Reported is a study designed to determine whether reading grade level (RGL) assessment techniques used for elementary and secondary education textbooks would discriminate among plant and soil science textbooks. The study was to select the RGL indices suited to quantify the readability of these sources, and to identify the factors affecting…

Discusses the nature and sequencing of decisions involved in designing a game, simulation, or workshop from the theoretical perspective of course and curriculum design. A model for design is presented that incorporates objectives, teaching/learning methods, content, and assessment/evaluation, and other models are also discussed. (Author/LRW)

Describes two experiments that were designed to test the effectiveness of a microcomputer-based vocabulary program for high school students. Pretest and posttest methodologies are described for learning-disabled, remedial, and general students, and results for the experimental and control groups are compared. (18 references) (Author/LRW)

Reports on a study designed to examine selected units of commonly used elementary science texts, using the Project Synthesis goal clusters as a framework for part of the examination. The discussion of the finding focuses on the comparison of the results to recommendations of the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA). (TW)

An analysis of the policy curriculum contents of 66 master's of social work (MSW) and 78 bachelor's (BSW) programs is presented. Despite the Council on Social Work Education curriculum policy guidelines and accreditation standards, a laissez-faire doctrine seems to prevail. (Author/MH)

Examines the key arguments used in U.S. criticism of the New World Information and Communication Order and suggests that these arguments were evoked to support the U.S. position on government control of the media. (MM)

Presents a psycholinguistic analysis of the development of writing skills and reports a developmental study of knowledge effects in writing. A theoretical framework decomposes the requisite knowledge into three main components: (1) generalized, high-level problem-solving plans, (2) content, and (3) discourse. (Author/SED)

Reading ability of fourth- and eighth-grade Hungarians was assessed as part of the national CTD-80 (Curriculum Theory Department) survey. The texts used in the reading tests are analyzed, as are the reading tasks involved. Resulting achievement test results are presented and described in terms of the text characteristics. (GDC)

This study of U.S. college students' soap opera viewing habits investigated their motives; interrelationships among motives, audience viewing dispositions, and life patterns; whether viewing dispositions and life pattern variables explain viewing motives; and what multivariate structures explain relationships between viewing motives, viewing…

Discusses whether the goal of language proficiency is reasonable or even possible given the language textbooks available. Examines the description of the French language in college-level French language textbooks (all of which take a structural approach) to see if they lend themselves to the acquisition of a functional speaking ability. (SED)

Through an examination of U.S. circuit, district, and Supreme Court school library censorship cases from 1972 to 1982 an attempt is made to discover whether school officials' actions and court officials' decisions show a reverence for the spirit of First Amendment freedom of expression guarantees. (MBR)

Cautions that art has influence and that literature will change the way people think. Suggests that if vulgar and obscene literature is dignified by giving it a place in the classroom, it degrades the literary classics and debases their message. (RBW)

This project focused on the role of the family in providing support to a relative with a disability in two American Indian cultures, the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians and the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians. A review of the literature notes the documented importance of involving family in the rehabilitation process. Ten families in each…

The purpose of this study was to examine interconnections between religiosity and citizenship education in Lithuanian religious education textbooks. Six textbooks (for 5-10 grades) used in Lithuanian basic schools were chosen for the content analysis. Dimensions of citizenship and morality found in religious education textbooks were classified…

This study investigated issues related to the project-based learning (PBL) approach using Web technology. Action research methodology was employed for the investigation. Data included online discussions, an online questionnaire, and the transcripts of face-to-face instruction. Content analysis was used for data analysis. The findings showed that…