Education & Pedagogy

Discussion of the relationship between higher education and employment in Europe looks at literature previously published in this journal concerning response to changing demands in nonuniversity education since the 1960s, diversification of higher education systems, blurring of sector boundaries in response to employment problems, worker overqualification, and reemergence of interest in employment for graduates in the 1990s. (MSE)

Analysis of current critiques of gifted education considers four common concerns: (1) whether giftedness exists; (2) whether students who possess giftedness can be identified; (3) whether such students can be provided with quality differentiated programs and services; and (4) whether it is morally correct to provide such programs or services. (DB)

This discussion of issues in gifted education focuses on the need to support effective practices that are also equitable. The article considers problems with defining gifted students as the "cognitive elite," the provision of qualitatively different programs to gifted children, and the need for challenging intellectual work and development of critical thinking for all students. (DB)

Two groups of 35 special education teacher trainees from Caribbean nations rated the importance of a list of characteristics of effective teachers. Results suggest the value of a model of teacher education that integrates content knowledge, pedagogical knowledge, and practice in context. (DB)

Argues that current school reform efforts are driven by workforce preparation concerns, limiting schools' ability to prepare students for participation in democratic citizenship. Links democracy and the construction of knowledge, proposing a "pedagogy of conversation" to move students beyond personal experience as a basis of knowledge through critical thinking and communication with peers and teachers. (41 references) (MAB)

This paper discusses quality as a theme for teacher education in the Netherlands, focusing on definitions of quality, national policies for quality control and quality assessment, the state of the art in educational quality, the future of teaching, and measures to maintain and increase quality. (SM)

Corporate leaders have provided advice on competencies and traits they want schools to develop in students. The paper summarizes the teaching practices, strategies, and objectives that, in some schools, have translated the corporate expectations to the educational domain, focusing on academic, social, and leadership skills. (SM)

Three South Carolina school districts and a university formed a partnership to train, mentor, and support 24 special education teacher leaders as they developed and practiced new leadership skills. The article describes the selection and training of teachers, reviewing the first year's activities and presenting observations from program evaluations. (SM)

Presents a vision of multicultural education as a validating and inclusive process for non-European ways of knowing. Classifies multicultural education as inclusionary, emancipatory, liberatory, critical, and transformative. Briefly gives examples of each and identifies leading advocates of these approaches. (MJP)

Describes a service learning project where students identify a real political problem, research related issues, and propose a solution. Members of the U.S. Congress and county offices of education have created corresponding awards programs. Includes procedures for creating a local project. (MJP)

Considers stages of development of technology in schools and teacher education programs; discusses the role of government in influencing the progress of technology in education based on experiences in the United Kingdom, including a national curriculum; and suggests that the political rationale for computers is based on economic and vocational needs. (Author/LRW)

Externally imposed macroeconomic restructuring in developing nations (termed economic liberalization or neoliberalism) has specific effects on women because free-market processes undervalue anything without direct monetary value. Two immediate effects on education are privatization and budget cutbacks, which result in differential access to education for men and women and poorer educational quality. (SV)

This paper describes the idea of connecting a reflective practitioner theme in a teacher education program to developing students' educational philosophy, presenting an inventory to assess preservice teachers' educational philosophy, and offering a rationale, for how it can guide field experience. (SM)

Observes the philosophical and methodological aspects of Religious Studies. Considers the limitations of approaching religious thought and experience from a rationalist-scientific perspective. Includes a historical overview of the phenomenology of religious education with brief summations of leading theorists. (MJP)

Provides a concise historical overview of theological thinking concerning fundamentalism, absolutism, and relativism. Considers corresponding responses to issues regarding multiculturalism. Concludes that a diversity of viewpoints is necessary for society to learn from its mistakes and progress in a positive fashion. (MJP)