Education & Pedagogy

This 3-year follow-up report describes actions taken by the Illinois Council on Vocational Education (ICoVE) during 1989, 1990, and 1991. It addresses the 45 suggestions and 11 recommendations of 4 technical reports (spanning 1987 and 1988) related to private sector involvement. Recommendations from 1987-88 and follow-up actions are reported on the following topics: advice to the private sector; private sector involvement; education for employment; and implementing education for employment. The following recommendations for the Illinois State Board of Education are made: (1) establish performance standards for participants; (2) implement a process for retraining, upgrading, and maintaining the work force; (3) provide services for special populations and place priority for program access; (4) identify program service needs; (5) work with other agencies to facilitate preparation for work; and (6) work with the private sector to identify commerce, industry, and labor needs for education and job-specific preparation, including performance standards. ICoVE membership list is included. (NLA)

A college faculty member reports on a sabbatical project in Bolivia, in which he shared ideas about bilingual and bicultural education in indigenous communities and helped with four activities of the Andean Oral History Workshop: (1) the self-education of a group of women aged 18-70 who decided to explore together issues such as rights, education, textiles, unions, and health as they relate to women; (2) the training of a small group of rural teachers interested in experimenting with bilingual and bicultural education at the elementary and junior high school levels; (3) the writing of a booklet about Aymara phonology to be used in teaching literacy to speakers and non-speakers of Aymara; and (4) development of a dictionary and teaching materials for the Uchumataqa language spoken by the Uru people. The experience is related in narrative form and includes a diary entry about a visit to a native community and a ceremony that occurs there. (Adjunct ERIC Clearinghouse on Literacy Education) (MSE)

This report is intended to serve as a general reference for people either new to the field or involved in planning and decision-making in the field of distance education, specifically in Asia and the Pacific region. Volume I contains data from eight countries: Australia, Bangladesh, the People's Republic of China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Iran, and Japan. Information is presented for each country in a case study overview format followed by a compilation of the findings of surveys sent to distance education institutions throughout the region. The surveys contain data on: year of establishment of distance education program; name, address, telephone, telex, and fax number of the head of the program; the nature of the institution; educational levels and titles of distance education programs; objectives; sources of financial support; development and enrollment trends and information; number of courses and staff; media production; student profiles; future development; and specifics on each distance program offered. (ALF)

Increased public interest in education is attracting students and career-changers to the teaching profession. This ERIC Digest is organized into questions and answers dealing with teacher preparation: (1) What do teachers do? (2) What are working conditions like? (3) What academic preparation is needed; (4) Do I take courses after I receive my teaching credential? (5) Is admission to a teacher education program automatic when admitted to a 4-year college? (6) What courses are taken in a teacher education program? (7) How do I find teacher education programs? (8) How do I choose a teacher education program; (9) Where can I obtain financial aid information? (10) After completing the teacher education program, am I eligible to receive a credential? (11) Are there other ways to become certified? (12) Where can I find information on various State requirements? (13) Are there national teaching requirements? (14) If I meet the requirements in one State, can I teach in another? (15) How do I locate jobs? and (16) What is the demand for teachers? (LL)

The historical development and current status of multicultural education in Australia are reviewed, without, however, focusing on the education of Aboriginal people. In Australia, the term multicultural education is generally understood to exclude Aborigines, a distinction in which Aboriginal educators concur as they assert the unique identity and claims of the Aboriginal populations. The discussion in this paper focuses on the educational response to the massive post-World War II immigration program and the responses to the wide range of ethnic groups contributing to Australian society in the 19th and 20th centuries. There have been three discernible responses to multicultural education in Australia: (1) a move from passive to active assimilation; (2) from immigrant education to multicultural education; and (3) recognition of the economic imperatives of education. Multicultural educational research has considered curriculum reform, antiracism, English as a Second Language, and instruction in languages other than English. Economic pragmatism seems likely to determine the research agendas of the future. (Contains 92 references.) (SLD)

