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Several matters are considered as they relate to the possibility of establishing a research community on higher education in Sweden: the characteristics of such a community and its importance to the future of education; the organization of applied research in higher education, including statistical services, special studies, and policy analysis; commissioned research; the logistics of a research unit; and alternative means of support for a research community. A bibliography is included. (MSE)

Approaches to analyze the reform of higher education in Sweden, and particularly the organization of studies in higher education, are considered. Three starting points are as follows: examining the intentions constituting the background to the present organization of studies, considering continuing developments and attitudes toward problems; and analyzing the educational structure existing when the reform is implemented. Aims of the new organization of studies were that a diversity of forms was to be superseded by uniformity, and that it would also be flexible for new developments. Uniformity was designed to provide greater clarity about the range of educational opportunities to assist prospective students and employers. The organization of studies was also designed to provide clearer documentation for the decision-making bodies. To elucidate the structure of the range of separate courses, a survey will be undertaken of courses at all higher education units in three higher education regions. Additional assessment areas are considered. (SW)

Theoretical issues concerning research and policy-making and three empirical studies of the higher education sector in Sweden are discussed. A major concern is the utilization of social science research and development efforts by public policy makers. Additionally, the characteristics of the public policy-making processes that influence the scope and character of utilization are considered. Topics of empirical study include: the quantitative planning of higher education, social recruitment, the geographic location of higher education, policy-making organization of higher education, and educational methods in higher education. Additional concerns for empirical analysis are the part that research and development can and should play in the reform system of higher education and a followup of higher education reform in relation to cognitive production and the dissemination of knowledge. (SW)

A teaching system practiced in the Swedish DUNE project, Subproject III, offered an alternative to the usual concentrated form of higher education. An attempt was made to solve the problem of educational distribution by cooperative efforts among municipal authorities, adult education associations, and two postsecondary establishments, the university of Lund and Linkoping College. The subjects selected were English and economics, and teaching was conducted at half speed. The target group included employed persons, the elderly, and undereducated persons. Lessons are conducted in discussion groups and included weekend courses, self-instructional materials, video tapes, and language laboratories. This report reviews briefly the participants' backgrounds, the role of the teacher, student motivation and plans, student assessment of teachers, and assessment of the intensive courses. The results indicate that this is a realistic, alternative delivery system. (LBH)

A review of the literature and empirical studies were used to investigate aspects that bear on the evaluation of university instruction in Sweden. Evaluation was regarded as a comparison between observations and intentions of instruction. The model used is concerned with the interrelationships among goals and guidelines, the design of a department's instruction, background information (teachers, students, course content, organization, and study environment), the teaching process, and the final outcome. Detailed investigations dealt with (1) evaluation of courses in three different university subjects; (2) surveys of previous knowledge in university subjects; and (3) factors influencing satisfaction and study achievement. Advantages of using a total evaluation model are outlined. (LBH)

Perspectives concerning "research about research" are summarized, based on symposia sponsored by the University of Goteborg in Sweden. It is noted that studies of science, technology, and society (STS) are prevalent in several countries during the 1970s. Based on visits to STS programs in the United States, it is suggested that there are different antecedent contexts and fields of activity for research about research. One end of the spectrum is represented by humanities (e.g., Stanford University's "Man, Technology and Human Values" program). At the opposite end of the spectrum are studies in engineering or at faculties of jurisprudence and medicine. In the middle of the same spectrum are a concentration of studies of the social aspects of science and technology, together with decision-making problems (e.g., arms control questions). In Sweden, the colloquia generated the idea of establishing a center of research about research, based on a number of emergent projects, which are briefly described. It is concluded that the colloquia helped to impart some stability to a new research field, both by facilitating the development of knowledge surveys and by establishing international research contacts. (SW)

The national Swedish Board of Universities and Colleges has initiated a program for the followup and evaluation of the higher education reform in Sweden. The program currently consists of six projects, with an additional three in the planning stage. They cover all of the problem areas given high priority by the national government: the organization of higher education; program funding and planning; activity evaluation; form and content of higher education; and the social effects of the reform, especially with regard to admission, nontraditional applicants, and male-female equality. The programs and their interrelationships are described and diagramed. (Author/MSE)

The project, currently underway, forms part of the national board's followup of the reform of higher education in Sweden, and studies the effects on student recruitment of the new, more liberal admissions rules. This report discusses the dimensions and directions of the study. (MSE)

The general aim of the project reported here was to collect information and experience on supervision and training in higher education programs that include practical experience with clients and patients. Information was collected from a survey of the literature and by empirical studies. Another aim was to determine what problems went along with such programs and how these problems might be solved. (Author/MSE)

