Discusses the historical context of civics and citizenship education in Australia. Addresses the report by the Civics Expert Group, the government's response to the report, and the Discovering Democracy program and policy. Characterizes civics and citizenship education in Australia and considers its future. (CMK)

Argues for including an international perspective within the social studies to enable students to adopt a global world view. Illustrates the international approach by describing a unit on the U.S. Revolutionary War and discusses resources that promote an international perspective. Provides an appendix with an abbreviated unit outline and a…

Views the 1994 national civics standards document as a challenging frame of vital themes and questions for school curricula in the humanities and social sciences. The author considers why this set of standards may be the most important one for schools and why they may be the most difficult to implement, even by motivated school administrators. (GR)

Examines the young adult novel "California Blue" and provides related learning activities designed to foster critical thinking skills in high school students. The novel is set in the Northern California logging country where environmental concerns pit a teenager against his family and community. Addresses issues of citizenship education.…

Presents the history and social science standards of Virginia for history, geography, economics, and civics (K-3); Virginia studies (grade 4); U.S. history (grades 5-6); civics/economics (grade 7); world history (grades 8-9); world geography (grade 10); U.S. history (grade 11); and U.S. and Virginia government (grade 12). (CMK)

Maintains that in order to educate students to join the informed citizenry they must first develop their political identity through learning base knowledge concepts, such as the political continuum where students learn their political affiliations. Proceeds with a discussion on how students can apply this knowledge through participatory activities…

Increasing global flows of students, information and ideas, the realities of globalisation, and an increasingly interdependent world have meant that many educators at the secondary school level are currently grappling with the issue of how to internationalise the curriculum and increase inter-cultural understanding among students. In addition,…

This paper describes part of the results of a study investigating how adolescents, between the ages of 14 and 15, construct and share meaning about their local environments. Specifically, the results presented focus on how adolescents perceive and interpret spatial and three-dimensional data presented in various formats, such as in terms of…

A critical issue facing European school systems and one with broad social implications is how to accommodate the different demands of a growing number of non-Western immigrants, particularly Muslims. "Historically, faith-based schools have provided a route for immigrants, refugees and minorities...to gain a foothold in their new country, yet…

Contemporary Russian society is going through complex stages of internal change and integration into the world civilizational process. This process includes profound structural and functional changes in the economic, sociocultural, and intellectual spheres. Under these conditions, Russian society is observing the emergence of a whole complex of…

This study examined reports and programs from across the state, the nation and from international sources to gather a broad selection of published and unpublished environmental education research. A variety of sources were used, such as the internet, interviews with key informants and experts in the field of environmental and sustainability…

This document is designed to teach students about foreign public opinion and its impact on U.S. foreign policy. As information and communication exchange among nations proliferates, it is important for citizens to understand foreign societies and for U.S. policies to be understood and accepted by other nations. The purpose of this document is to…

This resource guide is intended to facilitate cooperation and exchange of knowledge among civic educators around the world. Divided into four parts, part 1 is a civic education paper, "Principles of Democracy for the Education of Citizens" (John J. Patrick), that discusses facets of the idea of democracy and their relationships to civic…

This C-SPAN publication is intended to serve as a forum enabling college and high school students to share ideas regarding political and social studies in the classroom. This issue begins with a description of the C-SPAN networks. The critical thinking process in the classroom is presented in the first two lessons: "Analyzing Public…

This report describes a program for building and reinforcing character development in order to increase appropriate student-to-student and student-to-teacher behaviors. The targeted population consists of primary and intermediate elementary students in a growing middle class community in Elk Grove, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. The problems of…