Education & Pedagogy

With the passage of the No Child Left Behind Act, standards-based reform has taken center stage in the educational arena. Although standard setting and accountability issues affect every facet of education, the challenges of implementing such a movement are greater in contexts such as urban special education. This article highlights some of the special considerations of implementing standards-based reform in urban special education and discusses implications for urban special educators.

Interactive videoconferencing (IVC) consists of live, synchronous audio and video communication via a computer or digital phone network among sites in different physical locations. Many productive but not always obvious benefits, such as increased learning opportunities, student motivation, and instructor-student communication, are possible through IVC. This article discusses IVC as a useful medium for teaching and learning in higher education teacher preparation programs.

In this article, the authors first provide historical context for foundations in artist education at the postsecondary level. They then provide an overview of a first-year art program that challenges the status quo of education about the foundations of artistic expression. Finally, they address the implications of such differing approaches to K-12 art education, making connections and posing questions for future research. (Contains 3 endnotes and 3 figures.)

This article analyzes the philosophical, sociological, and legal imperatives of including students with disabilities in ordinary schools. Some important global events that support inclusive education are discussed. The author reflects on Nigeria's newly revised National Policy on Education with its emphasis on inclusive education (2008), and the Universal Basic Education policy (1999). The article concludes with recommendations to improve the status quo.

This essay explores the origins and practice of the "workshop" as a form of in-service teacher education developed during the Eight-Year Study (1933-1941) sponsored by the Progressive Education Association. The Eight-Year Study workshops offer important lessons for current educational reform as the authors call for greater attention to the history of teacher education. (Contains 1 note.)

This paper considers the historical development of Library and Information Science (LIS) Education in Greece, in order to understand its current position within the field of higher education, and to assess its future prospects. In particular, in tracing changes that LIS Education as an institution has undergone, it argues that institutional transformations, curricular changes, and social and political contexts should all be integrated in an analysis that aims to shed light into education institutions, and their purposes and functioning.

What fuels the push toward privatization of public higher education institutions? This article attempts to unravel the nine beliefs that underlie conversations taking place in state legislatures and on higher education campuses and then asks, Will privatization work? How will it work for the state's citizens, the states, and institutions? The answer is mixed and depends upon how certain questions are answered and how much faith one places in the higher education market.

This study challenges and evaluates modern-liberal-humanistic discourse on education as enlightenment through analysis of the life stories of the first Bedouin women to acquire higher education (hereafter: First Women). The liberal discourse is examined in terms of its ethnic and genderial contexts and the special status these women gained as trailblazers. I explore the meaning of enlightenment among Bedouin women and the question of when and whether (higher) education facilitates or impedes their progress.

Education for All is a global commitment to quality basic education for everyone. However, in Southern countries such as the Philippines, it has resulted in adult education receiving even less attention than before. In this article, the author reflects on his life in education, the changes he has seen and the lessons he has learned. The author hopes also to offer an answer to the question of how educators, in their advocacy work and in their conferences and events, can make adult education a more exciting proposition.

Montana developed an alternative certification program for special educators in response to severe personnel shortages in rural schools. Program strengths include 2 years of mentoring and flexibility in delivery that allows participants to earn certification while working. Evaluation results are presented along with suggested improvements, which include initial orientation, increased use of distance education, and expansion into urban areas. (TD)

An empirical examination of accredited American higher education institutions was conducted to obtain baseline data regarding copyright, intellectual property, and antitrust concerns in Internet-based distance education. A multiple-case study reviewing best practices of the top 10 accredited distance education institutions in American was also conducted. Growth of distance education programs and policy development, and differences between public and private institutions' approaches are discussed. (AEF)

Used data from the Third International Mathematics and Science Study to examine "shadow education" (structured outside-school activities that mimic formal education) as a macro-phenomenon of modern schooling. Findings show shadow education to be prevalent worldwide, but generally remedial in nature, and usually driven by institutional factors of education. (SLD)

Analyzes political tensions related to student strikes at the Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico (UNAM), 1998-2000, which were sparked by proposed tuition fees. Discusses conflict between social justice sentiments focused on free and egalitarian access to higher education versus market-driven views promoting selective, competitive higher education to advance Mexico's position in the global economy. (SV)

This article reviews requirements in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act for providing access to the general education curriculum, examines the intent of the language, and proposes a decision-making model to enable Individualized Education Program teams to reach curriculum decisions that provide such access for students with mental retardation. (Contains references.) (Author/CR)

This article describes Iowa's journey to establish and implement a unified endorsement in early childhood and early childhood special education, birth through third grade. It describes the formation of the Unified Institute of Higher Education Consortium and the support the consortium provided to help faculty make major curriculum changes. (Contains references.) (Author/CR)