As Gail Bush reports, "each section of this monograph includes articles that invite the reader to explore his or her own response to the authors' messages... The purpose here is not to set in stone principles and practices to be followed blindly but to present a disposition toward intellectual behaviors that seriously consider our responsibilities…

We analyse a teacher-to-teacher discourse (14 web-published case studies) concerning "participation as citizenship" in schools. Many different mechanisms through which pupils participate are reported (from school councils to paired-reading schemes and community links). The claimed outcomes of these activities are also varied: improving…

Whilst government policies are now pushing teachers to listen to pupils, this concern is largely framed within the school improvement agenda. This is not the only arena where listening to pupils counts. This article examines the ways in which two young people, making a significant choice about which university to attend, felt unable to discuss…

Borrowing from the legacy of feminist and multicultural theories, various counseling fields have applied portions of empowerment theory to their work with oppressed clients. This article examines the main concepts associated with empowerment theory and provides important implications for professional school counselors.

Empowerment has become a popular concept in working with adolescents in recent years. It challenges the deficit model of youth work and focuses on creating a facilitative climate in which young people can make maximum use of the opportunity to learn and grow. While many practitioners have adopted the empowerment approach in youth services,…

The career development needs of counselor education students beginning a professional job search have not been systematically explored. Although job clubs have been linked to positive outcomes, there is no empirical evidence that they meet the needs of this group. The purpose of this study was to examine how counselor education students viewed a…

This paper quotes the qualitative data from one author's recent research (Feng, 2006, 2007) in China and the other author's ongoing PhD research in India. Both studies used multi-methods of data collection in mainstream school settings. This paper discusses the relatively under-researched topic of "quiet disaffection" of pupils with…

This article explores the theme of the "two faces of education" by reviewing new policy directives in the United Kingdom to strengthen community cohesion in schools and their communities. These directives have resulted from growing disaffection with the aims and outcomes of multiculturalism. This article will investigate the ways in…

This paper addresses the issue of how Harvard Project Zero's "teaching for understanding" might evolve over the next 100 years. Schools pitched to an Information Society seek ways of increasing the chances that learners will understand domains deeply and master the new basic skills. Such 21st century schools build upon Paulo Freire's…

Reports the experience of one teaching team's attempt to implement a "philosophy of choice" into a large lecture course at a major university. Assesses students' willingness to embrace innovation in the classroom, how choice-based learning impacted student self-assessed learning, and what considerations students take into account when selecting…

This article poses 10 questions for secondary school teachers who bemoan their students' lack of interest, laziness, and resistance to learning. Students need choices and chances to make decisions and assume responsibility for their own learning. They also need to laugh and feel important. Matching assignments to learning styles need not sacrifice…

Aurora (Colorado) Public Schools staff found that empowering students meant teaching students what enhances and what impedes learning; helping them recognize and develop their own personal learning strengths; teaching them specific thinking and learning strategies; and passing on learning responsibility to them. The key is willingness to share…

Considers advantages and disadvantages of four different sociopolitical approaches to multicultural studies: corporate, liberal, essentialist, and radical democratic. Suggests the use of a radical democratic perspective because this approach acknowledges the need for changes in the power structures of society. Offers suggestions for designing a…

Describes in detail the steps necessary to develop a Gallery Walk, a classroom project that was used to foster shared-learning, communal inquiry and individual empowerment. (NH)

Discusses student-led parent conferences at Metcalf Laboratory School. Finds that students can learn how to reflect on their learning, evaluate their progress, and communicate this information to their parents in a conference situation. Concludes that students were empowered and that student-led conferences were a good way to use guided…