This paper describes how the Minimum Continuing Legal Education Board (MCLE) of the Supreme Court of New Mexico used the "MacCrate Report" to start a process of identifying the need for practical training in ethics education for legal professionals. The report, "Legal Education and Professional Development--An Educational Continuum" (1992), better known as the MacCrate Report, has as a primary emphasis a section on fundamental lawyering skills and values of the profession as well as the continuum nature of professional legal education. Based on the report, a training needs assessment instrument concerning fundamental lawyering skills was developed. Contrary to some expectations, the instrument did not include a section pertaining to self-assessment of "competence in values." This controversy started a review to determine the extent to which ethics is taught in legal education, both in the law school and continuing legal education programs. Ethics was found to be extremely neglected in both settings. (Contains 18 references.) (DB)

A fertile area for the improvement of mathematics achievement in the United States is in staff development for multicultural education. Multicultural mathematics is best defined by what it is not; it is not ethnomathematics, nor simply Afrocentrism or Eurocentrism. Multicultural mathematics furthers the multicultural goals of the school system because it shows minority students that all social groups have contributed to the body of knowledge they learn in mathematics class. Preservice education for teachers is the best opportunity to introduce a multicultural perspective on mathematics. Multicultural mathematics education should be taught in inservice programs as well. Regardless of the depth of instruction necessary to acquaint teachers with multicultural mathematics, the important ingredient is a commitment to inclusion. Problem solving in mathematics provides an opportunity to pose problems from many cultures that highlight many social groups. National standards efforts do not always address multicultural approaches directly, but they do encourage the inclusion of all cultures. Inservice education offerings must also be locally relevant, with emphasis on the cultural groups served. (SLD)

Recommendations for changes to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) are offered by the National Association of State Directors of Special Education. Definitions of terms used in the legislation are provided. The following provisions are covered: regulation requirements/negotiated rulemaking, flexible funding, content of state plans, local application, maintenance of effort, procedural safeguards, monitoring standards, a developmental delay category, age extension for preschool grants, regional resource and federal centers, programs for children with severe disabilities, postsecondary education, secondary education and transitional services, programs for children with serious emotional disturbance and pilot programming for the hearing impaired, grants for personnel training, grants to State Education Agencies and institutions for traineeships, clearinghouses, research and demonstration projects for dealing with children in a range of settings, and schoolwide programs. In addition, general recommendations are offered regarding: full funding of IDEA, deletion of references to "disability category," triennial evaluations, and a protection and advocacy system. (SW)

This report provides a brief history of the practice of distance education at Nova Southeastern University (NSU) in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, one of the pioneer institutions in distance education. It offers an overview of the various distance education modalities and participants at the university, and summarizes the integration of distance education into program structure and curricula. NSU's first external degree program, the Ed.D. Program in Educational Leadership, was offered in 1972. Student acceptance of distance education was largely responsible for the university's growth in Fall term enrollment from 571 students in 1972 to 8,338 students in 1977. Student ratings of satisfaction with academic programs and services indicated that the vast majority of students achieved their educational goals and were satisfied with the educational experience. Specific curriculum and student satisfaction data are provided for NSU's Center for Psychological Studies, Center for the Advancement of Education, College of Pharmacy, Farquhar Center for Undergraduate Studies, School of Computer and Information Sciences, and the School of Business and Entrepreneurship. (Contains 35 references.) (MDM)

This report provides an overview of Minnesota's Medical Education and Research Costs (MERC) project, which was undertaken to gather data on the costs of medical education and health care research conducted by hospitals, medical centers, and health maintenance organizations and to develop mechanisms to assess the costs across the health care system. It addresses the definition of "medical education" and "health care research," the development of methodologies to distribute costs, state policy goals for medical education and research funding, possible state responses to national health care reforms, criteria to guide the future funding of medical education and research, and allocation of medical education and research funds. An overview of the current medical education and research funding environment is included. The report recommends that the state legislature charge the Commissioner of Health to complete the MERC project and submit a report by February 1995, and that the commissioner establish an advisory task force of representatives of all major stakeholders to assist in the completion of the project. (MDM)

