May 12, 1982
Stressing that the nation's labor market is shifting increasingly from blue-collar and unskilled jobs to professional and technical positions, the report asserts that "unemployment is likely to increase unless the educational delivery systems can react fast enough to train workers in the critical skills." It notes that by 1990 there will be 12.1 million new white-collar job openings, more than twice the number of new blue-collar jobs expected, and workers in blue-collar employment will account for only 31 percent of total employment in the U.S.
The report is an update of the U.S. Surgeon General's 1972 report on televised violence, which suggested that such a link existed. Entitled "Television and Behavior," the report prepared by the National Institute of Mental Health, says that the majority of studies conducted during the decade support the link between television violence and aggression, although there are some researchers who disagree with that conclusion.
The time is traditionally an exciting one for applicants and colleges both, but a particular anxiety hangs over the admissions process this year because of mounting indications that students are shifting from the more expensive private institutions to public ones. Several recent surveys suggest that the long-awaited decline in the number of college-age Americans, the national recession, and a widespread perception that federal financial-aid programs are shrinking have combined to depress application rates at private colleges, while swelling those for public institutions.
And in many of the test exercises, performance worsened among those above age 14, the study found.
Last week, Warren M. Anderson, president of the state Senate, announced that the Senate would not attempt to override the Governor's veto of much of the legislature's 1983 budget.
The increase compares favorably with those passed for teachers in recent years. In 1980-81, the legislature provided a 16-percent raise, but for several years prior to that, the average raise was about 12 percent, and teachers received no increase in 1979-1980, according to the Alabama Education Association.