Discusses four major challenges to the field of educational technology in the late 1980s: (1) a theoretical challenge from cognitive science; (2) a technological challenge from information technology; (3) a political challenge from the Left; and (4) a moral challenge from radical critics. Ways that educational technologists should respond in the…

Discusses the current issue of "political correctness" in the academic community and the responsibility of scholarly journals to avoid ideological domination from either the right or the left. Describes the 1934 Nazi takeover of the International Review of Education, the only international journal of comparative education at that time.…

The American Psychological Association is criticized for bias and "politically correct" rhetoric within the institutions and scholarship of the field of psychology, as illustrated in its publication, the "Monitor." (MSE)

This column briefly describes the Council for Exceptional Children's Political Action Network (CEC-PAN), its activities, and history. The author, the current president of CEC, recounts her personal experience in serving as PAN coordinator for Arizona and in lobbying members of Congress. (DB)

Introduces a set of companion essays that examine reviews as a mode of inquiry. Explores the practice and outcomes of reviews in their political and conceptual contexts as research methodology and considers what a review is, what it reveals, who benefits from a review, and the actions implied by review findings. (SLD)

Yale professor Harold Bloom has concluded that cultural guilt has resulted in a 30-year intellectual decline in which politics has come to dominate U.S. poetry. Four leading African-American poets comment critically on Bloom's conclusions. (SLD)

In addition to discussing many scholarly issues at its first meeting, the new Historical Society examined its own reasons for existence, including an interest in reinvigorating intellectual debate on history; reintegrating into the profession historians who have been pushed to the sidelines; and dissatisfaction with two major existing history…

Adult literacy education can contribute to the political change process in Scotland by shifting from a narrow functional approach to a more critical one. The critical approach recognizes vernacular literacies and focuses on developing competence in diverse literacies and on identifying the contexts in which they should be used. (SK)

Discusses political realities that have research, scholarship, and action consequences for the field of black studies. This includes political economy, ideology, and black studies for a new century and its interconnectedness to the other issue, centering gender and interrogating the theory and practice of black women's studies in black studies.…

State legislators are increasingly determining how school sports are conducted. Following Texas's lead, several states, including Ohio and Florida, now require students to earn passing grades or lose playing and practicing opportunities on school sport teams. Kentucky's governor signed a bill imposing stricter penalties on those threatening…

Interviews with 55 British and 40 Australian community development practitioners identified common phases experienced under New Right governments: retreat/isolation, adaptation/defense, and rebuilding. Britain's experiences suggest that community development practice is resilient, but reliance on government funding may restrain activism. (Contains…

Since the Maastricht Treaty in 1992, the European Union (EU) has supported lifelong learning policies and reform of the training systems of member states. However, the fundamental role of the EU as a reference point for development of national vocational policy has not been sufficiently recognized and acted upon. (SK)

Key areas that have influenced the growth in prison education include the rise of public and community colleges, the liberal arts curriculum, and implementation of federal funding systems such as the Pell Grant program. These same areas, especially the ban on inmate use of Pell Grants, may have influenced its recent constriction as well. (Contains…

Compares developments in lifelong learning in the 1990s, especially its emergence on government policy agendas, with its origins in the 1960s-1970s. Shows that the lifelong learning rhetoric about educational opportunities has become a justification for reducing public resources, creating new inequities. (Contains 43 references.) (SK)

Planning is a social activity in which educators negotiate personal and organizational interests in constructing programs. Four concepts encompass a planning model: power, interests, negotiation, and responsibility. (SK)