The lack of progress in education reform initiatives may be the conspicuous absence of psychology in policy and planning for reform. Although psychological theory and research underlie much of educational practice, educational policy and the educational literature seldom cite psychological contributions to the improvement of education. This article advocates the use of psychological principles in meeting the six goals of national education reform. These national education goals have been promoted as a standard for American education to be attained by the year 2000, yet they actually constitute a broad pattern for comprehensive services for children and adults that address health, social needs, mental health, and development. It is believed that psychological principles, research and expertise are fundamental to effective planning and implementation of education goals. Psychological research on early childhood development, drop-out prevention, standards for psychological and educational assessment, use of scientific knowledge, contributions to adult learning, and increased school safety can make direct contributions to national education goals. Although psychology's role in education reform has not yet been prominently displayed, it can be an important component of educational improvement. (RJM)

The articles in this reader provide a review of the history of education policy in relation to issues of equality and inequality. They also offer an overview and critique of specific areas of policy and a look at the ways policies operate in practice. The eight papers of Part 1, "History of Education Policy," outline the history of education policy in Britain in relation to class and gender divisions. Part 2, "Equal Opportunity Policies," includes six papers that contain comparative material on equal opportunities policies and discussions of equal opportunities in relation to race, gender, and special needs. These articles focus on Britain, but include an exploration of education policy in New Zealand. The four articles of Part 3 deal with equality issues in primary schools, teacher education, local government, and sexuality. Taken together, these articles examine education policy in the context of the major dimensions of social inequality. (Contains 6 figures, 9 tables, and 17 references.) (SLD)

This document consists of 12 separate folders each listing a set of job competencies for a specific occupation or function area (e.g. television, wood construction) that is the subject of vocational and technical education courses at the middle and high school level in the Seattle (Washington) Public Schools Vocational/Technical Education Department. The job competencies listed should be acquired during the courses. The checklists rate the job skills on three levels: level one (performed independently), level two (can complete job with limited supervision), and level three (general information provided). Space is also provided for student name, school, date, semesters completed, and related job site and work experience information. Job competency profiles for the following programs are included: (1) Applied Mathematics; (2) Automotive Technology, (3) Wood Construction; (4) Computer Applications I and II; (5) Information Processing I and II; (6) Children and Parenting; (7) Middle School Technology Education; (8) Food Education and Service Training; (9) Drafting; (10) Television; (11) Radio; and (12) Horticulture. (KC)

This document contains the Oregon State Board of Education's 1996 edition of administrative rules relating to Oregon schools and community colleges. The document contains regulatory materials pertaining to the following areas: procedural rules; minimum pay for substitute teachers; reorganization; textbook adoption; special education; the Oregon State School for the Blind; the Oregon State School for the Deaf; prekindergarten; school improvement and professional development; school governance and student conduct; standards for public elementary and secondary schools; school finance; standards for intermediate education districts; district boundary board hearings; educational assistants; the method for awarding competitive grants; community college district formation; community college course eligibility; community college instructor standards; Workforce 2000 vocational-technical education program; private vocational schools; standards for the accreditation of Emergency Medical Technology Education and Training Program; school food and nutrition services; school-bus driver training, licensing, and school-bus standards; driver education; funds to state and local agencies to provide employment and training services under the Job Training Partnership Act (JTPA); and radio-television agreement. (LMI)

This report on Virginia higher education briefly reviews the impact of economic recession, slashed budgets, increased tuition, and increasing politicization upon the state's higher education system, and then looks ahead to issues critical to the higher education's future in the state. The report proposes action in three areas: (1) adequate funding of higher education, noting that the state's standing in funding per student dropped from 27th place in 1985 to 44th in 1995; (2) a need to protect the higher education system from partisan politics and interference observed at all levels--administrative, public support, and intellectual; and (3) seizing the opportunities offered by advanced communications technology. The report envisions a higher education system with new rules--with no protectionist cartels, with strategic investment targeted toward specific opportunities rather than spread about by formula, with an understanding of the practical limits of planning, and the emergence of alternative organizations to advocate on behalf of higher education. (CH)