Questions the belief that expository prose is the basic skill that underlies the ideal of academic discourse. Suggests that expository prose and traditional academic discourse are constrained and distorted by ideological values and false conceptions of gender. Argues that writing will seem a much different and richer subject once those values and…

Discusses how examination of the assessment criteria in a basic writing program prompted fruitful, continuing program evaluation and change. Reports that the assessment study validated efforts to deemphasize grammar and spelling instruction in basic writing courses. (MM)

Discusses several alternatives to traditional teaching methods, focusing on contract grading and student-centered teaching. Notes that these changes create a new framework within which teachers can continually learn how to teach. (MM)

Race has been the major determining factor in the development of education for Blacks in the United States. Blacks have always opposed White educational oppression and taken every opportunity to educate themselves. Suggests ways that Blacks can continue to combat racism in education. (FMW)

Guidelines are offered for those involved in a shift from a more secondary oriented, departmentally organized school to a middle level perspective that is more sensitive to the needs of young adolescents. (MLF)

Recounts events in history of psychology in United States focusing on science, practice, and politics. Uses three models of psychological science to explicate relative independence and divergent developmental courses of three domains. Argues that adherence to single paradigm within each domain has limited integration. Suggests that…

Examines the problems in initiating schoolwide reading reform. Argues for the formal establishment of a reading improvement team to negotiate and collaborate on long-range initiatives to improve reading instruction districtwide. Concludes that improving reading instruction is an ongoing, developmental, adult-learning process that requires a…

Probes the intrinsically political nature of education. Distinguishes between liberation through knowledge and indoctrination. Maintains that the task of liberal educators is to open students' minds, not possess them. Argues that the possibility for liberal education relies on the discovery of transtemporal, transhistorical, transcultural truth,…

Use-oriented approaches to evaluation have been challenged by contentions that the responsiveness of such evaluations undermines their technical quality. This discussion analyzes purported conflicts between these evaluation criteria of utility and accuracy by examining underlying assumptions related to evaluation's purpose and politics. (TJH)

Describes the history of early childhood education in Indonesia. Also discusses (1) the extent of the nation's present formal preschool education system; (2) the cooperative private and government early childhood education effort; and (3) the goals set by the private and government coalition for preschool education in the 1990s. (RJC)

Presents a historical and international overview of student political movements. Discusses the sporadic nature of student activism, effects of mass media attention and government response, characteristics of activist leaders and participants, and the cultural and educational impact of student protest in Third World and industrialized countries.…

Explores the reasons educational reforms fail. Demonstrates that the study of such failures provides insight into the complex political dynamics of policy making. Information from two case studies of France and West Germany indicates that in industrialized societies, the state tends to maximize the political gain derived from educational reform…

While domestic politics occurs in the presence of a sovereign government, international political activity takes place in a state of anarchy. Each nation-state claims sovereignty and recognizes no power superior to itself. When discussing peace, teachers must be realistic about interdependence, which can lead to war, as in 1914. (MLH)

When not asking whether he will be fired, local reporters often cast Baltimore's school superintendent as a "miracle worker." The press might be overlooking the developing cooperation between schools and community organizations. Hunter is trying to unite a city with 156 proudly independent neighborhoods and a severely underfunded…

Discusses the achievements of Reagan's foreign policy. Explores the question: Did Reagan reconstruct a domestic foreign policy consensus? Concludes that no consensus was reached. Analyzes Reagan's political beliefs, including his antinuclear sentiments, and examines relations between Reagan and Congress. (RW)