Purpose: The main goal of this article is to learning define and justify group problem solving as an approach to citizenship education. It is demonstrated that the choice of theoretical framework of democracy has consequences for the chosen learning goals, educational approach and learning activities. The framework used here is an epistemic theory…

The authors share a narrative of planning and implementing a Nature Kindergarten in the public school system in British Columbia, Canada. Inspired by similar programs in Northern Europe, the Nature Kindergarten became the first program of its kind in Western Canada. The importance of developing pedagogical principles, understanding local context…

Drawing on whiteness literature and over fifty years of combined classroom instruction experience, two professors of race and religion-one black, one white-at predominantly white institutions, answer the question, "How do we as religious educators effectively teach white students to challenge racially distorted assumptions and promote…

It has been contended by various authors that the Catholic school is confessional in the sense of being indoctrinatory and so there has been an attempt to provide a non-confessional programme. On the contrary, this article argues that the Catholic Church sees its schools as "confessional" but not "indoctrinatory." However, to…

After a brief historical reconstruction of the emergence of the market economy as a model of social order in Europe, dating back to the eleventh century--the century of the commercial revolution--the paper focuses on the decisive contribution of the Franciscan school of thought to furnish the theoretical infrastructure of the new mode of…

The focus of this article is on the use of theories and on what we imply when we in research claim to use a theory. In this article, diverse uses of one theory will be illustrated with reference to 10 different studies. The aim is not to evaluate or judge how the theory is used in these studies, but to discuss how the diverse uses of one and the…

The centennial anniversary of John Dewey's "Democracy and Education" has been celebrated this year in a reconstructive and utility-based spirit. The article considers this spirit and the need to complement it with a critical-deconstructive and "use-less" prism that will reveal shortcomings in Dewey's and our own political…

The year 2015 was the 50th anniversary of the introduction of comprehensive schooling in Scotland. This article outlines the two models of comprehensive schooling pursued over this period: the first which aimed to promote a universal, common system, and the second, from around 2000, which has prioritised diversity and choice. Equality (in its…

Peace education has been offered to children for decades, but those curricula have been only minimally guided by children's developmental stages and needs. In this article, the authors apply their research on children's developmental understanding of peace along with peace education principles and Vygotsky's sociocultural theory to present…

This study explored the experiences of education students taking an introductory Historical Foundations of Education course with an in-field placement component. Research indicates that teacher education programs with experiential learning through in-field placements benefit students in eventual practice in a variety of ways. Despite these…

Students are coming to school with myriad issues that teachers and schools cannot address alone. Ecological systems theory posits that the environments with which a child comes into contact, either directly or indirectly, can impact her or his development (Bronfenbrenner, 1979). With the support of community partner organizations in the local…

This article explores the disconnection between ethical theory and ethical practice in ethics courses at secular U.S. colleges and universities. In such contexts academic ethics focuses almost exclusively on "ethical reasoning" and leaves the business of practical moral formation of students in the realm of "student life." I…

In this study, we explore the design and delivery of a blended social studies teaching methods course according to principles and core attributes of blended course design. In a survey at the end of the course, pre-service teachers were asked to reflect on their experience in the course, and identify the benefits and challenges of the blended…

This study investigates whether the Cognitive Acceleration through Science Education (CASE) scheme could be used to meet the demands of the Literacy and Numeracy Framework (LNF). The LNF is part of the Welsh Government's improvement strategy in response to perceived poor performance in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA)…

Computer-supported collaborative learning facilitates the extension of second language acquisition into social practice. Studies on its achievement effects speak directly to the pedagogical notion of treating communicative practice in synchronous computer-mediated communication (SCMC): real-time communication that takes place between human beings…