The eight chapters of this theme issue examine how educational problems of minorities are often generated by the policy decisions that countries make. They analyze several educational systems to investigate the differences between official definitions of minority populations and how these populations define themselves, and they explore the need…

This issue of "Policy Notes" concerns the restructuring of American education during the past quarter-century, with centralization and legalization being the two most noteworthy changes in educational governance. David Kirp claims that the increased control of schooling by state and federal authorities, the elaboration of new…

The eight chapters of this theme issue report on analyses of civics education in 17 secondary schools in 6 countries. The analyses focused on national policies on civic education, the impact of these policies on the school curriculum, and the implementation of these policies in school practices. Overall, studies suggest that schools are…

One in a series of booklets whose purpose is to stimulate greater interest in and more effective understanding of world affairs among American citizens, this six-chapter booklet traces the development toward improved relations between China and the United States. The chapters include: "Toward a New Consensus: 1978-1986"; "Strategic…

This special issue attempts to provide a summary of what scholars and educators have recommended that U.S. K-12 students study in the international dimension of education. These guidelines are not "standards" as the term is currently used by academic disciplines, but they can be used to validate local curriculum decisions and to assure that the…

The state of education in the United States is examined by asking how much educational value schools add as children pass through them, and at what cost. This approach eases the problems that arise from differing background experiences as children start school. Issues related to academic achievement in the United States are studied through a…

This special issue centers around the theme of education for peace and human rights. It contains materials concerning the practice of adult education in the Asian-South Pacific region. The journal contains 15 papers. The following papers provide regional perspectives: "Learning to Live in Harmony and Diversity" (editorial) (Rajesh…

Humanities programs at selected colleges are described, and the value of emphasizing subject matter in humanities programs is discussed in an article by Richard Ekman, "A Plea for Practical Idealism." The most effective programs encourage students to respect subject matter, engage important questions, and search for answers to the…

This special issue contains five sections. In the first part, "Papers," one full-length paper (Lennart Vriens) and a selection of paper summaries from a recent international conference on peace education are included. The second part, "People and Perspectives," presents an interview with Tom Roderick of the U.S. organization,…

Research has indicated that the elderly retain the ability to learn, and specifically to learn new languages. Furthermore, the increasingly greater proportion of old people in the population demands that their need for continued intellectual stimulation be met. In the absence of explicit motives for learning an ethnic language, Esperanto is a good…

This theme issue of "Basic Education" considers the importance of studying and comparing student work and educational practice in different countries, in particular as a vehicle to further the professional development of teachers. The first article, "International Studies of Education: Why Should We Care?" (William H. Schmidt;…

Standards-based systems generally require students to meet the performance level specified in order to proceed or be certified. This issue of the Oregon School Study Council (OSSC) Bulletin surveys the types of standards currently being proposed. After an introductory chapter, chapter 2 describes eight components of standards, illustrated with a…

The Peace Education Commission (PEC) of the International Peace Research Association (IPRA) has been the forum for peace educators to come together, to exchange and to share ideas, materials and experiences over three decades. This book draws from key papers from different areas and times of peace education work to show the richness of ideas and…

This publication provides a comprehensive overview of work done across all parts of the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). Each issue contains short publications, summaries, and descriptions that cover all NCES publications, data product, and funding opportunities developed over a 3-month period. Each issue also contains a message…

Major writing style differences between Korean and U.S. essayists are examined in order to determine: (1) the types of relationships expressed in a specific essay; (2) the sequence in which related ideas are expressed; and (3) the distance between two ideas that comprise each relationship. Eighteen basic types of relationships were examined in…