A well-established principle in the literature on learning, which maintains that variability of practice enhances long-term retention, served as the foundation of a summer program intended to ameliorate reading skills in incoming freshmen. During a 4-week period, students received reading instruction in the context of four areas: humanities,…

What does it mean to be a graduate student and to "do" graduate school? What happens when we shift our focus away from learning as a process of gaining expertise in a field or being socialized into the literacy conventions of a discipline and instead consider the ontological component of learning--the idea that learning entails becoming a certain…

Despite the worldwide prestige of America's doctoral programs in the humanities, all is not well in this area of higher education and hasn't been for some time. The content of graduate programs has undergone major changes, while high rates of student attrition, long times to degree, and financial burdens prevail. In response, the Andrew W. Mellon…

The remarkably prolonged controversial issue of which academic component among language, linguistics, literature and translation must be given the priority and take precedence over the other in the English departments in the Arab World during the college years has not only preoccupied a number of specialists and scholars in the field for a…

Since before the time of writers such as Plato in his "Republic" and "Timaeus"; Martianus Capella in "The Marriage of Mercury and Philology"; Boethius in "De institutione musica"; Kepler in "The Harmony of the Universe"; and many others, there have been attempts to reconcile the various disciplines in the sciences, arts, humanities, and religion…

Intrigued by the interviews with high school valedictorians that the Raleigh, N.C., News & Observer publishes this time each year, researcher E. Ann York decided to gather up three years' worth of its stories to look for any gender differences in the aspirations of these highest-achieving local students. Were boys more likely to strive for careers…

The present study examined the effect of leadership behaviour on the commitment of humanities departments in the University of Mysore, India. The data were collected from among faculties, including 93 participants. The instruments used were the "Leadership behaviour questionnaire" and the "Faculty commitment questionnaire".…

The recent strike of the Writers' Guild of America (WGA) raised an important issue for academic writers. Although their compensation and job security differ, WGA members and academics both are creators of knowledge and culture. Among academic authors, discussion about dissemination of and access to scholarly works and lamentation about…

Religious pluralism led to the colonies' separation of church and state by 1776, to Mann's campaign for common schooling, and to the complete secularization of public schools by 1900. The dependence of Western theology upon untenable Greek metaphysics justifies an explanation that the evolutionary purpose of religion was to promote personal…

From 2000 to 2012 the number of Internet users rose from less than 0.4 billion to 2.4 billion. Scholarly, evidence-based Internet research is of critical importance. The field of Internet research explores the Internet as a social, political and educational phenomenon, providing theoretical and practical contributions to understanding, and…

SINCE MOST OF THE SCHOOL CURRICULUM IS DEVOTED TO SPECIALIZED DISCIPLINES, HUMANITIES COURSES PROVIDE THE OPPORTUNITY FOR CREATING IN STUDENTS AN AWARENESS OF THE UNITY WHICH EXISTS AMONG PHILOSOPHY, HISTORY, AND THE ARTS. INTENSIVE STUDY AND CLASS DISCUSSION OF INDIVIDUAL WORKS BECOMES IMPOSSIBLE, HOWEVER, WHEN TOO MANY BOOKS ARE CROWDED INTO A…

This study investigated the status of the humanities in the Colorado public school curriculum. Four types of humanities programs were studied: (1) courses specifically designed as humanities courses, (2) humanities-type courses incorporated into a regular single subject course, (3) specially selected humanities experiences designed for a…

Reexamines the role of the humanities in higher education. Specifically focuses on Kirkwood Community College (Iowa), Richland College (Texas), and the Community College of Philadelphia. Explains that the goals of these three institutions are to (1) tighten requirements; (2)strengthen existing courses; and (3) create opportunities for faculty…

Warns that the worst danger in emphasizing a body of knowledge is that it encourages the superficial form of knowledge currently popular in the game "Trivial Pursuit." Analyzes the game's questions covered in the category on literature. Lists recommendations for humanities professors trying to prepare for the future. (SED)