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Key international and intergovernmental organizations assess the size of the Roma population in Serbia to be around 4–600.000, rendering Serbia among the five countries in Europe with the highest percentage of Roma population. Although Roma in Serbia have a long history of self-organization, cultural and media organizations, and are formally recognized as national minorities with a National Council of the Roma National Minority as a body with political decision-making influence, the Roma community in Serbia, as in most other European countries, is the most disadvantaged and underprivileged group in the country, often living in underdeveloped neighbourhoods with limited access to social services, especially education and health.

The educational attainment of the Roma population in Serbia, as in other countries in Europe, is far below the attainment of the general population. The education indicators are showing a developing trend, albeit slow. Roma integration policies evolved in Serbia from the early 2000s in the general policy framework of Equity of Education and Inclusive Education and a comprehensive education reform agenda, promoted and legally endorsed by the 2009 Law on the Foundations of the Education System. As the consequence of such an approach, the Roma integration policies intertwined and mutually reinforced with other reform policy areas. The most important post-2000 policies supporting the integration of Roma students into education are the introduction of pedagogical assistants in elementary schools and preschool institutions as a profession, paid from the budget, abolishing the system of school readiness assessment, introducing individual education plans and intensifying affirmative action and scholarships for enrolment in secondary and tertiary education.

This chapter discusses various aspects of family planning initiatives on a global scale, with a specific focus on their influence in Asian contexts, including Bangladesh. This chapter examines the diverse range of family planning programs and policies implemented worldwide, in Asia and Bangladesh considering cultural factors that significantly shape family planning decisions. By highlighting the unique approaches and challenges faced in different regions, it provides valuable insights into the evolving landscape of family planning efforts and their impact on population dynamics.

After completion of this case study, students will be able to help participants appreciate how the personal experiences of the founder(s) shape the inception of a social venture and impact its ongoing evolution; elucidate the intricacies and challenges inherent in managing a mission-driven organization dedicated to serving the underserved segments of society; emphasize the difficulties associated with exploring opportunities for scaling up a social venture; and facilitate comprehension of the various options and strategies available for achieving scalability.

The Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences (KISS), founded in 1992–1993 by Prof. Achyuta Samanta in Bhubaneswar, was a pioneering institution with a distinctive focus on providing high-quality education at all levels, exclusively to tribal students. From its inception, KISS remained unwavering in its commitment to the holistic development of marginalized tribal communities. It offered not just free education but also comprehensive support, including accommodation, food and health care, to thousands of students spanning from kindergarten to post-graduation levels. Remarkably, KISS held the unique distinction of being the world’s only university dedicated to tribal education. Over the years, KISS witnessed remarkable growth, evolving from a modest 125 students in 1992–1993 to a thriving community of 30,000 students. Its success garnered attention from federal and state governments, public institutions, philanthropists and corporations, all intrigued by the prospect of replicating its transformative model in diverse regions of the country. KISS even received invitations to establish similar campuses in neighbouring countries such as Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Nepal. What set KISS apart was its self-sustaining approach. While it did receive support from like-minded organizations and government schemes, it operated without charging any fees to its students. This ethos posed a unique challenge for Samanta: determining the nature and extent of support and resources required should KISS choose to expand its impact beyond its current boundaries.

This case study is suited for inclusion in courses pertaining to social innovation and non-profit management, particularly in modules around the theme of scaling social innovation. It provides an illustration of the growth trajectory of social innovation-oriented ventures and the key factors underlining their success and sustainability. Furthermore, this case study delves into the inherent tensions that often emerge during the process of scaling up such initiatives.

In addition to the MBA-level courses, this case study can also be used as a resource for executive education programs with a specific focus on social purpose organizations and those dedicated to fostering partnerships in pursuit of social goals. It offers insights into the dynamics of these organizations and their collaborative efforts towards achieving social impact.

To effectively explore and analyse the case material, instructors should allocate approximately 70–90 min of class discussion time.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CSS11: Strategy.

In this chapter, Andrea Óhidy discusses some pivotal issues of the book. Firstly, she shows the common challenges for current and future EU-member states to increase the participation and success of Roma people in education and lifelong learning. Then she discusses policy strategies and measures for Roma Inclusion in the Western Balkan states Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro and Serbia. They try to improve the social situation of Roma people but also to promote minority languages and cultures. She found the main cause of the similarities concerning the strategies and concrete projects for possible solutions in the adaptation of the EU Roma inclusion policy in the Western Balkan states as part of their negotiations for EU membership. She considers the implementation of these policy measures and also the educational attainment and success of Roma in the Western Balkans unsatisfactory.

