Addresses the problems of standards-based reforms and testing, specifically in New York State. Asserts that community members, such as teachers, students, and parents, must be allowed to participate in educational reforms of teaching and learning conditions. (CMK)

The Minnesota Zoo's School of Environmental Studies is an optional, interdisciplinary program open to juniors and seniors from four comprehensive high schools. The problems posed, like those in the world, require students to think across disciplines. Students measure, analyze, map, photograph, display, and present findings to the local community…

Describes the National Science Foundation's Appalachian Rural Systemic Initiative (ARSI) to improve student performance in mathematics, science, and technology in 66 Appalachian counties. Discusses ARSI's principles of systemic change; the individual school as the unit of change; and ARSI activities in four areas: catalyst school and teacher…

Describes a year-long social studies program called "Passport to the Millennium." Students "travel" around the world learning about the history, geography, culture, and economy of different countries. The program is appropriate for students in elementary to secondary grades. Includes a sample lesson plan. (CMK)

It is time to stop viewing rural schools and communities as deficient and build on their tremendous assets--small size, an understanding of the connection between humans and nature, greater access to civic life, strong school-community ties, a sense of place and community, and cultural diversity. Examples describe innovative programs initiated by…

Little literature exists about methods for adapting research-based treatments to typical practice settings. This report describes a 2-step process and associated methods used to adapt a school-based treatment program for middle-school youth with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) that operates in a controlled setting to one that can…

In Japan, there has been an increased concern about family and community participation in the child's education. Traditionally, the role of parents and community in Japan has been one of support and less one of active involvement in school learning. Since the government commenced education reforms in the last quarter of the 20th century, a more…

Schools are facing major problems today that are only marginally addressed by most reform initiatives or by standards-based federal and state legislation. New and different strategies are required if schools are to adequately serve their students and communities. This article demonstrates that service-learning is one dynamic way to promote school…

This article explores the importance of the host culture in the development of international mindedness in the pupils of an international school. It puts forward a model for engagement based on Allport's contact theory and examines the success of one such model resulting from co-operation between the International School of Maastricht and its…

Character education in American schools is experiencing a revival. Although the teaching of character waned from the 1960s through the 1980s, the rise in violent crime and a general feeling by the public that American children suffered a crisis in morals led to a resurgence of character education programs across the nation, with most states either…

Community participation is a term frequently used and often cited in international educational development. In this article, Jennifer Swift-Morgan investigates the definition and impact of community participation in schooling in rural Ethiopia. Although national governments, development agencies, and nongovernmental organizations across the…

In 1991, the Australian Parliament implemented a formal 10-year process of reconciliation. The aim of the process was to reconcile Indigenous and non-Indigenous people by the end of 2000. The Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation (CAR) was established to promote the process. The process had three broad goals: improving education, addressing…

University-community partnerships are widely recognized as critical to the success of community research and advocacy work but difficult to form and sustain. This article will describe a unique facet of that partnership, namely the collaboration between mental health clinicians and community consultants, a partnership that our data suggest was a…

It is nearly impossible for one individual or a small committee to understand the complex needs of an entire school system and its community. Only by partnering with local business and community leaders, parents, teachers and third-party experts can local boards of education and school administrators grasp the unique needs of their community. Only…

In October 1994 the President signed into law the "Improving America's Schools Act." Title I, the largest primary and secondary federal education program was reauthorized by this legislation, which, among other things rewrote the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. The reauthorized law provides parents, advocates, and school…