If outcomes-based education is the darling of education reformers, it is the devil to conservative parents, taxpayer groups, and legislators who oppose it. Despite some initial successes in several states, critics charge that the states pushing OBE have no evidence that it works. Costs are another factor. So far, the ultraconservatives are…

Thanks to the Winning against Violent Environments (WAVE) mediation program, many of Cleveland, Ohio's public high school students have the right and responsibility to resolve most of their own conflicts, nonviolently, with peer assistance instead of adult punishment. WAVE allows adults to work on educational tasks and students to develop…

Two Chicago high school teachers believe that the course they teach--a cooperative, interdisciplinary study of American culture focusing on history and literature--is an effective way to prepare students for citizenship in a pluralistic society. This article recounts their experience with student-negotiated curriculum in an eleventh-grade American…

The rhetoric of current blueprints for (Australian) school reform must be scrutinized to ensure a power redistribution furthering improved outcomes for more students, particularly the least advantaged. A desirable social justice outcome might be achieved through blending equality aspects ensured by the old centralized system with the progressive…

Considers Directive to Physician, Durable Power of Attorney for Healthcare Decisions, and Medical Ethics Decision Form. Notes importance of process individuals go through in defining what quality of life means to them. Sees current struggle being individual articulation of one's wishes based on personal definition of quality of life set forth in…

A 1991 follow-up to a 1979 survey of 77 social worker agency personnel concerning the value of 56 undergraduate social work curriculum components found that potential employers most desired staff trained in communication skills, mastery of content on socialization and small group work, and cultivation of basic social work values. Practice…

To respond effectively to alleged historical misrepresentations and prejudices in Afrocentric and other ethnocentric philosophies, educators must first address our society's inadequacies. Silence suggests complicity and discredits calls for reason, academic scholarship, and the value of learning. Multiculturalism is a world view that is rooted in…

Conceptions of parental authority and ratings of adolescent-parent conflict were assessed in 6th-, 8th-, and 10th-graders and their parents. Participants judged the legitimacy of parental authority and rated the frequency and intensity of conflict regarding 24 hypothetical issues. Adolescents and parents agreed that parents should retain authority…

Asserts that the Nobel Peace Prize provides a gateway for teaching the critical issue of peace in history courses. Presents an overview of the origin, development, and history of the Nobel Peace Prize, with special focus on U.S. winners. Includes six suggested student projects and a list of U.S. Nobel Peace Prize winners. (CFR)

At Jefferson Medical College and Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, medical ethics case discussions have been implemented successfully in 7 of 17 clinical departments. Success is attributed to broad institutional support, program and format capable of capturing and holding residents' attention, direct involvement of all residency participants,…

The college liberal arts curriculum should help disengage students from their own cultural perspectives so they can more adequately think and argue about the past. Similarly, in studying how literary texts represent cultures, students need not "know" the culture but simply understand the statement they make. (MSE)

Describes an increasing shift in the British educational system toward vocationalism. Recognizes proliferation of the belief that education primarily should prepare the student for work. Differentiates between industry's profit-making goal and education's complex range of functions. Expresses concern that society emphasizes individualism as…

Responds to the article by Kevin Ryan appearing in this issue recommending moral values education in the schools. This paper recommends that moral education avoid indoctrination of students and that moral questioning occur in an atmosphere of open discussion of alternatives so students understand they do not have to choose between hard work and…

Argues for use of education to change environmental attitudes. Suggests philosophical changes to better align education with "new world view." Describes developmental differences between environmental education and outdoor education. Suggests maximizing both disciplines and incorporating newest methods and technologies for high…

A graduate level course for precollege teachers that fulfills the need for science-technology-society (STS) knowledge by K-12 school teachers is described. Understanding of the interconnections of science, technology, and society and how to involve students in a values-oriented STS discussion are the overall goals. Topics and resources, the…