Defines assessment as finding out where the problems are in a program for the purpose of eliminating them. Presents a method for developing a formal assessment plan in history including principles of assessment, program goals, and objectives. Suggests determining what is already done and what further assessment methods are desired. (DK)

Thirty-six professors in six matched pure and applied fields of study were interviewed to determine validation processes and truth criteria used in their disciplines. Results suggest that different fields operate according to different rules. Teaching students these rules and how they affect learning is an important role of instruction. (SLD)

Differences in the comprehension and interpretation of historical texts are discussed for eight high school students and eight historians. The sources of differences in the two groups and their epistemological stances are analyzed. Implications for reading comprehension and the place of history in the school curriculum are discussed. (SLD)

Discusses a study of the political science major within the liberal arts curriculum. Urges that a major should have structure and coherence. Emphasizes the major as an area for in-depth training, not bureaucratic convenience. Suggests that the American Political Science Association foster more connections to other fields and assessment of…

Evaluation activities in China are examined, focusing on housing reform. How evaluation functions in justifying the political initiatives of the Chinese Communist Party is explored, and the possibility that evaluation research can become an academic field in China using Western methodology is discussed. (SLD)

Integration of knowledge is as critical to understanding as is new knowledge. Specialization requires new forms of integration. Graduate programs should teach future faculty to synthesize, seek new relationships between parts and whole, relate past to future and present, and find patterns of meaning not seen through traditional disciplinary…

Describes a study that examines the extent to which effective thinking skills are incorporated in faculty teaching goals across nine academic disciplines--mathematics, the sciences, and humanities. Indicates that effective thinking skills are included in all faculty goal statements except for those in the romance languages. (3 tables and 33…

Describes the new general education program at James Madison University (Virginia) and the process by which it was developed. Indicates that the program is organized by five broad areas of knowledge that are defined by interdisciplinary clusters of learning objectives, which in turn were developed using input from every academic department on…

Examines how theoretical and paradigmatic differences among interdisciplinary faculty are reflected in the ongoing work of a school with departments of communication, journalism, and library and information science. Reveals the presence of two groups of faculty whose members coparticipate more cohesively within themselves than between groups; and…

The burgeoning number of publications, articles, and college courses devoted to the study of Whiteness has caused some scholars to ask whether this is serious scholarship with a future, or a passing cultural interest. The discipline is generally divided into two interest areas: one dedicated to eradicating racism and white privilege, and the other…

Addresses three questions to characterize the discipline of art criticism and delineate its role in instruction: (1) What is a discipline? (2) In what sense is art criticism a discipline? and (3) How, specifically, is art criticism to inform educational practice? Links this discussion to assumptions in Discipline-Based Art Education. (DSK)

A survey of 201 of Canada's 628 school districts found that most reported a moderate surplus of teachers overall, with shortages in technology education, science, and mathematics. Findings were distributed to key stakeholders, who assessed the value and uses of such information. Contains 28 references and a chronology of 13 teacher…

Publishes the results of an annual survey of Doctoral degrees granted in foreign languages, literatures, cultures, linguistics, and foreign language education in the United States. (Author/VWL)

Argues that applied linguistics, as the interdisciplinary field that mediates between the theory and practice of language acquisition and use, is the overarching field that includes second language acquisition (SLA) and SLA-related domains of research. (Author/VWL)

One hundred seven faculty at an Australian university completed a survey about motivation and self-efficacy in teaching and research. Differences in faculty self-reported attributions for either teaching or research were related to: faculty of affiliation, level of appointment, gender, qualifications, and research productivity. (DB)