-test, Pearson's correlation, and stepwise multiple linear regression. The overall health-promoting lifestyle behaviors among these students were at a moderate level, indicating that they engaged in health-promoting behaviors sometimes to often. They scored highest on the spiritual growth but lower on the health responsibility subscales. Females reported having engaged more in health responsibility behaviors and lower in physical activity than did males. Students from high-income families reported more physical activity. Significant correlations were found between overall health-promoting lifestyle behaviors, self-efficacy, health value, stress, and social support. Among all the related factors, self-efficacy was the most strongly predictive factor: it explained 61 percent of the variance in overall health-promoting behaviors. Thus, self-efficacy as a cognitive-perceptual factor should be considered by dental educators when planning educational interventions to promote students' healthy lifestyle.