THIS ISSUE OF THE JOURNAL OF EDUCATIONAL THOUGHT CONTAINS FIVE ARTICLES, EACH DEALING WITH QUESTIONS OF EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITY. THE FIRST EXPLORES CHARACTERISTICS, PROBLEMS, AND OPPORTUNITIES INHERENT IN THE CONSTRASTING ROLES OF STUDENTSHIP, AND MEMBERSHIP, AND CALLS FOR A BALANCE BETWEEN THE TWO ROLES. A SECOND ARTICLE POINTS TO THE NEED TO…

Ideas in ten books which marked turning points in American educational directions are analyzed. William H. McGuffey's "Readers" (1836-44) set the moral and inspirational tone that still exists in American education, though now lessened and mainly in small-town America. "Medical Education in the United States and Canada"…

While the importance of vocational education in today's economic climate cannot be denied, the current trend toward isolated career training should be countered with the recognition that a college education, the liberal arts in general, and the study of history in particular are vital agents in man's attempt to change society for the better.…

Five principles that help to improve learning and schooling are: (1) Every detail in the physical environment of a school, no matter how small, matters and contributes in a cumulative way to the overall tone. (2) Students should be allowed to make and carry out educational decisions that they can handle. (3) All courses, to the fullest extent…

Socrates' contention was that the sophist misconstrues the sphere of ethics. Although the sophist presents a systematized moral world, no experience is implied. This can be applied to the new professionalism in the teaching of ethics. Loosening the creative tension of perceived responsibility effectively closes down the real moral decision. The…

Historical essays examine the characteristics of the education professoriate and its quest for a science of education. The first paper shows how the expansion of public schooling in the early nineteenth century prompted school personnel to look for a science of education in order to improve their practice and schools, and to gain recognition for…

The state of competency-based education (CBE) and liberal arts is examined in this reflective discussion. Questions addressed include: What does liberal education seek to accomplish? What are the liberal competencies? What has liberal education to do with the human condition, as expressed in work or a job? Issues and difficulties are frankly set…

The theme of the 1971 meeting of the Council of Graduate Schools in the United States is graduate education in the 1970s: a response to change. The discussions offered include nontraditional graduate programs by Elizabeth R. Foster and Edwin L. Lively; on developing a national philosophy for graduate education by Robert F. Kruh, Donald W. Taylor,…

This paper argues that if researchers studying a recognized category of behavior, such as fantasy play or aggression, were to focus on prototypical instances of the behavior, there should be high inter-researcher agreement of just the sort that operational definitions were intended to secure. A study of fantasy play was conducted using a paradigm…

An 11-chapter anthology on the historical, epistemological, methodological, philosophical, and educational issues surrounding the topic of interdisciplinarity is presented. A general perspective on the continuing debate about interdisciplinarity is presented in the first four chapters, followed by six chapters on specific problems and prospects.…

The author demonstrates why he thinks the Supreme Court has misinterpreted the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. The First Amendment states that "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof..." The author claims that the Supreme Court, based on flawed reading of the…

Modern educational philosophy too often considers product-oriented efficiency the highest priority of the educational system, to the great detriment of the actual learning process. This situation could be altered by a shift in public and administrative attitudes towards the professional teacher. A more sympathetic approach to the problems of…

Providing effective linkages between education and work has become one of the most important issues on the national agenda today. However, the lack of a national policy on vocational education has meant that the responsibilities of the vocational education establishment in this direction have never been clearly defined and that the present…

Liberal education, designed to produce character, comprehension, and compassion, has an important future in the community college scene. Of the six community college functions, only one is in the vocational area; learning skills development, general education, continuing education, guidance, and transfer education are largely liberal education…

The document contains a paper on the cognitive-decision approach to moral/citizenship education and three critiques of the paper. The major paper characterizes cognitive decisionists, describes strengths and weaknesses of their approach, and assesses the extent to which empirical knowledge is available for the approach. Cognitive decisionists…