The digest explores aspects of serving the learning disabled (LD) student in vocational education classrooms. It is noted that LD students may have difficulty following directions and understanding lectures and may forget more often than other students. A list of seven accommodations that can be made for LD students in vocational classrooms…

Intended for administrators and policy makers, as well as teachers, this digest examines the current state of humanities instruction and the evolving place of humanities in the high school English classroom. The digest first explores differing definitions of the humanities, and discusses reasons for the decline in emphasis on humanities…

Talking with others, especially people with different viewpoints, about matters of public and common concern is a basic pro-democracy skill and act. For that reason, teaching young people how to participate more effectively in discussions of controversial public issues (CPI) has long been a major goal of social studies educators. In most social…

This digest discusses issues related to teaching about the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. It begins by quoting the amendment that protects citizens of the United States against unreasonable searches and seizures, and goes on to discuss how the understanding and interpretation of the amendment have been influenced by historical events,…

This ERIC Digest investigates the earth and space science guidelines of the National Science Education Standards. These guidelines are frequently referred to as the earth system and include components such as plate tectonics, the water cycle, and the carbon cycle. This Digest describes the development of earth systems science and earth systems…

Noting a renewed interest in and dedication to the rights and needs of adolescent readers, this digest addresses the development of content area reading, discusses recent reconceptualizations of the field, and offers a new model for classroom practice. It begins with a brief description of the historical context of literacy development in the…

Recent research in civic education suggests much for shaping and focusing secondary social studies methods course work. This Digest: (1) provides an overview of selected findings from recent studies of secondary students' civic understanding and engagement; and (2) offers five research-based suggestions for social studies methods instructors.…

This digest discusses: (1) the main ideas contained in "The Federalist Papers"; (2) reasons for teaching "The Federalist Papers" in secondary schools; and (3) how to teach ideas of "The Federalist Papers." The authors of "The Federalist" held varying ideas about government, but strongly agreed on the…

It is important to reaffirm the teaching of recent United States history in secondary schools. Diane Ravitch and Chester E. Finn state: "If we think it important that they (17-year-old students of 1986) understand the three decades between the Second World War and their own sixth birthdays (in 1975), we cannot expect this instructional job to…

Many school staff and their client communities are concerned about pupil achievement, skills, and attitudes related to mathematics. To respond to these concerns, staff need to determine how they can improve their secondary mathematics programs by modifying the content and skills emphasized in the curriculum, changing and supplementing…

A recent study by the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) directly links writing effectiveness to development of skills in critical thinking. This ERIC Digest discusses: (1) recent research on the linkage between writing and learning; (2) successful approaches to teaching writing; and (3) suggestions for including an effective…

Immigrant students in secondary schools face a number of obstacles as they make the transition to schooling in the United States. In addition to adjusting to a new country and school system, they must also learn academic content in a new language. Because these students come from a variety of ethnic, educational, and economic backgrounds,…

In 1991, the 50th anniversary of the United States' entrance into World War II was observed. This is an opportune time to reevaluate and renew the teaching of this cataclysmic event. Most people have been affected by the political, economic, and social consequences of the War. But perhaps the most important reason to rededicate ourselves to…

Intended for literature instructors, this digest explains the relationship of transactional theory (a reciprocal, mutually defining relationship between the reader and the literary text) to the teaching of literature. The importance of the reader's part in literature is first demonstrated, noting that attention must be paid to who the readers are,…

The skills most often mentioned in definitions of critical thinking are the ability to think creatively, make decisions, solve problems, visualize, reason, analyze, interpret, and know how to learn. Vocational education should be involved in developing thinking skills for the following reasons: occupations are becoming more reliant on cognitive…