Education & Pedagogy

This paper presents a culturally adapted curricular/pedagogical model of a traditional foundations of education course. It was developed as a result of a college of education's commitment to internationalize its curriculum and to broaden global and cross-cultural experiences for preservice teachers, in order to enhance the knowledge, skills, and commitment of new teachers to effectively teach about other cultures and international educational issues. The model uses Japan as a case study to incorporate cross-cultural/global content and methodology. The course covers antecedents and development of American and Japanese education; schools of philosophy and educational theories in the United States and Japan; philosophical implications for educational practice; and the role of religion, financing, instructional technology, and teaching as a profession. Student journals and portfolios indicated that most students achieved a satisfactory degree of knowledge, skills, and commitment to teach about other cultures and about international educational issues. (Contains 25 references.) (JDD)

In 1993, Utah migrant education summer programs in 10 school districts provided education and support services to 2,045 children of seasonal and migrant farmworkers. Although the program is federally funded, school districts provided various support services, such as transportation, use of staff, availability of school buildings, availability of computer labs and books, and other resources. Services to children aged 3-21 included: (1) health physicals; (2) reading, math, language arts, and career awareness activities; (3) English language instruction; (4) social skills training; and (5) meals. The State Education Agency implemented an evaluation process in which the 10 school districts reported on 7 "desired outcomes" with respect to early childhood education; secondary education; parental involvement; two support services such as health, nutrition, or transportation; and two academic subjects such as math, reading, or social studies. This report lists desired outcomes and results of on-site evaluations for each school district. Appendices list parent activities, chart demographic data on the migrant students, chart numbers of students receiving various instructional and support services, and provide a table of results of desired outcomes by district. (KS)

This book was written to help classroom teachers, lay persons, and school personnel understand the role of microcomputers in education. It has been especially designed for undergraduate and graduate technology-based education programs. Specific education examples and applications are provided throughout the book and exercises have been designed for students to further explore specific educational understanding or applications. Topics covered include: technological literacy and its effect on education; the microcomputer; computer applications; computer-assisted instruction; the computer as a tool for teachers and students; selection, evaluation, and review criteria for choosing software and hardware; organizing the classroom for computer use; multimedia; a computer literacy curriculum; designing lesson plans for various subject areas and to help implement a technology integrated curriculum; programming as a learning tool; distance learning; the library media center of the future; professional growth; and future implications. Included in the appendices are lists of software directories and resources; computer-related videotapes and films; special education resources; and relevant periodicals. (JLB)

Vocational education and training is a concept that covers a sandwich-type course in which school-based education alternates with firm-based training. Broader courses in Denmark include simultaneous work at companies and school training. The advantage to this system is that students do not waste time training for an occupation that they may not like. At present, Denmark has 85 vocational education and training courses, but there are approximately 300 different specializations. New ways of teaching are being promoted, especially integrated teaching of the theoretical and the practical knowledge of a subject. The vocational education and training courses usually are high-level and lead to examinations for certification. Vocational education and training can be provided by vocational schools and colleges; requirements for time spent at the schools and on the job vary. Basic subjects as well as personal development and social studies should be included. Educational reform is continuing to ensure that students can choose their courses and their occupations and receive the education necessary to pass examinations to receive their journeyworker's license in their fields. (KC)

Business/vocational education has the unique opportunity to introduce multicultural education from the perspective of world trade, business, economics, and comparative advantage. Vocational educators also have a responsibility to foster respect for the human rights of all people and oppose current and historical practices such as oppression, prejudice, and violent acts. Multicultural education is based on democracy and pluralism and requires teachers to use a variety of teaching styles that are consistent with a wide range of learning styles. A research study summarizing more than 91 studies, reports, and papers indicates that the only programs likely to improve cross-group relations are in-depth, long-term programs that are infused into the curriculum early and continued throughout high school. Among those approaches/activities that are especially important in improving intergroup relations and ending prejudicial thinking are cooperative learning, critical thinking skills development, self-esteem building, and employability skills training. (Fourteen specific suggestions for business/vocational teachers are included.) (MN)

