Concludes that teachers today are somewhat more authoritarian in their beliefs than were their counterparts of 25 years ago. (FL)

Hampshire College, representing an innovative response to student discontent, and Amherst College, the exemplar of the liberal arts tradition, are compared. Seen from Amherst, Hampshire's curriculum is trendy, its standards lax, a remnant of California counterculture. From Hampshire, Amherst appears a bastion of cultural elitism and authoritarian…

The philosophical misconception which seems to underlie permissive educational thought is that, to have opportunity for free individual development, one must have been exposed to no teaching and have learned no techniques. But, in reality, individual development cannot be accomplished until disciplined structures of thought and action are learned.…

An excerpt from the resolution of the executive committee of the Conference on College Composition and Communication, which espouses the view that no variety or dialect of a language is intrinsically superior to any other, is presented. Implications for teaching standard and nonstandard dialects are discussed. (KC)

Some contentions of scientific creationism that conflict with accepted principles of geology (catastrophism, fossil records, earth's age, rock formation, second law of thermodynamics) are reviewed, demonstrating that these claims are based not on scientific research or reasonable conjecture but on Biblical references. (Author/DC)

Relevance of kibbutz education in relation to influence of progressive Western tradition is examined in: (1) analysis of objectives; (2) discussion of the success of the kibbutz in attaining the objectives; (3) comparison of the objectives in light of differences in social relations between the West and the kibbutz; and (4) reinterpretation of…

Describes Tolstoy's experimental school program as a forerunner of modern, open-education programs. In a radical departure from conventional, nineteenth century Russian educational practice, Tolstoy stressed individualized, independent learning with meaningful instructional materials. In his non-coercive classroom, self-discipline was founded on…

Compared perceptions of 39 parents and 186 teachers toward death education for young children. Parents expressed significantly less support than teachers for death education as a part of early childhood education and did not wish teachers to share their personal or religious beliefs with children. (Author/JAC)

This photo-essay describes a Waldorf School. Developed by Austrian Rudolf Steiner, the Waldorf plan is dedicated to allowing the child a childlike environment. It emphasizes storytelling, creative dramatics, flexibility, improvisation, crafts, and movement. (SJL)

This aricle describes the successful efforts of district arts teachers in saving their art programs in the face of declining enrollments. The Board of Education accepted the committee report, retaining all tenured and non-tenured staff, and was willing to make a substantial financial commitment to the fine arts program. (KC)

After addressing the problems inherent in developing staff improvement programs, the author offers starter planning steps for countering the energy drainage of teachers, countering the weak technology of teaching, and countering the feeling of aloneness of the teacher. (KC)

This discussion of the German curriculum project, "Work in an Historical Dimension", includes an analysis of the project's philosophical underpinnings as well as descriptions of its objectives, content (images and global realities of work from the 7th century to the present) and its successful implementation in a comprehensive school.…

Health education has developed from the early physical education programs of the 1860s. Health education is now in a period of change due to an increasing interest in health and health-related careers. A proposed interdisciplinary structure for health studies as a teaching field is described. (JN)

Presents an illustration of how planned change can be implemented in a private university, involving the collaboration of many individuals and processes. It involves the introduction of cooperative education to a traditional academic curriculum and organizational structure in a selective private university in the Midwest. (CT)

To realize its potential, the experiential learning movement must develop a balance between traditional and experiential methods and philosophy. As an approach to developing this synthesis, three dilemmas created when experiential learning is developed as a reaction to the shortcomings of traditional methods are identified and analyzed.…