Discusses the dynamic nature of the struggle between desire and discipline in an elementary school setting. Emphasizes that these competing forces and the ensuing struggle profoundly affect a child's secondary socialization. Findings reveal that even very young children acquiesce to and resist authority in many ways, learning complicated lessons…

The well-being of adolescents relates to choices made during discretionary time. Participation in organized recreation provides for constructive use of free time and development of skills for managing discretionary time. This article reviews literature on adolescents' basic developmental needs and discusses social contexts of adolescence, making…

Summarizes and comments on a series of interviews with Chinese students in the United States regarding conflicts with landlords, professors, and merchants. Discusses the dichotomy between their desire to assert themselves and their feelings of apprehension dealing with unfamiliar relationships and power structures. Considers this experience in…

Rates of change in behaviors in relation to community adjustment were examined for 292 participants in the 7-year longitudinal National Adolescent and Child Treatment Study (NACTS) as they transitioned to the adult world. Participants with initially higher social-adaptive behavior and whose behavior improved over time attained higher adjustment…

Evaluated social competence and problem behaviors of 200 Japanese preschoolers. Found anxiety-withdrawal, anger- aggression, and social competence factors as well as age and gender differences in emotional and behavioral problems and social competence. Found consistency with previous findings from U.S. and Canadian samples. (DLH)

Traces historical precedents of values development and citizenship education in the United States and Canada. Proposes a framework for democratic values education. Explores teaching methods and classroom environments that promote democratic citizenship education. Exhorts social studies educators to integrate teaching and learning in citizenship…

Questions how teacher autonomy in school-based curriculum is perceived by teachers and planners in Israel's kibbutzim. Discovers that planners view teachers as primarily consumers, while teachers see themselves in the more active role of selectors and adapters. Study focused on four components of autonomy and employed questionnaires and…

Examined 14 low-income mothers' socialization goals for their preschool children and the role of child-care providers in achieving those goals. Subjects' views of preschool learning were not entirely congruent with a constructivist approach to learning, and were linked to other cultural models of childrearing, including respecting authority,…

Suggests the lack of research concerning contexts of human development has caused environmental influences to be not well known or studied. Discusses primary and secondary developmental contexts. Proposes four properties of the ecological environment that foster human development. Details impact of third parties on a setting, interconnections…

Profiles current Russian research on political culture and values. Reports on a study of the spread of materialist and postmaterialist values among nearly 6,000 Russians between 1984 and 1993. Discusses the social and demographic variables that exert the greatest influence on the spread of values. (CFR)

Data were collected on the media exposure of between 64 and 101 Moroccan adolescents and their use of media images in social behavior, choice of mate, and career aspirations. Although males had more exposure to Western media, both sexes were eager to reconcile traditional Islamic and contemporary media-relayed values. (SLD)

Briefly explores differences between educational systems in Switzerland and the United States. Discusses 9 assumptions and 21 contradictions concerning shortcomings of compulsory public schooling in the United States. Suggests that schooling has moved away from intellectual development or skills training toward socializing students to become part…

Asserts that little attention has been paid to the effects of a subgroup's status on its attitudes toward war and peace. Reports on a study of 151 college students on their patriotism and nationalism during the Gulf War. Finds minority students were more supportive of a peaceful solution to the crisis. (CFR)

This study describes the participation of English-as-a-Second-Language (L2) students in the daily classroom events of a mainstream first-grade classroom. It discusses how, through socially significant interactional routines, classroom members jointly constructed the L2 students' identities, social relations, and ideologies, as well as their…

This study described 476 recruits' physical education backgrounds and beliefs about the purposes for physical education. Students' most frequently stated purpose for physical education was learning skills/activities. Sports experiences influenced recruits' beliefs about physical education. (SM)