This paper explores the barriers and possible solutions toward the implementation of the goal of a coordinated service system for young children with special needs and their families. The components of the vision of a comprehensive, interagency, multidisciplinary, coordinated service system are outlined, such as interdisciplinary cooperation, a…

This study investigated the engagement rates of 25 students in a mixed-age classroom of third- and fourth-graders. The time on task of the students was compared using thematic, interdisciplinary instruction and traditional, single-subject instruction. Engagement rates were determined using an engagement rate observation form, students'…

This issue of "Art to Zoo" focuses on Japanese art and is adapted from materials developed by the education department of the Smithsonian Institution's Freer Gallery of Art and the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery. After learning how to look at paintings, students make paper screens that resemble Japanese screens. Background essays about Japan…

A consistent lesson from the literature on school change is that no single method exists for improving schools. In that spirit, this book presents a collection of short articles that address a wide sampling of ideas and trends in educational change. All the articles were originally published in "Education Update," the official member…

This book provides a powerful and clear picture of some of the outstanding programs designed and implemented in the United States to provide young adolescents with rich, meaningful, and powerful learning activities with community service. The book is comprised of two parts with 18 essays and an introduction. The essays reflect a range of…

This paper describes the way two university instructors encouraged students to perceive and understand the influence of their personal environment. The classes, an undergraduate course and a graduate course in education, focused on the integration of art and science disciplines as students reflected on their experience of their environment. A…

This study describes how European countries deal with the issues and practicalities surrounding early intervention services. The current situation in relation to early intervention is examined in Austria, Belgium, Denmark, England and Wales, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Holland, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Ireland, Luxembourg, Iceland,…

The goal of this practicum, which was achieved through staff development instructional programs and follow up experiences over a three month period, was to improve the knowledge of elementary school teachers in how to use curriculum related video. TV/video systems and educational programs were utilized to stimulate the critical thinking process of…

Many educators realize that today's children must be prepared for a world whose nations and peoples are increasingly interdependent. It is not so clear, however, how a school can transform itself to embrace this still new reality. The Union-David Gaul School in Union, Maine (students are from three rural nonindustrial towns with small populations…

The program for City Technical Colleges (CTCs) draws on ideas and resources from government, private industry, and education to focus on the educational needs of inner city and urban children. Mathematics, science, and technology are at the center of the CTCs' mission, in a context which includes economic awareness and a commitment to enterprise…

Among the goals of the teacher of human development is to open students' minds to the diverse cultural and ethnic influences that effect the development of children. A new approach to a semester-long human development course offered at Green Mountain College, in Vermont, is based on the study of children's literature. The course is organized…

American business education results in practitioners with high-level business skills but lacking the broader knowledge and habits of thought that enable them to use these skills in the complex global marketplace. This knowledge should include familiarity with the economic, political, social, and cultural diversity that is part of the human…

This study describes the 1992-93 Chapter 1 Developer/Demonstration Program, Learning to Read through the Arts (LTRTA), and evaluates the effectiveness of its implementation. The program offers intensive holistic reading and reading-oriented arts instruction to Chapter 1-eligible students, using an interdisciplinary, thematic approach that…

This report presents promising curricular practices for use with special populations of gifted students, such as students who are economically disadvantaged, have handicapping conditions, live in rural areas, or belong to a minority group. The report first presents a transition curriculum which enriches and extends the regular curriculum for…

One of the most distinctive features of academic departments in community colleges is their multi-disciplinary nature. While the creation of multi-disciplinary departments usually results from pragmatic considerations, they do present some advantages over one-subject departments in that faculty are obliged to learn other disciplines and a system…