In America's Lab Report: Investigations in High School Science, a National Research Council (NRC) committee found that labs have the potential to help students master science subject matter, develop scientific reasoning skills, increase interest in science, and achieve other important science learning goals. High school graduates who attain these…

A change in government in 1984 introduced sweeping reform into every part of New Zealand society. A treasury briefing paper in 1987 "argued that education was not fostering equity, participation, or achievement; that it was marked by "middle-class capture"; and the "inputs" were not producing the "outputs""…

In his position at Penn State University, this author teaches environmental studies (ES) students in core introductory, mid-level, and upper-level courses. As he teaches the first full batch of graduates in this year's Senior Seminar, the chorus is clear: environmental history has played a distinct role in bringing coherence to their ES curricula.…

Socially responsible educational development issues include examination of whether students in diverse situations have access to educational programs. Within a global society that supports equal opportunities for individuals, issues of access to educational content have merit at both individual and societal levels. A framework for thinking about…

This article suggests that the principle of object-relatedness, introduced by Vygotsky and expanded by A. N. Leontiev, can be used to conceptualize human subjectivity within a profoundly social view of human development. This is achieved by reformulating the premises of cultural-historical activity theory to include the notion that material…

Media literacy education is not as advanced in the USA as in several other English speaking areas, such as Great Britain, Canada, and Australia. Despite decades of struggle since the 1970s by individuals and groups, media education is still only reaching a small percentage of K-12 schools in the US. While some major inroads have been made, such as…

Disciplinary and professional psychology have exercised considerable influence over the ways in which Western individuals and societies understand what it is to be a person. During the last half of the 20th century, educational psychologists advanced scientific and humanistic conceptions of the self that removed personhood from the historical,…

This paper considers issues in religious education that ought to be addressed by the recent non-statutory framework for England. It outlines problematic features of the current situation and paints a generally welcoming picture of the educational opportunities afforded by this new initiative. (Contains 4 notes.)

Honoring the past through knowledge of a powerful movement from the beginning of the last century has been found to contain useful, relevant, meaningful information for present-day practitioners in adult education. The compelling story of an adult education project, begun nearly 100 years ago by Cora Wilson Stewart and known as "The Moonlight…

Brown discusses the history of Hector Garcia, a Mexican immigrant who, as U.S. Army captain, worked diligently to assist minority servicemen in navigating the Veterans Administration, and found the GI Forum. Dr. Garcia's activism, through the Forum, was instrumental in desegregating hospitals, swimming pools, schools and cemeteries. Brown's case…

This book addresses a problem in higher learning, which is newly recognized in the academic spotlight: the overcommercialization of higher education. The book asks that you, the reader, think about the following: Did you go to a Coke or Pepsi school? Do your children attend a Nike or Adidas school? Is the college in your town a Dell or Gateway…

Eighteen months after soundly criticizing a new Harvard general education that proposed to abandon the concept of a structured general education, substituting a minimum distribution requirement under which students could choose a few courses from hundreds offered by the faculty, the writer applauds the shift, encouraged by interim president Derek…

The third volume of "The Soul of Educational Leadership" series offers key concepts and strategies for sustaining the critically important work of professional learning communities. With contributions from Shirley Hord, Maurice Elias, Karen Seashore Louis, Andy Hargreaves, and other nationally known educators, this essential reading for all school…

The School of Outdoor Recreation, Parks and Tourism at Lakehead University offers a third-year course on ecological literacy. The course evolved from one with a predominant scientific approach to studying the bioregion to one that embraced a broader epistemological stance, giving greater authority, voice, and presence to nearby landscapes. This…

This article provides an evaluation of the rationale for, and impact of, setting with English classes in the second year of secondary school in one Scottish authority. The Council's education department has a long-standing policy of mixed-ability classes in English for the first two years of secondary school (S2). A number of schools approached…