Argues for a richer, more varied English Instruction experience for "vocational track" students. Suggests several methods for creating a more powerful vocational/English curriculum. Concludes that it is not the place of any teacher or school to decide what kinds of literacy students will or will not need or want in their futures. (SG)

Considers reasons that teachers and students alike do not read for pleasure. Lists three steps to address this: defining the teacher's reading philosophy; defining students' reading philosophies; and fusing reading research and curricular expectations. Describes how the author focuses her curriculum to accommodate more reading. (SG)

"Back to Prosperity. A Competitive Agenda for Renewing Pennsylvania" was a shot across the bow for the state. The report's findings and the work of Richard Florida and the Social Impact of the Arts Project--taken together with the rich intellectual movement of music education during the latter half of the twentieth century and the…

Initial teacher education programmes, in order to comply with the requirements for teacher registration, are usually expected to introduce student teachers to the mandated curriculum. Often this is done uncritically, so students tend to accept rather than examine the underlying epistemological model which partitions knowledge into distinct…

This reaction to the papers in this PME Special Issue of "Educational Studies in Mathematics" draws a wider perspective on the issues addressed and some of the constructs used in research in Realistic Mathematics Education (RME). In particular, it tries to show that while the problems addressed existed within the world-wide arena of…

In the first decades of the IT revolution, disproportionate amounts of intellectual energy and financial investment were expended in building out the technology foundations. As a result, campuses now rely heavily on technology and Web resources that, though radically altering the academic landscape, have remained centered on the build-out of core…

The classroom experience contains an infinite number of variables that cannot realistically be related to in any manageable teacher's manual. When manuals aim at being "practical", what is produced is often something that looks like practicality, but is not. Curriculum-writing needs a new approach, intended to educate teacher rather than students.…

This article provides new information about how compacting can be effective with first grade high ability students in a rural Alabama school district. Curriculum compacting was designed to eliminate already-mastered content and to provide students with enrichment activities in the time saved. The study, which replicated some aspects of the…

Both the special education and gifted education literature call for a differentiated curriculum to cater for the wide range of student differences in any classroom. Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences was integrated with the revised Bloom's taxonomy to provide a planning tool for curriculum differentiation. Teachers' progress in using the…

Using his thirty years of international experience with future-focused Outcomes-Based Education designs and models as a foundation, Dr. Spady describes a five-step process for translating the familiar twelve SAQA "Critical Outcomes" into a compelling life-performance framework of "exit outcomes" that directly empowers learners and genuinely…

The career academy experience challenges the assumptions of traditional high school about the role of schooling for students' career and college transitions and stresses contextual and integrated teaching. This alternative educational approach encourages teachers to focus more collectively on preparing students through their curriculum,…

In this paper we argue for the incorporation of critical pedagogy in the teaching of sociology. We first establish the theoretical and emancipatory rationale for critical pedagogy with a review of the neomarxist concept of reproduction. We then examine a specific application of critical pedagogy in the sociology curriculum of Western Oregon…

Most current substance abuse counselor certification education curricula do not include a systematic introduction to alcohol and substance abuse research. I believe that such an introduction would enhance counselor cooperation in research to practice efforts that are currently underway. In this paper I give a brief history of alcoholism and…

A school's curriculum can appear unrelated, fragmented, or somewhat disjointed if not done with an end in mind. This fragmentation or disjointedness often affects students and their views of the experiences being given them in school. Various curriculum-integration techniques, however, can be used to help make the big picture more understandable…

The state educational system in Israel reflects the declared character of the state as a "Jewish state", and, consequently, the deep inter-group divisions in society, including a large Palestinian Arab minority. This study demonstrates how Israeli educational policy and curriculum are designed to support the Jewish nation-building…