This paper provides an overview of the demographic characteristics of students in special education, outcomes associated with their schooling, and the nature of special education programs and services. Three issues relevant to the impact of standards and assessment on special education are then discussed: (1) regular education should assume responsibility for the learning of all students; (2) programs and activities should be linked by a common set of goals for all students and a shared vision of the standards used to judge them; and (3) schools and students should be judged in terms of the outcomes they achieve and should receive rewards and sanctions based on those outcomes. Several strategies are presented for increasing the positive impact of standards and assessment for students in special education, such as developing a set of agreed upon outcomes and standards of performance that have relevance for all students, and adopting reporting formats and conventions that accommodate students with disabilities. (Contains approximately 40 references.) (JDD)

This book argues that the shape of American education in the twentieth century, its forms, functions, and contradictions, is related to the problems associated with American diversity, and that understanding the role that schools have come to play in society requires an examination of the history of the education of outsiders. Several minority groups (European immigrants, Blacks, women, and Catholics) are examined at particularly significant historical moments in their education and at points of special social consequence. The book is divided into two parts. Part 1 concentrates on European immigrants in American education and emphasizes the interplay between social definitions, school policies, and student experience to describe how the schools were recreated in the context of their pluralistic populations. Part 2 examines the federal government's influence on Black education during the 1930s and 1940s, higher education for women from 1945 to 1963, and the Catholic education experience during the twentieth century. Appendices include lists of extracurricular participation of men and women by ethnic group and activity. Contains chapter notes and an index. (GLR)

This document has been written to provide a consistent definition of multicultural/multiethnic education for the Portland (Oregon) Public Schools and to share the goals and expectations of students and staff in the Portland schools. Multicultural/multiethnic education is defined as education that, by virtue of specific content, perspectives, and a structured process, prepares students to live, learn, and work in a pluralistic world. It fosters appreciation, respect, and tolerance for people of different ethnic and cultural backgrounds. The Portland Public Schools use six geocultural groupings: African, American Indian, Asian, European, Hispanic, and Pacific Islander. Satisfactory infusion of multicultural/multiethnic education will result in students who understand that individuals from each of the six geocultural groups have made, and continue to make, significant contributions to the world. Eight general geocultural goals are defined for teacher inservice outcomes, and five multicultural/multiethnic goals are defined for teachers, administrators, and staff. An appendix lists specific goals for African Americans, with some resources that support the African American component of multicultural education. (SLD)

The expansion of higher education in the 1960s from an elite to a mass activity has led inevitably to a demand that higher education be responsive and accountable to the wider community. There are several approaches to evaluation of quality and economic effectiveness in higher education institutions and programs. In the mid-1980s, Australia's Commonwealth Government initiated a series of discipline reviews, as part of an ongoing process of the evaluation of higher education. This paper discusses the discipline review approach to evaluation, in the context of the Discipline Review of Australian Law Schools. It considers the following aspects of the Law School review: the objectives of the Commonwealth discipline reviews, the assessment of quality, the assessment of economic efficiency, responsiveness to community needs, and responses to the law discipline review itself. Appendices provide data on the expansion rates of students in higher education and results from a survey of law students concerning their rating of a law course and the law school. Contains 18 references. (Author/GLR)

This report addresses various dimensions of a major policy issue in teacher education--the need to help all teachers acquire the attitudes, knowledge, skills, and dispositions necessary to work effectively with a diverse student population. The differences are related to social class, ethnicity, culture, and language. The problem of educating teachers for diversity is one of educating white, monolingual, and mostly female teacher education students during preservice teacher education. Several aaspects of the problem are outlined under the headings: ideas about what teachers need to be like, know, and be able to do to teach ethnic- and language-minority students successfully; alternative approaches to the education of prospective teachers to teach ethnic- and language-minority students; and different views of teacher learning. Two tables: "Key Elements in Effective Teaching for Ethnic and Language Minority Students" and "Key Elements of Effective 'Teacher Education for Diversity'" are included. (Contains approximately 200 references.) (LL)

