Received conceptualizations of scientific literacy are grounded in (1) the notions of "knowledge", "concepts", and "skills" that science students have to "acquire", "appropriate", or "construct" or (2) the notion of "practices" to which they have to be "enculturated" so that they become part of a "community of practice". All such notions…

The Commissioner's annual report provides the Legislature with information reported by school districts concerning incidents of serious student misconduct grouped into the following four major reporting categories: violence, vandalism, weapons, and substance abuse. An analysis of trends yields indications of progress and of ongoing concern, and…

Seventeen adolescents from four rural high schools in upstate New York were interviewed while in the 12th grade and again a year later. Interviews focused on student perceptions of their community, school, and social life; values; and future plans. All participants graduated from high school, and most went on to college or moved to another…

This paper reviews ways in which the University of Indianapolis (Indiana) utilized its professional development school (PDS) program as a vehicle for promoting inclusion of democratic ideals in the teacher education program. Three issues related to implementation of the PDS partnership are discussed: balance and shift of roles, direction and pace…

A major controversy arose in 1987 in a midwestern school district, after a middle school teacher assigned the novel "Go Ask Alice" to her seventh-grade class. This book describes the district's attempt to answer two basic questions: What should students read? and Who should decide what students read? The book controversy is first…

This book addresses the question of what kind of relationship between human beings and nature will best serve the interests of both. The history of Lassen Volcanic National Park in northeastern California illustrates how divergent views on this relationship have impacted the evolution of the American preservation and conservation movement. Prior…

Alternative teaching strategies such as cooperative group work should be followed by cooperative assessment strategies. Teachers of teachers use various teaching models but may fail to also model a similar variety of assessment strategies. When the emphasis is on cooperative learning, especially with an issues-oriented approach, then the…

The key elements of promoting human traits such as building trust through proactive communication, empowering individuals, affirming civic values through diversity, serving as a symbol, and increasing accountability and responsibility as they relate to teachers and students are the focus of this article, which provides educators with useful…

This guide was designed to help middle school students plan career paths and make career choices. The booklet is organized in four sections, each intended to guide students in their career development process. The first section focuses on self-awareness as part of career exploration. The second section features five career clusters and related job…

A conviction that democracy required for its citizens access to knowledge and to habits of critical thought has been recognized as a driving dynamic behind educators such as Albert Mansbridge. Britons must reshape their vision for the turn of the millennium, but they need to draw on their inheritance, on the understanding of their predecessors…

This two-part curriculum unit includes 20 slides depicting Days of the Dead in Mexico and the United States. The unit is designed to help middle school students compare customs and practices associated with death throughout the world in a way that promotes understanding of the values and needs that produce and are reinforced by death rituals and…

This paper explores the role of self discovery in the early stages of caregiver professional development, with a focus on the array of choices available to university students. The assumption is that many people do not know their repertoire of skills until asked to complete a project requiring those skills; thus, "the heart of becoming a…

This collection of 31 essays examines the idea of community rooted in a particular place, usually a small town or rural place. Many essays comment on the role of education in promoting the transient materialistic lifestyle or suggest ways in which education could foster place attachment and community building. Essays specifically focused on…

Taking the position that Youth for Justice Youth Summits were highly successful in their inaugural year of 1995, this report explains the purpose and goals of the summits. The report also summarizes the activities undertaken in the 47 states (plus the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico) where the summits were held on a state-by-state basis. The…

This report is an attempt by Public Agenda to capture the voices of teachers across the United States and to spell out their concerns and learn more about their perspectives on educational reform. It is based primarily on two national telephone surveys of teachers, one of 237 teachers and a second survey of 800 teachers of grades 4 through 12.…