This book consists of 19 selected papers that focus on the broad topic of education in the South Pacific. All the papers were originally presented at the Fifteenth Annual Conference of the Australian College of Education, which was held in May 1974. Titles of the papers include "Educating for Self Reliance (the Buntine Oration for…

Increasing cumulative grade point average at a public university was found to be caused not by a general relaxing of grading standards, but probably because students are moving away from traditional curricula into courses and degree programs with grading standards reflecting their abilities and/or interests. (Author/LBH)

Discusses the benefits of teachers acting as student advocates as opposed to mere functionaries of the educational system. Describes the qualities of a good teacher while showing how educational organization and administration make it difficult for such to exist. Suggests alternatives that would maintain the necessary organization while promoting…

Research indicates that four criteria should be considered in developing methods for teaching learning strategies to foreign language students: explicitness of purpose; content; evaluation; and integration of learner training with language training. Five English as a second language settings using learner training activities are described. (CB)

A sample of 42 post-secondary, educational re-entry women completed questionnaires focusing on background status, role dynamics, and satisfaction with their re-entry experience. Results showed no differences between students in a vocational program and those in a traditional, academic program. Role-dynamic variables--but not background-status…

Language laboratories, VCRs, and microcomputers are not labor-saving devices for the teacher. Technology-mediated lessons demand as much, if not more, planning effort than does conventional instruction. Four points to consider in planning are (1) selection of medium; (2) selection of software; (3) amount of student control; and (4) amount of…

If a major objective of general education is to make children capable of understanding their worlds and of solving technical problems, then mathematics instruction must be provided for all children. However, historical analyses suggest that educators cannot expect great success in implementing this "mathematics for all" orientation in…

The following objectives for a k-12 multicultural program are discussed: (1) celebrations, (2) curiosity quest, (3) ethnic group contributions, (4) similarities among groups (case study approach), (5) consciousness raising, (6) communication, and (7) caring. Also examined are additional factors to consider in developing such a program, e.g.,…

A K-12 social studies scope and sequence that is realistically possible to implement is presented. Contents include: mandate for citizenship education; definition and goals of social studies; an illustrative scope and sequence, providing specific grade level examples; examples of applications of democratic beliefs and values; and essential social…

There is little evidence to support the view that schools are responsible for economic problems and/or that they are the key to solving them. As long as such views remain dominant, however, American educational goals will continue to be captive to the profit motive of American industry. (JBM)

South African educational reforms in the 1980s are seen as the government's response to critics of apartheid and an attempt to win the hearts and minds of Blacks through apparent, but not necessarily real, restructuring of the racial division of labor and through limited technical training for Blacks. (MH)

This study examines the factors that influence participation in vocational education among students who attended high school during the early 1990s--that is, when the focus of federal vocational education policy began to change. The factors examined included three types of characteristics of students, their parents, and their high schools: (1)…

Public Agenda was asked by the Nebraska State Board of Education and the Nebraska Department of Education (referred to hereafter as the State Board and the NDE) to help design and implement a public engagement process that would allow a cross-section of the state's citizens to comment on the central ideas contained in the document "Equitable…

How does one become an effective superintendent of schools? There is no simple formula as the turnover rate reflects difficulty of the position. Some maintain that the job cannot be done well due to politics, financial constraints, and time demands. As a former superintendent, the author rejects this negative view. In this highly readable,…

Of all the factors that schools control, teacher quality is the one that most affects student achievement (Darling-Hammond, 2000). In fact, researcher Eric Hanushek (2002) found the difference in annual student achievement growth between a student taught by an effective teacher and one taught by an ineffective teacher can be as much as one…