Background: Research regarding beginning teachers' typical responses to the difficulties encountered at work relates to the professional, personal and environmental aspects of teaching. At the professional level, research describes mainly the beginner's difficulties in dealing with discipline problems, in using teaching methods efficiently, in…

This article explores the motivation to learn German for learners already proficient in English as a second language. Discussed are parts of the findings of an empirical study investigating the motivation of 12 Chinese students to study German as a major at a university in Hong Kong. The data collected for the duration of two academic semesters…

Teachers want to do their best for every child, but worry about causing offence and often shy away from troublesome issues. The classroom situations and strategies presented here will help teachers negotiate their way through complex situations and bring about constructive change. This book clarifies concepts and value differences and the subtle…

Traces the origin of the Values Clarification movement in education in Carl Roger's clien-centered therapy and exposes its unwarranted extreme ethical stance. Examines a model episode of values clarification and shows how the theoretical confusions of the Values Clarification proponents are reflected in their actual teaching strategies. (Editor/RK)

The literature and research on values are examined in terms of the implications for teaching values at the baccalaureate level. Instructional strategies that are compatible with the valuing process are suggested. (Author/LBH)

Practical and theoretical problems associated with incorporating values clarification as an element of health education are explored. Guidelines for teaching values clarification are offered. (DF)

While national progress on aspects of academic excellence (the achievement gap, end-of-grade testing, standardized college placement exams, and so on) is a main feature of today's education agenda, character education is never far from commensurate policy attention. Because the notion of character is value-laden, it can be difficult to craft a…

Young children's beliefs about what is right and wrong traditionally have been strongly influenced by their families. However, today children often come to school with problematic behaviors and attitudes. Character education has become a necessity. Character education programs have a positive effect on achievement, classroom behaviors, and…

This paper is a tentative attempt to unwrap and understand one aspect of playful practice and the influences which determine its existence in early years settings. "Storying" events, those occasions when teachers and children together "make up" stories or parts of stories, develop roles or co-construct fantasies, occur moment by moment in some…

We examine the implications of dual-processing theories of cognition for the moral domain, with particular emphasis upon "System 1" theories: the Social Intuitionist Model (Haidt), moral heuristics (Sunstein), fast-and-frugal moral heuristics (Gigerenzer), schema accessibility (Lapsley & Narvaez) and moral expertise (Narvaez). We argue that these…

As students, educators, outreach and community service experts enter their distinct professional worlds, each will be compelled to make a wide variety of decisions. The shaping of peoples' ethical beliefs occurs through personal experiences as well as family, culture, religion and peer pressure. In order for these students, educators, outreach and…

For many rural schools the view outside the classroom window is one of scenic fields, pasture lands, or forests nestled at the base of mountains. Despite the proximity of rural schools to both agricultural land and the natural world, what little connection to place that may have existed in rural schools' curricula has been disappearing as schools…

Environmental ethicists have focused much attention on the limits of utilitarianism and have generally defined "environmental ethics" in a manner that treats utilitarian environmental ethics as an oxymoron. This is unfortunate because utilitarian ethics can support strong environmental policies, and environmental ethicists have not yet produced a…

The purposes of this content analysis of action research studies on teaching composition are two-fold: to examine action research studies on teaching classroom compositions to learn more about classroom composition pedagogy, including the values and beliefs that shaped the instruction and findings; and secondly, to demonstrate how narrative…

This article presents findings from a study examining how a secondary social studies teacher used curriculum and pedagogy to help racially/ethnically diverse students from low socioeconomic backgrounds build community to become active citizens with the capacity for democratic living. In particular, the article discusses his emphasis on critical…