Recommendations to higher education from a corporate executive include: the need for a commitment to excellence, competence in the English language, economics (the discipline that teaches there is no opportunity without its costs), history, humanities/technology balance, and the cultivation of the whole person. (MLW)

The new Rockefeller Foundation's Commission on the Humanities' report is discussed. Some of the commission's recommendations include: improved quality of elementary and secondary schools, strengthening of humanities research, reaffirmation within education of the values of the humanities, and closer collaboration of educational and cultural…

The history of Communism is effectively taught by the extensive use of new audiovisual and interdisciplinary tools. Inclusion of material from many disciplines besides history is necessary if the complicated and highly emotional political issues are to be handled in a thoughtful, objective presentation. (MLW)

The intellectual and scholarly activities of history and philosophy and the study of civilization and culture are seen as essential to the development of the human spirit. Training dentists without providing them with this background is to "run the risk of creating technicians unable to make creative judgments." (MLW)

A model is offered for the development of an undergraduate humanities program with an integrated curriculum that critically examines the international heritage of the U.S., and also addresses current needs. A rationale for the program, a program format based on interdisciplinary learning units, expected outcomes, and assessment criteria are…

Discussions about death, dying, and dissection during the first-year curriculum were initiated at the University of Massachusetts Medical School to deal with personal questions and emotions evoked by cadaver dissection. The evolution of these discussions, their timing, the present content of the sessions, and student response are described.…

Describes a secondary English unit on the rural heritage of the United States that sharpens knowledge and skills in the humanities, including English, art, music, and history. Rural music, magazines and literature, historical materials and biographies, and field trips are suggested. A bibliography of materials is included. (DF)

Describes a number of thematic units that integrate work in various disciplines, including language arts, social studies, science, and mathematics. Among the topics of the suggested units are time, survival of the fittest, nature, Mexico, the history of the West, animals, and bridges. (DF)

To stimulate interest in death and grief responses, medical school faculty and students at the University of California, San Diego, were invited to a program of music, film, and commentary dealing with that theme. A global evaluation of the event was positive. (JMD)

The structure of arts, science, and humanities colleges within major universities was investigated to determine the relationship between number of faculty or students and the number of administrative levels, and the ratio of administrators to faculty. (SF)

Reports findings of two nationwide surveys of two-year college faculty, one of which focused on humanities instructors. Identifies the characteristics and discusses the attitudes of faculty members, especially with regard to self-image, basic values, job satisfaction and concerns, teaching, and professional development. (DD)

Tests of intelligence and divergent thinking, and a measure of arts and science orientation, were administered to 310 unspecialized, mixed-ability, secondary pupils. Hudson's notion of convergence-divergence as a dimension contrasting preference for open-ended v closed-ended tests was not supported. (Author/SJL)

NEXA is a team-taught interdisciplinary, inter-school curriculum devoted to reuniting the sciences and the humanities. The development of the program and the curriculum itself are discussed, including the findings of a formal site-team evaluation. (Author/MLW)

An interdisciplinary program is described that provides a humanistically-oriented education for preprofessional students, particularly those in the health sciences. The program offers new and diverse courses for the humanities student and was instrumental in the establishment of a Center for Science and Culture. (Author/MLW)

Presents a synopsis of the findings from the Center for the Study of Community Colleges investigation of the humanities faculty in two-year colleges, with particular emphasis on foreign language teachers, and a preliminary report of curriculum patterns. (Author/RM)