Authors examined social policy issues related to government funding and raised some serious questions about the nature and future of policy. (Editor/RK)

This review of research on teacher behavior covers 200 references cited in the bibliography, the bulk of them published in the 1960's. A short introductory section on the status of research on teacher behavior notes that it is "voluminous and contradictory." The main body of the paper is organized in terms of the reason why research on teacher…

The effectiveness of a teacher depends on students' social, economic, cognitive, psychological characteristics; grade level; and subject area. Failure to recognize these variables can distort research findings and recommended methods for good teaching. (Author/MD)

Presents a brief overview of the nine articles which make up this special issue on teacher effectiveness. Asserts that few activities are as crucial in schooling as teaching, and research toward its understanding must continue. (KH)

The new concept of research on teaching includes such methods as storytelling, narrative, and autobiography, relies on language and dialog, and affirms the centrality and wisdom of teachers. Teachers are able to express their views in their own language, and their knowledge and expertise are respected. (SK)

Argues that teaching is both art and science, but that it is possible to evaluate effectiveness empirically. Discusses common research problems, including the large number of variables that can affect successful teaching; the validity of measurement instruments; and the relevance of research to actual classroom practices. (KH)

Reviews the educational and social science research relevant to the education of the disadvantaged which was published during the 1960's. (JM)

Article considered three political determinants that should be kept in mind when deliberating upon accountability. (Author/RK)

The current system of producing and consuming educational research does not seem to be well-established. Outlines the history of the federal role in educational research and development from 1867 to the present and some of the problems encountered by those agencies involved in providing educational R & D. (Author/RK)

Although research suggests that teachers make a difference in student performance, the variables are too numerous and the interactions too complex for the researcher to confidently identify the degree of a teacher's influence. But research can and should inform teacher educators about probable outcomes or products of the teaching process. (MT)

Reviews teacher behavior research under the categories of (1) model systems, (2) instructional processes, and (3) teacher behavior characteristics. (Author)

This first part of a two-part article (concluded next issue) reviews the major research both supporting and denying the notion that teachers can significantly affect student learning. Notes six important reasons why the research has been inconclusive, primarily related to disagreement over definitions of relevant variables and desired outcomes.…

Radical educational critics, such as Edgar Friedenberg, Paul Goodman, A. S. Neill, John Holt, Jonathan Kozol, Herbert Kohl, James Herndon, and Ivan Illich, have few constructive goals, no strategy for broad change, and a disdain for modernization and compromise. Additionally, these critics, says the author, fail to consider social factors related…

Research on teaching has begun to concentrate on "product" or student outcomes. Three instructional techniques are important in the analysis of student outcomes: (1) academic learning time, (2) direct instruction, and (3) mastery learning. The author explores the merits of each, reviewing both critics' and advocates' positions. (MD)