Having broadly defined the process of curriculum formation as a complex set of interactions among many specified internal and external factors, the authors review the field of curriculum theory with the goal of finding the most potent theory for structuring and guiding studies of how changes occur in the curriculum of American public schools. For…

Reviews the history of cataloging instruction in library schools in the United States from 1887 to the present, showing that insufficient time is currently devoted to cataloging theory and practice. The findings related to cataloging education of an American Library Association task force are discussed, and recommendations for the future are…

Stresses the importance of clarity and specificity of behavioral outcomes in the formulation of educational objectives. Suggests that curriculum development is more of an art than a science. (GC)

Surveys the history of library education and publishing from 1876 to the present in order to examine the relationship between the curriculum in library science schools and library literature. The emphasis is on how publishing for library education is influenced by changes in curriculum and how practice in librarianship influences both. (58…

Since education is both a science and an art, it is difficult for curriculum theorists to develop rules and principles which apply to both aspects. Practical uses of curriculum theory include the application of existing models to specific situations, and practitioners using their own practical experiences and relating them to curriculum models.…

Through the process of critical thinking and in a collaborative learning environment, foreign language instruction can be more than a required skill; it is an integral part of a liberal education. Critical thinking is part of the basic process of learning, not a higher order of thinking to be saved for advanced courses. Students thinking in…

Curriculum theorists should develop three classes of propositions: (1) definitional propositions, which involve the curriculum design and curriculum system; (2) normative or descriptive propositions, which involve goals in planning the curriculum and designing an evaluation scheme; and (3) predictive propositions, which involve the correlative…

Considers Goswami's (1999) review of available evidence for and against the role of phonological rime awareness and analogy theory, concluding much of the evidence fits an alternative (non-rime) interpretation. Explores implications from this evidence for teaching and the role of rime analogy should play in the British National Curriculum. (SG)

The lack of cultural content, low interest level, and crowdedness of second language textbooks arise because every textbook represents a compromise: between the publisher's need to sell a book and the author's need to address specific pedagogical issues, and between the need to explain grammatical points fully and the need to explain them briefly.…

The historical development of curriculum materials in the social studies is outlined. Principles offering the potential to effect major changes are described and a set of guidelines for a rational social studies curriculum is established. (JMF)

This article looks at the implications of the Culture Syllabus of the National Core French Study for Canadian French teachers. It also examines some of the suggestions made regarding how culture should be taught. (JL)

A review of arguments for and against including business ethics courses in the Master of Business Administration (MBA) curriculum reveals strongly opposing views. Those favoring business ethics courses argue that such courses teach a way to approach and think through a problem and provide a framework for judging behavior, that the university must…

A survey of 425 high school journalism students indicated that these students considered journalism education as an opportunity for learning to improve their writing. These results indicate that journalism education should be taken more seriously as a necessary part of the high school English curriculum. (RL)

While thematic curriculum designs based on Bruner's structuralism are a great improvement over the old chronological literature anthologies, they still ignore several important contexts in which a literary work might be studied. The multifunctional approach can provide this complexity of contexts. (SJL)

A proposal for curriculum criticism contains three characteristics: (1) Criticism provides a view of curricula from the perspective of the student; (2) Criticism provides an assessment from the viewpoint of the critic; and (3) Criticism reveals the common interactions of students with facets of the curricula. (JN)