An overview of the Swedish program for research in the field of higher education is presented. The research program deals with questions concerning the role of higher education in society, the design and governance of the system of higher education, the environment and working methods of research and of teaching, and the interplay between research and development organization and planning. These problem areas are described briefly and it is explained that knowledge reviews and empirical studies are used in order to gradually develop and refine concepts and thought models that contribute to the understanding of higher education and of its role in society. The account concludes with four appendices on the research program's extent and the distribution of funds between areas and disciplines, a list of the current research projects, what conferences and problem area meetings have been held in recent years, and an up-to-date list of the research program's knowledge and problem reviews. (Author/PHR)

The current status of the program for the reform of higher education in Sweden (enacted in 1977) is reported. Principles of the program, which is designed to monitor program implementation and collect information concerning the reform, are outlined. Among the principles identified are that the evaluation was designed to pinpoint problem areas and initiate projects within those areas in a series of steps that allow for change along the way. Other principles follow from the pattern and involve the combining of information from the various areas and the development of the ability for the colleges and universities to make their own evaluations. Five areas are identified as needing reform: the organization of higher education, funding systems and the planning of programs, activity evaluation in higher education, forms and content of higher education, and social effects of the reform of higher education. Each of the ten projects listed is described briefly--functional study of the organization of higher education, funding systems and the planning of programs, activity evaluation in higher education, problem and project oriented education, the study organization project, the adjustment of the higher education system to recurrent education, the Uppsala recurrent education project, effects of access rules, equality and higher education and recruitment for research training and research careers. Information on seven bulletins on the reform follow-up program which are available from the Swedish Board is listed, as well as titles available in Swedish only. (PHR)

The process of implementation of higher education reforms at nine universities and colleges in France, the Federal Republic of Germany, Italy, Poland, Sweden, Norway, and the United Kingdom is identified and compared; and a framework for implementation analysis is presented. After a brief review of the background for the study, the conceptual framework is explored. The steps in the process are defined and a sequential model is proposed as follows: (1) pressures for reform, (2) policy formulation process, (3) adopted reform with specific goals, (4) implementation process, and (5) outcomes. It is explained that the research is based on a set of nine case studies in the seven countries, and represent reforms adopted between the early or middle 1960's or early 1970's whose implementation process is sufficiently advanced to allow for meaningful analysis. All the reforms have the common denominator of broadening access to higher education, while at the same time representing disparate higher education systems (e.g., political and administrative centralization and decentralization, unitary and binary systems). Work done on the first two phases of the project is discussed and future work is outlined. The outline of the case studies is discussed and it is stated that the core of the study is the description of the implementation process. (PHR)

This overview about research and development for higher education in Sweden discusses the organization of research and development, questions of policy and control, and the nature of the program areas. The research and development department is divided into the following components: research into higher education; followup of the reform of higher education; research and development projects of the planning boards; local development work; and information, documentation, and library. Two thematic areas of these program areas are (1) the relationship between conception of knowledge, subject content, and learning arrangements, and (2) recurrent education. Questions concerning the purpose and direction of research and development activities are handled by several advisory bodies, which are described. Research into higher education are divided into the following problem areas: the role of higher education in society; higher education as a system: structure and governance; the environment and working conditions of research and teaching; and research and development organization and planning. The reform followup program concerns the following main problem areas: the organization of higher education, budgeting systems and the planning of activities, institutional self-evaluation, the content and forms of education, and social effects of the reform. Funds for local development work are intended for development projects and for partial sabbatical leave for the compilation of teaching materials. (SW)

Brief description of the focus of five areas of research into higher education conducted by the National Swedish Board of Universities and Colleges are presented. These five research or problem areas are as follows: the role of higher education in society, higher education as a system (structure and governance), the environment and working methods of research, the environment and working methods of teaching, and research and development organization and planning. The scope and working methods of the overall research program are discussed, and the following information is provided: the distribution of money between areas and subjects, a list of research projects in progress, conferences and problem area meetings held in recent years, and a current list of knowledge and problem surveys in connection with the research program. Among the specific research projects are the following: followup surveys of the importance of education in connection with the vocational choices, incomes, and further education interest of individuals; the way that knowledge and values essential to the vocational role are learned in a number of professional courses of studies; the connection between the formal and informal elements of the processes of governance; the emergence of reform of higher education; international comparative studies of university and higher education organization; and questions relating to the role and organization of sectoral research in higher education (SW)

The project described is part of a followup to the Swedish university reform of 1977, of which the emphasis on work experience is a central feature. The purpose is to document Swedish and other nations' conditions for using work experience in some college curricula. Theoretical background for the study is described, treating work experience not as a resource in itself but rather most useful when related to a curriculum. The interrelationship of work, study skills, and critical thinking is discussed. It is felt that the prevailing concept of adult education does not adequately incorporate critical thinking and information assimilation. The project is scheduled to work from January 1980 through June 1981. The first phase consists of compilation of documentation and the development of instruments for case studies. Phase two consists of the examination of a number of courses of study. Phase three is for analysis of the case studies and examination of international experiences in this area. In phase four, three courses of study are looked at in depth. The final phase is dedicated to developing a final report. A brief list of references is included. (MSE)

