This contribution compares entries on Friedrich Froebel and the kindergarten in German and United States' histories of education from 1857 to 1933. In the American histories, Froebel appears as the great "hero" of education of the 19th century, whereas in the German histories, Pestalozzi is the "hero." This difference in the…

This paper locates the current technology related school reform movement in the backdrop of growing international debate and illustrates through discourse analysis why teachers and teacher educators need to engage in deeper levels of critical dialogue over the move to plug schools into the so-called knowledge economy. The objective is to raise…

The history of distance education in Russia and in the former Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) is a history of dramatic change in ideology, conceptual framework, and approach. It can be divided into two main stages: initial formation and development into the world's largest system of correspondence learning, from the mid 1920s to the…

The author of this article challenges a common assumption made by both critics and defenders of standardized-testing technology (or psychometry), namely that standardized tests "measure" something (culture, ability, etc.). It argues that psychometric practice cannot be classified as a form of measurement and instead is best understood as…

Following prolonged discussion, the Austrian government has passed a new University Act which will provide universities with a semiautonomous status. The reform is the most incisive change of the university system for the past 150 years and has been preceded by an equally momentous change in the status of the teaching faculty and staff, all future…

This paper assesses some of the framework issues, of policy and provision, which affect the connections between teaching and research in higher education. The presumption of an essential linkage between research and teaching has in recent years been eroded by the sheer quantities of the system. In spite of the enduring appeal of the Humboldtian…

Educators often ignore the political requirements of urban reform in their focus on the research and models that guide it. Conversely, political scientists frequently miss the differences among reforms in their focus on coalitions and resources. Integrating Clarence N. Stone's concept of "civic capacity" with an educator's view of reform…

New Jersey's urban--or "Abbott"--schools have improved at the preschool and elementary school level, but lag when it comes to middle and high school performance. These are the key findings of an Abbott Indicators Project report entitled, "The Abbott Districts in 2005-06: Progress and Challenges." The report was prepared by…

The pages of this book illustrate that as instruments of socialization and sites of ideological discourse textbooks are powerful artefacts in introducing young people to a specific historical, cultural and socioeconomic order. Crucially, exploring the social construction of school textbooks and the messages they impart provides an important…

The United Kingdom and other governments have demonstrated faith in information and communications technology (ICT) as a means of achieving a participative and inclusive society through various high-profile initiatives. It is also claimed that ICT or e-learning can bring about new patterns of power and participation for excluded learners. In this…

This paper explores spatial theory, and particularly a Foucauldian analysis of space, power, and the subject, as a frame within which to examine moves toward security in North American urban schools. We bring into play empirical data from an ethnographic study of New York City and Toronto schools where policies and technologies of record-keeping,…

Historical studies have tended to take a simplistic view of minority groups as passive victims of an oppressive and racist public school system. This book looks at Mexican Americans as active agents in history and documents their quest for educational equality in Texas--a state notorious for its record of inferior and separate schooling for…

This collection of 12 essays is drawn from a May 1990 panel meeting in Paris, France in conjunction with a joint United Nations University/United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization project on "The Changing Role of the Universities." Papers are grouped into those on: the general role of the university, regional…

This paper describes the programs at the University of Kansas (UK) School of Education to encourage diversity. The TRIO programs, which include a regular Upward Bound program, an Upward Bound Math and Science Center, an Educational Talent Search, and a McNair Scholars Program, report to the associate dean for teacher education and play a key role…

Latinos are among the nation's most educationally disadvantaged and economically disenfranchised groups. Addressing this reality within the context of a rapidly changing economy and society, this book links educational practice and the structural dimensions that shape institutional life. Sections focus on the political economy of schooling,…