Education & Pedagogy

Six research studies are reviewed that examine the ability of environmental education programs in schools and resident camps to positively affect the environmental awareness and attitudes of children and adolescents. Outdoor educators must enable students to develop internal locus of control, critical thinking, and environmental action skills. Research methodology and outcomes assessment must also be developed further. (TD)

Propensity score matching was used to evaluate the effectiveness of Mexico's College of Professional Technical Education system with data from 5,574 graduates and a control group. Although controls found jobs faster, graduates have jobs more congruent with their training and earn 20-28% more. Cost-benefit analysis also supports program effectiveness. (Contains 32 references.) (SK)

States Project SEARCH, a three year qualitative study of special education in U.S. charter schools, revealed a fundamental gap between the individualized, autonomous nature of charter schools and regulated nature of special education. Notes this is complicated by some charter schools' inability to amass fiscal/human capacity to meet individual special needs of students. (BT)

Focuses on the William Crane School (Nottingham, England), a project of British Director of Education, A. H. Whipple, and a response to the 1926 Hadow Report calling for educational reorganization. The school was an embodiment of Nottingham education and housing program efforts, providing for elementary through adult training needs. (KDR)

Presents an account of the history of U.S. vocational education. Emphasizes the tension between the two fundamental concepts underlying vocational education: the pedagogical and sociopolitical perspective and the economic interests. Reflects the conflict in the debate on the form of vocational education: work based or school based. (CAJ)

Describes the locus of learning concept formulated by the German Education Council in the 1970s. Argues that research on the place of learning is one of the core topics of research on vocational education. Explores concept of learning at work. Points out desiderata and perspectives on research on learning places. (CAJ)

Focuses on the British feature film, "Kes," and the British television series, "Grange Hill," as means of public education, ideology, and aesthetic subject matter. Concludes that these two mediums serve to remind us of the possibilities of film and television in promoting education growth and awareness in a public context. (MER)

Explores the notion that a review communicates a research program and how it might extend and disrupt readings of Rickinson's (2001) review of the evidence base for environmental education learning. Investigates, through a series of notes and queries using Lakatos's ideas, the production and possibilities of the review rather than the findings. (Contains 50 references.) (Author/NB)

Discusses the part played by the political system and the international context in attempts to promote environmental education in Scotland. Analysis shows a complex and largely negative interaction with political and administrative systems regarding formal education. Concludes that the influence of international events was generally marginal but at best was a two-way exchange. Includes appendix. (Contains 57 references.) (Author/NB)

Describes the development and implementation of adult religious education programs by the Diocese of Boise. Utilizing both the Assessment of Catholic Religious Education (ACRE) and Information for Growth (IFG) assessment instruments, the pastors identified topics of particular interest to members of their congregation and then used this information to design new religious education initiatives. Outlines the steps governing a diocesan-wide administration of the IFG. (RC)

Addresses some of the public policy controversies surrounding the treatment of education services under the World Trade Organization's General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS). Describes the core features of GATS, highlighting how the four modes of supplying services relate to trade in education services and discusses the limited role GATS may play as a force for change in education. (SLD)

Presents a framework for unifying teacher educators based on what happens in the classroom. The framework identifies intellectual quality, relevance, supportive classroom environment, and recognition of difference, as four dimensions of classroom practice that are essential for student teachers' learning and for their subsequent success in bringing about high quality learning outcomes for their students. (SM)

Describes a site-based, rural teacher education program for Navajo students (the Pinon Partnership Program) which infused foundations throughout the program and used the Council of Learned Societies in Education's (CLSE) Social Foundations standards as its framework. Specific examples of how the six CLSE principles played out in the author's classroom practice with preservice Navajo teachers are provided. (SM)

Examines a method of mentoring preservice teachers designed to enhance their understanding of and sensitivity toward learners with disabilities. The contemporary value of inclusiveness in education was made explicit through a teaching intervention that engaged preservice teachers in learning about and meeting people with disabilities. Student teachers considered the experience positive and helpful. (SM)

Discusses the path to professional recognition of the community college historian. Considers the increasing commercialization of higher education, a trend that threatens the role of faculty in the education of college students, by focusing on the imposition of the business model of operation. Asserts that education encompasses more than the training of future employees. (CMK)