Argues that the school restructuring movement offers considerable promise for enhancing educational equity. Reviews equity definitions, outlines restructuring principles, and describes three powerful ethics (competitive/utilitarian, social justice, and caring) underlying current attempts to highlight equity values in education. Presents a strategy…

Provides a framework for examining classroom practice to see how technology is used to support democratic participation in Canadian education. Six examples are given of the use of computers in elementary and secondary schools that promote fuller participation; and information technology, democracy, and education are discussed. (nine references)…

The elite model of education postulates that only a select few have the intellectual capacity, moral values, and personal commitment to make "good" decisions for society. A democratically based classroom, where students are respected for their intellectual abilities, personal integrity, and commitment to achievement, fosters successful…

John Dewey's model of education was more expansive than the character-education concepts promulgated by early twentieth-century corporate elites. Dewey linked individual to community, inquiry and reflection processes to action, and personal ethical decisions to social intelligence and democracy. This article shows how these educational components…

Ethical instruction is a difficult task in any society, but doubly so in the U.S., because our culture stresses individual development over commitment to the group. Attention to school bonding, special ethics instruction, California's Community of Caring project, and community service opportunities are powerful strategies to aid moral development.…

Educators should stop seeing self-esteem only in individualistic terms and move toward an integrated view of self and social relations. To enhance self-esteem, schools must value authentic participation, collaborative action, a problem-centered curriculum, and interdependent diversity and banish tracking, autocratic procedures, unicultural…

Based on the author's experiences working with several elementary schools, this article explores numerous issues confronting change agents who venture directly into grass-roots school reform projects. Focus is on the change-agent role and issues concerning ideology, power, and commitment. Outside consultants should be participants rather than…

The arts deserve an integral place in schools, since they provide outlets for individuality, enhance thinking and language skills, and possess intrinsic educational value. Arts counter modern society's awesome drive for conformity by offering opportunities for authenticity and spontaneity. Arts offer the last glimmer of warmth and humaneness in a…

Responds to comments by David Hursh and Aggie Seneway on the author's classroom experiments with student democracy. Clarifies points from her initial article to answer questions by the commentators. Finds agreement with them on most points, except for the necessity of parliamentary debate as a fundamental element of democracy. (DSK)

Vermont's Equal Education Opportunity Act of 1997 will radically increase the proportion of state money designated for public education and transform the entire state taxation system. Spurred by a court decision invalidating the state's school finance system, Act 60 establishes a statewide property tax for a general state support grant, includes…

Neither standards/high-stakes testing nor privatization/charter-school improvement approaches will live up to proponents' ambitious claims. Standardized tests cannot uphold new performance goals. Charter schools serve limited numbers of students, siphoning off pedagogical reform energies that would benefit kids left behind. Rigor and innovation…

Describes the work of Florence B. Stratemeyer, a democratic teacher/educator who respected and was committed to her students and believed in their potential. Presents several anecdotes that typify her ability, her commitment to the practice of college teaching, and her relationships with others. (SM)

Suggests that a goal of schooling should be to educate students for democracy as a means of challenging a status quo in which a relatively small number of people control a disproportionate share of society's social and economic resources. Examines the potential of critical, pro-justice, whole-language instruction to help create the conditions for…

Democracy's strength and Achilles's heel is freedom. The freedom democracy espouses permits myriad intrusions into schooling's primary mission--educating the young for the stewardship of democracy. Teachers must be caring, moral stewards of our schools--educated to understand democratic fundamentals and become good "crap detectors." (MLH)

Describes the international civic education program, Civitas, including background on its creation, national and international significance of and need for the program, program goals, elements for systematic implementation of civic education, program organization, program products and their effectiveness, and illustrative examples of program…