Integration of vocational and academic education at the secondary level has been suggested as a way to strengthen students' education. Concerns about the vocational-academic split found in high schools center around human rights issues; economic competitiveness dependent on strengthened education; and graduates unprepared for life, work, or…

As second language teaching moves away from traditional graded exercises to instruction in which communicative competence is the primary focus, exercises have become practice- and task-based, and systematic grading and diagnostic testing have disappeared. Students are sometimes being asked to perform tasks with which they would have difficulty in…

A reprint of a 1975 article on multi-sensory exercises for communicative second language learning is presented. The article begins by noting that the use of drills as a language learning and practice technique had been lost in the trend toward communicative language teaching, but that drills can provide a means of gaining functional control of…

An innovative high school curriculum in Finland is designed so that the year is divided into six 6-week periods. In an experiment begun in fall 1989, English second language instruction was provided to second-year students in the form of content-area instruction in computer science, chemistry, and physics at one of two levels. Each course lasted…

An English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) curriculum is presented that was developed and implemented by the Spanish Education Development (SED) Center in Washington, D.C. SED's ESL program, which offers beginning and intermediate instruction during the day and evening, expands from a traditional survival skills base by incorporating a problem solving…

Ten randomly-chosen U.S. American Library Association (ALA) accredited programs which grant the first professional degree in library and information science (LIS) were studied to determine to what degree, and in what manner, 15 information technologies (ITs) based on computers have been incorporated into the curricula. The method of study included…

There are major differences between rural and urban education, yet most educational reform efforts have been heavily urban oriented. While reform movements of the 1980s may have benefited urban schools, they have only added to the problems of rural education. Some of the conditions often associated with rural schools are: poverty, reform generated…

The 107 citations in this annotated bibliography reflect diverse perspectives on curriculum integration and the arts. Annotations of periodicals, journal articles, books, school curriculum guides, and program guides are included. Section 1 provides 34 citations on general interdisciplinary concepts from curriculum design to implementation. Section…

Heritage education is an approach to teaching, rather than an academic discipline or subject area. It draws on history, geography, literature, the arts, architecture, and the social and natural sciences to study the evidence of the past remaining in the natural and built environment, the material culture, written documents, and in community…

This review examines both the popular and research literature on interdisciplinary teaching and learning at the middle grades level. The review discusses terminology; the rationale for integrating learning; and such features of the interdisciplinary approach as a curriculum plan demonstrating "connectedness," a holistic approach, preparation for…

The presently used school calendar is based in early agrarian society when children were needed as summer farm labor. Because the needs of the United States have changed, the school year format should be reconsidered. Year-round education (YRE) includes any change made in the school calendar that reorganizes the standard 180 day school year,…

Model learner outcomes for music education as developed by the State of Minnesota are presented in this document. The material is organized in four chapters. Chapter 1 presents the Minnesota State Board of Education's statements on education values, learner values, philosophy, mission, and goals. Chapter 2 outlines a rationale for arts in the…

This annotated bibliography includes about 170 citations of dissertations, articles, papers, and other studies concerning the development of writing skills in non-native English-speakers. The works cited are based on the collection and analysis of data, and do not include articles describing or prescribing pedagogical approaches or curricula.…

This paper suggests that, in times of economic crisis, libraries may find support by establishing "Friends of the Library" groups, and reports that, with the assistance of Arizona's Northland Pioneer College's (NPC) Department of Library/Media Technology, several such library groups have been established. The success of the Friends of…

The National Core French Study had the objectives of defining and developing four syllabuses and assessing their applicability in Core French classes in Canadian elementary and secondary schools. The Culture Syllabus is reported here. The first chapter defines "francophone culture" and discusses its role in Core French program. A review…