Total quality management (TQM) has become a U.S. social movement. This commentary analyzes the writings of W. Edwards Deming, Joseph Juran, and Kaoru Ishikawa to assess TQM's coherence, distinctiveness, and likely perseverance. Rhetoric is winning over substance, unrelated interventions are being herded under the TQM banner, and research is not…

Similarities and differences in cooperative and collaborative learning are examined, and areas in which the two educational strategies converge are discussed. College and university teachers are urged to broaden their horizons of research and practice by investigating these strategies and their implications and by sharing ideas. (MSE)

Scholarly interest in Jewish studies, discouraged during Communist rule, is experiencing a renaissance in Poland. However, because the Jewish community is largely gone from Poland, much of the research must be conducted outside the country. It is felt that earlier censorship has stimulated interest in Jewish studies. Polish scholars feel their…

Reviews research on black adolescent male development within schools and classrooms and on black, teenage fathers, followed by a discussion of the issues discovered from this research. The article summarizes these issues and provides conclusions for expanding the discourses on black fathers and family support. (GR)

Provides an overview of the articles presented in this special issue on matters affecting family preservation services, related policies, and evaluation. Discusses concerns related to the preservation approach and child protection, suggesting that although it is an improvement on the previous protection approaches, it is fraught with difficulties…

Discusses the introduction of computer-mediated communications (CMC) in management education and describes the impact of the new technology on the role of the tutor. The role of the moderator in CMC is contrasted with the role of the tutor in learner-controlled, or participative, education; and future directions are suggested. (17 references) (LRW)

Evaluates the role of the learner support services in the Oklahoma Televised Instruction System, a distance education program. Resources related to learning are described, including access to library resources, learning materials, and counseling; and attitudes and performance of on-campus and distance students are compared. (15 references) (LRW)

Analyzes the content of the research section of "School Library Media Annual" (SLMA) since it began in 1983. Highlights include numbers of pages devoted to research; structure of the SLMA; numbers of documents, dissertations, and articles cited; research reported through the ERIC system; research reviews; and research needs. (LRW)

Explores ways to improve the capability of the National Center for Health Statistics to collect national health data on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. Standardized interview instruments and data collection procedures offer the possibility of capitalizing on the geographic distribution of these populations in the United States. (SLD)

Challenges in applying cognitive strategy research to complex knowledge domains in students with learning disabilities include the need to focus on deficits in domain-specific knowledge; adaptation of assessment designs to answer cognitive questions; and procedures for individual cognitive strategy instruction in group settings. A research agenda…

Reports on a study that examined collections of biographies of women in four elementary school libraries. Data are presented on collection size, distribution of male and female biographies in proportion to the student population, representation of ethnic groups, literary quality, and currency. A list of 49 recommended women's biographies is…

The last of four articles regarding the effectiveness of educational technology services in higher education presents results of a survey of faculty and media directors of state-assisted four-year institutions in Ohio. Highlights include differences in perceptions of faculty and media directors; demographic factors; and recommendations for future…

Two members and a former member of the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) Policy Council respond to Raimes' concerns about the TOEFL Test of Written English, particularly regarding the Educational Testing Service's research agenda and its effect on English-as-a-Second-Language instruction and graduate school admission. (17 references)…

Reports on the results of two experiments testing the effectiveness of a concept-based computer tutorial for OPAC (online public access catalog) users. Factors that may have caused differences in results, including OPACs used in the experiments and the participants' different ability levels, are discussed. Findings are related to similar studies.…

Describes the design of a hypermedia application, "Set on Freedom," on the American civil rights movement and presents preliminary qualitative and quantitative research on its use in a seventh- and eighth-grade classroom. Results suggest that hypermedia applications can be designed to support development of historical thinking. (Contains…