In the US, undeniable evidence shows that socioeconomic inequities explain a high proportion of individual differences in school achievement. Although not all countries show this same effect due to socioeconomic status, it is consistently found that social inequities lead to achievement gaps. These achievement gaps then manifest into trajectories…

Speaking to the political and social upheaval of our present moment, and drawing on discourses of democratic education, we argue that the U.S.'s racial reckoning propelled by recent events constitutes a sort of "founding" for our democracy and that this founding has important implications for reconfiguring citizenship within institutions…

Most definitions of emotionally disturbed youngsters suggest that disturbances in the child's behavior patterns cause academic and social problems which affect the child and his peers. While the process of identification may be facilitated by operational criteria within a definition, these factors are noticeably absent from definitions of…

Children encounter new words every day. Although dictionaries designed for young readers can help students explore and experiment with language, it turns out many mainstream children's dictionaries fail to accurately describe the world in which many students live. The challenges to children's dictionary publishers can be steep. First, there is the…

For over a decade, museum educators have discussed the need for civic or community engagement, where according to the American Alliance of Museums, a museum becomes "a center where people gather to meet and converse and an active, visible player in civic life, a safe haven, and a trusted incubator of change." What are the obstacles to…

The characteristics of the Russian intelligentsia, and even its definition, have been debated since the nineteenth century and continue to be a source of disagreement in Putin's Russia. The array of problems relating to the intelligentsia continues to be an inseparable element of ideas about historical experience and its fate that, in conjunction…

Outlines a few items of "unfinished business" in the profession of evaluation, focusing on outcome evaluation, also called impact evaluation. No issue related to the future of evaluation seems more important than that of finding routine methods to assess the impact of everyday practical programs on the social conditions they address.…

The problems and extent of adult illiteracy are presented in this workshop report, which explores how computer and communication technology might be applied in adult literacy education. The introduction provides statistics and a discussion of past and current attempts to teach illiterate adults. The major portion of the report focuses on what…

Traces the elusive search for a social studies definition since 1916. Explains debate over social studies as social science or as selective use of knowledge to promote citizenship. Attributes social studies' indeterminate focus to its objective of reflecting social reality. Suggests definition should recognize social studies as a field of applied…

On the premise that researchers, practitioners, and policy makers lack an extensive and systematic examination of the concerns of the aging, this monograph examines American social issues as a context for a functional definition of aging and a taxonomy for use in conducting research. Issues are examined with regard to aging and work in four areas…