Educational Reform and Educational Research in Central-Eastern Europe: The Case of Romania.

This report describes difficulties in educational reform faced by countries in transition, those post-communist countries from Eastern and Central Europe that have been changing their social, economic, and political systems since 1989. Romania is the case study used for this example and is viewed in terms of four stages: (1) deconstruction, an ideological breaking away from the old regimes and institutions; (2) consolidation with the definition of the new legislative framework established; (3) restructuring with economic reforms due to pressure from the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank; and (4) counter-reform with residual communism still very active. The report identified three specific problems in the struggle for power in Romania that affect even education: (1) stability/breaking off and continuity/change dilemmas; (2) role of ideology in evolving the educational policies; and (3) the relationship between experts and the decision-making process. The experience of the five years of transition shows that communism cannot disappear as suddenly as it was established. Contains 22 references. (EH)