Argues that too often public schools appear to focus on keeping order and giving students minimal vocational skills. Maintains that such schools should get out of the newspaper business rather than inculcate students with false conceptions as to what freedom of speech and press encompass--and what it means to be a responsible citizen in a…

Asserts that the development of religious liberty in the United States can be used to view the nation's history. Reviews significant events and issues related to religious liberty from colonial times to the present. Concludes that the struggle between individual liberty and government authority will continue to link religion and history. (CFR)

Argues Fukayama's assertion of "end of history" must be seen as attempt to establish new civil theology to guide political deliberations. Asserts Fukayama thesis is based on Hegelian view of ideas becoming real through human imagination and will. Claims end of era is not identical to end of history and that socialism will be reborn in…

Highlights tensions between capitalism and democracy, noting the effect on educational systems and arguing that some order can be brought to the heterogeneity and confusion by understanding that they are two profoundly different and oppositional logics. The paper reviews the works of several authors and discusses capitalist totalism and…

Truly democratic politics is lacking in mainstream teacher education. Instead of being structured around efficient production and personal ambition, teacher preparation should be organized to reflect more elevated concerns about educational quality and emergent political and social consequences. Move to professionalize teaching has risen from…

Maintains that political liberalism and the democratic ideal provide the foundation for almost all contemporary political thought. Argues that, contrary to most theoretical constructs, there is a natural tension between the fundamental ideals of liberalism and those of democracy. (CFR)

Reviews Robert Westbrook's book, "John Dewey and American Democracy," which analyzes intellectual debates in which Dewey was involved. The book provides a critical account of Dewey's role as an agent of political change and a promoter of participatory democracy and participative decision making. (SM)

Even as Goals 2000 (the latest manifestation of factory-model schooling) is being adopted nationwide, a smaller, but growing counter-movement aimed at decentralizing and democratizing public schools has emerged. Manifestations include magnet and charter schools and the new, smaller, autonomous institutions called in-district charter or pilot…

Explores qualities of diversity and sharing in the context of science education in light of larger societal goals around public school education. Argues that tensions between competing visions constructs a space in which children actualize fundamentals of a democracy. Presents two stories about children whose additions to elementary science…

A course to prepare teachers as school leaders centered on principles of leadership, being: (1) grounded in a vision of teaching and learning; (2) collaborative, democratic, and purposeful; and (3) systematic in effecting changes and supporting a new culture. Future administrators and teacher leaders must be prepared together. (SK)

Discusses the Step by Step Program, funded by the Open Society Institute (OSI) and operated in Eastern and Central Europe, former Soviet states, Haiti, and South Africa. Discusses OSI's belief that educating the youngest members of society in a way that encourages individualism, choice, initiative, and appreciation of differences can lead to a new…

Lists fundamental democratic concepts that make possible the sharing of educational ideas that foster democratic citizenship, and details how they are embodied in two programs: "We the People"...The Citizen and the Constitution, and "We the People"...Project Citizen. Describes how they are structured and have been adapted for curricula outside the…

Although students in Jonesboro, Arkansas, repeatedly claimed that the March 1998 killing of four schoolgirls and a teacher was motivated by a rejected boy's desire for revenge, reporters and authorities dismissed this explanation and gender's role in the crime. Closer analysis suggests opportunities and difficulties for educators who want…

Through examining the concept of rights in emergent South Africa policy, this article illustrates how philosophy can serve democratic policy in pursuit of the public good. Although the South African Schools Act establishes some institutional conditions for a right-based educational system, curriculum inadequacies may undermine this objective.…

Argues United States schools are in danger of failing to promote democratic values and democratic modes of thinking. Looks at policy mandates and the erosion of democracy, noting that critical reading of texts has taken a back seat to "teaching the basics," and that texts themselves have become a primary control mechanism in the de-democratization…