A longitudinal study conducted since 1965 in Sweden has investigated the role of higher education in the life situation of the individual adult. Study objectives have been to: chart the actual educational and vocational decisions made by young people; study the expectations of the individual concerning education and working life; identify psychological, social, and economic factors influencing higher education study and life choices; analyze the changes undergone by individuals as a result of higher education (attitudes and values); relate the individual's perception of higher education study to various aspects of his life history; and develop a theoretical base comprising models and methods useful in integrating various approaches. A psychological cost-benefit analytical model was developed to describe the decisionmaking process at the individual level and to predict choices of postsecondary activity. Literature reviews were conducted in the fields of psychology, pedagogics, sociology, and economics. Results of followup studies of pupils who left elementary school with no intention of adding to their education and additional studies of upper-secondary-school student experiences and perceptions are summarized. In 1980 the members of the study will be about 25 years old and will have completed their initial education and become established in the labor market. (SW)

The research program of the National Swedish Board of Universities and Colleges is concerned with four main areas: the role of higher education in society, higher education as a system (structure and governance), the environment and working methods of research and of teaching. Some work has also been started in research and development organization and planning. The current status of each area, including recent reports, conferences, and current projects are presented. The management of the research program and the program's links to the organization of higher education are described briefly. The budget for 1978-79 and conference plans are included. Appendices deal with the distribution of the resources between university subjects and problem areas, subjects represented by the leading researcher, and the composition of the program's advisory groups problem area meetings. (SW)

A project, using a longitudinal survey, seeks to describe the cognitive content of the professional competence developed within the field of engineering, psychology, economics, and medicine. With the aid of several empirical studies, the project will hopefully clarify when and how changes occur in students' perceptions and patterns of thought, similarities and the effects of transition from studies to vocational activities. The project, planned to proceed from 1977 through 1983, will include analysis of the aims of the educational fields from a general viewpoint, compilation of and testing of interviews, and interviewing of students. The methodological approach of the study, which is closely related to cognitive theory and the psychology of learning, attempts to study educational effects in a different perspective and is based upon theoretical and methodological work carried out by the TIPS project. The approach is a search for educational effects in the form of qualitative characteristics and changes in the students' comprehension of concepts and principles. (SW)

Issues pertaining to knowledge traditions that are important to the reform of higher education in Sweden are considered. While nonacademic parts of higher education (e.g., vocational/technical, nursing) account for more than half of its admissions, it is suggested that thinking regarding higher education in recent years has used the ideals of the research university. Various ways of viewing the planning and activities of higher education are examined, including the propositions that knowledge is a collection of concepts and skills (Liedman, 1978) and that knowledge is embedded in a class-determined world picture (Williams, 1965). The present higher education system has developed from a diversity of institutions that reveal the abundance of knowledge traditions in society, including schools of agriculture, teacher training colleges, and schools of medicine. Each of the various types of institution has its own ideology, its own approach to knowledge, and its own system of values. The tasks of higher education are usually delineated as teaching and research. While research links have become a watchword of the reform of higher education, there are questions about what this implies: (1) whether all basic higher education must be linked with scientific research, or (2) whether every part of higher education has some responsibility for the development of its knowledge traditions. (SW)

An attempt is made to clarify the aims of critical training in academic subjects at the higher education level. Additionally, common motifs of thought in the extensive material of cognitive criticism are considered, and the material itself is synthesized. Attention is also directed to the criteria of essentiality and implications for teaching. Two important dimensions related to critical training are attitudes and methods. Studies have examined the concepts of independence, tolerance, problem awareness, and intellectual maturity. These concepts are viewed as entailing both psychological and methodological domains. The study of critical practice has been extensive in addressing material concerning historical source criticism, legal technique, the psychology of testimony, the sociology of knowledge, and other areas. In this approach emphasis is placed on insights and methodological ideas whose significance transcends subject boundaries. Certain supporting inquiries have been undertaken concerning medicine, political science, and history. The analysis of historical science has been almost entirely concerned with questions relating to selection and criteria of essentiality. One important consideration in all selection is the attempt to bring the cognitive material under control. It is concluded that a focal point in the analyses has been the link between education and research and the importance of critical training. It is suggested that the choice between the essential and the nonessential is important both to teacher planning and student learning. (SW)

