Presents a philosophical analysis of E. D. Hirsch's book, "Cultural Literacy." Concludes that Hirsch fails to acknowledge the problem of cultural transmission in a society where people have been conditioned to a mode of reception characterized by continual excitement and distraction. (CFR)

Maintains that E. D. Hirsch's book, "Cultural Literacy," is based on an anthropological rather than a normative view of societies and, therefore, does not claim that one society is more cultured than another. Concludes that historical understanding or other forms of cultural literacy requires wider criteria of significance than Hirsch…

Proposes a mode of religious education that accentuates the self-actualizing, humanistic aspects of religious thought while downplaying the exclusionary and confrontational pathologies. Maintains that the power of spiritual commitment, devoid of rancorous judgments, can be a force for positive global transformation. (MJP)

Maintains that, from very different points on the ideological spectrum, citizenship and citizenship education have been added to the political agenda. Argues that political theory, distinct from descriptive civics, is more relevant to the political development of citizens. (CFR)

Discusses multiculturalism in its context as a form of intellectual and historical atonement and points out its internal contradictions. Argues that the Western culture is becoming global, or universal; and, therefore, there should be no school-enforced multiculturalism. (CFR)