A historical view of the production and treatment of human difference and diversity in Ontario (Canada) school policy and practices is presented. Five distinct patterns are identified that have characterized the educational treatment of difference and diversity in Ontario. It is argued that continuing examination of the treatment of difference is…

Review of feminist scholarship on gender provides a tool for tracing gender concepts taken for granted in theoretical and applied aspects of experiential education. Examines the concept of gender as theorized in competing frameworks: as personality factor, structural category, or identity constituted in social relations. Suggests approaches to…

This article analyzes implementation of the "Code of Practice on the Identification and Assessment of Special Educational Needs" by special schools in England and Wales. A survey of schools, including 73 special schools, concluded that the Code's potential universality is being lost through an overemphasis on implementation of procedural…

Data on teacher self-assessment practices were collected from 17 elementary teachers in 4 focus groups. Common themes included process and product indicators that triggered self-assessment, irrelevance of most formal teacher evaluations, lack of time for reflection and self-assessment, need for administrator and collegial support, and the nature…

Sixteen external-degree adult students were interviewed during their first year of study to examine the nature of academic self-concept in distance education. It was determined that academic self-concept was related to both the process and the content of learning and that modifications in educational practices can potentially enhance learners'…

This exploration of the assessment of teachers' practical knowledge begins with a description of the characteristics of teacher knowledge and a discussion of the importance of teacher views and teaching as a profession. The possibilities and problems associated with assessing teacher practical knowledge are discussed. (SLD)

Explores educational reform at the turn of the century, documenting the influence of European educational thought and practice on the work of John Dewey and the influence of Dewey's ideas on education in Turkey, Russia, and the Netherlands. A context-specific approach to discussions of Progressivism is required. (SLD)

Describes an analytic framework developed to support principals' instructional leadership in the context of contemporary reform perspectives. The leadership model suggests "lenses" through which educational experience can be examined: (1) content standards; (2) performance standards and assessment; (3) teacher instructional practices;…

Argues that politics and ideology have clouded the debate over education policy and hindered efforts to create the quality schools need most. Questions whether scientific research can help in creating students with "higher-order thinking." Discusses the consensus of research on pedagogy, classroom environment, pace, clarity, managing and…

Describes music as a mnemonic that adds variety and interest to the curriculum and is an important component of multisensory learning. Offers suggestions for creating/using story songs with young children, including the use of one musical phrase in an existing story and creating a melody for an entire story. Gives practical advice for using and…

Provides background information on music therapy. Discusses how music therapy works in the public school setting and offers advice to music teachers. Explores music therapy and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, addressing the benefits of having access to music therapists. (CMK)

This article synthesizes key principles that teachers should utilize to support English language learners in mainstream early childhood classrooms. Principles include treating children fairly, which entails treating children differently; providing an appropriate language environment; providing adequate English instruction to allow basic…

States that collaborative learning has been absent from the field of music education. Presents a literature review on collaborative learning, focusing on issues such as the issue of student achievement and the difference between cooperative and collaborative learning. Explores research on collaborative learning in music education. Includes…

Examines the consequences of teachers' collegial social relations for high school students' mathematics and science achievement. Uses data that focused on 3,000 subjects in a national sample of public high schools (n=52). Finds that when department faculties form collegial foci the effects of their instructional practices on students' achievement…

Examined how the scrutiny under which male teachers of kindergarten through third grade must work affects their teaching practices. Found that very few men enter the field as a way to become an administrator. Men are more likely to accept promotions to escape the scrutiny associated with daily teaching, and men often develop compensatory behaviors…