A growing number of education reformers are justifying their reform strategies by pointing to the findings of developmental brain research, theories of information processing, and the needs dictated by today's information-rich world. They advocate integrative education, which places students in a holistic context. This digest describes the…

The essence of understanding visual literacy lies in the visually literate exploration of issues process. This understanding must deal with both the processes involved in the creation and interpretation of concrete visual communication. Visual discourses's greatest contribution to human knowledge and thought is not the sequential, linear,…

John Dewey employed the phrase "water-tight compartments" to mark deficiencies of integration within an individual's personality. For Dewey, the self is complex, but a strong personality integrates its various habits so that they reinforce rather than conflict with one another. Dewey's focus on this problem of personality has relevance…

This paper argues that the possibility of a radical alternative is rarely examined in educational administration theory. In assuming the need for managed organizations, most researchers and practitioners perpetuate the status quo. However, the efforts of de Chardin, Jung, Schumacher, Capra, and Steiner indicate that a unified, holistic paradigm is…

National concerns about the quality and effectiveness of science teaching have resulted in several efforts directed at restructuring the United States' science curriculum. This digest discusses recent initiatives of the Earth Systems Education. Topics discussed include: (1) efforts to understand the planet Earth; (2) the Program for Leadership in…

This paper describes how Deming's theory of management can be applied to the educational process. Following an overview of Deming's theory, nine specific questions to ask any theory of education are posed. The differences between education and industry, as well as the differences between quality management and traditional educational approaches,…

The methodologies employed in comparative higher education and comparative education are briefly summarized and analyzed. Weaknesses of the following approaches used by scholars/researchers in the field are identified: (1) locating decision-making structures and relations in broadly differentiated aggregations of systems; (2) case study; (3)…

Good writing involves a series of mental processes which go far beyond what is included in traditional writing instruction. Students are often evaluated on single writing samples written in short periods of time whereas good writing involves many revisions and much more time. Traditional instruction has emphasized the analytic processes of the…

A critique is presented of naturalistic inquiry as a scholarly activity or as an alternative research paradigm directed toward extending knowledge of physical education curriculum and instruction. Four questions are posed: (1) What is the value perspective of naturalistic inquiry? (2) What are the phenomena of interest? (3) What are the…

A special unit within a nursing home for serving residents with dementia was developed and implemented at the Cape Cod Nursing Home in Buzzards Bay, Massachusetts. The purpose of the special unit is to create a structured and protective environment which holistically supports the residents with dementia in achieving their maximum potential. A…

The paper begins with the supposition that schools in Great Britain have been given the task of developing an ethos and teaching/learning approaches which may reduce and eradicate racism and other prejudices in education and the wider society. Prejudice is defined and 25 practical initiatives for combatting it through multicultural education are…

Whereas testing is limited to the parameters of the instrument used, evaluation is a broader assessment of a situation. Wholistic evaluation amplifies the concept to include both intrinsic and extrinsic factors. Student-centered evaluation acknowledges that differentiated inputs may attribute to differentiated outputs. Select sociolinguistic,…

Understanding U.S. culture is difficult, because the information explosion creates an increase in the number and complexity of various cultural relationships. American Studies is a valuable and unique discipline because it directly addresses this problem, the basic purposes of education, and the relationships that shape students' culture. This…

This paper focuses upon the perceptions and the actions of the elementary school principal in the change process. Perceptions of change itself, of control, of the school system, and of the school staff are critical to his/her effectiveness in implementing change. To create an institutional climate that supports change, the principal must provide…

Despite the obvious parallel which can be drawn between the uses of leisure to benefit the individual, and the use of nonacademic activities and environment to promote individual growth and development, the two perspectives have evolved independently on college campuses. Research into the role, function, and outcomes of leisure have shown that…