Because principals are respected, they are in a unique position to affect policy and legislation at all levels. It is time for principals to influence state-level legislative priorities and policies. Principals should establish political contacts, keep informed via state associations, and seize opportunities to advocate for students. (MLH)

The nation's school boards, as currently constituted and empowered, underlie most school governance problems. The superintendent frequently must sidestep the board in order to move the district forward. The experts (administrators) take marching orders from an educational laity. Superintendents should be intermediaries; principals need full…

Comments on the 1998 Civics Assessment of the National Assessment of Educational Progress. The broad coverage of the assessment answers many questions about students' knowledge of politics and government and the teacher and classroom context for learning about civics. (SLD)

Examines the evolving relationships between teachers and standards in Maine and in Derbyshire, England. The politics of who develops the curriculum and how it is implemented have strongly shaped teachers' attitudes toward working with standards. Notes that while teachers believe they are substantially meeting those standards, documenting and…

Compared 124 California principals' perceptions with 99 superintendents' perceptions on 22 reasons for principal terminations and on 9 organizational outcomes related to ineffective leadership. Superintendents attribute principals' failure to internal personal insufficiencies; principals most often named external factors--political interference…

Discusses the negative effects of social and economic development on conditions for children and families. Focuses on worldwide cuts in funding of social services for families and the need to change the political culture toward a more sustainable one that allows for proper levels of care, play, and education of children. (JPB)

Describes what to pack for the English/Language Arts teacher of the new century: a brain (outlining crucial lessons learned about language teaching and learning, important principles, and particular points about writing and reading literature); a heart (since teachers must inspire, nurture, and care about their students); and courage (in the face…

By choosing to classify its decoding approach as "real reading," a 1998 National Research Council report avoids discussing effects of real issues like poverty, race, class, and cultural identity on student achievement. Politicizing education muffles the rigorous academic debate concerning the grievances and educational needs of…

Argues that suppressing theoretical discussion in the educational field, especially in the area of curriculum policy for educational researchers, has political, ethical and epistemological implications that may damage knowledge production in the field, and may, consequently, damage the field itself. Looks at a case study of a prestigious education…

Interviews involving 58 Ohio stakeholders focused on detailing state K-12 education goals, identifying the current system's strengths and weaknesses, and discussing the financial/political viability of potential school funding strategies. Consensus emerged regarding the role of property taxes, local control, the foundation formula rationale, and…

Reviews a book that reports on educational objectives and operations during the 10-year Vietnamese occupation of Cambodia, drawing on current developments in the theory of hegemonic relations. Suggests that the book's focus on linguistic policy in education has implications for the role of language in client-donor international-aid relationships.…

The evolution of comparative education in Greater China (mainland China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau) has been influenced by size, culture, political ideologies, standard of living, and colonialism. Similarities and differences in conceptions of comparative education are identified among the four components and between Greater China and other…

The history curriculum in Hong Kong schools is unique in having separate subjects--history and Chinese history--with distinct content, pedagogy, and assumptions about the discipline of history. In contrast to conventional theories of colonial education, this may have been a mutually convenient collaboration between the government and local…

In 1993, the University of California at Los Angeles conceded to student demands for a Chicano Studies Department. Those political events confirmed that self-conscious social identification as an ideology is a central component of Chicano Studies, which fostered its emergence and institutionalization in opposition to traditional…

Explores the role of English in ongoing processes of globalization, the reasons for its dominance, and the need for conceptual clarification in analyzing English worldwide. Asserts that language pedagogy must ensure that English is not learned subtractively, to the detriment of the mother tongue--only in this way can globalization be made more…