This ethnography of eight lower-track classrooms in two schools gives insight into the operation of the tracking system, although it implicitly accepts tracking and does not face the injustice children experience as a result of lower-track placement. Broader structural reasons underlying the tracking system are not examined. (SLD)

Hamovitch's review misinterprets key aspects of the book and of cultural and curricular analyses in general. The book links the curricular dilemma in balancing individualized and standardized knowledge to the wider culture. It is not a defense of tracking, but rather a curricular and cultural examination. (SLD)

Discusses in-service teacher training in England, proposing alternative models of professional knowledge which could change and improve teachers and teaching. The article considers alternative models derived from work with teachers and students in England and explains how such models can help in establishing intercultural education courses for…

Reviews theoretical frameworks and psychological processes underlying the perception and cognition of musical understanding. Suggests unifying ideas and processes based on a developmental learning framework applied to teaching methods and curriculum. Supplies six guidelines for music education practitioners who are sequencing learning activities…

This abstract of a report from a study commissioned by the Millbrook Press discusses changes in school library media centers based on interviews with librarians and administrators. Topics discussed include student enrollments, budgets, library staffing, utilization of the librarian, curriculum planning, administration attitudes, book collections,…

Reviews the first year of a teacher education restructuring project at Roosevelt University in Chicago (Illinois). Major goals include developing relationships with Chicago schools to create professional development school models for field experiences and support for beginning teachers and examining and restructuring the university's education,…

Considers educational technology's role in designing effective instruction. Instructional design that supports systematic determination of instructional goals and methods for accomplishing those goals and for assessing success requires consideration of four variables associated with instruction: (1) learner characteristics; (2) learning task; (3)…

Compares results of the Barth Shermis Social Studies Preference Scale given to groups of preservice teachers in five countries over several years. Reports that social studies has evolved through three patterns of teaching citizenship education: citizenship transmission, social science, and reflective inquiry. Concludes that teachers are confused…

Presents a New England History Teachers Association survey and its results. Includes questions on curriculum, classroom materials, students, and general opinions. Concludes that teachers favor increasing history requirements to include U.S., European, and non-Western or global studies. Reports that teachers rely on locally developed activities…

Describes a trip to Vietnam and conversations with Vietnamese educators and veterans. Discusses the Vietnamese view of the war, the United States, and their own country. Urges the restructuring of U.S. social studies to emphasize positive learning about the Vietnamese from their own perspective. (DK)

Discusses changes in information management and their effects on technical services librarians. Topics discussed include changes at the Library of Congress; the development of national and international bibliographic systems; expansion of local library catalogs; commercial full text databases for end users; new roles for professional librarians;…

Discusses recent economic and political changes in Czechoslovakia and their impact on the nation's educational system. Reviews surveys of parent attitudes toward educational goals and their expectations for their children. Includes four tables containing information about Czechoslovakian education and parental attitudes. (CFR)

Attempts, most unsuccessful, to reform India's university examination system are chronicled, including curriculum reform, increased frequency of public examinations, introduction of internal assessment, development of item banks, changeover to a grading system, shift to semesters, improved administration, and creation of autonomous colleges. The…

Discusses the role of the library media center in preparing for emerging technology. An action agenda to connect the media center with new technology is proposed, including defining models of information processing and developing related curricula; adoption of models and curricula; staff development; and long-range planning and curriculum…

Examines the divide between high school students' perceptions of historical inquiry and those articulated in current proposals for curricular and instructional reform. Concludes that successful reform requires instruction that shifts the locus of authority from the teacher and text to a shared process of critical inquiry. (CFR)