Qualitative study examined issues and events that led 221 women to an urban commuter campus of 16,000 students. Role exit theory was used to explain why the majority of these women stated past experiences played a major part in determining academic major and level of involvement in campus activities. Includes questionnaire. (JBJ)

Analysis of current critiques of gifted education considers four common concerns: (1) whether giftedness exists; (2) whether students who possess giftedness can be identified; (3) whether such students can be provided with quality differentiated programs and services; and (4) whether it is morally correct to provide such programs or services. (DB)

Examines the scope of pedagogic discourse, which involves the operation of a set of principles by which persons are apprenticed into ways of working valued in a culture. A pedagogic discourse is realized in two sets of language choices: (1) those connected with the goals of the teaching-learning activity, and (2) those concerning the content to be…

A study of 250 new teaching assistants and 122 tenure-track faculty investigated their endorsement of 4 norms defining appropriate and inappropriate teaching behavior: (1) interpersonal disregard; (2) particularistic grading; (3) moral turpitude; and (4) inadequate planning. Both groups accorded the norms similar levels of impropriety. Questions…

Suggests that while doubting that the dichotomy introduced by Subbotsky can cover the entire domain of motivation, he should applaud the emphasis on the neglected but critical importance of motivation in developmental psychology, and the attempt to distinguish different types of motivation, even as contributors to a single behavior. (AA)

A framework within which college teachers can examine how they think and act in difficult teaching situations is presented, focusing on the rules that inform actions. The discussion looks at standards for professional teaching practice, exploring discrepancies between values and practice, identifying personal action strategies, assessing their…

Examines the debate between liberals and communitarians, offering a sympathetic reading of the communitarian critique of liberalism and discussing its implications for school reform. The article lays a foundation for a series of articles that focus on the community-individual nexus as it relates to educational theory and practice. (SM)

Describes the mentorship programs of the Midtown Education Foundation (MEF), Chicago (Illinois), an initiative that began as an outreach of the Catholic Opus Dei movement. The MEF emphasis on biblically based character development, taught by role models, and embedded in an academic curriculum, is very popular. Early evaluation indicates that best…

Schools in Arthurdale (West Virginia), a New Deal resettlement community for displaced coal miners, made landmark efforts to bring Deweyan ideals of progressive education to bear on community life. The article examines Arthurdale's pedagogy and history in order to illuminate ambiguities of educators' efforts to promote community, emphasizing…

A Nebraska district surveyed parents' reasons for sending their children to private or Catholic schools. Reasons could be grouped in categories: concerns and issues (such as religion) that public schools cannot address; and concerns (such as discipline, values, curriculum, and academic rigor) public schools could address by changing their programs…

Provides information for teachers and caregivers of young children regarding the family contexts of Chinese American children of immigrant parents. Includes information on cultural beliefs, languages, child rearing, and beliefs and practices regarding education. Discusses implications for teachers and child caregivers. (KB)

A case study examined ways to improve schools through democratic accountability, highlighting a principal's strategies to increase staff and student expectations in a low-performing middle school in rural Florida. Results gleaned from interviews and surveys suggest that leaders must build schools' capacity for sustaining achievement. (Contains 32…

The Citizenship Education Research Network, a group of Canadian researchers, decision makers, and practitioners, is committed to the development of educational policy and practice concerning the relationship between common values and the stability of society; the impact of citizen participation upon social cohesion; and the relationship between…

Case study examines attitudes of principals in selected high-poverty/low-performing Florida schools toward the state's system of school improvement and accountability. Finds that principals oppose the high-stakes nature of the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test because of unfair comparisons with more affluent schools. Principals believe that…

The originators of partnership education describe it as a progressive, holistic, gender-balanced perspective on teaching and curriculum. The inclusion of the feminist perspective allows it to escape the power paradigm on which traditional education is based and focus on moral purpose and caring relationships. Ways to apply partnership theory to…