Fundamental beliefs and organizational structure represent an important part of comprehensive guidance programs serving students from pre-kindergarten through grade 12. These programs help students gain competencies in the areas of personal/social, educational, and career development at all educational levels. Comprehensive programs guarantee that…

Two-way language development programs are full-time programs that use two languages, one of which is English, for the purpose of instruction. Ideally, these programs are composed of elementary or secondary students half of whom are native speakers of English and the other half of whom are native speakers of the other language of instruction.…

In 1991, the 50th anniversary of the United States' entrance into World War II was observed. This is an opportune time to reevaluate and renew the teaching of this cataclysmic event. Most people have been affected by the political, economic, and social consequences of the War. But perhaps the most important reason to rededicate ourselves to…

The United Nations Education, Scientific, and Cultural Organization's goal of achieving 100 percent international literacy by the year 2000 led the United Nations General assembly to proclaim 1990 as International Literacy Year. This proclamation was linked to the formulation of a plan of action to assist member states in all regions of the world…

Civic education "means explicit and continuing study of the basic concepts and values underlying our democratic political community and constitutional order" (Butts 1988, 184). It draws its content chiefly from four disciplines: political science, jurisprudence, history, and economics. Political science and jurisprudence provide an…

"CIVITAS" is a curriculum framework that specifies core ideas for civic education in the U.S. constitutional democracy. It reviews what adults should know and be able to do to as effective citizens. CIVITAS was developed by the Center for Civic Education in cooperation with the Council for the Advancement of Citizenship and with support…

Discussing the evolving conception of literacy, this digest provides a current review of material in the ERIC database on the multiplicities of literacies. The digest includes sections on the broadening scope of literacy, acquisition of literacies, defining literacy, and expanding the domain of literacy. (RS)

Many cooperative civic education projects among U.S. and Central/Eastern European educators have emerged since the end of Communist Party Rule in the former Czechoslovakia. This digest describes a collaborative curriculum development project, Civic Education for the Czech Republic (CECR). The objective of CECR is to revise the existing social…

The U.S. Department of Education's Office of Educational Research and Improvement (OERI) promotes excellence and equity in education by conducting research and demonstration projects, collecting statistics, disseminating information, and providing technical assistance to those working to improve education. OERI supports two major research and…

Within the field of education, the act of planning implies that the schools are more than passive pawns in the hands of socioeconomic forces. The current profound demographic changes, which will continue to reshape the nation and its schools in the coming decades, make strategic planning particulary important. Implementing a strategic plan first…

This ERIC Digest reports on the findings of a 1984 Wingspread Conference on Strengthening High School World Studies Courses. The digest considers key challenges that the course poses for educators, the goals of the conference, long-term efforts that have been initiated, activities recommended by conference participants that would provide practical…

Since the 1920s, the focus of adult education has shifted from social change to professionalization to an emphasis on literacy and lifelong learning in a changing workplace. The adult education literature reflects ongoing debate over whether adult education should focus primarily on individuals or society and whether it should serve as a means of…

This digest summarizes a full length report on preparing college students for citizenship responsibilities. The following questions are considered: What is citizenship and public life? What is higher education's role in educating for citizenship? and what are the skills for a renewed civic life?. The importance of citizens integrating their public…

This digest reviews some significant research on technology use in the classroom that examines how investment in technology will pay off in terms of student learning, and it indicates the conditions under which technology is most likely to have a positive impact on student learning. First presented are two longitudinal studies on how students…

Because of the perception that the humanities lack practical application to real problems and issues of many adults, they tend to be neglected in adult and continuing education programs/courses. In reality, the humanities can offer insight into the ways people view and interpret life's events. Several major trends in continuing education suggest a…