Education & Pedagogy

Describes the process of educational policy making in Latvia, discussing why it has been so complicated and examining the role of the Ministry of Education and Sciences. The article introduces the new educational sector policy paper recently distributed by the Soros Foundation--Latvia, "A Passport to Social Cohesion and Economic Prosperity: Report on Education in Latvia 2000," which is the first of its kind in the region. (SM)

Discusses the role of music education as an intervention for at-risk urban students. Explains that the students received mentoring and participated in performance groups. Measures student perceptions and gathered data on student attitudes through structured interviews. Reports that music and music teachers are important in student lives. (CMK)

Describes the pilot of a field-based research experience in earth science teacher education designed to produce well-prepared, scientifically and technologically literate earth science teachers through a teaching- and research-oriented partnership between in-service teachers and a university scientist-educator. Indicates that the pilot program was successful in achieving its goal of preparing quality earth science teaching through field research experience. (Author/KHR)

This interview with Linda Darling-Hammond focuses on: how she envisions school transformation; barriers to educational reform or restructuring; including and welcoming parents in educational reform; developing learning communities; setting higher standards in schools and teacher education programs; uniqueness of the reform movement in the 1990s; and the legacy of this period of educational reform. (SM)

Investigated student satisfaction with a writing-intensive health education methods course and perceived improvement in their writing and thinking. Surveys of 103 predominantly white, female students from four sections of the course indicated that students had high levels of satisfaction with various aspects of the course, and they perceived improvements in their writing and critical thinking skills. (SM)

Traces the development of school-based outdoor and adventure education in Scotland, 1970s-90s, focusing on changes in terminology, shifting objectives and increased practitioner training in response to safety concerns, the growth of residential outdoor education centers, and financial and curricular issues related to national changes. Points out the lack of a philosophy encompassing the diversity of outdoor practices. (Contains 42 references.) (SV)

The eight chapters of this theme issue report on analyses of civics education in 17 secondary schools in 6 countries. The analyses focused on national policies on civic education, the impact of these policies on the school curriculum, and the implementation of these policies in school practices. Overall, studies suggest that schools are increasingly expected by governments to provide civics education. (SLD)

Describes the provision of early childhood education for the toddler children of Dutch itinerant "bargees," children who live with their parents on ships until they enter boarding schools for the school week at about age 7. Education for these young children is a microcosm of continuing changes to the educational system and the socioeconomic milieu of the Netherlands. (SLD)

Discusses a 4-year action research project that involved the development of effective assessment tools for preservice mathematics teachers. Focuses on peer assessment in which students reviewed posters created by their peers. Concludes that peer assessment is an effective tool for assessment in preservice mathematics teacher education but must not be seen as an alternative to teacher-based assessment. (Contains 16 references.) (Author/ASK)

An interactive environmental science course was designed to provide a set of learning experiences that connect chemistry, geology, biology, physics, and math with the future careers as teachers. The environment deals with many factors contributing with the quality of life, such as the air, the water and the protective shelter of the atmosphere.

American higher education is caught in an unparalleled environment in which traditional political partisanship is affecting issues such as academic freedom, student access, and international competition. The country's million or so faculty members constitute a huge national resource, and if they worked together they could become a powerful voice for national education issues pertaining to population changes, financial aid, decreasing state support, and skyrocketing tuition.

This article offers an overview and analysis of recent early childhood education reforms in Great Britain. It examines the national mandates to grant Universal Preschool Education to all three and four year olds as well as recent strides to provide for infants and toddlers in model centers throughout the country. Attention is given to British practices and policies, research findings and international implications.

This paper presents an overview of key concepts and issues in the governance of higher education. It is written both as an introduction to and as a reflection upon the collection of papers presented in this Special Issue of "Higher Education: Research & Development." It seeks to locate important clusters of research interest relating to higher education governance, and it advances a perspective on the topic that might assist in guiding and encouraging further research.

In this paper we examine aspects of French social theorist, Michel Foucault's work and the contributions these can make to understanding practices in outdoor education. We look specifically at his notions of practice, discourse, power and the self and the lines of questioning that these concepts make possible in relation to outdoor education. We conclude with a discussion of some of the challenges of doing research with Foucauldian tools. (Contains 6 notes.)

This "Research Commentary" addresses the quality of statistical research in mathematics education. To do so, 10 years of Journal for Research in Mathematics Education (JRME) articles were analyzed on the basis of criteria suggested by the American Educational Research Association, American Psychological Association, and National Council for Measurement in Education, and the American Statistical Association. (Contains 5 footnotes.)