Colleges can create conditions to maximize the learning that occurs in an environment with a diverse student population. Studies indicate that students who interact with diverse peers demonstrate more complex thinking linked to both cognitive and to social development. Research literature provides strong support for institutional commitment to…

Educating for personal and social responsibility, from the perspective of moral cognition, involves promoting students' cognitive development. The literature suggests several approaches as successful in promoting cognitive development. Though Kohlberg views this development as primarily facilitated by dialogue with individuals in more advanced …

Faculty development programs are designed to improve faculty performance in all aspects of their professional lives. Six areas of concern are presented: flexibility of approach; individual v corporate activity; new understanding of scholarship; personnel management; understanding student development; and administrative leadership and support. (JMF)

The section begins with an historical overview of the political science major at Whitman College and reports on innovative majors at California State University-Hayward, Denison University, Dickinson College, Earlham College, Smith College, and the New College at the University of South Florida. (DB)

True college-faculty development must be holistic and integrative of all the needs and activities of individual faculty members, and undertaken by faculty and institution together to shape the fabric of academic life. Faculty must also work with professional associations to help ensure that doctoral programs are preparing students for a sufficient…

A serious gap is seen in the literature about student evaluation of teaching: what constitutes teaching effectiveness and quality education? Some possible conflicts are explored between the student evaluation approach and the goal of developing higher level cognitive skills in college students. (MSE)

The core curriculum of a civic liberal education should combine the values of a stable cultural pluralism and political unity. Students should undertake scholarly and critical study of the underlying civic principles and values necessary for generating an informed and effective citizenry. (Author/MSE)

A study tested the hypothesis: The greater the amount of philanthropic income per dollar of tuition, the smaller the fraction of bachelor's degrees in occupational fields. Findings support the contention that a college's tuition dependence is associated with its tendency to adjust its curriculum to match student consumer preferences. (MLW)

One of the more intriguing trends at the turn of the twenty-first century is the ascendant influence of religion in various aspects of American life. The renewed interest in religion and spirituality is not just a function of aging baby boomers acknowledging their mortality. The University of Pennsylvania reported that 86 percent of those between…