This paper posits that Americans have three frames of reference (individualism, diversity of origin, and pluralism) that impact values and actions. Individualism includes understanding relationships with others. The paper identifies and describes five different types of individualism in U.S. culture: (1) Protestant; (2) republican; (3)…

Learning the values of respect for the individual, fairness, responsible exercise of freedom, and belief in each person's ability to understand democracy is possible. Students should learn to practice four communication habits: the habit of search (teaching students that they are accountable and responsible for what they say); the habit of justice…

This book provides a collection of papers that address issues central to university ideals: the teaching of values, the role of philosophy and literary studies in their sister disciplines (especially history), the precarious balance between research and teaching, the defense of intellectual autonomy, and the public responsibility of the…

Noting that the Supreme Court in 1997 considered the question of whether the Internet would be regulated by the government as broadcasting or whether it would remain as free as newspapers, this paper examines the difficulty involved in applying old law to new technology. It also notes that while journalism education generally has accepted…

The Equal Access Act of 1984 was drafted to implement access for religious clubs to public secondary schools, but with constitutionally protected safeguards to preclude entanglement of church and state. A number of challenges were made on the constitutional grounds of excessive entanglement of church and state, as well as what the definition of…

The focus of this paper is the extent to which the judiciary sets the tone for freedom of speech in educational environment, and in so doing, helps define educational institutions themselves. In particular, the paper examines what the federal courts have said about the roles and obligations of educators when dealing with the rights of public…

This short document is a statement by the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators Board of Directors on racial harassment and colleges' and universities' responsibilities to create an environment where such acts are unacceptable. The statement defines racial harassment and asserts the educational community's need to stand against…

Legislation, rulings, and arguments for and against public schools giving creationism equal time or consideration with evolution are discussed. In the 1920's fundamentalists began to promote statutes prohibiting the teaching of evolution in public schools. Since that time the creationists have sought to supplant evolution with creationism on the…

Political responses to the "cult of efficiency" in the schools, academic freedom, and the role of education in social reform between 1914 and 1921 are traced in issues of the "Nation" and the "New Republic." The variety within political liberalism at the time was reflected in a similar diversity of educational…

This paper discusses the issues involved and presents an overall picture of attempts to censor the April 11, 1938 issue of "Life" magazine featuring a four-page spread of 35 pictures from the film "The Birth of a Baby." It examines contemporary news accounts from newspapers published in New York, Boston, Chicago, St. Louis, New…

Court decisions show that school officials must protect the freedoms guaranteed students by the U. S. Constitution, including the right to distribute unpopular literature excluding material that is obscene or libelous, or that contains fighting words or promotes lawless action. (Available from the Institute of Government, University of North…

The "pig in the parlor" refers to a growing area of censorship. In this paper, "parlor" stands for public schools, and "pig" for speech that need not be protected if it occurs at an inappropriate time or place, i.e., if such speech is not considered to bear the "imprimatur" of the schools. A review of the…

Educators are being called upon by various groups to provide ethics instruction as part of the public schools' curricula. At the same time, teachers are coming under close scrutiny for accountability as well as being subjected to decisions about education made by legislators, school boards, and the courts. Moreover, they are finding themselves…

Focusing on the Library Awareness Program, these two congressional hearings scrutinize the efforts of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to collect counterintelligence data from librarians regarding their patrons. Two examples of proposed legislation to address the question of intellectual privacy and confidentiality are included. Testimony…