This paper focuses on the cultural aspects of research in mathematics learning. The shift to a more socio-cultural emphasis in mathematics education research is valid. The paper explores this point by examining challenges to the former research paradigm. These challenges include culturally-based mathematical knowledge and hidden values in…

The Cinderella story resonates with its audience--500 versions of the tale have been told in Europe alone, and related stories are told in cultures all over the globe. In America too, the classic tale, re-envisioned in print and other media, continues to be popular. What changes does the Cinderella tale undergo when it is transported from one…

Despite the ready admission of historians of the subject that "education" encompasses far more than schools, families, churches, apprenticeships, and other institutions there is no reliable, general account of why schools, especially "academically" oriented ones, have become so cardinal to the U.S. way of life. This paper…

A discussion of bilingualism, biliteracy, and the educational context of Sub-Saharan Africa has three areas of focus. The first is the argument that the school environment is a complex one for bilingual education, biliteracy, and socialization generally in this multiethnic area, and that ideology and literacy issues feed language politics at…

The design of this curriculum project allows teachers to introduce the rich Indian culture in a non-threatening way to learners who struggle with writing material. It was initially developed for special education students who read and write significantly below grade level. Some of the project's lessons include showing the students artwork and…

Since 1992, through the Upcountry Writing Project, upstate South Carolina teachers have helped students in K-12 classrooms write for and about their communities. These teachers and students have learned much about what it takes to actually craft a genuine sense of place. By publishing, they have not only crafted pieces about their locales but have…

Twenty-four year old Jens Jensen came to the United States, settled in Chicago (Illinois), and promptly fell in love with the Midwest's prairie landscape. Although some thought that prairie was boring, monotonous, and ordinary, Jensen saw great beauty in the tree-filled groves, long winding rivers, natural rock formations and waterfalls, and the…

This document outlines the performance standards for drama in North Dakota public schools, grades K-12. Four levels of performance are provided for each benchmark by North Dakota educators for K-4, 5-8, and 9-12 grade levels. Level 4 describes advanced proficiency; Level 3, proficiency; Level 2, partial proficiency; and Level 1, novice. The…

This document outlines the content standards for drama in North Dakota public schools, grades K-12. Following an introduction, the document lists the drama content standards: (1) Dramatic Literature; (2) Acting; (3) Production; (4) Cultural Context of Drama; (5) Consumer of Theatre; (6) Drama and Human Development; and (7) Drama and Other…

Analyzed definitions of open education that have become prevalent in the education literature of the United States, Great Britain, and Israel over the past decade and a half. Content analysis of 51 documents found strong commonalities among definitions of assumptions but marked differences in the definitions of aims and practices. (Author/BRR)

Discusses the evolution and content of CANCODE, an English-language corpus under development at the University of Nottingham (England) designed to reflect current language use, and several related issues: whether the grammar currently taught should be changed to more closely correspond to common usage; whether the native speaker should be the…

Explores the culture of a summer writing course (at the University of Texas) for first-year ethnic minority students that is designed to help induct them gradually into the academic culture and improve retention rate. Observes and records behavior and discourses of the class's African American students. Focuses on learning strategies displayed in…

Examines the Greek National Curriculum for kindergarten within a historical/cultural perspective. Considers social development accompanying formation of the modern Greek state, problems of kindergarten teacher education, and elements of causal significance in production of Greece's National Curriculum. Critically examines aspects of the…

Examines a series of naturally-occurring phone calls between a young child and his grandmother in the child's second language (L2), Portuguese. Notes that during the calls the child's L2 appears to increase in complexity, but is subsequently abandoned. Argues that this abandonment requires an examination of the language's role in the larger…

Notes that Samoans establish new communities and identities through different linguistic strategies in the urban context of Los Angeles. Argues that by comparing the different social organizations of language use, it is possible to uncover how certain forms may be used to simultaneously maintain and transform cultural practices within a syncretic…