Labour market and skills in the Western Balkans

This book presents research into the role of the labour force skills in underpinning future economic growth in the Western Balkans. It sets out the most recent thinking on the relation between skills and the labour market and between education systems and skill formation. This book, written by members of the LSEE Research Network on Social Cohesion in collaboration with the Foundation for the Advancement of Economics in Belgrade has been conceived in response to a growing need for policy recommendations related to labour markets and skills mismatch in the region

Model Interventions: The Evolution of Media Development Strategies in Bosnia-Herzegovina, Kosovo, and Macedonia from 2000 to 2007

The United States, in cooperation with European governments and international aid organizations, has sponsored the development of independent media as a major component of both conflict interventions and democratization programs, and more recently as part of nation building efforts. This study explores the evolution and export of those dominant democratic media models and their impact on recipient communities in Bosnia, Kosovo, and Macedonia from 2000 to 2007. International donors came to see media development as a silver bullet for democratization efforts to foster freedom of speech, civil society, good governance, as well as an engaged citizenry. Donors and practitioners initially believed that institutions, once established, would function in a specific way, and coupled with assistance to professionalize and commercialize the media sector, would create or at least jump start systems similar to those in the US and Europe. Over the years, policy makers have identified the vital parts of a democratic media system, but what they have failed to fully understand is the dynamic interaction among them. Now, more than fifteen years after the end of the Bosnian war and twelve after the end of the war in Kosovo, numerous assessments by government sponsors and independent evaluators have reported success in achieving fundamental media freedoms in these countries, yet these media sectors have not demonstrated their anticipated transformative power – leaving struggling or dysfunctional organizations in the wake of donor financial retreat. This study argues that media organizations and institutions are trapped between pressures to commercialize and professionalize, which have become conflicting rather than enabling forces when combined with weak economic environments. In each of the countries in this study, a lack of synchronization among reforms, political divisions, and poor economic growth have contributed to a web of interrelated challenges. Despite significant economic reforms, growth and stability have never reached a threshold for systemic change

The CEPS Plan for the Balkans

In 1999, CEPS initiated the Europa South-East Policy Forum, a group of leading independent policy institutes from every country of South-East Europe, the network of Open Society Institutes. The objective was to contribute to the full integration of the whole of the region into the European Union. This report advocates accelerated political and economic reforms in these countries in the aftermath of the war, on the assumption that the European Union itself would make radical moves in its policies to support the process

Learning Disabilities

Learning disabilities are a heterogeneous group of disorders characterized by failure to acquire, retrieve, or use information competently. They are the most severe and chronic form of learning difficulty in children. They can be present at birth or acquired as a result of illness, exposure to toxins, poor nutrition, medical treatment, sociocultural deprivation, or injury. Learning problems typically consist in failure to acquire reading, writing, or math skills, which are traditionally considered core domains. This book explores the epidemiology, neurobiological bases, and diagnostic tools necessary for a comprehensive assessment of children with learning disabilities. It also presents examples of children with specific learning disabilities and explains possible intervention strategies

English as a third language in Macedonia

Wie in vielen Ländern, ist auch in Makedonien meist Englisch die erste Fremdsprache, die erlernt wird. Besonders an der makedonischen Situation ist jedoch, dass albanische Lerner von Englisch meist bereits bilingual (Albanisch-Makedonisch) aufgewachsen sind. Das Ziel dieser Studie ist es die Sprachverwendung bilingualer albanischer Englischlerner zu untersuchen, um herauszufinden, welche Rolle Englisch in ihrem Leben spielt, wie sie die Englisch Sprache erlernen und welches Verhalten in der Sprachproduktion sie beim Erlernen der Drittsprache an den Tag legen. Die vorliegende Studie hat einen psycholinguistischen und soziolinguistischen Untersuchungsansatz. Wie andere Studien zum Drittspracherwerb, konzentriert sich die Studie auf die Erforschung des Einflusses der Erst- und Zweitsprache auf den Englischerwerb. Die Studiendaten wurden in universitären Englischstunden gesammelt. Ausgewertet wurden: Englischtexte von Lernern, Fragebögen zum Sprachhintergrund, Sprachtests, Sprachaufnahmen im Klassenzimmerkontext, Interviews mit EnglischlehrerInnen. Auf Basis der Sprachtests und der Sprachlerngeschichte, wurden die StudentInnen in zwei Gruppen geteilt. Eine Gruppe setzte sich aus 48 Englischlernern mit niedriger bilingualer Sprachkompetenz, die zweite Gruppe aus 67 Individuen mit hoher bilingualer Sprachkompetenz zusammen. Die Resultate der Studie konnten die wichtigsten Forschungsfragen der Untersuchung beantworten und zeigen, dass Bilingualismus sich auf die Drittsprachproduktion auswirkt. Insbesondere die bilinguale Sprachkompetenz und die Struktur der erlernten Sprachen haben Einfluss auf den Prozess der Drittsprachproduktion. Die Studienergebnisse deuten darauf hin, dass bilinguale Sprachkompetenz, die Ähnlichkeit von Sprachtypologien und die Haltung und Motivation zur Drittsprache alles Faktoren sind, welche den Drittspracherwerb positiv beeinflussen können. Diese Ergebnisse stützen und erweitern die Erkenntnisse, welche bereits in anderen Studien zum Drittspracherwerb gewonnen werden konnten.Like in many other countries English is the main foreign language learned in Macedonia. The situation differs from other contexts, however, in that Albanian learners of English in Macedonia are normally bilingual to start with. The goal of this study is to investigate language use among bilingual Albanian learners of English in order to understand (1) the role of English in their lives, (2) how they learn English (3) their language behavior when acquiring a third language. The study draws on socio- and psycholinguistic theory. Like other studies on third language acquisition, the investigation focuses on transfer phenomena at the lexical level, i.e. on first and second language influence on L3 English production. The data were collected in classroom environments in the form of: written texts from students, language background questionnaires, proficiency tests, classroom recordings, interviews with English teachers. Based on the students’ language proficiency and background, two experimental groups were formed, one constituted by 48 students with Low Bilingual proficiency and one comprising 67 students with High Bilingual proficiency, all with pre-intermediate level of English. The study could show that bilingualism affects third language production. Particularly, language typology and bilingual proficiency are factors which influence L3 acquisition and production. Although not quantitatively significant, the trend found in this analysis does suggest the possibility of a beneficial effect that proficiency, the similarity between language typologies, attitude as well as motivation might have on L3 learning. These conclusions support the majority of current research in the field of L3 acquisition