This booklet is designed to explain how the ERIC (Educational Resources Information Center) and ECER (Exceptional Child Education Resources) databases can be used to find information about the education of children and youth who have disabilities or who are gifted. Chapters cover the following topics: what ERIC is, where ERIC can be found, how to use ERIC via manual and computer searching, how to search special education topics in ERIC, where to get copies of materials identified in an ERIC search, how to search the ECER database, functions of the ERIC clearinghouses, and how to contribute to the ERIC database. Appendixes provide an ERIC search worksheet, ERIC descriptors for disabilities and giftedness, ERIC publication types, a list of organizations in the disabilities and gifted field, a list of special education related databases, order forms, a list of ERIC clearinghouses, a list of special education journals, a list of online vendors, a list of 13 print resources, sample resumes of typical ERIC documents, and guidelines for accessing ERIC through computer networks. (JDD)

This work is one in a series that focuses on nine languages representing the bulk of the second language learning effort in Australian education (Arabic, Modern Standard Chinese, French, German, Modern Greek, Indonesian/Malay, Italian, Japanese, and Spanish). These languages were categorized as the Languages of Wider Teaching. Overviews of Arabic education in primary and secondary schools, in tertiary institutions, in ethnic schools, and in adult education are provided. Diplomatic language training, curriculum approaches, and qualitative trends in Arabic education are profiled. Other topics addressed include teacher education and teaching materials; language courses for native and non-native speakers; parent, student, and community attitudes; policy considerations; Arabic in Australian society, and the Arabic-speaking community worldwide. Appendices contain a list of the individuals, ethnic schools, and ethnic community organizations consulted in preparation of the document; data concerning student numbers; references; and an attitudinal survey form and results. (Contains 56 references.) (JP)

This book calls for a complete reconceptualization of preparatory programs for educators. It is based on the premise that change in the education of students must be preceded by a change in the education of their teachers. Longterm prevention through the preparation of teachers is advocated. This "primary prevention approach" is compared to medical research on debilitating disease. Just because a cure or solution is not immediately in sight, there is no reason to abandon the research and efforts designed to help arrive at a solution. Fifteen chapters examine the issues of power in schools, higher education, and governance to demonstrate that school reform is a complex problem with no quick-fix answer. Other topics include the development of an undergraduate teacher-education program for liberal arts colleges; a focus on teaching children, not subject matter; governance and the definition of resources; collegiality; the demonstration of subject relevance to students; the teacher-administrator relationship; and university pecking orders. Two figures are included. References and an index are included. (LMI)

The chapters in this book, developed from presentations made at the Annual Conference of the Australian College of Education in Canberra, explore the theme of a sustainable society and the role of education. In the first part, five writers explore the meaning of "sustainable society." Sir Ninian Stephen, Ian Lowe, and Janet Hunt argue that sustainable development is the most important item of the political agenda and that education's crucial task is to alert the collective national consciousness. Mandawuy Yunipingu and Miriam-Rose Ungunmerr-Baumann elaborate by drawing on past lessons that offer a message of hope. In part 2, Cherry Collins and Josefa Sobski examine the role of education in shaping attitudes and modelling good environmental practice. Prominent Australian educators--Susan Ryan, Frances Christie, and Barry Dwyer--move from the present to the future in the third part. All contributors agree that education for a sustainable society is a major responsibility for schools, TAFE colleges, universities, and all educators. (LMI)

This study describes the economics of teacher education in a public research university. It assumes that faculty members in such schools, colleges, and departments of education (SCDEs) attempt to maximize an objective function that depends positively on research productivity and student quality and negatively on class size. A case study approach is used to test the degree to which a school of education carries out profitable activities that society is willing to pay for (e.g., teacher education) in order to obtain resources for costly faculty-preferred activities that society will not fully finance directly (e.g., small graduate seminars). The primary finding of this study is that the teacher education programs subsidize other programs by approximately 10 percent. The latter part of the paper addresses the question of how teacher education reformers can reallocate resources in support of the new set of goals implicit in their reform agenda. A list of references and four tables complete the document. (Author)