This article examines the kinds of changes undergraduate colleges are making in their curricula in response to the ongoing debate about the quality of undergraduate education. The authors detail responses to a survey of 226 institutions on educational change, noting that most adopted a wide variety of recent changes that had a positive impact on…

Outlines the characteristics of standards-based, worthy uses of new technologies in education and describes characteristics of an effective school district change process that engages teachers in adult learning that is curriculum-rich and focuses on enhancing student performance. Topics include engaged learning; professional development; and…

This article highlights strategies used at various Kentucky universities to recruit, retain, and mentor minority educators. Recruitment strategies include making staff diversity an institutional priority, involving enrolled minority students in recruiting others, and establishing a separate budget for minority candidate recruitment. Retention…

Discusses the collaborative efforts of educators, parents, the program coordinator, and a consultant in a bilingual child care setting in Montreal to find solutions to the poor fit between a preschool-age child's behavior, educator expectations, and the classroom setting. Includes discussion of the educators' strategies, the team approach, the…

In this interview, Dr. Abraham Tannenbaum, an author and leader of numerous research projects concerning gifted and talented students, discusses homeschooling, the impact of charter schools, magnet schools, and school choice on gifted education, the Ganiech psychosocial definition of giftedness, and the development of gifted programs. (Contains 7…

This article summarizes findings presented in a report by the Audit Commission on the provision for children with disabilities. It discusses widespread dissatisfaction with student assessment, development of statements, resource allocation to support children with special educational needs, and procedures to ensure services are effective.…

Using young women with eating disorders as examples, this article examines how misdirected critical thinking can become very non-productive. The negative side of the characteristics of critical thinkers (precise, reflective, analytical, and reasonable) are described in these adolescents, and key steps to addressing misdirected thinking are…

The challenges and potential benefits of automating university libraries are reviewed, with special attention given to cooperative systems. Aspects discussed include database size, the role of the university computer center, storage modes, multi-institutional systems, resource sharing, cooperative system management, networking, and intelligent…

Uses the literature on teacher change and learning to teach, and examples from a teacher change research project, to examine how research can be used to bring about change in teaching practices. Suggests that the empirical premises derived from research, combined with a teacher's practical knowledge, can produce teacher change. (FMW)

Translates research findings regarding gender inequities in education into pragmatic strategies for change. Describes strategies for change which administrators, academic support services, and faculty may use to pursue the goal of enhancing gender sensitivity in communication education. (KEH)

The University of Wisconsin, in the third year of a high-profile drive to increase minority enrollments, is having difficulty reaching its goals despite realistic goals and appropriate efforts. Competition for a limited minority population among the state's private and public colleges and universities is intense, and racial tension persists. (MSE)

A disturbing increase in incidents of racism and prejudice is occurring in schools. Suggested strategies for improving school race relations include the following: (1) adopt a firm policy of zero tolerance for racism in any form; (2) start early; (3) expand social contacts between racial groups; and (4) add multicultural education programs to the…

Describes the United Nations University as a community of research scholars engaged in postgraduate training, and an international network of interdisciplinary research on global issues. Provides a synopsis of the work of various centers that have concentrated on the issues of hunger, natural resources, and human/social resource development. (NL)

Examines the effects of educational reforms and how one-sided reform ideologies, which provide little practical guidance, were reinterpreted and modified by principals and teachers. Uses a multilevel case study to analyze the relations between ideology and practice using functional, conflict, and loose-coupling theories. (FMW)

Discusses the book "Politics, Markets, and America's Schools," by John Chubb and Terry Moe. They claim the school reform movement has not worked, and a massive, deadening bureaucracy is ruining American education. They suggest a new system for effective schooling based on good organization and parental choice. (SM)