On the occasion of the twenty-fifth anniversary of Swedish comprehensive education, it is concluded that the system has attained some of its social and academic aims fully and approached attainment of others. Areas for further improvement include increased local governance, more clearly articulated goals, and curriculum development. (MSE)

Undergraduate education is illiberal because the progression from general to specialized learning does not support students in learning how to make choices or explore their consequences. Courses late in the student's program, rather than at the outset, that explore disciplinary boundaries and interconnections could be useful. (MSE)

A survey of 206 teachers of behaviorally disordered students found a relationship between teachers' theoretical approach and methodology, but little relationship between goals and philosophy or methodology. Teachers reported using instructional techniques not included in their preservice training program. (Author/JDD)

Describes the present-day school system as a cultural construct that works for a few students to the detriment of many. Proposes a model based on alternative theories of power. Describes the Ph. D. program in administration at Miami University (Ohio). (CJS)

Reviews "Preparing School Administrators for Democratic Authority" by Richard A. Quantz et al. Because education is political, administrators need a historical perspective on how dominant traditions have evolved as well as on the impact of the disenfranchised on education in the past. Calls for more insight from a feminist perspective.…

Examines how current education reform reports reflect arts and humanities education. Maintains that the reports are marginalizing the arts and are advocating a back-to-basics approach. Points out that National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) tried to overcome this trend by introducing "basic arts education." (KM)

Asserts that sociology is losing ground to other disciplines and programs that are engaged more actively in the workplace. Proposes that, because of the vast changes in the workplace, there is a more active and more applied role for sociology that may help to provide greater opportunities for students and faculty. (DB)

Reviews the following books on rhetoric and education: (1) Wayne Booth's anthology, "The Vocation of a Teacher: Rhetorical Occasions"; (2) Gerald Graff's "Professing Literature: An Institutional History"; and (3) "The Voice of Liberal Learning: Michael Oakeshott on Education," edited by Timothy Fuller. (JS)

The article focuses on the development of gifted behavior in children through nurturing the whole child, accommodating individual differences, and providing a wide range of educational experiences. A differentiated curriculum is recommended, which promotes higher cognitive processes, uses teaching strategies appropriate for able children, and…

Reviews a volume edited by Carolyn Edwards, Lella Gandini, and George Forman, that presents a thorough overview of the educational philosophy and practices of the city-run early childhood program of Reggio Emilia, Italy. (ME)

Reviews four hypotheses about learning: Comenius's transmission-reception theory, information processing theory, Gestalt theory, and Piagetian theory. Uses the categories preunderstanding, conceptual change, and learning processes to classify and assess investigations on learning processes. (PR)

This editorial contends that life-long learners can be created by teaching students how to learn in a mastery fashion and how to use interpersonal skills. School improvement can be achieved by implementing tools that have proved to be effective, such as cooperative learning, thematic learning, whole language, integrated curriculum, and learning…

Issues the author has explored in his work on the philosophy of statistics are reviewed. Indeterminacy, the place of empiricism, questions of causation and causality, and explorations of language have preceded the study of objectivity. The relationship between objectivity and multivariate statistics is examined. (SLD)

This article reviews literature on higher order thinking focusing on three issues: perspectives of philosophers and psychologists, attempts to differentiate between lower and higher order thinking, and the relationship between critical thinking and problem solving and what that means to higher order thinking. (SM)

The purpose of education through the ages has been to open up paths to freedom, yet the educational community has embraced technology--specifically computer technology--as the definitive and only mandate for teaching and learning as a result of emphasis on technique. Compares computer technology to a totalitarian regime which controls rather than…