Widely appealing, the phrase "teaching for social justice" masks contested definitions, which, if left unaddressed, can undermine efforts to translate concern for social justice into practice. Yet there is little research recording and analyzing what teachers are actually saying and doing when teaching for social justice. The study described in…

This manual examines peace and justice themes with an interfaith focus. Each unit begins with an overview of the unit, the teaching procedure suggested for the unit and helpful resources noted. The volume contains the following units: (1) "Of Dreams and Vision"; (2) "The Prophets: Bearers of the Vision"; (3) "Faith and…

Even though social studies teachers may value discussion of controversial issues, such practice is rare in most social studies classrooms. Nystrand, Gamoran, and Carbonaro (1998) reported that 90 percent of the instruction they observed in more than one hundred middle and high school classes involved no discussion at all. What teachers cite as…

This paper looks at some of the issues raised by Ogbu's work in relation to the education of different minority ethnic groups. Ogbu poses questions such as the value attached to education, its links to the future and its measurable outcomes in terms of "success" as experienced by black participants. The desire for better life chances…

Lifelong learning has come to be internationally recognized as a framework in the development of sustainable education. However, in spite of rhetoric and its endorsement in some nations' policy documents, lifelong learning is not operationalized and Africa continues to be plagued by social maladies such as HIV/AIDS, capacity poverty, low quality…

Whereas political inequality was once seen as the key element of the American race problem, today the problem can be seen in terms of social and economic disparities. Three general socioeconomic classes have emerged in the United States, a middle class, a working class, and a poverty-stricken class. The status of African Americans can no longer be…

Data collected from a sample of over 200 elementary school children from Tennessee were used for studying their perceptions of the future. An interview guide-questionnaire provided information regarding children's perceptions along the following three different dimensions: how children perceived their own personal future; how they perceived…

Interdisciplinary learning is most simply defined as the co-teaching of courses by at least two faculty members from different departments in the institution. Interdisciplinary learning in the United States began after World War II with the proposal of a core curriculum covering Western civilization, literary texts, science, and English…

In many developing countries, girls have a lower quality of life than boys. Gender disparities exist before birth and become wider through the school-age and adolescents years. Discussion held at the Sixth International Forum of the Association for Women in Development (AWID) and the findings derived from them served as a catalyst for further…

This paper describes the activities of the Youth for Justice programs nationwide. Youth for Justice is a unique national initiative that uses the power of active learning about the law to build upon the vitality of young people and to address the risks of being young in American society today. Youth for Justice involves young people in law-related…

Three years after the release of its original report (1990), the U.S. Advisory Board on Child Abuse and Neglect reports that the child protection emergency has clearly deepened in all parts of the nation. Reports of child abuse and neglect have continued to climb; an inordinate number of children continue to die at the hands of caretakers; and…

The American dilemma, with regard to race, is posed as the question of how the nation can square its lofty ideals with the base realities of racial discrimination. This study, originally commissioned by the Carnegie Corporation in 1938, makes it clear that the struggle goes on in the hearts of all Americans. The root of the "Negro…

This study, originally commissioned by the Carnegie Corporation in 1938, makes it clear that the root of the "Negro problem" is the conflict between American moral valuations preserved in the American ideal and the valuations existing on specific planes of individual and group living. There is a jarring discrepancy between the professed…

This issue of the Canadian quarterly "Transitions," in French and English language versions, examines the prevention of youth crime, with a specific focus on activities, trends, and research dealing with Canadian families. Major articles in this issue are: (1) "A Snowball's Chance? Communities and Families Working to Prevent Youth…

Designed to help students understand substance abuse and exercise civic responsibility, this book examines the problem of drugs in an imagary middle school, "Jackson Middle School." Students are asked to work with other members of their class to develop a plan to deal with the problem of drugs and alcohol in that school. After completing their…