A sample of graduates from the terminal grades of upper secondary school in Sweden were studied in 1970 and 1971 to determine the relationship between choice of postsecondary studies and the students' previous level of achievement, social background, interests, attitudes to school, and education. For males, it was found that a considerable portion of the social selection established in the transition from upper secondary school to university or college was related to differences in the type of secondary schooling (i.e., differences in terms of theoretically and vocationally oriented education). Findings also indicated that the upper secondary students applying for teacher training colleges in the early 1970s displayed much the same qualities as those who had gone on the humanities and science faculties. Their grades were roughly the same, and judging by the social composition of the two groups, a considerable equalization had occured compared with the situation 10 years earlier. There was also a trend toward greater equalization in law and economic studies. The persistent social selection for engineering (as compared with studies in science at the university) was also clearly demonstrated. That is, social background was the variable that had the highest correlation with choice of studies. The students' upper secondary program and grade point average showed a consistently high association with their postsecondary educational choices. The proportion of technology line students entering higher education was very small. Those students who went to college were more ambitious than others and did more spare-time reading, but these two variables did not appear to have had much bearing on the decision to attend college if allowance was also made for the other variables. (SW)

A study of technology students' understanding and learning in mechanics is reported, which was carried out at the Swedish Chalmers University of Technology, in the School of Mechanical Engineering. Data were collected on one group of students' progress through the required courses, and include regular examinations, interviews, a learning session, the recording of specially chosen lessons, and observation of parts of the instruction. A similar data collection effort is underway in 1979-80, based on the preliminary results of the first collection, and the combined results will be assessed for conclusions. It is expected that the study findings will result in proposals for changes in instruction and study planning. (MSE)

A project was undertaken at the University of Lund in Sweden to study the following two problems: identification and style of problem-solving in relation to the choice by women of arts subjects and science subjects respectively at the university; and identification and style of problem-solving in relation to research focus and research ability. The initial purpose of the project was to investigate whether the proposed model of cognitive growth and development is a viable frame of reference and explanatory system for the description of an identity apprehension transcending the sex roles and of reactive, cognitive functioning. The model presented is aimed at expanding the paradigm of sex role learning and sexual identity development beyond both the level of conventional, stereotype, concrete operations and the level of formally logical operations to include a dialectical level at which the individual is free to use both "male" and "female" attitudes. Analogies are drawn to the stage of hypothetical constructions described in a model of the dialectics of cognitive development. In both models, this level is described as dialectical; i.e., the individual is relatively free to employ both objectivizing and subjectivizing congitive modes. Preliminary results suggest that the science group has a greater predominance of individuals orienting themselves towards objects or non-self-related factors in their field of experience, while the arts group includes more individuals orienting towards subjects or self-related factors. (SW)

A project was conducted at the University of Goteborg in Sweden to study how students of statistics make use of their knowledge when they solve statistical problems and how this knowledge utilization can be improved. The initial study objectives were to identify deficiencies and limitations pertaining to students' knowledge utilization and to formulate principles regarding how students should make use of their knowledge in a better way. The project's purpose was widened to include studies of the nature of the students' statistical knowledge and not just how the knowledge is used. The investigation has provided a foundation for viewpoints on how the transmission of knowledge itself ought to take place and on how the examination can be conducted. A literature survey was conducted which focused on process-oriented research. The literature survey was followed by a more generally oriented report dealing with how process models of problem-solving formulated in psychology can be applied pedagogically to statistical problem-solving, for instance. One area of consideration was the importance of understanding-oriented instruction in problem-solving. Empirical studies were conducted on how students solve statistical problems; attempts to influence the detection of errors by instruction; awareness of errors in problem-solving; and what conditions must exist for problem-solvers to be able to eliminate their errors. Study results are summarized in the form of advice to a problem-solving statistics student. (SW)

The state of a higher education evaluation project aimed at improving efficiency and increasing the capacity for self-renewal in higher education at the beginning of 1978 is described. The working methods of the project include: building up a knowledge base from literature and from foreign and Swedish universities and colleges; examining problems through direct contacts with universities and colleges, courses and conferences, and continuous information and reports; and developing means of special studies and pilot projects. Some of the directions proposed for activity evaluation involve discussions of goals, cost analyses, process analyses, result analyses, and organizational anlyses. (SPG)

As part of the follow-up of the reform in Swedish higher education and as a complement to regular program evaluation, a program of follow-up studies within the framework of the research and development activities has been undertaken. Main problem areas include: the institutional organization of higher education; social effects; and the content and forms of higher education. Each of these areas is discussed and an activity evaluation project is described. (LBH)

This project-in-progress is one of several stages of the National Swedish Board of Universities and Colleges followup of the national reform of higher education. The overall object of the project is to study the manner in which the higher education system has adapted to the principle of recurrent education. It will entail following Swedish and international discussions of recurrent education and conducting case studies and statistical profiles with a view to providing a rough outline of the system's adaptation process. (Author/MSE)