This article explains and supports the policy statement on consent recently approved by the Board of Directors of the Council for Exceptional Children's Division on Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities. Provides ethical and practical suggestions for dealing with issues of consent among adults with mental and developmental…

The National PTA holds the position that religion should be dealt with in public schools in an academic, not a devotional way. This article discusses the implications of Supreme Court decisions on religion in the schools and appropriate ways of including religion in the school curriculum. (IAH)

Identifies the main educational issues in Africa today as stagnation of enrollments and erosion of quality. Outlines policy strategies involving adjustment to demographic and fiscal realities, revitalization of the educational infrastructure, and selective expansion of services. Discusses the role of the international donor community. (SV)

Criticizes the World Bank report for (1) its neglect of African educational research; (2) recommended input-focused monitorial strategies to improve schooling that ignore curriculum and instructional issues; and (3) recommended cost-sharing and cost-recovery measures that finance qualitative improvements but erode quantitative gains in equitable…

Comments on World Bank report. Emphasizes the importance of raising teacher morale and motivation, providing primary education to the most deprived groups, and continuing technical and managerial training needed for Africa's development. Disagrees with the Bank's view that decentralization and school autonomy would improve administrative…

Presents guidelines developed by the League for Innovation in the Community College for the future development of student services, including a comprehensive list of criteria for developing and evaluating successful programs. Advocates the use of staff development resources to build college-wide teams to design and implement programs that increase…

As the ability to access and use information is necessary for school, work, and personal life, this position paper by the American Association of School Librarians examines information problem-solving skills and information literacy. Presents seven steps for an information literacy curriculum, and eight scenarios of cooperative instructional…

Presents a position statement on interdisciplinary learning and guiding principles for preK-4 curricula endorsed by the NCTM Board of Directors. Guiding principles include using meaningful connections among disciplines, fostering collaborative learning environments, developing democratic citizenship, providing a variety of social contexts,…

Advocates providing health and human services in cooperation with public schools. Reports on the work of the federally sponsored School-Linked Integrated Services Study Team, which examined the development and implementation of integrated services, and found resistance to such change among some service providers. (MDM)

Presents the AASL (American Association of School Librarians) position statement on appropriate staffing for school library media centers. Highlights include the need for full-time, certified library media specialists; support staff; ratio of professional staff to teacher and student populations; and district library media directors. (LRW)

The opinions of 51 of 140 vocational special needs educators were gathered on the most influential or foundational literature in 4 areas: databased articles, literature reviews/position papers, books, and research themes. Little agreement was found, possibly because of the field's unique status and integrated and applied nature. (SK)

Comments on the Society for College Science Teachers position paper on introductory college-level science courses and encourages two-year college science faculty to respond. (PR)

Offers a conceptual evaluation of primary assessment policy and policy process in the Republic of Ireland. Considers the National Council for Curricula and Assessment's policy document "A Programme for Reform: Curriculum and Assessment Policy towards the New Century" and refers to the primary teachers' union stance on assessment.…

Explains how adult educators came to develop the Cape Town Statement on Characteristic Elements of a Lifelong Learning Higher Education Institution. Elaborates on the six essential characteristics of higher education institutions. (SK)

President Bush wants to fashion several new education programs, including pricey items central to his oft-touted high school agenda. But he also is proposing for the first time since he entered the White House to cut the overall budget of the U.S. Department of Education. And he's asking Congress to give up a lot--48 line items, to be exact. The…