Every era of deep social change in U.S. history has produced incessant calls for social improvement through the reform of the public schools. This fastback sketches some common themes and recent discontinuities in the history of school reform. It focuses on three aspects of change during key eras of reform: the sources of education change, the…

This paper discusses the education in Belize (formerly known as British Honduras) during the colonial era and the lasting impact of the educational foundation of the country. The paper examines the influence the British colonial educational system continues to have in Belize, 20 years after independence. It gives an overview of the history of…

This study investigated whether the child behaviors and personality traits parents talk about frequently are also highly valued. The purpose of the study was to adapt Triandis' methodology (Triandis, Bontempo, Leung, & Hui, 1990) of assessing the importance of values across cultures to the assessment of the importance of personality…

This teaching guide gives a brief overview of The Netherlands during Johannes Vermeer's career and describes and discusses his painting "The Girl in the Red Hat." The guide presents illustrations of four of Vermeer's paintings. It suggests activities for elementary school, middle school, and high school. (BT)

This paper focuses on the use of dance as an ethnological tool to introduce various cultures in a style that is informative, exciting, and memorable. The kinesthetic aspect reinforces learning outcomes and also relies on the visual and audio components for learning objectives. Practical application is introduced and learning through the…

Immediately popular when published over a century and a half ago, the novel "Jane Eyre" has continued to find appreciative audiences ever since. This student casebook offers an interdisciplinary approach to the study of Charlotte Bronte's landmark novel. While the casebook gives literary analysis, it also contextualizes the novel in…

More than 100 years after being written, "Great Expectations" is still one of the most widely studied works of fiction. This casebook of historical documents, collateral readings and essays brings to life both Charles Dickens' masterpiece and the social issues surrounding his work. The interdisciplinary approach in the casebook offers…

The purpose of this study is to define the essential characteristics of Rastafarian art and to explore it as a part of the Rastafarian social identity. To do this, the paper: (1) examines the Rastafarian movement and its development; (2) discusses the techniques, images, and symbolism used; (3) reviews Rastafarian artists to gain an insight into…

In Appalachian life and literature the past is intensely present. Many Appalachian college students buy into the myth of meritocracy, a myth which blames poverty on the poor and refuses to acknowledge the financial and social resources needed for success in this country. Part of their disregard for themselves and/or their neighbors has to do with…

This paper proposes that creativity (and the arts in teacher education) can serve yet another function: that of awakening students to the cultural lives they already inhabit in their diverse communities, while connecting them to other possible worlds and ways of being. The paper takes up the transitions that students make in coming to Brooklyn…

This book, the first full-length history of school-based writing instruction, demonstrates that writing instruction in 19th-century American schools was more important than has previously been assumed in the overall history of writing instruction. Drawing on primary materials that have not been considered in previous histories of writing…

Drawing on the research study, "100 Children Go to School: Connections between Literacy Development in the Prior to School Period and the First Year of Schooling," conducted from 1996-1998 by a team made up of Susan Hill, Barbara Comber, William Louden, Judith Rivalland, and Jo-Anne Reid, this paper discusses the findings of the study,…

A study examined the conception of educational transfer, considering the foreign influence in Brazilian curriculum throughout the 1990s. The study criticizes the literature on educational transfer produced in the 1970s, mainly the works of Martin Carnoy (1974) and Philip Altbach and Gail Kelly (1984), arguing that their two theories understress…

This collection of curriculum projects is the result of the authors' participation in a Fulbright summer seminar program in China. The following 16 curriculum projects are in the collection: (1) "Banpo Village: A Prehistoric Dig" (Sandra Bailey); (2) "China: Moving into the New Millennium: A Study of China's Past, Present and…

Northern Ireland has many societal needs requiring attention. The Ulster Project seeks to identify and address those needs while encouraging social progress directed toward maintaining positive social relationships among Northern Ireland's religious and cultural groups. By emphasizing counselor leadership within the framework of a critical…