Suggests that consensus is the result of intellectual inquiry among scholars for some common purpose. External and internal forces impel the academic community to move beyond argumentation about what students should be able to achieve as they progress. Legislatures and boards of regents are exercising increasing oversight over public and private…

Overviews challenges facing foreign language educators, including lack of a shared framework, dominance of the curriculum by textbooks, inaccurate student placement, yearly repetition of course content, and lack of a consensus on what students should achieve. A new articulation and achievement project has made progress in solving these problems.…

Results of professional development programs for elementary through secondary teachers are described, with attention to improving practices for teaching students with learning disabilities and behavior disorders in general education. Four professional development programs explored effective formats and content, and three subsequent programs…

Rapid changes in technology and the skills needed to compete successfully in the workforce will necessitate higher standards in education, especially in the ability to acquire, organize, and use information. Library media specialists must play a significant role in providing information access, storage, dissemination, and instruction for students.…

Examines the implementation of an alternating day schedule in middle school. It is suggested that block scheduling provides an effective instructional alternative to the traditional six- or seven-period format, creating a relaxed atmosphere while decreasing stress and improving attitudes of both students and teachers. Blocks provide a gradual…

Asserts that elementary music education has been influenced by three approaches to learning: (1) the conceptual approach; (2) the child development approach; and (3) the activities approach. Presents six steps to designing an interdisciplinary project in music education. (CFR)

Discusses issues related to ethical instruction in relation to cultural pluralism. Asserts that increased understanding may serve to intensify differences and that toleration may slide into indifference. Provides a background for teaching about cultural differences and concludes that it is possible to be moral and multicultural at the same time.…

Presents a current events course designed to teach students in Israel both English language skills as well as the advanced reading and study skills they need to comprehend university level texts and journal articles. A current events approach to academic reading enlivens the foreign language classroom and motivates and broadens the horizons of…

Research on learning disabilities in students is reviewed, and classroom techniques for college instruction to support writing among these students are suggested. They include making an extra effort for clear classroom communication, dealing with errors in writing mechanics, helping students achieve coherence, giving hints for planning and…

Describes a study that investigated the effect of motivational variables on task persistence and performance in Navy technical training by giving students problems in a self-paced computer simulation game or drill with variable or fixed payoff points. Student responses to an evaluation questionnaire are discussed. (14 references) (LRW)

Asserts that music teachers increasingly are interested in music that originates outside the Western European tradition. Presents an interview with David P. McAllester on world music, the musical culture of the Navajo people, and how it should be taught in music classrooms. (CFR)

Maintains that the whole-language approach to reading and writing presents another challenge to music teachers who are asked to create complementary instruction as part of an integrated curriculum. Discusses three commonly agreed-on characteristics and areas of disagreement among those who advocate the whole-language approach. (CFR)

Provides an overview of the different types of books about the use of English published in Japan and discusses some of the controversies about the role of English in Japan. New directions in the use of English are described that are reflected in new courses in the school system and in publications aimed at English-speaking Japanese. (56…

Cites significant publications in the field of computer-aided language learning (CALL), citing 133 general works, 41 on methodology and instructional design, 35 on multimedia, 12 on interface design, 27 on word processing and writing, 25 on concordancing, 18 on intelligent CALL, and 37 on computers in general education and the humanities. A list…

Maintains that the recent introduction of SPSS for Windows allows for data analysis to be employed in substantive courses as well as methods courses. Describes the use of the program in upper-division sociology classes where substantive themes are developed in depth. Presents and discusses several classroom activities using the program. (CFR)