Kathleen Pitts was hired as an elementary principal with the intent of diversifying the educator ranks in a town with growing racial, economic, and cultural diversity. Upon starting her new position, Kathleen faced resistance from the staff and community. In addition, she received little support from her administrator colleagues as she forged…

When using film adaptations of children's literature, teachers often limit learning opportunities to comparisons and contrasts of film and text or use movies as rewards. To develop deeper understandings of film adaptations of literature, students must learn that film adaptations do not merely translate a text but rather reenvision it within a…

Many students find the transition from first-year general chemistry to second-year organic chemistry a daunting task. There are many reasons for this, not the least of which is their lack of a solid understanding and appreciation of the importance of some basic concepts and principles from general chemistry that play an extremely critical role in…

This article will describe a writing assignment designed for use in a liberal arts college whose mission stresses effective written communication both within and across disciplines. In this assignment, students write three separate solutions to the same mathematics problem: one for a mathematical peer, a second for a contemporary that does not…

These units of study and learning activities for use in secondary social studies classes will help students better understand the complex situation in South Africa and prepare them to make wise and effective decisions about U.S. policy toward South Africa in the crucial years ahead. (RM)

Provides a secondary teaching unit on the Islamic religious faith and government. Maintains that students must understand the totality of Islam in order to make sense of recent events in Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia, Nigeria, and the Sudan. Included are complete teaching instructions and necessary handouts. (JDH)

Maintaining that resources for students learning about Africa must provide clear, comprehensive, and accurate factual coverage and should excite student interest, this article suggests a variety of Africa-related materials, including yearbooks, periodicals, geography texts, encyclopedias, and political publications from African organizations. (DB)

"Methods and Techniques" includes 15 graduate, 2 undergraduate, and 1 community college working syllabi for courses taught at schools throughout the country. Graduate syllabi include courses on addictions diagnosis, treatment, and counseling; drug problem identification; and behavior and treatment issues; Undergraduate syllabi include: Alcohol and…

Using diary excerpts from a teacher's trip to Japan in the summer of 1985, this article provides four lesson plans for involving elementary through high school students in the study of cultural values, critical thinking skills, leadership, and international understanding. (JDH)

Presents a flexible two-week lesson unit for teaching high school students about Islam. Provides learning objectives and activities, as well as a bibliography of resources. Includes seven study guides which cover such topics as Islamic prophets, the Koran, Islamic morality, and Jihad. (GEA)

Offers a first grade mini-unit on the life of Martin Luther King, Jr. (JDH)

Lessons that show how international students--foreign students and returned American exchange students--can be used as resources in the secondary social studies classroom are presented. Lessons explore national images and heroes, the house and home in various cultures, the global importance of television, and U.S. history from a global…

Presents a lesson for secondary students which teaches that the U.S. Constitution has changed in a variety of ways and that it has a direct effect upon the lives of citizens. Provides a worksheet and a lecture outline covering three methods of constitutional change and Supreme Court cases such as Dred Scott and Brown vs. Board of Education. (GEA)

Presents an annotated list of 7 instructional resources for teaching about the new republic period of U.S. history. Included are collections of lessons on the U.S. Constitution, the role of women, architecture, and the economy of the period. (JDH)

Outlines a project in which the Paterson Silk Strike of 1913 is used to teach about gathering information from primary sources. Includes suggestions for using this project as a model for analyzing historical events in any location. Emphasizes importance of having students draw conclusions from primary sources. (BSR)