This paper aims to straighten out the research progress in the field of maker education, summarize the research hotspots and frontiers of maker education at home and abroad and provide path optimization suggestions for the research and development of this field.

In total, 751 pieces of domestic and the foreign maker education research literature from 2014 to 2021 are retrieved and screened, and literature analysis methods such as keyword analysis and clustering map analysis are used to quantitatively analyze the quantity distribution, published journals, core authors, research institutions and subject keywords of the maker education literature.

It is found that research in this field is still in the development stage, but the pandemic has severely inhibited maker education and related research. Frontiers at home and abroad have begun to pay attention to the impact of humanistic care on maker education. Strengthening the dialog between multidisciplinary theories requires cross-disciplinary research. Regional and cross-field cooperation and fully grasping the actual situation and constraints of the development of maker education are the cornerstones of bold innovation in maker education research.

This paper uses bibliometric analysis to reveal the severe challenges to the development of maker education due to the normalization of the epidemic. By excavating the research hotspots and research frontiers in this field, it fills the gap that the current research in the field of maker education has not yet formed a complete theoretical framework and evaluation system.

This study aims to investigate the contextual challenges of emergency Web-enabled teaching from instructors’ point of view and their future preference for online education.

A total of 165 instructors from various public and private universities and university colleges in Malaysia participated in this online survey. Data were analyzed using multiple regression.

The significant challenges for future preference for online education in terms of their relative importance were supporting learners, effectiveness, disadvantages and advantages of emergency Web-enabled teaching.

This study discusses theoretical, practical and public policy implications for the future of teaching in higher education due to the COVID-19 public health emergency.

This chapter explores the significance and implementation of family planning practices, emphasizing their vital role in enhancing reproductive health outcomes. This chapter conducts an in-depth examination of family planning practices within marginalized communities in Bangladesh, shedding light on the unique challenges and opportunities faced by these populations. By uncovering the nuances of family planning practices in marginalized contexts, this chapter underscores the need for tailored and culturally sensitive family planning programs. It advocates for program designs that facilitate the effective adoption of family planning practices among marginalized communities, ultimately promoting better reproductive health outcomes. Furthermore, this chapter highlights the importance of empowerment strategies in reaching and engaging marginalized communities. Through practice enhancement initiatives, it seeks to empower marginalized populations with the knowledge and resources necessary to make informed decisions about family planning, thereby contributing to improved reproductive health and overall well-being.

This study examines how the strong emphasis placed on the purposes of budgeting, referring to a comprehensive focus on budgeting, is related to top managers' education and tenure while controlling for their functional positions in their respective firms and ages, as well as several company-specific predictors (information quality, firm size, information technology, importance of profit and strategy).

Survey data were collected from senior managers of large manufacturing firms in Finland and Sweden.

The results suggest that academic business education is positively associated with a comprehensive focus on budgeting, but tenure as well as functional position in the company (Chief Financial Officer (CFO) or not) and age are not. Overall, the company-specific control variables in general and information quality in particular are shown to have greater explanatory power than the top management characteristics analyzed.

This study identifies several empirically supported factors that seem to contribute to a comprehensive focus on budgeting. The effects of information quality, business education, the importance of profit and firm size could be considered in future research.

Academic business education matters more than the other top management characteristics analyzed. If organizations want to make comprehensive use of budgets, they should employ business graduates and be mindful of company-specific variables.

This study is the first to address a comprehensive focus on budgeting and some of its determinants. Future research could investigate a broader set of such determinants in different contexts.

Official development assistance (ODA) education projects have played a crucial role in improving education and training fields in developing countries, but are often facing several considerable challenges (e.g. long implementation time). Thus, this study aims to identify critical success factors (CSFs) in ODA education projects and investigate the influences of CSFs on ODA project performance measured by 11 nonprofit outcomes (NPOs).

A comprehensive literature review and expert interviews were conducted to compile a list of 35 potential success factors for ODA education projects. Using a survey questionnaire, 143 valid responses were collected from practitioners joining ODA projects in Vietnam. Various statistical methods (e.g. mean score method, Spearman rank correlation test, analysis of variance test, factor analysis and regression analysis) were used to analyze the collected data.

This research identified seven CSFs for ODA education projects in Vietnam: comprehensive project management competency (C1), clarity and compliance in project execution (C2), transparency and committed funding (C3), external context conditions (C4), well-controlled design and project management procedures (C5), preparations in equipment and complexity insight (C6) and punctual site delivery (C7). Furthermore, the results of regression analysis indicated that comprehensive project management competency (C1) and transparency and committed funding (C3) could significantly affect various NPOs.

This study offers significant insights for practitioners (e.g. project managers) to improve ODA projects’ performance and effectiveness in the education and training sector of a developing country context (like Vietnam).